| About National Interfaith Council of South Africa
Executive Summary
National Interfaith Council of South Africa (NICSA) is a Section 21 Company consisting of all faith based organizations in South Africa. The Council aims to strengthen, restore and re-build the integrity of the family and human values through dialogues and other interventions aimed at promoting Social Cohesion. The Council has prioritized the promotion and acquisition of land for use in the production of food and preservation of indigenous plants for both heritage and medicinal purposes. NICSA hopes to promote social cohesion specifically at local and regional levels through dedicated innovative educational methods. The organization also aims to identify and initiate other services which are relevant for boys and girls, men and women participation, for example couple counselling and promotion of healthy lifestyles through prevention of drug and alcohol abuse campaigns.
Problem Statement
South Africa has emerged from its violent, racial, unequal apartheid past and has not addressed these issues in a systematic manner with its consequent dehumanisation, loss of identity, African spirituality, human dignity and landlessness, thereby consigning the African people to life of poverty and unemployment. The apartheid colonialism uprooted the African people from their cultural and traditional moral values systems and they were socialised into Eurocentric and Judeo Christian ethos and value system which essentially undermined, distorted the Ubuntu principles that shaped the moral character of the African community. The resultant anger of the violet apartheid past lingers in the sub-conscience of the majority of the African people. The subliminal anger defines, to some degree, what they say and do, resulting in the destruction of property, self- hate, entitlement, demand politics rather solution driven dialogue, rape of women and children, indulging substance abuse, disregard of the sanctity of human life and loss of imaginative appreciation of what of anything African. These problems have to be addressed if the national project of social cohesion and nation building is to succeed and the nation to heal. The NICSA wishes to commit itself to partner with government in this regard.
What informs all NICSA Programmes?
The NICSA propagates moral regeneration for social development rather than moral regeneration for its own sake. The paradigm shift question should be asked at all times, to what extend are the moral values we inculcate contributes to social development and civic cohesive community. To be precise, moral regeneration should contribute to the vision of NICSA, ‘’building a new society with new moral values and attitudes’’. This linkage is of cardinal importance to the interfaith approach to moral regeneration project. Furthermore, the NICSA has to commission a study to establish whether or not education contributes to moral integrity. If so how and if not why? This study is necessitated by claims which purports to support that educated people (at least those who have had access to a formal of education) are morally corrupt – a claim which essentially renders education impotent in enhancing and reinforcing moral consciousness. Does the knowledge of right and wrong enough to curb corruption, rape of women and children and other social ills? The answer to this inquiry is essential to determine the nature and scope of intervention in addressing deep seated moral decay in society. |
