ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the ways that Christianity shaped the mandate of the TRC and in turn influenced the functioning of the process. Domestically, many South Africans were unsure of the Commission's institutional affiliations and loyalties. The TRC was also a process that had the attention of the international community, in particular Western leaders who were struggling to curb ethnic conflict in the Balkans by downplaying the religious differences between Muslim, Catholic and Orthodox populations. Due to economic pressures on South Africa to integrate into the global market, and because of the Western skittishness caused by a growing number of ethnic wars, South Africa found itself being encouraged by the West to become a liberal, secular state. Christian actors were vitally important members of the church groups and religious non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that were involved in the functioning of the TRC. Christians made key inputs into the institutional hearings at the TRC, particularly in the faith community hearings.
