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Prof John Klaasen appointed as Dean: Faculty of Theology and Religion at the UFS

01 April 2024 | Story Lacea Loader | Photo Sonia Small

Prof John Klaasen, newly appointed Dean: Theology and Religion at the UFS.

The University of the Free State (UFS) has appointed Prof John Klaasen as Dean: Faculty of Theology and Religion from 1 April 2024.

Prof Klaasen is Professor of Theology and has served two terms as Head of the Department of Religion and Theology at the University of the Western Cape. He also served as Professor in the Kjell Nordstokke Chair in Community Development at VID Specialized University in Norway and is Adjunct Professor at VID Specialized University.

“With his vast experience and involvement in research projects – nationally as well as internationally – Prof Klaasen will make a significant contribution to the Faculty of Theology and Religion and the university in general. This will also be valuable in support of the university’s Vision 130, which is an expression of our strategic intent to position the institution towards 2034 when the UFS will be 130 years old,” says Prof Francis Petersen, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the UFS.

As a practical theologian, the intersection between praxis and theory has occupied Prof Klaasen’s research for the past decade. He has researched and published extensively within theology, community development, and narrative. Aspects such as narrative, embedded knowledge, participation, reconciliation, and the non-rational tradition of knowledge are some of the areas that occupy his research outputs.

He is involved in numerous international research projects, which include a COST project with 17 European institutions, a project on reconciliation processes with institutions in Canada and Nordic countries, an international initiative on community development with various institutions in Europe, and a NORPART initiative with Norway and Malawi.

Community engaged scholarship forms a central part of his research and work at the intersection of religion and social justice. Prof Klaasen is involved in various community development projects, including homes for the aged, lay training, water issues, and lay theological education.

His teaching is situated within a socially just pedagogy, which puts the students at the centre of knowledge production. This innovative way of knowledge production intersects students, teachers, and the lecture room within a dynamic space of contextualisation.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to join such a prestigious institution and will endeavour to contribute to Vision 130 through commitment, innovation, trust, and ethical leadership – which represents the university’s commitment to be recognised by our peers and society as a top-tier university in South Africa, ranked among the best in the world,” says Prof Klaasen.

News Archive

South Africa praised for dealing with its history

2012-07-12

Case Study: Symbols of Power, Justice and Transformation - Prof. André Keet

“I listened to an incredible conversation on how South Africans can talk about the past. We failed to do that in the US. We cannot move on because we failed to name the ghosts in our past. I am honouring what South Africa is doing.”

These are the words of a staff delegate from a university in the USA in a case study at the Global Leadership Summit led by Prof. André Keet, Director of the International Institute for Studies in Race, Reconciliation and Social Justice at the University of the Free State (UFS).

Students and academics from universities in the USA, Belgium, the Netherlands and Japan are attending a Global Leadership Summit with the theme “Transcending Boundaries in Global Change Leadership” at the UFS.

In the case study, symbols on the Bloemfontein Campus such as the MT Steyn Statue, Justitia symbol of justice at the building of the Faculty of Law, the artwork Van hier tot daar, and the Women’s Memorial were presented to the audience and the question was asked if they had to be removed or if they had to remain.

Students overwhelmingly felt that symbols of the past had to remain. Here are some of the comments:

“Without our past we would not be here today. Without the past, we would not know why we are here or where we are going.”
“It is important for students that it remains on campus, as a reminder that history must not repeat itself.”
“There is room for new symbols. We must look back but must also look at the future.”
“We must resolve the problems of the past and move on.”
“We must remember that we cannot go back there again. We must not take away part of other people’s history.”
“Symbols must be contextualised.”
“Don’t look in the rear mirror, but through the windscreen where you are going. The windscreen is far bigger.”

One student said the statute of MT Steyn filled him with anger.

Prof. Keet said the act of running away from the ghosts of the past was a way to keep those ghosts alive. The past cannot be dealt with, only visited. The ghosts connect people with the past and allow the past to be present in the now.

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