Engaging Modernity: Methods and Cases for Studying African Independent Churches in South Africa

by Dawid J. Venter

Overview

The key theme addressed by all the contributors to this book is the relationship between South Africa's indigenous churches (AICs) to modernity. The key question asked by each of the contributors is to what extent, if any, do AICs serve as bridges to tradition or as facilitators for modernizing practices? Although the researchers do not agree on the answer to this question—some argue for the returban to tradition, others argue for the facilitation perspective—they do provide provocative and timely insights for prospective researchers interested in exploring concepts and methodologies for understanding modernity and modernization. Based on a number of case studies of AICs in South Africa, this book will also be of great interest to scholars of comparative religion and the role churches play in negotiating the complex terrains of politics, society, and economy in this era of globalization.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780275969035
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	05/30/2004
Pages:	248
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.62(d)

About the Author

DAWID J. VENTER is Adjunct Associate Professor of Sociology in the Department of Sociology at the University of Missouri, St. Louis. An assistant editor of the official South African jourbanal of sociology, Venter has concentrated on the intersections of religion, politics, and the global system. He holds a Ph.D in religion (l994) and a Ph.D in sociology (l999), both from the University of Stellenbosch.

Table of Contents

Introduction by Dawid Venter
A Conceptual Perspective
Concepts and Theories in the Study of African Independent Churches by Dawid Venter
African Independent Churches and Modernity by Jim Kiernan
A Community Perspective
Combining Ehtnographic and Survey Methods for a Local Comparative Study of African Independent Churches by Robert Garner
African Independent Churches and Economic Development in Edendale by Robert Garner
A National Perspective
A Methodology for a National and Comparative Study of African Independent Churches by Lawrencia Kwark
Reinvention of Tradition in African Independent Churches as Means of Engaging Modernity by Lawrencia Kwark
A Global Perspective
Methodological Issues of Applying a World System to a Literature Study of African Independent Churches by Dawid Venter
Globalization and the Cultural Effects of the World Economy in a Semiperiphery: the Emergence of Zionist Churches in the Transkei by Dawid Venter
Epilogue
The Future of the African Independent Churches Movement by Robert Garner
Glossary
Index
About the Contributors