Achieving a Christocentric deliverance praxis in the churches of Matatiele and Maluti, South Africa

Abstract

This article describes a study of deliverance praxis in the South African church, focusing on a qualitative analysis of the exorcism practices examined therein. Between November 2018 and March 2019, a small-scale empirical study was conducted in the forty-eight churches of Matatiele and Maluti in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, which arguably constitute a microcosm of the general South African church as regards diversity and representation. The study identified non-optimal deliverance practices that need to be reviewed. As detailed in this article, its objective was to advocate Christocentric deliverance instead and to highlight the ecclesial praxis best-suited to these churches’ situation. Consequently, this article advances a specific, self-regulatory diagnostic tool to create a more God-glorifying deliverance praxis and preclude the need for state intervention to regulate exorcism in South Africa.