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In his famous work 'Evil and the God of love,' John Hick suggests that the 'Augustinian' type of theodicy is based on an outdated worldview and ought to be replaced by what he calls an 'Irenaean' type of theodicy. This article examines Hick's claim by analyzing the views of the three main theological exponents of the Augustinian paradigm on evil namely Augustine, John Calvin and Karl Barth. It suggests that Reformed theology rethinks its linear concept of time and considers the possibility that the Fall could be an event in time with an eternal significance that works both 'backwards' and 'forwards'. The article concludes that weaknesses in the Augustinian paradigm can be resolved from within, and that no need exists for Reformed theologians to replace the Augustinian paradigm with an alternative Ireneaen paradigm that reject key Scriptural teachings on creation and sin.

Ownership is an important identity marker. It provides people with a sense of autonomy, rootedness and opportunity. This essay examines the oral submissions of civil organisations to the Joint Constitutional Review Committee (04–07 September 2018) about the issue of land expropriation without compensation. The discussion pays specific attention to the philosophical understandings of land and identity that emerged during the hearings. Three dominant trajectories came into play, namely land as commodity, land as social space and land as spiritual inheritance. Some submissions espoused more than one view, which indicates that the boundaries between the identified paradigms are permeable. However, even those presentations tended to prioritise one approach above the others. Besides identifying the main approaches to land and identity, this essay also provides an immanent critique of their moral assumptions. In contrast to a transcendental approach, an immanent critique asks questions from ‘within’ and evaluates paradigms in terms of their plausibility, universal applicability, ethical consistency and moral integrity.

This article commences by reflecting on the evolving nature of traditions. In order to pass the continual test of plausibility and authenticity, traditions need to be flexible enough to incorporate new insights into its core intellectual matrix. Implausible elements need to be re-articulated or dispensed with. This rationale is subsequently applied to the reformed tradition who considers the necessity to continually reform itself (Ecclesia Semper Reformanda est) as a fundamental aspect of the tradition. Recently, various tenets of the reformed faith have come under scrutiny. These include the reformed faith’s understanding of God’s relation to creation; its view of human uniqueness; its understanding of original sin and the transmission of sin; and its supposed sola Scriptura approach to ethics. This article addresses these critiques by proposing that reformed theology incorporates the notion of creation as a gift in its thinking; that it dispenses with attempts to provide a historical narrative on the origin and transmission of sin and rather approach the theme from an existential perspective; and that it works towards an ethics that is scripturally based but ecclesiastically shaped.

Human dignity has proven to be a vague term in liberal rights discourse because of its broad range. This article attempted to provide a Christian definition of human dignity that is helpful in resolving tensions between equality and freedom. Firstly, it addressed the question of whether religious understandings of human dignity ought to be considered in the public domain. Secondly, it provided a theological perspective on dignity, equality and freedom and, lastly, it considered the special contribution that a Christian concept of dignity, equality and freedom can make to the rights discourse