Synthesis: Faculty Press

The annual yearbook project by Thebe Magugu and friends present a photo series exploring how young people in South Africa particularly navigate their need for belonging and desire for acceptance in a religious society that creates in them a dichotomy and crisis of faith.

'Their place and identity are constantly evolving, and in a complex world of perception and identity, no less. The inner-conflict stems from the desire to abide by the long-held religious beliefs many of them were raised with. The moral and sexual restrictions intertwined therein and their identity outside of those confines creates seemingly warring ideological imperatives within them. These contrasting needs and desires manifest in many forms, namely anxiety and depression. The journey of discovery around identity and challenging the conventional notions of who they should be forms the bedrock for this photo project.

Izambulo zabantwana benkholo is the introduction to the story which means Revelations from the children of religion in isiZulu.Iziythilelo is Xhosa word relating to the book of Revelations in the Christian Bible. In the book of Revelations it speaks about the End Times or Last Days and condemns many actions prophesied to manifest in that time. Ndzimani, also Xhosa meaning struggle, the struggle to express freely is indicative of how places proclaiming unconditional love and meant to be of refuge, are often the very reason many young people feel oppressed, ostracised and cast aside.'