My darling, Megan, and I came to Naarden Vesting (the fortress) by Vespa. The perfect spot for a sundowner! Loving the LONG European summer evenings!
Dion Forster
@digitaldion.bsky.social
Husband, father, friend, servant - professor of Public Theology at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, extraordinary professor of Systematic Theology and Ethics at Stellenbosch University (opinions my own)
We folded our bicycles, jumped on the train, and visited beautiful Nijmegen, Radboud University, my Alma Mater, and enjoyed the last day of the #Vierdaagse A beautiful family, summer, day!
When does political power stop borrowing sacred language and start claiming to be sacred itself? New piece on Brazil, South Africa, and the Netherlands, and the four questions I think help us tell the difference. open.substack.com/pub/digitald...
When politics begins to speak like God
Discerning divine presence amid sacralised power
open.substack.com
16 years ago we went to the Fan Walk in Cape Town to share in the vibe and excitement of the FIFA World Cup. Our beautiful children have grown up since then, and so have we 🤣👋❤️ Such a wonderful memory! I am very grateful.
Today I had a meeting at the Theologische Universiteit Utrecht, in beautiful Utrecht! I rode my little Vespa! It was stunningly beautiful!
#oldmanrunning with the young man! Liam is training for the Amsterdam marathon. He let me tag along for a few KM’s!
“We have lived our lives by the assumption that what was good for us would be good for the world. We must change our lives so that it will be possible to live by the contrary assumption, that what is good for the world will be good for us.” - Wendell Berry, The Long-Legged House
‘God of Mighty Truth, make us people of true speech, obedient speech… give us the courage to trust you, knowing you would never call a people to you who would prefer lies to truth. Amen.’ - Stanley Hauerwas, The Truth That Reveals Lies (from Prayers Plainly Spoken).
Please join me in congratulating Dr Ahmed El Assal who successfully defended his PhD at the International Institute of Social Studies yesterday. It was a beautiful afternoon. You can read about it here: www.iss.nl/en/events/ph... Dr El Assal, well done! Many blessings for the road ahead!
Multimodal!! I have to speak at an event in Utrecht and then one of my PhD students is defending his doctorate in The Hague, so I have my professor’s gown on my Brompton, heading to the station! Ha ha! Ik ben echt ingeburgerd!
Yesterday I had the privilege of speaking at the IRTI Summer School - a wonderful group of scholars from around the world reflecting on opportunities and challenges for Reformed Faith in various publics. Amazing people! They even welcomed this Methodist!
Happy Interdependence Day. In a world obsessed with illusions of isolation, fueled by hatred and greed, let us remember: no one is free until we all are free. My humanity is bound up with yours. May we find life not in separation, but in the sacred work of solidarity. Happy interdependence day!
Such a stunning day with dear colleagues at the #EUARE2026 a rich series of papers and discussions. I am very grateful! Then my friend Javier and I walked to St Peter’s Basilica. Stunning!
Rome, you beauty! It is HOT! I am waiting for my bus to LUISS University of Rome for our panel from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam on Discerning God: In difference. #EUARE2026
This weekend we said farewell to Archbishop Thabo Makgoba and Lungi. It has been an immeasurable joy and blessing to have them with us for the last three months. We have learned about hope, justice, and beautify, for all of creation (both human and non-human). Safe travels!
With this rise of populist xenophobic appeals in South Africa, a nation in which close to 86% of persons claim to be Christian, I ask on what grounds some Christians feel that they can call for the suspension of humanity. Naturally, I argue against it. open.substack.com/pub/digitald...
Can Ubuntu be “suspended”?
Christian decency, migrant dignity, and the moral danger of South Africa’s xenophobic populism
open.substack.com
Today I had the privilege of attending the GROW PhD conference where our colleague Nycholas Oliveira from VU Amsterdam (together with the cohort of African PhD candidates, working on research in Development Studies) presented workshops on their work. Inspiring and informative!
Megie and I rode to Amsterdamsebos for an impromptu picnic! It was amazing! So beautiful, and so lovely to spend time with my darling!
Hup Holland! ⚽️🇳🇱🧡 I am loving my #pilsjamas 🤣😝👆Dreaming of a South African or Dutch World Cup win! 🏆
Congratulations, to my dear friend Dr Khegan Delport for the publication of his book ‘Philosophical Theologies in South Africa: Genealogies, Traditions, and Speculations’, (Open Access!)! It was so great to see you, thanks for the book! ujonlinepress.uj.ac.za/index.php/uj...
AI is not only a technical question, it is a deeply human one. In this new Substack post, I offer a first theological engagement with Pope Leo XIV’s Magnifica Humanitas and ask what it means to remain human in an age of AI. open.substack.com/pub/digitald...
I am working remotely this week while visiting the Faculty of Theology, Stellenbosch University, I have some human and non-human co-workers this morning! ❤️🐶 My doggies would love to visit the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam when I am back! #RemoteWork #Coworkers
‘The proportions of good and evil in any society depend partly upon the proportion of consent to that of refusal and partly upon the distribution of power between those who consent and those who refuse.’ - Simone Weil, Draft for a Statement of Human Obligation.
Cape Town you beauty! Ah, such a blessing to be with our friends and family in Somerset West!
