Browsing by Author "Francis, Virginia"

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Applying corporate social responsibility principles to the church : a case study of the interface between the Indian Pentecostal/Charimatic Church in the Phoenix Community, Durban North (KwaZulu Natal) and social responsibility
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2008-03) Francis, Virginia; Nadar, Sarojini; Swilling, Mark; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. School of Public Management and Planning.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: South Africa is a country in transition, and continues to develop new systems expected to positively shift the social and economic lives of 48 million people. Every sector of society is focussed on people’s upliftment. Corporations in South Africa have Corporate Social Investment (CSI) programmes as their contribution toward this goal. The Pentecostal/Charismatic Church is the fastest growing Christian denomination in the world, certainly even in Africa. Churches’ also have a responsibility to society’s upliftment, and since the Pentecostal/Charismatic church aspires to corporate principles this thesis explores the response of the Indian Pentecostal/Charismatic Church to social, economic and environmental issues of local and global magnitude. The theoretical framework proposes that a theology for social change in South Africa must be traced from the foundation of a theology of liberation from racial oppression, which is found in the Kairos Document; and combines this with CSI principles to present a composite framework for analysis. The study uses qualitative methodologies of loosely structured interviews and a focus group discussion with Pentecostal/Charismatic pastors from the Phoenix community, north of Durban. The findings suggest that the Indian Pentecostal/Charismatic Church i) has divergent viewpoints on what constitutes social responsibility, ii) does not have a set of guiding principles for funding social programmes, and iii) does not have a discernable liberation theology, which is a real challenge facing the Church as this study argues that is a core reason for the Churches’ inability to deal with social justice or sustainability issues effectively.