Unfortunately, in most of the Christian Churches in South Africa, the subject of the Freedom Charter is approached with a certain amount of fear and trepidation. This is not so much because of the contents of this famous Charter; rather it is the result of many years of government propaganda. Until recently it was not altogether clear whether the Freedom Charter as such was banned or not. This has tended to make some people, including some Christians, fearful of reading it or possessing a copy. It has also led some people to think that the Charter must be a very radical and dangerous document, especially when it is associated with the ANC which is portrayed as a “terrorist” organisation.

Anyone who does take the trouble to read the Charter, against the background of all the unfavourable propaganda, must surely find it surprisingly moderate and obviously just in its demands. Any Christian who reads it must surely find it perfectly in keeping with the demands of the gospel. During this year, the 30th anniversary of the Charter, and now that it is clearly not banned, there can no longer be any excuse for the Churches not reading it and commenting on it.

From the point or view of Christian faith then, what can one say about the Freedom Charter?

Although the Charter was finally formulated as a list of demands, the grievances of the people behind these demands are clear and unambiguous. We have heard these grievances again and again since 1955, but here in the Charter we have the voice not of this or that organisation, but the voice of the majority of the people. From the point of view of Christian faith this is the cry of the poor and oppressed, that even today is being heard by God himself. God can say today, as he said long ago of the Hebrew slaves in Egypt: “ I have heard their appeal to be free of their slave-drivers … the cry of the sons of Israel has come to me and I have witnessed the way in which the Egyptians oppress them” [Ex 3:7,9].