Reformed Churches struggle for justice: Lessons learnt from their submissions before the TRC

Abstract

The truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) arranged a special hearing for all faith communities in relation to their contribution to human rights violations under apartheid. This forced different faith groupings and Christian denominations to recollect their role in the struggle for justice in South Africa. two prominent Reformed Churches made submissions to the TRC on how they have dealt with the history of apartheid in relation to the struggle for justice. Their submissions were made up of different themes as they reflected on their role in the struggle for justice within South Africa’s apartheid’s past (within the time frame 1960 to 1990). This contribution aims to highlight and discuss some of the most prominent themes in the struggle for justice from the two Reformed Churches as they reflected on the apartheid past and to identify some lessons from among these themes that the church community can use in order to empower the church to redeem the past and contribute to healing and reconciliation in the present and future.