S U RV I V I N G T H E AC A D E M I C B AT T L E F I E L D
SPRING EDITION 2016
J- S O M E T H I N G & T H E M I C A S A M U S I C L E G AC Y
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‘FINDING YO U R S E L F’ AT R H O D E S
GRAHAMSTOWN
D I G I TA L EDITION
SUMMER 2016
Y O U R C O M PA N I O N F O R T H E C H R I S T M A S S E A S O N
S C O P E M AG A Z I N E . C O. Z A
IDENTITY
INTRODUCING STUDENTS TO A BIGGER SCOPE OF OUR WORLD TODAY THROUGH THE LENS OF THE GOSPEL.
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CONTRIBUTORS
Publishing Director - Jonathan Just Creative Director - Michael Just .. Publishing Coordinator - Zoe Ras Finance Manager - Brad Latre
Main Feature - Mikhail Manuel
Managing Editor - Cathryn Moodley
Engage - Tendai Chitsike
Copy Editors - Matshepo Madupela, Roxanne Daniels Proofreader - Matshepo Madupela Designer - Amy-Jane Harkess Photographer - Mosa Kaiser
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Varsity Pulse - Matshepo Madupela Paradigm Shift - Sarah Williams Reason - Michael James Resound - Joseph Gage Interview - Thando Masekela My Story - Cindy Fumbata
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Helpful Hints - Sheunopa Mzezewa
Videographer - Cathryn Moodley Distribution Manager - Nkanyiso Ndhlovu Marketing Manager - Roxanne Daniels CONNECT WITH US:
FIRST WORD
Scope Magazine was started in Cape Town on UCT campus, and aims to offer a voice and perspective on the world around us based on a Christian worldview. I invite you to engage with the articles and content in this magazine, and I hope that they speak to you in a way that is fresh and relevant to our particular context. Students on our campus have been through a lot already this year, physically, mentally, and emotionally. The #FeesMustFall movement of 2015 and its aftermath, the #RUReferenceList and #Chapter2.12 protests which profoundly impacted both our student population and
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HELLO!
Welcome to the first issue of Scope Magazine Grahamstown. This first issue centres on the topic of Identity and asks, Who am I? The issue of human identity is one that has long been a subject of intense reflection, debate, and inspiration – in this first edition of our magazine, we hope to offer you an alternative perspective on some important questions around identity.
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the nation at large, and the ongoing decolonisation movement on our campus have raised significant questions around individual and collective identity, trauma, and healing. In this difficult and often emotionally draining context, I am deeply convinced of the love of God for each individual on Rhodes campus and in the larger Grahamstown area. My desire is that these articles reflect something of that love and the profound hope that comes through knowing one’s value and purpose. M U C H L OV E ,
03 WHO D O YOU SAY I AM? 05 ‘FINDING YOURSELF’ AT RHODES SEXUAL HEALING: FINDING GOD’S LOVE 07 YOU ARE __ ENOUGH 08 THE DIALECTIC OF HUMAN IDENTITY 09 IDENTITY POLITICS: WHAT ABOUT RACE?
REVIEWS 11 J’SOMETHING & THE MICASA MUSIC LEGACY 13 UNCOVERING UPCOMING ARTISTS 14 BEST BO OKS FOR YOUR MADIBAS
TESTIFY 15 INTERVIEW: SIPHE MINI 17 MY STORY: CINDY FUMBATA
SIMUNYE CATHRYN MOODLEY
18 ON-CAMPUS CHURCH COLLABORATION
Managing Editor
Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay. But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else thrown in.”
~
C.S LEWIS
S AV V Y S T U D E N T 19 POETRY, RECIPE & PHOTO GRAPHY 20 SURVIVING THE ACADEMIC BATTLEFIELD
ANY OPINIONS EXPRESSED IN THIS PUBLICATION ARE NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF THE PUBLISHER, SPONSORS, ADVERTISERS, OR SCOPE MAGAZINE.
MAIN FEATURE
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PERSPECTIVE
BY MIKHAIL MANUEL
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f you could describe who you are in ten seconds, what would you say? This is the question we asked a variety of students on six main university campuses across South Africa. We got a mixed bag of answers, some students more sure than others. In reality, however, our identity as humans is an extremely complex and convoluted issue – ten seconds not nearly long enough to do it justice!
Figuring out who you are is a process. It could take someone an entire lifetime to be able to say with confidence who they think they are. As students, this is a time of self-discovery where we can analyse and critique common-held beliefs and worldviews – framing the choices we make around what we believe to be fundamentally true. But how do we come to the point of knowing that some things are better for us than other things? And what are our motives behind the key decisions that we make which will determine who we are as people? A lot of the time we care so much about what others say or think about us that we form who we are based on society’s expectations of us. We crave others’ approval and praise, forgetting what our hearts desire most
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which is the love, freedom, joy, and peace that flow from relationship with God. In Mark 8:29, Jesus asked His disciples: “Who do you say I am?” He never asked them this question because he was unsure about His own identity, in need of affirmation, which is often the case with us. Instead, He wanted to make sure that they knew who He truly was and with what authority He was saying and doing the things He said and did. Peter answered Jesus’ question by stating that He is the Christ. Effectually, ‘Christ’ was Jesus’ title. The Greek derivation of ‘Christ’ is translated to mean the ‘Anointed One’ or the ‘Chosen One’. This was significant because the Old Testament prophets prophesied about a coming King that would set God’s people free. Isaiah predicted that “a King will reign in righteousness”1 and Daniel prophesied the “coming of an anointed one, a prince”2. Jesus’ time on earth was the fulfillment of many prophecies by many people over many centuries. To understand the purpose behind why Jesus came to earth, Paul tells us in a nutshell that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.”3 I think each person will be able to understand these words by first deeply considering the state of their own heart. At the core of who we are is a yearning to feel loved and to live with
freedom, joy and peace. But these desires are never fully met because we are sinful, searching in all the wrong places for satisfaction and always coming away empty. To see the truth in that statement, we need only to look at any human rights issue in the world. You will find that the fundamental desire behind the fight for equality is a group of marginalised individuals wanting simply to feel loved, free, joyful and peaceful. My parents fought for these fundamental desires when they struggled against the Apartheid government. Gay rights movements around the world have fought for marriage equality for decades under the same auspices. Today, Fees Must Fall, Rhodes Must Fall, and every other student protest is a struggle for the same cause. Everyone wants to feel loved and live freely with joy and peace. God never intended for us to attain these fundamental desires by forcing social or government reform, or trusting in these things to save us from the problems we face. They will never fully be able to solve the real problem of sin in our hearts. Only Jesus can. This Messiah has made it possible for anyone to experience abundant life because He died so that our sins might be forgiven. He rose in victory over death and has promised to restore all things to how they were meant to be in God’s perfect world where “there will be
no more death or mourning or crying or pain”4. All who are called His children will be able to live with their Father forever. LOVE “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”5 Is it not true that we feel most loved when we are accepted unconditionally? I believe it to be the case. The Merriam Webster Dictionary mistakenly only describes love in terms of feelings, affection and emotions. But love is action. To love is to accept someone irrespective of their flaws, putting their needs and wants ahead of your own. “Greater love has no one than this that someone lay down his life for his friends.”6 That’s exactly what Jesus did for you and me and now He is calling us to do the same. FREEDOM The sense of freedom you have always yearned for will be fully realised. Picture Sarafina on stage in her black and white school uniform, afro hair and broad smile, the joy beaming in her eyes singing: “Freedom is coming tomorrow!” Sarafina sings with jubilation because she has declared that the oppression of Apartheid in South Africa will end. That song captures the joy that we ought to experience to an even greater degree when we know we have been forgiven and set free from sin. JOY You will have the utmost joy. In 2 Samuel 6, King David is described to be leaping, dancing and rejoicing before the Lord. David possessed a special relationship with God, one that was rare for the era in which he lived because few truly understood God’s love for His people.
Today, we too can have the same level of intimacy with God as David had, understanding the ultimate sacrifice God made for us in dying on the cross so that all can draw near to Him. That consistent relationship with God is what will bring you true joy. PEACE You will have peace. David writes, “He leads me besides still waters. He restores my soul.”7 Matthew Henry explains how this passage shows that God will not only provide us with rest but also with refreshment and delight. I can testify to this truth. I have always had trouble with clarity over the potential direction of my career and often fret over daily decisions. This verse helps me to remember that my true rest is found when remaining in His presence. Jesus is everything your heart has always yearned for; love, freedom, joy and peace. These deepest desires and where we go in search for them shapes who we are. Whether you regard yourself as an average Joe, plain Jane, freedom fighter, student activist, university executive, or sports hero – whoever you think you are – in God’s eyes you are more. You are His beloved son or daughter. “Who do you say I am?” A question Jesus is asking you today. However you answer won’t change who He is. But I can guarantee that once you have come to know the love, freedom, joy, and peace only He provides – it will change who you are forever. ENDNOTES:
AT THE CORE OF WHO WE ARE IS A YEARNING TO FEEL LOVED AND TO LIVE WITH FREEDOM, JOY AND PEACE.
1. Isaiah 32:1 2. Daniel 9:25 3. 1 Timothy 1:15 4. Revelation 21:4 5. Romans 8:1 6. John 15:13 7. Psalm 23:2-3
MIKHAIL MANUEL is a Development Consultant; he recently graduated from UCT and will be returning to do his Masters in 2017. He loves spending time with mates, reading novels and going for early morning runs.
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VARSITY PULSE
''f, inding yourself
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inding yourself is a strange thing, isn’t it? In order for one to be found, they would have to be lost. It’s not something we acknowledge but in talking about finding ourselves, we unconsciously admit that we are lost. The question is, how did we get lost? Do we just wander off? Do we lose ourselves; not knowing who we are in the midst of some identity crisis? Do our friends or family lose us? Are we lost by our parents, like some kid in a grocery store? What does it even mean to be lost? I came to Rhodes because, since it was far from home, it was the ideal place for me to ‘find myself ’. In retrospect, if someone had told me that looking for myself implied that I was lost, I probably would’ve rolled my eyes at them. But with some things, it’s so much easier and far less painful to listen to someone who’s been there instead of wanting to find out for yourself. This is one of them. In Luke 15, Jesus tells a parable of a lost son who demands his inheritance from his father and proceeds to gloriously wreck his life. Everything goes terribly wrong. I think it’s a picture of what we look like when we strive towards finding ourselves. It’s definitely what my first year here looked like – the disappointment that I was met with at every turn is unmatched. I crashed and burned in searching for who I thought I was. I looked for myself in academic accomplishments but when that fell apart, so did I. I looked for myself in the company of friends but when they left, it felt like the end of the world. I looked for myself in the acceptance and approval of others, even doing things that I
So, like the famous parable of the lost son, after exhausting all avenues and nearly ruining my life, I went back to God, who I tried to run away from.
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at rhodes BY MATSHEPO MADUPELA
wasn’t comfortable with, and when I wasn’t good enough for them, I felt like a failure. I looked for myself at the bottom of (many) shot glasses and in wine bottles and wallowed in regret along with my body the next morning. I looked for myself in the attention of guys, carelessly crossing all sorts of boundaries and when I realised that what I was really after was far more than they could ever give me, I resented myself for compromising so much. It was deeply frustrating, like how I would imagine a deserted tourist feels in a foreign country. So, like the famous parable of the lost son, after exhausting all avenues and nearly ruining my life, I went back to God, who I tried to run away from. It was beautifully humbling for me to come to the end of myself like that because I have come to know who I really am. More important than the question of how I got lost in the first place, is that I don’t have to look anymore because Jesus sought me first. With such astounding humility, He gave up being God to meet me where I was: right in the middle of a mess that I had made and could never fix. Believing God’s love for me and settling into my new identity as a child of God is a daily process. I struggle with God’s acceptance and unyielding love for me, because, at some base level, it’s still difficult for me to accept myself. And maybe that’s why we go looking for ourselves: because we don’t really like who we are and, just like the lost son, we have this false hope that what we might find ‘out there’ is far better than what lies right in front of us and inside of us. So I stopped looking. Similar to the lost son, I didn’t really believe that God was who He said He was and went looking for only what He could give me, at every place where He wasn’t. I thought I’d find myself in what I did, but, more than this, it was actually being who I was created to be – a lost child that has finally found her way home. MATSHEPO MADUPELA Brave and broken. Breathing paradox. Indecisive aspiring philosopher. Light of the world. Almost bookworm. Tea aficionado. Scribbler of words. Cute as a fire truck. God’s favourite treadmiller (because she can’t really run from Him)
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rowing up in a conservative Anglican home, the phrase ‘sexual healing’ did not seem to come up in every day conversations. Then again, neither did the term ‘sexual abuse’. The existence of this conservative environment, however, also did not stop the latter from happening to me as a four-year-old girl in my own home.
into my mind, “Why are you doing this to yourself?” The response was quick: “Because you are worthless. Tainted. Dirty. Impure. Who would ever want you?” There was no doubting where the response came from. He tends to seep in when you are most fearful. When you are hurting. When you believe you are worthless.
Only now do I realise how much the former, spoken through God’s endless love for me, saved me from an uncertain path of fear, self-doubt, and quite possibly sexual sin.
That night, while lying in bed thinking about the day’s events, I turned my head ever so slightly to the left. My Bible still sat on my nightstand. I remembered a quote I quite liked two years previously. It felt like a lifetime ago. It felt like another person had read the quote.
I was about eleven-years-old the first time I grasped the meaning of 2 Corinthians 5:17. It told me, “Therefore, if any woman be in Christ, she is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” Although I appreciated the words, they did not resonate with me on any personal level. Perhaps this was the joy of innocence at that age. Sure, I knew something had happened to me, this unspoken thing in my home. But when your biggest concern is catching the latest Totally Spies episode, or that flimsy branch in your favourite climbing tree, serious topics like that don’t really come to mind. Shortly after my thirteenth birthday, things began to change: my body, my mind, and my relationship with God. I was in a group that worshipped the hook-up culture, where it was fine if little girls (in essence) had ‘fun’ with older school boys (men, arguably). Shy and timid at first, I watched in awe at the effect my heavily made-up friends had on these boys. I watched their power and how beautiful this attention made them feel. It wasn’t long before my mother’s makeup was quietly stolen and my knee-length skirts were hiked up ever so slightly. My top-of-the-grade status didn’t seem that cool anymore. I stopped attending youth and anything else that involved church. I replaced them with what I thought were much more significant things. My vague and disinterested parents never saw what was happening in their own home. Much like before. It also wasn’t long before self-doubt reminded me of my previously insecure ways, and I used it to fuel harmful behaviour. The more boys who wanted me, the better I felt. The more things got out of hand, the more beautiful I felt. It wasn’t until one day, during quite a horrible preadolescent mashing-of-braces kiss, the words popped
When I eventually found it, I started shaking uncontrollably and the tears poured down my face. Years of Bible study came back to me, and I heard the words: “I have heard your prayer and seen your tears. I will heal you” (2 Kings 20:5). Inconsolable and lonely, I curled up into a ball of blankets, hoping it would comfort this emptiness I felt aching in my chest. All I wanted to do was tell my best friend. Tell her how worthless I felt. How terrified I was. How the fear of never finding someone who would love me fuelled my self-hatred. I realised that, in fact, I did not want to tell her. She was part of this intricate secret life that had consumed me. I wanted to tell my best friend. The One who had never left my side and whose presence I could feel holding onto me. Loving me. Making me new. And instilling in me that old things have indeed passed away. From that day, it was clear to me that I could never forge my identity in anyone or anything but Christ. It was also clear to me how merciful He is as He truly protected me even when I was reckless and unwanting of him. His endless love and reassurance of myself as a Christian woman filled me in a way that no human ever could. His reassurance of who I am, who I could be, was unwaning. I spent the next few years rebuilding a relationship that I had tried to escape in pursuit of others. In human form, we might see ourselves as imperfect beings. But God loves us despite these imperfections. It’s imperative that we guard our hearts to everyone but Him, for He so greatly desires our minds, our bodies and our hearts. “Forget the former things. Do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” (Isaiah 43:18)
IN HUMAN FORM, WE MIGHT SEE OURSELVES AS IMPERFECT BEINGS. BUT GOD LOVES US DESPITE THESE IMPERFECTIONS. SCOPEMAGAZINE.CO.ZA 06
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PARADIGM SHIFT
BY SARAH WILLIAMS
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work at a private boarding school as a student assistant in one of the hostels. I have witnessed the girls’ self-image being shaped and influenced by popular culture, media, family, friends and each other. Even girls as young as six years old already have a negative view of themselves. It is amazing and troubling to see that at such a young age these girls are battling with identity and womanhood issues. Little seeds of ‘not _______ enough’ are being planted at such a young age. This sickness called ‘not ________ enough’ is running rampant among women of all ages. You know, ‘not good enough’, ‘not tall enough’, ‘not smart enough’, ‘not sexy enough’, ‘not skinny enough’, ‘not white enough’, ‘not ________ enough’! In response to this negative view, women go to extreme measures to become enough. They find ways to alter, fix, change, and improve themselves in order to fit into this ideal image of a woman for whatever cultural context they may be in. Not only do we as women inflict this self-hate on ourselves and each other, but the media, society, and men find ways to make us feel ‘less than’ and force us to measure up to an impossible standard of beauty. If by any chance we decide to go against this standard we are shamed and ridiculed for ever daring to step outside of that box. This is extremely exhausting! But one message that seems to be hidden under all of the lies and rubbish of what it means for a woman to be enough, in every way, is the message of Psalm 139:13-16 which says: For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful; I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. This foundational truth about how God created men and women, their identity in God, and their purpose for God should be the central message that all women should prescribe to and live by: His voice about womanhood is the most important voice because He created women. How can the world define what it did not create?
Nothing about you, sis, is a mistake or an accident. All of you is purposeful and amazing.
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Women are made in the image of God When God created women, He gave them an identity – His identity. God is so complex and multi-faceted that He took essential pieces of Himself and put them into all women. Verses 13 and 16 of the scripture from Psalms 139 deserve repeating: “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb… My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body”. These verses give me such a beautiful image of God the Creator in His workroom, dreaming up and designing one of His greatest creations: women. Picture the Father God in His workroom envisioning you; planning every detail of you to a ‘t’. God pondered your every feature from the colour of your skin to the texture of your hair – it was all divine. Nothing about you, sis, is a mistake or an accident. All of you is purposeful and amazing. Women’s identity is wonderful My favourite part of this passage is verse 14 which says: “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful; I know that full well.” This verse speaks of women owning their identity just as God created them and flourishing in that identity. What happens when a woman looks at herself in the mirror and knows ‘full well’ that she is the wonderful work of God? The same God that created all of the beautiful and breathtaking places of this world is the God who looks at women and says, “This is my greatest creation. My masterpiece!” Imagine a world of all women knowing ‘full well’ that they were beautiful and adored. Women’s purpose is divinely ordained God has always had a clear vision for all women. Even before He formed them, He had a clear vision of who they would be from the inside, out. All of their days were prepared in advance for them. Every step they would take, every decision: God ordained them all. The world and other voices always try to convince women that there is something wrong with them by bombarding them with lies that distort their image and purpose. It’s so important for women to receive God’s view of them and God’s understanding of who He created them to be. SARAH WILLIAMS is a native of Atlanta, Georgia but is now residing in Grahamstown where she is studying at Rhodes University as a full time masters student. She is a teacher on a mission from God conquering one adventure at a time! Follow her on IG: @saymwil and at https://adventuresofaschoolteacher.org/
THE PERSPECTIVE
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BY MICHAEL JAMES
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n this postmodern, postcolonial, and, closer to home, post-Apartheid world, the topic of identity is contested territory. While I recognise that there are various ways in which one might attempt to answer the questions around this issue, I will present two typical views that underpin the identity debate, as well as a middle way inspired by the Christian worldview. W ES TER N I N D I VI D UA L I S M
Individualism is broadly associated with the West. With its roots in the Renaissance and Protestant Reformation, epitomised by characters like Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe, in today’s post-religious, postmodern Western world, it sees humans as individuals who are radically free to create themselves. The individualist maxim is to ‘make of your life whatever you wish.’ This freedom, though it is laudable, is dangerous – for it often becomes an absolute freedom in which there are no boundaries to one’s choices, and thus no boundaries of the self. The result, all too often, is selfishness, solipsism and subjectivism – and, ironically, loss of identity. Without external identity boundaries, i.e. culture, ethnicity, gender, religion, each person becomes an amorphous admixture, subject to flux and change by necessity or whim. Life is about whatever maximises happiness, comfort, and a typically bourgeoisie existence (things that an individualist society tend to focus on). Concerns about society at large are ignored and seen as irrelevant to one’s own personal existence. Moreover, because individual choice is supreme, human life is not necessarily sacred. Unless an individual decides it is valuable, it is seen as having no inherent purpose or value. The increasing legalisation of euthanasia, abortion, and even suicide within the West are the logical consequences of such a view. E A S TER N / A F R I C A N CO L L E C TIVISM
The second view is collectivism broadly associated with the East and Africa. The concept of ubuntu and the Confucian and Hindu views of identity (for example) stress a view of identity that is tied to collective and social structures; a person is a person because of other people, and cannot exist outside of the (set) boundaries of society. This understanding has often become an absolute collectivism in which the concerns of the collective – whether good or bad – trump the concerns of the individual, whose purpose is to live out the expectations of caste, social status, family name, gender/sex etc. A person’s value is derived from their adherence to the collective’s norms. Society defines one’s identity – never the individual. A collectivist identity, therefore, tends to shun those who diverge from the norms of the group, and for an individual to navigate the world without an identity crisis, s/he must
work towards achieving the “greater good” of the collective. A T HIRD WAY?
The individualist and collectivist views of identity both contain good and bad elements. Given the dynamic nature of identity, they should be viewed as tendencies, not as fixed positions. But beyond the individualismcollectivism binary is communitarianism; a view based, as is apparent by the name, in community. This should immediately indicate a movement away from an absolute individualism mentioned above, but also distinguish it from a difference-obliterating collectivism. It fits well with the biblical view of personal and social identity. In a communitarian society there is a united diversity of individuals whose inherent value comes from their Creator. The orthodox Christian view is that humankind is “fearfully and wonderfully made” in the image of God.1 Individuals are therefore valued, not based on their own self-evaluation or whether they cohere socially, but because there is an external evaluator who gives them – individually and collectively – objective, inalienable value and worth. From this perspective, people’s ‘creaturely’ identity relative to the Creator God is the most fundamental; ethnic, moral, cultural (etc.) identity boundaries are not determinative features of identity.
In a communitarian society, God is the only absolute identity maker and evaluator. The Christian God’s declaration of self-existence – “I am who I am”2 – points to the ‘anchoring identity’ of a flourishing human identity. We are, because He is. Given an objective, valuable identity, human individuals are called – as the community of God’s people – to navigate the world righteously and responsibly in line with God’s appreciation of His human creation and his intended purposes for their life. Within a perfect communitarian society, individuals are enabled to navigate the tension between individualism and collectivism through their faith in the triune God, who mysteriously represents the perfect, ideal relationship between the individual and collective in His own being. A Christian understanding of God is, that of a trinity: three distinct persons all sharing the same essential nature, a community of individuals perfectly diverse, yet fully harmonious. It is here that one finds the ideal model for human identity. ENDNOTES: 1. Psalm 139:14 2. Exodus 3:14
MICHAEL JAMES studied philosophy, languages and literature at Rhodes University. He is particularly interested in the intersection of faith, art and philosophy.
T H E C H R I S T I A N G O D’ S D E C L A R AT I O N O F S E L FE X I S T E N C E – “ I A M W H O I A M” – P O I N T S T O T H E ‘A N C H O R I N G I D E N T I T Y’ O F A F L O U R I S H I N G H U M A N I D E N T I T Y. W E A R E, B E C AU S E H E I S .
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ENGAGE
BY TENDAI CHITSIKE
hile listening to one of our national public radio stations, the topic of ‘social cohesion’ and the possibility of criminalising racism came up. Not surprisingly, very soon into the discussion, the inevitable happened. It quickly became a mudslinging contest with various ethnicities accusing others of double standards, blind racism, race-based electioneering and more. The conversation about curtailing hate speech was fast becoming a conversation in hate speech. In contrast, a ‘white’ friend recently commented on the inescapable reality of her white privilege growing up in pre-1994 South Africa. She shared the blind spots she has, and how black South Africans have been willing to embrace the new South Africa, right after the worst that Apartheid threw at them (don’t worry, my friend is quite aware and unhappy about government corruption, maladministration and more in post-1994 South Africa). Then another friend handed me a newspaper article, written presumably by a black South African, about the pillaging ‘contribution’ of several African despots that we often turn a blind eye to, in the midst of recounting the legacy of one Cecil John Rhodes. Such honesty by both individuals is extremely vulnerable, extremely rare, and extremely needed in our nation. PLA NKS A ND SP E C KS Jesus teaches us a powerful truth about human nature in the Sermon on the Mount, specifically in Matthew 7:3-5. He said to His hearers and to us: “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” Jesus teaches us that, left to ourselves, we are all hypocrites. We are able to find so much as a speck of sawdust in our brother’s eye, blind to the plank in our own. We must therefore deal first with our own blind spots before trying to deal with
others’. We are so quick to point out the plank in the other, but Jesus only mentions the plank in us, and the speck in our brother. Ironically, I believe that it is a pair of planks, namely the cross of Christ, that helps us see all of this clearly. The cross starts with us as individuals, nailing our pride (whether it comes from the self-acclaimed competence of “look at what we have built” or the self-acclaimed innocence of “we are never as racist as them”). Whatever we pride ourselves in is seen for what it is through the lens of the cross. Here, we come with nothing except our guilt and need for forgiveness. Yes, there is something beautiful and praiseworthy in every culture and ethnicity, but without the humbling power of the cross, these redemptive features are not the gifts they were created to be. P R IM A R Y ID EN TITY Wonderfully, through the cross we also receive a new identity. Our primary identity is now a child of God, based on what Jesus has done. This has radical implications. If we take this to heart, it means that despite the pre- and post-Apartheid classifications we have built up according to race, this is not our primary identity. We do not lose our racial identity, but it is no longer what defines who we are. Because we live in South Africa, where almost everything is seen through the lens of race, I think I should repeat this. One’s race is not one’s primary or most fundamental identity. Being a child of God is our primary identity. Here’s how it can help us: if we define ourselves in this new way, it gives us a much stronger identity that is given to us by the grace of God and not our achievement, an identity that could more honestly look at the issues and faults within one’s ethnicity, confess them and then seek forgiveness for them without trying to be defensive and blaming others. In knowing our identity, we must then come out of our racial enclaves to become ministers of reconciliation, trying to work through the planks and specks in ourselves and in our nation. I have heard of a number of churches that have encouraged this level of interaction, as they try to ‘walk in someone else’s shoes’, going down to grassroots level. This is the most underestimated
WE CAN AND MUST PREACH: “BE RECON BUT IT CANNOT END THERE IF WE DESIR GOSPEL REALLY IMPACT OUR NATION. W PREACH: “BE RECONCILED TO ONE ANOT 09 SPRING EDITION 2016
area in which real change is yet to happen and what the media will most likely overlook in favour of more negative headlines. Church leader, Rick Joyner, once lamented that nine o’clock on a Sunday morning is the most segregated hour in America. Unfortunately, in many ways this still remains the case here in South Africa as well. We can and must preach: “Be reconciled to God”1. But it cannot end there if we desire to see the gospel really impact our nation. We have to preach: “Be reconciled to one another as well.”2 PO S I TIV E STEP S FORWAR D Respected pastor, John Piper, writes on how their church has decided to take deliberate steps to preach and live this message. Some years ago, a 23-member team at our church decided to do something similar and draw up a vision statement that included six fresh initiatives. Number three reads like this: Against the rising spirit of indifference, alienation and hostility in our land, we will embrace the supremacy of God’s love to take new steps personally and corporately toward racial reconciliation, expressed visibly in our community and in our church. If we could allow the cross of Christ to start with the plank in our eyes, and take our primary identity from the finished work of Jesus, we could preach and live a two-fold message of reconciliation to God and our fellow human in a time that our nation urgently needs it most.
ENDNOTES: 1. 2 Corinthians 5:20 2. Paraphrase of 2 Corinthians 5:18
TENDAI CHITSIKE arrived in Grahamstown to study law at Rhodes University. After completing his studies he sensed a call to stay in Grahamstown to reach and disciple students with His People Christian Church. He now serves as lead pastor of the church and is happily married to his wife, Keryn, and they have two young children.
NCILED TO GOD”. RE TO SEE THE WE HAVE TO THER AS WELL.” SCOPEMAGAZINE.CO.ZA 10
REVIEWS
RESOUND
J’SOMETHING
& THE MI CASA MUSIC LEGACY BY JOSEPH GAGE itting on a couch in a beautiful old apartment, I eagerly wait for J’Something to join me at any moment. Admiring the architecture around me, it feels like a place full of history and life, the colourful flower garden outside showing that it was also one worth preserving.
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I hear a knock at the door and in strolls J’Something, or just ‘J’ as he introduces himself. The most noticeable thing about him is his smile. This guy is happy. After some initial small talk, we begin almost immediately chatting about God. It was beginning to become apparent what made him so happy. Excited to hear what he thinks about his band and their success: “If you could describe Mi Casa in one sentence, what would it be? “ “A band that is focused on creating a legacy through music,” he answers almost immediately. Funny, that is what I thought the building we were in must have – a legacy.
THE MORE WE EXPOSE O CULTURES AND LEARN W WE’LL STOP BEING SO IG THINGS THAT WERE IMPO 11 SPRING EDITION 2016
Mi Casa has certainly made a great start in leaving behind a legacy. Songs like ‘These Streets’ and ‘Heavenly Sent’ are well remembered from a few years ago and more recently, ‘Jika’ and ‘Don’t Wanna Be Your Friend’, are loved by millions all over the continent. It is no surprise that they have won a number of accolades over the last five years including South African Music Awards for Best Dance Album, Group of the Year, and Record of the Year. But how did this legacy start? “I think God intended for us to be together. It was in 2010 on the rooftop of the Radisson Hotel in Johannesburg. Soul Candi was hosting a party. I had just moved to Joburg after studying in Stellenbosch. I had nothing to do in Joburg and was staying on a cousin’s couch so I went to this party. And when I got to this party I saw this DJ playing and I thought he was so cool. And then all of a sudden I saw this trumpeter start to play with this DJ and I thought, ‘Ah, this plot just gets cooler.’ Then my cousin who knew that I could sing said I should go and ask them if I could sing. And even though I’m quite a reserved guy and there were like a hundred people there, I went to the DJ and asked him if I could sing. He looked at me and was like, ‘Yah, okay.’ Then I pickeds up the mic and started to share it with the trumpeter guy and started to do whatever covers I could think of and whatever I could freestyle. “After the show people came up to us and asked for our autographs and where they could get our albums. And I was like let me just get these guys’ names first! And that’s the day that me, Mo and Duda met. And three months later we got into studio and recorded our first song. We had such a vibe that three months later we got our first album out. And then we released a song called ‘These Streets’ and it became record of the year and now five years later here I sit in front of you today.” Mi Casa consists of just three members: J’Something, Dr.Duda, Mo-T. J sings and plays the guitar, Dr.Duda is the producer and DJ, and Mo plays the trumpet. With this lineup, Mi Casa produces a unique jazzy and soulful house sound. And they are planning on bringing this to more of Africa. “We have been working on an Africa tour called the Legacy Tour to start next year. We’ve travelled to a total of 28 African countries. This year we have done about ten. We’ve been working on a whole bunch of new music and collaborations with Wizkid, Yemi Alade, Eddy Kenzo and C4 Pedro – these massive African artists.” His identity in Christ has made him look at life from a humble perspective.
OURSELVES TO DIFFERENT WHAT THEY ARE ALL ABOUT, GNORANT TO THOSE OSED ON US.”
“My identity has always been deeply rooted in the fact that without people I am nothing, so I always pay tribute to the people around me. When I do an interview I feel very blessed to be able do an interview, like why would people want to listen to me? I literally feel like a kid from school who is doing what he loves and that’s music. So I feel extremely blessed that people care and want to listen to what I have to say about my music. But I think that our identity is rooted in humility that without people we are absolutely nothing. And I think that’s what keeps us very close to the ground.” I can personally vouch for him paying tribute to those around him – he even complimented my beard! He has achieved a large amount of influence throughout Africa being in a popular mainstream band. But as a Christian, he uses his influence for what is good. One of the things J is most passionate about is unity and as a result, he hates racism. So I asked him about how he thinks we in South Africa can move on from that to a new identity of racial unity. “It would be extremely ignorant of you and me to think that we could ever fix racism in our lifetime. I don’t think we will ever be able to fix racism. I pray that my kids will have a better picture of a united world than I do right now. “I think one of the biggest steps we can take though is exposing ourselves to different cultures. So many things have been shaped the way they are because that’s just how they were. I remember going to school and my black mates could not have longer hair and if they did, it had to be straightened. Those things were imposed on us. The more we expose ourselves to different cultures and learn what they are all about, we’ll stop being so ignorant to those things that were imposed on us.” God uses Christians in all types of spheres of influence to affect change. “It is our role and responsibility to make a lifestyle out of Christianity which appeals to the masses. And it’s not by Bible bashing. It’s about love and understanding that life is a journey. You can’t fix everything right now, you need to understand that and work on doing what you can.” J’Something and Mi Casa are going places. They are influencers in the mainstream African music world and perhaps one day even beyond Africa. Ultimately, they plan on going somewhere which glorifies God and leaves a legacy of unity to all they come into contact with. If you ask me, that’s exactly what I see. FIND MI CASA ON: MiCasaMusic MiCasaMusic MiCasaMusic MiCasaTVRoom micasamusic
JOSEPH GAGE is an electrical engineering student at Wits. He loves family, friends, the church, sports, music, video games, beards and being happy. All of his love and happiness come from Christ Who died on the cross for him.
SCOPEMAGAZINE.CO.ZA 12
L O CKE D REVIEWS
NEW TUNE
I N
SHINING THE SPOTLIGHT ON LOCAL CHRISTIAN HIP HOP BY MILO APRIL
Christian Hip Hop is fast becoming a major genre in South Africa. Below are some of the artists who are helping to grow the movement.
LYRICAL NOVEL
Black Man In His 20s
Born in Limpopo, raised in Polokwane, 22-year-old Tshepo “Lyrical Novel” Nkoana is already making major moves in the industry. He was recently crowned ‘Artist of the Year’ at the 2016 University of Johannesburg Student Choice awards. His body of work from his Abstract Thoughts mixtape put him on the map and got him recognised as a nominee for the award. He is currently working on his follow up album titled Abstract Thoughts 2: Conscious Tshepo. He is also the Co-CEO and artist of Page 1One Records. Look out for him!
CHRIS W E R G E BY PHATHISWA MAGANGANE
C
hris Werge Interviewed by Phathiswa Magangane At the age of 24, Chris Werge [Vir-ga] can already say he’s launched a full-length album called Exposure; recently released a foot-thumping, heart-warming music video for his single On My Mind; taken part in the first South African edition of the highly acclaimed singing competition, ͞The Voice͟with Bobby Van Jaarsveld as his mentor; and he casually served as the opening act for James Blunt during the Cape Town leg of his South African tour. How long has he been at this solo music career you ask? Just 8 months, officially. Granted, Chris has been involved with music since Grade 2, but it was only at the end of 2015 that he decided to put down his pencil as a graphic designer and trade it in for his guitar and a career as a full-time musician. ͞The theme for this month’s edition is identity, when people hear the name Chris Werge, what would you like to come to mind?͟ Undaunted by the possible complexity
ALBUM A P P R E C I AT I O N
THE ETERNAL SON 13 SPRING EDITION 2016
GRUTH
of this question, he calmlyaffirmed his humble and down-to-earth nature and replied, ͞I’d like People to think of me as a genuine guy.͟So what role does God have to play in this talk of identity construction and realisation? For CW, it’s still a process: ͞I definitely haven’t got it made by any standard yet. I don’t think anybody has but that’s the beauty of faith, it’s a journey [and] it’s amazing that we have a Heavenly Father who never changes. He is always consistent no matter what.͟ It is our AweInspiring Creator whom Chris wishes to show to the world through his music. ͞If I didn’t have the status, if I didn’t have Facebook and the likes, my page or my image, who am I as a person without any of that?͟ probes CW. It is so easy to get swept up in what others think of you when you don’t know who you are. So who is Chris Werge [Vir-ga], you ask? A God fearing, hard-working, and humble, Indie-folk, singer-songwriter from Cape Town gaining South Africa’s attention one song at a time.
R I V E R S
They Don’t Care
Yanga “Gruth” Zweni is originally from King Williams Town in the Eastern Cape, though he resides in East London. He has an album out currently called Salt and Light which is worth the listen, especially the single They Don’t Care produced by Mawat – definitely a banger! He released a cypher along with his label mates Lux Kent and AV titled Legacy: The Cypher and according to the man himself, this is but an appetiser of what to expect from the Living Legacy Movement team in the near future.
LUX KENT
Image ft. YeYe
Luxolo “Lux Kent” Kentane, also from East London in the Eastern Cape, is probably the biggest underdog in the game currently. He just recently signed for Fresh Impressions, which is a label that houses names like Blaque Nubon and Lilly Million. He is also the “Co-Captain” (as he calls himself) of The Living Legacy Movement, and having heard his Past 12 mixtape I can safely say that he has a lot to offer the industry. He is currently working on an EP which he says should be complete soon. Brace yourself for maturity and musicality all in one project. HONOURABLE MENTIONS
Blaque Nubon, Ricwa, C-Jay, Incense, Danny V, Courtney Antipas, Last Days Fam, Clay Misfit and Lyrical D’cyples.
&
ivers and Robots exist with the aim of producing and promoting creative worship music and art in the UK. Since 2012, they have been Jonathan Ogden on vocals, keyboard, guitar and samples, David Hailes on guitar and vocals, and Nathan Stirling on bass and vocals.
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More recently they released a new album, The Eternal Son, in May this year. Part of the aim of the band is for their lyric content to be based directly on Scripture – easier said than done. Not only are their lyrics sound, with a firm foundation in the Bible, but their music is catchy, creative, and easy to listen to. A personal favourite on the album is the second track,
R O B O T S ‘The Fullness of God’. Here is one line from the chorus: “In Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell / Through Him, He will reconcile all things to Himself.” There has been a rise in creative worship bands with the likes of Rend Collective, Citizens and Saints, Kings Kaleidoscope and others coming to the fore. All of them, while very different stylistically, seem to share a common thread of indie, or at least elements thereof. Rivers and Robots, with their new album, raise the bar, and make me want to see such ventures being undertaken by creatives here in South Africa. ~ MATT O’ KELLY
REVIEWS
FOR YOUR READING
O
ur hearts are after something. It’s an undeniable part of human existence. We spend our lives searching for something to put to rest the unrelenting yearning for something more. Affirmation. A good reputation. Financial security. Freedom. Success. Simply put, we were created to find meaning and lasting satisfaction in the ‘everything’ that our hearts desire so intensely. And all of this is found in the ‘everythingness’ of Jesus. Personally, this is one of most refreshing books I’ve ever read – it wrecked my heart from beginning to end because it spoke to me so simply and profoundly. Turns out, the gospel isn’t just a message about Jesus that people outside the church need to believe in order to be accepted by God. Everyone needs the gospel, because at the heart of it is a new identity where God secures for us in Jesus what none of us could secure for ourselves. This book is predicated in Paul’s letter to the Christians in Colossae who were faced with a plethora of conflicting ideologies which sought to distort the knowledge they had of who Jesus is that seemed compatible with some kind of add-on to authenticate their faith. This is so relevant today, especially for those who want to know which beliefs about the world are true and actually worth pursuing. Tchividjian shows us why ‘Jesus + x’ is such a dangerous formula (x being feminism, for example, would imply that the gospel considers women with low regard, which is a common misconception). He also examines how, through the book of Colossians, the gospel came alive for him in the midst of his own personal crisis. He honestly shares how the gospel freed him from his own struggle with idolatry, which wasn’t bowing to a golden calf but placing his entire identity in how much people liked him. He writes to everyone – those in and those out of the church. He addresses what he calls ‘performancism’ in the church, where
B O O K B I T E
Christians try to become better, thinking that doing good works and obeying God more will mean that He will love them. He also addresses lawlessness, where those outside the church break all of the rules because they believe their behaviour keeps them from being accepted by God. Both of these groups are mistaken. The determining factor in a relationship with God is what Christ has done: His performance and His obedience – not what we must do. God’s love doesn’t grow with our obedience and shrink with our disobedience, because it’s based on Jesus. This sets us free from trying harder or becoming apathetic, because we realise that it’s not really about us at all. I tend to fall into the performance camp – believing that “God will love me if I___” and it’s such a relief to know that this exhausting practice actually goes against who God is. If you find yourself in the “God doesn’t/can’t love me because___” group, God loves you anyway. God’s love or acceptance isn’t based on our ‘good’ behaviour. This is liberating for Christians and nonChristians alike, because it means that our behaviour, whether good or bad, will never disqualify us from the love of God. The gospel is not only counter-cultural, but also counterintuitive. We’re so accustomed to earning our place and working for what (we think) we deserve, that we believe phrases like “God helps those who help themselves” when the Bible is actually clear that “God helps those who know they cannot help themselves”. This book reminded me of Jeff Bethke’s famous spoken word piece, ‘Why I Hate Religion but Love Jesus’, where he, just like Tchividjian, really captures the message of the radical freedom that comes with the gospel, because “religion says do. Jesus says done. Religion says slave. Jesus says son”. Sons neither have to work for nor can they ever lose their place at their father’s table. And that is what the gospel makes us: sons and daughters of the all-loving Father. ~ MATSHEPO MADUPELA
THE FREEDOM OF SELF-FORGETFULNESS
TIMOTHY KELLER
“I
f we trust in Christ, what should our hearts be like? It is not simply a matter of morally virtuous behaviour. It is quite possible to do all sorts of morally virtuous things when our hearts are filled with fear, with pride or with a desire for power.” When you pick up a new book promising to tell you more about Jesus and this Christian walk, there is a tendency to sit at the feet of the author, look to him/ her and think “Ok, teach me new things I don’t yet know.” What is special about this
small, 7 page book is that the author has turned everything to the word of God and sits with its reader at the feet of the Author of Creation saying, “Ok, God, teach us new things we don’t yet know.”
to popular belief, God’s thoughts are outside the menial opinions of man. If our ideals are structured around societal norms, then we are settling for an understanding that is void of ultimate perspective.
The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness by Timothy Keller is a gem of a book based on a sermon he gave from 1 Corinthians 3:21-4:7. Keller addresses man’s source of personal accreditation – the ways in which we feel most validated and how that affects the way we contribute to society. Contrary
Keller probes the manner in which we view ourselves according to the ideals we’ve adopted. He will get you thinking about where you have seen it fit to adopt these ideals from, and why. ~ MÉGAN SCHILDER
SCOPEMAGAZINE.CO.ZA 14
TESTIFY
INTERVIEW
THANDO MASEKELA SAT DOWN WITH SIPHE MINI TO TALK ABOUT IDENTITY, INTEGRITY, AND FAMILY
15 SPRING EDITION 2016
SO, WHAT DO YOU DO?
I work in the luxury industry, particularly luxury goods and lifestyle services. So anything to do with those two aspects of industry, that’s where I’m at. For example, a particular feature of my business is that we started off as a concierge service. So basically, it’s a service that targeted at the high net-worth market… so you need to earn quite a bit. We fulfil requests for clients, whether it’s an everyday running of an errand like getting someone’s laundry done to booking a table at some exclusive hotel or restaurant. We also meet some extreme requests where in cases of having to organise weddings, a couple would ask for albino peacocks and we would find the peacocks for the couple. Trust me, you can find them – it won’t be easy, though! So we meet all sorts of requests, from mundane to extraordinary. HOW DID YOU GET INTO THAT?
Ever since high school, I pretty much knew what I wanted to do. It was just a matter of working out how the business idea actually would look like in everyday scenarios. And then I would ask people for their help and other things just worked out as I went along. WOULD YOU CONSIDER THIS AS A VERY DEMANDING JOB? HOW DO YOU JUGGLE THAT, WITH WORK AND REST?
I highly organise daily schedules. I typically wake up at 5am to immediately do my quiet time for an hour, which includes a book in the Bible that I’m memorising in this case the most recent one has been the book Obadiah. And, interestingly enough, you can memorise it in seven days; it’s only 21 verses. I exercise at 6am then shower, have breakfast then go to the office. The rest is pretty much mapped out, depending on what the day requires. I come back in the late afternoon, go for an early evening run, go over my economics studies, some reading… busy writing a book at the moment – I do that an hour once a day. And in the evening, Bible study. Then pray and sleep. TELL US ABOUT THE STRUCTURE OF YOUR FAMILY
My father passed away in 2001 when I was grade 10. And I’ve got 5 sisters: the oldest lives with my mother, two live in PE and two live in Johannesburg. I KNOW A LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE TEND TO HAVE A CONFLICT OF IDENTITIES WITHIN THE FAMILY AS WELL AS WHEN THEY GO OUTSIDE THE FAMILY. HOW WOULD YOU SAY THAT YOU TRY TO KEEP THIS AS CLOSELY AS RELATED TO EACH OTHER? HOW DO YOU KEEP THE SAME IDENTITY IN THE FAMILY AS WHEN YOU GO OUT INTO THE WORLD?
One of the problems that we have within the Xhosa worldview is that, contrary to popular belief, it doesn’t actually encourage obedience in the case of children; it encourages compliance. So I think what happens with a lot of young African children in this country is that they grow up complying towards their parents and elders without ever internalising the values that were intended to be instilled during their upbringing. So as I said earlier, even in the case of identity and building your character, you have to make a conscious, deliberate effort, insofar as those values or traits are good and godly, to internalise them and that might need
for you to take on certain disciplines that are going to enable you to develop and grow these qualities. But you can’t do this outside of the context of relationships. As the old saying goes, bad company corrupts good character; it is also true that good company encourages good character. So if you want to know what person you’re growing to be or who you’re becoming, you need to look within your immediate social context: this would be your family – though you have no control over that – and your peers. Even in the case of an academic environment, there’s a certain level of control we have in as far as how we internalise the education we receive. Because there are many things that I as a Christian have been taught in a varsity situation or in schools that, though I had to do as part of the curriculum, I could never by any means subscribe to the kind of thinking that I was presented with. And it’s so important for us to learn to think critically about what kind education we are internalising, as well as the values that this education comes with and what the implications are for what we believe. OFTEN, WITHIN FAMILIES, WE HAVE DIFFERENT VIEWS ON BELIEF AND FAITH. HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH THAT AS A YOUNG PERSON WHO’S A CHRISTIAN?
With patience. Especially within the context of your family – example, example, example. You must live by example because these people know you even before you were a Christian and have an immediate image in their minds to compare how your life has transformed since coming to faith. And if there’s no clear transformation then they have absolutely no reason to believe a word you say about Christ because everything you exhibit as far as behaviour and attitude is concerned is seemingly contrary to that. Live with integrity as a Christian among your family. HOW DO YOU MAINTAIN YOUR DEFINITION OF AN IDENTITY IN CHRIST AND IN THE WORLD OF YOUR WORK?
You know, at the moment, I’ve been memorising Psalm 119, which is the famous psalm, the longest psalm in the Bible and what’s interesting about it is that as you memorise it, you actually get to know how the scriptures function in terms of transforming your soul, your mind, your heart, your motives, your emotions, your intentions… All that sort of stuff, basically the inner workings of a human being. And I think insofar as I’m growing in Christ-likeness – and I mean in every aspect of myself – when I am doing business with another company and the only way to get business is to grease someone’s hands, I don’t start having an existential crisis because now I have to convince myself not to grease so-and-so’s hands so that I can get the business deal. So I’d say it really is a matter of values and of character: your character has to be far stronger than your talents, your success, [and] your abilities otherwise, whether you have little success or great success, eventually your deficiency in character will come to a point where it compromises your success. SO YOU’D SAY THAT IT BOILS DOWN TO CHARACTER?
Character, character, character. Who you are is more important than what you do so the transformation of your character needs to be worked out with effort and intention, in your own mind.
As the old saying goes, bad company corrupts good character; it is also true that good company encourages good character. SCOPEMAGAZINE.CO.ZA 16
TESTIFY
MY STORY
C I N D Y F U M B ATA D O E S T H I S U N R E A L I S T I C A R C H E T Y P E O F B E A U T Y M A K E M E L O O K FAT ?
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eight has been an issue for me for most of my life. From being the hefty child who would lose every race in pre-school to being too ashamed to wear a bikini next to my skinny friends with ‘perfect’ bodies. My experiences went from blatant namecalling to subtle and unspoken body-shaming.
It didn’t help that I have a gorgeous and much skinnier older sister. I remember once trying to borrow an outfit of hers for civvies day (a day when you’re allowed to wear casual clothes to school). Nothing fit. I grew frustrated trying item after item of clothing on until finally my heart couldn’t take it anymore. I stood in front of the mirror with her pants on me, unbuttoned because they were too small to fit. Standing there with my stomach rolls hanging out, my hips far too pronounced than what the world had deemed fashionable and I hated what I saw. I cried a deep, heart-wrenching cry. Mourning the body I would never have and everything that came with it. The attention, the boys, the societal approval. I remember always convincing myself that if I stopped eating so many peanut butter sandwiches (my Achilles heel while growing up) I would lose enough weight to not feel the need to constantly suck my stomach in or be embarrassed when my shorts rode up between my thighs. It didn’t work. Every time I failed in my endeavours to starve myself or deprive myself of food I enjoyed because it would jeopardise the perfect, skinny body I was trying to attain, I would be engrossed in my failure. Then I would do it all over again. I was exhausted. Tired of being consumed by an overwhelming desire to fit into a certain jean size but not having enough willpower to carry out my self-depriving plans to achieve it. Then it happened: I stopped caring. The self-hatred had worn me out. I started eating what I wanted, when I wanted, and gave away all of my ‘one day’ items of clothing. You know, those clothes you used to 17 SPRING EDITION 2016
fit into when you were much skinnier and have vowed to yourself you will fit into again. Then something surprising happened. I started losing weight. Without trying. Without starving myself or depriving myself of my favourite foods. When I stopped caring I released myself from the pressure to fit into an unrealistic mould. I gave myself the permission to be imperfect. It was freeing. I came to the realisation that I needed to accept myself at what I thought was ‘my worst’ because if I didn’t, no amount of weight-loss would be enough. I would always be chasing an illusion of beauty that didn’t exist. What was important for me to realise as well was that my value as a human being didn’t lie in what I looked like. I had to believe that I was valuable and beautiful simply because I exist. Often the root of our self-hatred lies in the unrealistic archetypes of beauty spewed out by modern day media. We hold ourselves to standards set by air-brushed epitomes of beauty who don’t look like that in reality either. I also needed to realise how unhealthy comparison is and start actively changing the way I thought of myself. “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things.”- Philipians 4: 8 (NIV) The thoughts I had about myself in particular were far from true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy, but as soon as I started thinking positively about myself and how intrinsically valuable I am, I started living and interacting with people according to what I believed and I was able to extend that same grace to people, particularly women, around me. Go forth and be awesome and remember: You are precious, you are beautiful and you are enough.
SIMUNYE
PLUGGED IN
CHURCH COLLABORATION ON CAMPUS
WHAT IS SIMUNYE? Simunye is an on-campus church collaboration initiative that operates through the local church network for the Rhodes University region. Simunye, which in Zulu means ‘we are one’, is a desire for the up-and-coming generation to belong to a community radically changed by the love of God who demonstrate what real unity in diversity looks like. The words from Jesus Christ in John 13:35 are simple but challenging: “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” Our prayer is for churches with a presence on the university campus to be united in love, creatively expressing what this looks like for all to see. Scope Magazine is merely a medium for those both inside and outside church to see the beauty of the Gospel in this way.
SCOPEMAGAZINE.CO.ZA/SIMUNYE
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SAVVY STUDENT
EXPRESSIONS
Lentil Curry
... And so there will be a time, another, some other, what other? When you and I are real eyes, I mean, we will process the data given and in turn, I mean, we will be internally displaced into reality thus realising it is all a lie. I meant that at least we will be lying among the very creation looking up at what seems to be the heavens continually creating more heaven putting us where, exactly? Oh no, we are not deceived into thinking we are supreme. It is merely a state of mind we need to transcend, that of supremacy. When we reach this place our flesh will peel off and be incinerated. Sight and hearing will then follow, feeling and speaking which will be first to taste the glory. With no flesh or any senses is when we will walk out of sight and our hearing will be heightened beyond a place where men reach and all abilities will be His who have us all thought. He who put the will and the way, who watched as you tore and He sowed while you burnt and came to receive you when you betrayed. All of this will come to us. Where? Why? How? Let He who gave you you give you Him.
Cooking time 1hr
DIRECTIONS
Serves 6
On a medium heat pour oil with onions, pepper, garlic and carrots
Coming from a family where meatless Mondays were a myth and meals weren’t considered complete unless there was meat in it, I have absolutely loved this meal. As a student, it is not only easy to make but affordable as well. I have learned that it is possible to have meals that not only leave you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside but healthy too. You can adjust the spiciness according to your liking and enjoy. INGREDIENTS 2 cup of lentils 1 onion chopped 1/2 green pepper 1 carrot peeled and diced 1 potato peeled and diced into small cubes (soak in cold water until ready for use) 1 tomato peeled and chopped
That is who we are.
2 cloves of garlic chopped or 3 tspns of garlic
BY THANDO MASEKELA
2 tspns of cayenne pepper 2 tspns of chilli flakes 2 tspns of masala spice 1/2 tspn of cinnamon (secret ingredient)
Add in the cayenne pepper, chilli flakes, masala and the cinnamon and stir. Put lentils in a microwavable container and pour in enough water to cover. Microwave lentils for 15 minutes or until tender Mix tomato paste and diced tomatoes before pouring into vegetables Drain water from potatoes and add to the rest of the vegetables and stir Stir lentils into the vegetable mixture. Cover for 10 minutes and stir occasionally Add salt at the very end of the cooking process to adjust taste to liking. I find that adding salt at the beginning of cooking any dish often results in a dish that’s too salty, because of all the other ingredients you will be adding. Serve with rice and sweet corn (sprinkle some salt and butter) and enjoy
Tomato paste
In Living Water
Oil Salt
MOSA KAISER
This piece started with the idea that who you choose to photograph, and how you choose to photograph them, reflects as much about you as it does about the sitter. I did a series of portraits with four young women of colour from a church I attend. I chose each woman because I identified with each of them in various ways as young women of colour navigating their relationship with their spirituality. I brought my subjects into the studio and photographed them while having water poured on them, capturing how each individual reacts to the water. The water was used to signify the various metaphors of water with spirituality. 19 SPRING EDITION 2016
SAVVY STUDENT
HELPFUL HINTS
SHEUNOPA MZEZWA
“W
ork hard my son and remember what you are going to Rhodes for.”
I remember my Dad’s words to me just before I left home in Zimbabwe to come to varsity in a new country and start the four-year journey to obtain my Pharmacy degree. The journey hasn’t been easy, but growth never is enjoyable until you look back and see how much change has come from what you’ve learned. Being at university means different things to a lot of us, but the undeniable common factor is that we find ourselves under a lot of pressure to perform. This pressure is from the outside and within ourselves, because we view degrees as the gateway to our dreams and a better life. Our identities can become rooted in academics as we measure how valuable we are to ourselves and to other people based on our academic performance. The first thing we need to do is to free ourselves from this pressure by realising that our identities are not determined by how well we are doing in school, but that we are loved by God more than anything else. This should take the pressure off and help us see that, no matter the grade, God looks at us and smiles because we are His dearly loved children. Why then should we work hard to become top achievers? Colossians 3:23-24 is clear: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”
Here are some practices that have helped me survive my time at university and hopefully they will help you on your journey, too.
Setting goals and planning your work The best thing before or during a semester is to have an idea of where you want to be and what results you desire. Setting goals and targets fundamentally changes how you approach work. Without setting any goal or standard for your work, not only will you have low motivation levels, but it becomes too easy to underperform, since there is nothing in particular that you aspire to and nothing driving you towards maximising your potential. Talk to God about these goals and dedicate them to Him and He will establish your plans.”
Consistency Consistent action creates consistent results. In order to reach and maintain those targets you set, you must be consistent in how you work. Constantly putting in work by reviewing and revising your work is key; it allows you to understand your topics and identify which ones need more attention. Putting in work, even a little bit on days you don’t feel like it, might be the last thing you’d want to do. But when exams come, you will thank yourself as all the small bits of work and revision
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School lasts an average of 4 years, but the friendships and experiences you have may last you a lifetime.
HELPFUL HINTS
you did throughout the semester will make revising much easier. It also puts you at ease knowing your strengths and weaknesses going into finals.
Time management We all have 24 hours because God knows that, no matter what you face, this would be enough time to be a good and productive steward of the opportunities. Being a good steward of your time starts with knowing yourself. Ask yourself the following questions: What times am I most productive? Am I an early morning person or do I prefer working at night? Is there something in my day that is taking up too much of my time e.g. social media, watching series, etc? It is essential to put boundaries in your life so you can focus. This includes letting your friends know when to reach you, putting your phone on silent, or even changing environments if you find that the place you usually do work is distracting. Apps such as ‘Stayfocusd’ on your computer lets you limit the time you spend on certain websites such as YouTube, which is my weakness.
Let others help you on your journey This includes working with a study buddy or having a study group. It allows you to help others where they struggle and allows others to help you where you are stumbling or feeling demotivated. Don’t hesitate to ask your lecturers, tutors, or people who have done the same course as you for help. They usually are very eager to help you and their knowledge and experience could be more beneficial than you think.
Take time off Remember that the core business of you being at varsity is to study and get an education, but don’t forget that there is so much more to life than just books and studying. University is a
21 SPRING EDITION 2016
unique place where you meet people of different personalities, ages, and backgrounds. There are lots of sports and societies for you to explore. School lasts an average of 4 years, but the friendships and experiences you have may last you a lifetime. Taking time off to look after the other areas of your life will consequently help you achieve better academically. Remember, there is life outside of the library and lecture theatre. Lead a balanced lifestyle, because burnout is real. Like any journey, there will be disappointments and discouraging moments along the way – guaranteed. After putting in extended hours of work and energy into a test or assignment, to see a result far less than what you were expecting can be a crushing blow. It is easy for worry and anxiety to creep in, tempting you to surrender and settle for less than what you are capable of. To do well with your studies, you need to learn to strike a balance between being a faithful and diligent steward of time, talents and opportunities, and learning to rely on who God is and trusting what He has promised over your life. This is best shown by Proverbs 21:31 that my pastor loves reminding me of during stressful times: “The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.” So there is no need to worry. You do your part, working hard with all your heart for God, and you will not only survive university, but have victory in your academics.
ENQUIRIES:
info@gwc.ac.za
www.gwc.ac.za
George Whitefield College: 34 Beach Road, Muizenberg, 7945
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George Whitefield College NPC (Reg No 2003/003197/08). Registered as a non-profit organisation (NPO No 042885). Registered with the Department of Higher Education and Training as a private higher education institution, under the Higher Education Act, 1997. Registration Certificate No 2007/HE08/002.
E N C O M PA S S