top of page
Image by Hugues de BUYER-MIMEURE

About us

The Centre for Public Witness was established to represent the church in the marketplace so that the gospel can make a tangible difference in South Africa. 

​

This Centre is a joint initiative of the Dutch Reformed Church (Synod of the Western Cape) and the Uniting Reformed Church (Regional Synod of Cape). 

​

The chair of the board is Dr. Llewellyn MacMaster (URCSA).

The director is Dr. Braam Hanekom (DRC).

Our mission

Bringing the Gospel to the marketplace is our mission at the Centre for Public Witness. We proclaim  the reconciliation message of Jesus Christ, but also strive to give this message a concrete form in the most topical issues with which we are confronted.

 

As a church, we aim to engage in conversations and dialogues at the local level, as well as to increase our contact with the media, government, and business.

What do we do?

Driven by a public theology, the centre focuses its work on issues that affect the socio-economic context of South Africa.

 

  • We focus on establishing and facilitating multicultural dialogue sessions across South Africa (See #100DorpeDialoog);

  • The Hope and Reconciliations Trust, a trust devoted to rural development and early childhood development, is run by the centre;

  • The Centre for Public Witness serves as the administrative office for the WCEN (Western Cape Ecumenical Network), which provides an ecumenical network for approximately thirty denominations and church organisations in the Western Cape;

  • The centre has a strong commitment to environmental issues, and Dr. Hanekom serves on the board of SAFCEI (Southern African Faith Communities Environmental Initiative);

  • Specific areas of focus include: housing, poverty alleviation, skills development and faith development in a modern context.

bottom of page