welcome to the school of religion and theology

Our mission:

As a school researching, teaching and practising theology, in dialogue with other religions, we see ourselves becoming the leading institution in distance teaching in South Africa, Africa and the world.

Our vision:

To give expression to this vision, we commit ourselves to:

• fostering creative research on issues of religion and theology, and generate new knowledge in our fields of expertise according to the global and contextual needs of society
• contributing to the development of South African, African and global discourses in religion, theology and Biblical Studies in dialogue with worldwide trends
• enriching the lives of our students by providing quality distance learning programmes in traditional religious and theological disciplines, as well as in specialised programmes in pastoral therapy, urban ministry, spirituality and gender studies
• empowering our students to play a constructive role in the various Christian churches and social communities of Southern Africa as well as in ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue
• enriching the lives of our staff members by building a constructive team spirit, providing adequate tuition and research support, and honouring the contribution of each colleague
• joining the struggles against poverty, racism, HIV/AIDS and the abuse of power against women, children and men, thus contributing to the development of a just and harmonious society.

What does Theology mean?

The term theology is used at Unisa, as at some other universities, to describe the academic study of the Christian faith, which empowers people to make a constructive contribution to the life of a church and to the community at large. Students from other religious communities are welcome to enrol for theological courses, but they should be aware that these modules have a Christian focus.

The School of Theology and Biblical Religions at Unisa has adopted an inclusive and contextual approach, which emphasises intercultural understanding and interreligious respect. This approach does not attack or belittle other religious traditions; instead, it encourages Christian students to develop a deep understanding of their own faith and to articulate it confidently, with respect for all the faiths of humanity.

However, the School doesn't only offer theology courses, which are directly related to the life of the church. We also offer courses in Biblical Studies and Biblical Archaeology that are of more general interest. These courses help students to understand the Bible as a historical, literary document and to appreciate its role in a secular and pluralistic context.

In addition to studying the Christian faith and the Bible, it is also possible to study other religions at Unisa. There are various courses dealing with world religions in the Faculty of Arts. The Department of Religious Studies offers courses on most religions of the world, e.g. African Religion, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, New Religious Movements, etc., while the Department of Semitics offers courses on Jewish and Islamic Studies. If you want to know more about these courses in the Arts Faculty, please contact the relevant departments:

Religious Studies (012) 429-4523
Semitics (012) 429-6812