Land in South Africa today remains a critical issue for which people have fought for, been moved from, legislated for, and even gone to prison for. Land is intricately tied up to not only economic stability but also identity and belonging. What is significant is just how much of that land the church owns - more than 180 000 hectares. How could churches begin to use this land to start the healing process in this country and to start bridging the divides across a vastly unequal society?

In this episode, Alphonso and John sit down with Caroline Powell and discuss the role which churches, historically have played and continue to play in perpetuating spatial injustice. Why we seem to be so hesitant to get involved in changing the spatial inequalities we experience And what it could look like to move forward as communities of greater justice, hope, and inclusion.

SHOW NOTES:

1. Common Good Land Justice Resources - https://www.commongood.org.za/resources/land-unequal-spaces/

2. Warehouse Annual Celebration: The Church & Spatial Justice - Caroline Powell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qb8-nIMoAMQ

3. Reclaim the City - https://www.facebook.com/ReclaimCT/

4. YIMBY - Yes In My Backyard - https://yimbyaction.org/2021/

5. YIGBY - Yes in God's Backyard - https://yigby.org/

6. The Homeless Action Coalition - https://homelessactioncoalition.org/

7. Ndifuna Ukwazi - https://www.facebook.com/NdifunaUkwazi

8. Development Action Group - https://www.dag.org.za/

9. The Social Justice Coalition - https://sjc.org.za/

10. If you wish to get in contact with Caroline you can do so via email at [email protected]

11. Audio produced by Exilic Music - http://www.exilic.co.za/

Continuing our intermittent Stories of Hope series, Alphonso and John sat down with Brandon Weber from Hope Africa Collective to talk about their work in youth development and community transformation.

Listen in as they discuss the holistic, multidimensional nature of poverty; the role which our history and our context play in the narratives we believe about ourselves and each other, and how these narratives continue to entrench and perpetuate poverty. The effects of perpetual stress disorder on the self-perception of value among young people. The role of the church in extending the rule and the reign of God to restore all that has been distorted in society. What would it mean to create a pipeline of value with churches and NGOs working together to serve the marginalised and change the structures of inequality in our country?

SHOWNOTES:

1. Find out more about the work of the Hope Africa Collective here: https://hopeafrica.com/

2. Donate to the work of Hope Africa Collective https://hopeafrica.com/give/

3. Get involved and volunteer with Hope Africa Collective here https://hopeafrica.com/get-involved/

4. Audio produced by Exilic Music www.exilic.co.za

5. The work of Isiphambano, including Julle Mense, is advanced through the generous donations and support of those who resonate with a vision of a reconciled and just South Africa. Please consider becoming a partner in this ministry by financial giving either through a one-off gift or regular monthly giving. Donate by following this link www.payfast.co.za/donate/go/isiphambano

Big changes happening at Julle Mense!

Listen in as Julle Mense gets Rebooted - no spoilers you got to listen in to find out.

SHOWNOTES:

1. Check out Hope City East City here: https://east.hopecity.co.za/

2. Isiphambano Experiential Learning including Story of the Church Pilgrimage and Story Telling Across the Line Events here https://www.isiphambano.com/training-avenues/experiential-learning

3. Audio produced by Exilic Music www.exilic.co.za

4. The work of Isiphambano, including Julle Mense, is advanced through the generous donations and support of those who resonate with a vision of a reconciled and just South Africa. Please consider becoming a partner in this ministry by financial giving either through a one-off gift or regular monthly giving.

Donate by following this link www.payfast.co.za/donate/go/isiphambano

In this episode (part 2 of 2) David and John sit down with Rev. Tsakani Sibanda to discuss what reading the Bible in proximity to the poor might look like.

In this episode, they explore the relationship of proximity, community, and power in how we read Scripture. What might we miss in Scripture when we fail to recognise our own locatedness, especially when that is out of community with the poor and the marginalised. This episode asks questions of theological training distances from praxis and located in places of privilege.

Audio produced by Exilic Music www.exilic.co.za

The work of Isiphambano, including Julle Mense, is advanced through the generous donations and support of those who resonate with a vision of a reconciled and just South Africa. Please consider becoming a partner in this ministry by financial giving either through a one-off gift or regular monthly giving.

Donate by following this link www.payfast.co.za/donate/go/isiphambano

In this episode (part 2 of 3) David and John sit down with Rev. Tsakani Sibanda to discuss what reading the Bible in proximity to the poor might look like.

Immediately it begins with a discussion that challenges our concept of proximity as an event rather than a way of living. The team explores the relationship of proximity, community and power in how we read Scripture. What might we miss in Scripture when we fail to recognise our own locatedness, especially when that is out of community with the poor and the marginalised. This episode asks questions of theological training distances from praxis and located in places of privilege.

Audio produced by Exilic Music www.exilic.co.za

The work of Isiphambano, including Julle Mense, is advanced through the generous donations and support of those who resonate with a vision of a reconciled and just South Africa. Please consider becoming a partner in this ministry by financial giving either through a once-off gift or regular monthly giving.

Donate by following this link www.payfast.co.za/donate/go/isiphambano

In this episode, David and John with special guest Jeremy Koeries, explore the importance of reading Scripture in Community and why that is significant for the pursuit of justice.

What impact might reading the Bible in community have on the theology and practice of a South African church still largely divided along racial and economic lines? How might embracing the value of reading in community affect not only what is taught in our churches but also who does the teaching? How critical is learning to read the Bible in community for the mission of the gospel and the faithfulness of our churches in SA?

Audio produced by Exilic Music www.exilic.co.za

The work of Isiphambano, including Julle Mense, is advanced through the generous donations and support of those who resonate with a vision of a reconciled and just South Africa. Please consider becoming a partner in this ministry by financial giving either through a once-off gift or regular monthly giving.

Donate by following this link www.payfast.co.za/donate/go/isiphambano

How do we remember those who had a significant impact on the history of our country whilst not necessarily celebrating them? Is it right to simply erase and rename those once celebrated for deeds now condemned? And what do we do with the complexity which history repeatedly throws up wherein our heroes are simultaneously our villains? What do we do when those heroes are also Christians?

In this episode, part two of a two-part mini-series, we discuss, as a type of case study, the current controversy around the name of George Whitefield College (our alma mater), in Cape Town and the calls to rename the college. We explore who George Whitefield. We examine the legacy of George Whitefield, as both slave owner and evangelist. And explore why some are now calling for his name to be removed from the college. Is it possible to practice a form of benevolent slavery, which also brings the gospel to unreached peoples? Are we in danger of imposing moderns standards on previous generations instead of recognizing them simply as men of their time? How will history judge us and our gospel witness?

Audio produced by Exilic Music www.exilic.co.za

The work of Isiphambano, including Julle Mense, is advanced through the generous donations and support of those who resonate with a vision of a reconciled and just South Africa. Please consider becoming a partner in this ministry by financial giving either through a once-off gift or regular monthly giving.

Donate by following this link www.payfast.co.za/donate/go/isiphambano

How do we remember those who had a significant impact on the history of our country whilst not necessarily celebrating them? Is it right to simply erase and rename those once celebrated for deeds now condemned? And what do we do with the complexity which history repeatedly throws up wherein our heroes are simultaneously our villains? What do we do when those heroes are also Christians?

In this part episode part one of a two-part mini-series, we discuss the legacy of Fees Must Fall and Rhodes Must Fall and the impact that had on both church and community. We discuss the accusation that removing statues is an attempt to erase or rewrite history and how do we reconcile the reality that most of our Christian heroes also have an incredibly dark side from Luther's antisemitism to Whitefield's support of slavery.

Audio produced by Exilic Music www.exilic.co.za

The work of Isiphambano, including Julle Mense, is advanced through the generous donations and support of those who resonate with a vision of a reconciled and just South Africa. Please consider becoming a partner in this ministry by financial giving either through a once-off gift or regular monthly giving.

Donate by following this link www.payfast.co.za/donate/go/isiphambano

The work of justice includes both critique and energizing hope to imagine a different way of living in this world. A new way of being shaped by the character of God and the values of his kingdom. The story of New Hope is just one of those stories of hope.

In this episode, David sits down with Richard, Rudy, and Michael from New Hope to talk about the realities of being homeless in a pandemic and how one church was able to open its doors to become an accommodation microsite to a small group of men. This episode is a story of faith, inclusion, and dignity which will both inspire and deeply challenge you to consider what the Kingdom of God embodied among the most vulnerable of our city might look like.

Find out more about the work of New Hope SA here https://www.newhopesa.org/

Make a donation to this important work here https://www.newhopesa.org/donate

Audio produced by Exilic Music www.exilic.co.za

The work of Isiphambano, including Julle Mense, is advanced through the generous donations and support of those who resonate with a vision of a reconciled and just South Africa. Please consider becoming a partner in this ministry by financial giving either through a once-off gift or regular monthly giving.

Donate by following this link www.payfast.co.za/donate/go/isiphambano

The claim that white farmers are being disproportionately murdered and tortured in racially and politically motivated attacks designed to intimidate white farmers and drive them from their lands has over the last few years become increasingly vocal and attracted larger and larger numbers of followers.

In this episode, David and John examine the claim that there is a genocide against white farmers happening in South Africa. Are farm attacks politically motivated? Has the talk of land expropriation without compensation led to a rise in farm attacks and murders? Are farm murders more brutal and violent than other similar events in South Africa? What are the factors behind farm attacks?

How do we as Christians respond to the reality of attacks on farms and the fear that exists within the farming community? What tools does our theology offer to speak to both the reality and the myths surrounding farm murders? How should we as Christians and as church communities respond to the violence in South Africa?

Audio produced by Exilic Music www.exilic.co.za

The work of Isiphambano, including Julle Mense, is advanced through the generous donations and support of those who resonate with a vision of a reconciled and just South Africa. Please consider becoming a partner in this ministry by financial giving either through a once-off gift or regular monthly giving.

Donate by following this link www.payfast.co.za/donate/go/isiphambano