Sawubona: (Mis)Recognition and the Task of Public Theology – My Inaugural Lecture

On Friday, 23 October 2026, I had the great privilege of delivering my inaugural lecture as University Research Chair (URC) and Professor of Public Theology and Ethics at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. The lecture was titled Sawubona: (Mis)Recognition and the Task of Public Theology.

Sawubona is an everyday isiZulu greeting, meaning ‘I/we see you’. In the lecture, I reflect on what happens when our politics, religious convictions, and social practices lead us to overlook, exclude, or misrecognise others. Drawing on experiences in South Africa and the Netherlands, I explore how a theological understanding of human dignity and mutual recognition might contribute to the work of public theology, particularly in a time of growing political polarisation, religious nationalism, and hostility towards migrants and other vulnerable communities.

The printed text of the lecture is freely available to download from the VU Research Portal.

You can also watch the full inaugural lecture here:

I am deeply grateful to my family, friends, and colleagues who have accompanied, encouraged, challenged, and supported me over so many years. It was a particular joy to have so many colleagues who stayed after our wonderful Global Network for Public Theology conference in Amsterdam earlier that week, present at the lecture! And I am also so thankful to the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam for the remarkable trust it has placed in me and my work. It is a tremendous privilege to be part of this academic community, and to have the opportunity to pursue questions that matter so deeply to me, both academically and personally.

This lecture also marks an important stage in a larger research project. I am currently working on a book, due to be published by Bloomsbury in early to mid-2027, which will offer a more sustained exploration of the theological and philosophical foundations of this account of theological anthropology and mutual recognition, and its significance for contemporary public life.

I would be very grateful for your thoughts on the lecture. Comments, critical feedback, suggestions for further reading, and opportunities for conversation are all most welcome. I still have much to unearth and learn, and I am looking forward to seeing how these ideas develop through engagement with others.

With sincere thanks to everyone who has been part of this journey! I am so grateful!

Dion

Sawubona (Mis)Recognition and the Task of Public Theology

Sawubona (I/we see you!)

Please join me for my Inaugural Lecture as University Research Chair and Professor of Public Theology and Ethics at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

The lecture is scheduled to take place on:

🕰️ Friday, 23 October 2026, at 15.45 CET

📍 The Aula of the University’s Main Building

🤝 The lecture will be followed by a reception.

 Online stream: https://vu.nl/pedel/livestream

Please find below a brief summary of the lecture below:

Sawubona: (Mis)Recognition and the Task of Public Theology

Sawubona is an everyday isiZulu greeting: “I/we see you.” But what happens when politics teaches us not to see people? In the Netherlands and South Africa, political movements increasingly invoke religious language, symbols and identities to divide society between “our people” and threatening “others”, reducing human beings to migrants, foreigners or outsiders. This lecture asks how religion is used to sanctify exclusion, who is made invisible, and who gets to decide. Yet faith can also offer powerful resources for recognising every person’s God-given dignity and worth. Human dignity is not something a state, party, religious community or political movement can grant or withdraw. Public theology seeks to expose the abuse of religion while drawing on religious traditions to help us see again: truthfully, critically and humanely, fostering justice, sustainable peace and human flourishing.

[Nederlands] 

Sawubona is een alledaagse groet in het isiZulu: “Ik/wij zien jou.” Maar wat gebeurt er wanneer politiek ons leert om mensen niet te zien? In Nederland en Zuid-Afrika beroepen politieke bewegingen zich steeds vaker op religieuze taal, symbolen en identiteiten om de samenleving te verdelen tussen “onze mensen” en bedreigende “anderen”, waarbij mensen worden gereduceerd tot migrant, vreemdeling of buitenstaander. Deze oratie vraagt hoe religie wordt ingezet om uitsluiting te heiligen, wie onzichtbaar wordt gemaakt en wie mag bepalen wie gezien wordt. Toch kan geloof ook krachtige bronnen bieden om de door God gegeven waardigheid en waarde van ieder mens te erkennen. Menselijke waardigheid is niet iets wat een staat, politieke partij, geloofsgemeenschap of politieke beweging kan verlenen of intrekken. Publieke theologie probeert het misbruik van religie bloot te leggen en put tegelijk uit religieuze tradities om ons te helpen opnieuw te leren zien: waarachtig, kritisch en menselijk, en zo bij te dragen aan rechtvaardigheid, duurzame vrede en menselijke bloei.