Henn, Theunis Johannes
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die hipotese van hierdie studie is dat die identiteit van die NG Kerk Stellenbosch-Noord geskuif het van gemeente wat gerig was op haar voortbestaan as ideologies-gedrewe gemeenskap binne bepaalde bevolkingsgroep, na gemeente wat missionaal begin dink het op grond van nuwe verstaan van wie God is, en in die lig hiervan, wat kerk behoort te wees. Sy het haar roeping nuut ontdek in en deur haar betrokkenheid met ‘die ander’ wat in haar omgewing in nood verkeer. Drie teologiese konstrukte is gekies om die besluitnemingsproses in die tydlyn van die gemeente teologies te evalueer, naamlik: • die onderskeiding van wie die Drie-Enige God is, bepaal die manier van kerkwees;
• die werking van die Heilige Gees in die onderskeiding van die missio Dei; en
• die inkarnasie van Jesus as riglyn vir die uitleef van die missio Dei. Die bespreking van die tydlyn van die gemeente vorm sentrale deel van die studie. Die teologiese konstrukte sowel as die makro- en mesokontekste is bespreek en dan in verband gebring met die tydlyn om te evalueer in hoeverre die besluitnemingsproses ideologies of missionaal gedrewe was. Verder is etnografiese studie in die gemeente gedoen om die identiteit van die gemeente aan die einde van 2007 te bepaal. Hierdie studie het methodologies konstruktiewe replikasie verskaf vir die bevindinge in die tydlyn, en die hipotese dat daar wel paradigmaskuif plaasgevind het, as waar bewys. Die skuif hét plaasgevind: van ideologies-gedrewe gemeente, na gemeente wat die missio Dei onderskei om die missiones ecclesciae te vorm. ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The hypotheses of this study is that the identity of the Dutch Reformed Church
Stellenbosch North shifted from a congregation focusing on her existence as an
ideologically driven community within a specific population group, to a congregation
starting to think missionally from a new understanding of the Triune God. In the
discernment thereof, she discovered what the church should be. She discovered her
vocation anew through her involvement with the need of the ‘other’ in the
neighbourhood. Three theological constructs were chosen, namely:
• the discernment of who the Triune God is defines the manner of being church,
• the work of the Holy Spirit in the discernment of the missio Dei; and
• the incarnation of Jesus as guideline for the praxis of the missio Dei.
The three theological constructs were used to evaluate the decision making processes in the congregation. The discussion of the timeline of the congregation forms a central part of this study.
The three theological constructs as well as the macro and meso contexts are discussed, and then related to the timeline to evaluate if the decision making processes were ideologically or missionally driven.
Furthermore, an ethnographic study was conducted in the congregation to establish
her identity towards the end of 2007. This study gave a methodological constructive
replication of the findings from the timeline and further proved the hypotheses correct
that a paradigm shift did take place. The paradigm did shift from an ideologically
driven congregation to one that discerned the missio Dei and became the missions