Liberating liberation theologies in post-apartheid South Africa: New directions

In taking the notions of dynamicity and change seriously, this article offers a critical, albeit partial, examination of the status quo of liberation theologies in South Africa. To that end, this article provided a background to our thinking on how and why the current discourse on liberation theologies must be challenged to embrace alternative liberative ways of thinking and being that exist outside of academia and, consequently, outside a liberative paradigm largely defined by academic liberation theologians. This article argued that interpreting the current liberationist conversation through Vincent Lloyd’s concepts of domination and dignity – drawing on the black struggle – provides a valuable framework for understanding what constitutes liberation and liberation theology beyond the prescriptive academic discourses bound to a specific set of ideological lenses and practices. In other words, this article contends that a stronger framework for interlocution and praxis emerges when infused with dignity. This infusion allows both concepts to be understood primarily as grounded rather than dictated. In practice, this article proposes that this shift would enable academic liberation theologians to engage with new and diverse voices and knowledge outside the confines of academia in a less authoritative manner. Contribution: This article contributes to the ongoing debate about what it means for liberation theologies to move with the times and respond to both new and old struggles. Instead of dwelling on the question of relevance – something that liberationists locally and globally have articulated and agreed upon – the article explores how academic discourse can open up to appreciate liberation theologies as relevant to the communities they serve, even when these theologies do not fit neatly within the established academic framework. This article does not claim that these theologies are dominant in faith communities; instead, we urge academia to identify and engage with these grounded theologies wherever they exist.