Listening to Africa’s children in the process of practical theological interpretation: A South African application

Abstract

As part of the theological task of developing a publicly oriented ministry that will do justice to the social plight of children in Africa, this article adopted as its point of departure an appreciation of the new ‘hermeneutics of listening’ that is advanced today by an interdisciplinary movement of scholars from the disciplines of practical theology, theological ethics and religion studies. Emphasising the fact that this new hermeneutics is by and large the result of this scholarly movement’s newly-found engagement with, and exposure to, the social science field of childhood studies, the article moved from a more general appreciation of the new hermeneutical line of thinking to a more pertinent evaluation of the unfolding of this line of thinking in the scholarly context of Africa. In a further development that narrows the African focus to South Africa, the results from a recent empirical investigation amongst members of the South African practical theological academy were discussed in particular to determine the extent of this group’s shift to the new line of thinking. This led the article to make a concluding statement, in the light of its overt practical theological interest, about the way in which the new ‘hermeneutics of listening’ to children could still be seen as an important ongoing challenge, not only for practical theological scholarship in South Africa but also within the larger context of Africa.

Negotiating nostalgia: A pastoral reflection on the notion of ‘home’ within the context of displacement on the African continent

“…The 'hermeneutics of listening to children', as conceptualised by Swart and Yates (2012), is critical in our public practical theological approach to the existential reality of unaccompanied migrant children: [L]istening to children in the process of practical theological interpretation offers newly found opportunities for Christian theology and the church to contribute to the well-being of children as a local, national, continental and global public concern. Listening to children's voices does not only address questions about social justice, the participation rights of children and children's position as active agents in society; the act of listening to children is also about the survival and development of children, caring for them and protecting them from living conditions that dehumanise them -a way of promoting the human dignity of children as the image of God in each human being … it is also about communicating and being in relationships with children in order to realise supportive and companionable interactions in adult-child spaces.…”

Tracing the contribution of childhood studies: Maintaining momentum while navigating tensions

“…agency, rights, responsibility and struggles for justice). Likewise, Swart and Yates (2012) show how the principles of childhood studies have been translated into a ‘hermeneutic of listening’ with regard to children in theological and religious scholarship.…”