A Study of a Relevant Contextual Christian Education Model within a Township Baptist Convention Church
Naidoo, Marilyn; Sutcliffe-Pratt, Daniel
If grassroots churches in South Africa are to empower their congregants, the use
of alternative pedagogical methods is necessary. Traditional models of Christian
education are having limited impact within churches due to a lack of importance
placed on the socio-cultural context within the education process. In contrast,
contextual Christian education places the participants’ context at the centre.
This article reports on an empirical study on whether Groome’s Shared Praxis
Approach to Christian education could serve as a type of contextual Christian
education in township churches. This study took place amongst young adults
in a bible study group of the Baptist Convention of South Africa, Munsieville,
Gauteng. Making use of a qualitative approach, this study highlights how
through engaging in a praxis approach to education, participants established
lines of connection between their socio-cultural contexts and the Christian faith.
It indicates how contextual Christian education has the potential to move away
from existing practices of spiritualised, individualistic and privatised forms of
Christian education, to more holistic, communal and public Christian education.
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