There but for the grace of OGOD: Religion and diversity in South African public schools

Abstract

South Africa’s doctrinal approach to religion in public schools allows for circumscribed space for religious observances, while protecting diverse and minority interests. In Organisasie vir Godsdientse-Onderrig en Demokrasie v Laerskool Randhart [2017] ZAGPJHC 160; 2017 (6) SA 129 (GJ), the High Court held that a public school cannot promote that it adheres to only one religion to the exclusion of others. The judgment placed weight on the value of diversity, which affirms inclusivity and difference in a pluralist society. While diversity is normatively significant, the court’s preference for it is consistent with an ongoing judicial trend that favours reliance on generalised norms over concrete provisions. This leaves open important questions as to how particular religious policies and observances at a school level should be tested within a local context, and the meaning to be given to constitutional requirements that religious observances at state or state-aided institutions be free, voluntary, and conducted on an equitable basis. Five years after that judgment was handed down, these debates are of renewed importance, with legislative amendments currently before Parliament that would require a public school’s code of conduct to take into account the diverse cultural beliefs and religious observances of learners.