Christianity Commons^™

Infancy Stories Of Jesus: Apocrypha And Toledot Yeshu In Medieval Europe, Natalie Latteri

Theology & Religious Studies

This conference proceeding was originally published by the University of San Francisco Press through the Joan and Ralph Lane Center for Catholic Social Thought and the Ignatian Tradition of the University of San Francisco. The Lane Center Series explores intersections of faith and social justice. Featuring essays that bridge interdisciplinary research and community engagement, the series serves as a resource for social analysis, theological reflection, and education in the Jesuit tradition.

Visit the Lane Center’s website to download each volume and view related resources at www.usfca.edu/lane-center

Discipleship In A Digital Age: Leveraging Multimodality And Digital Networks, Jennifer Miles

Doctor of Ministry

Advancements in communication technology, particularly since the Internet Age, have impacted culture in several fundamental ways. Cognitive and psychological changes have changed how people seek and understand knowledge. The development of horizontal networks made of both space of places, physical locations, and space of flows, Internet locations,1 has reshaped academic, social, and political spheres. The rise in entertainment to transfer information has shifted society’s focus to one of experience and service in everyday life. These changes have impacted the institutional church through a reduction of individuals self-identifying as Christian and in behaviors traditionally considered Christian.

In response, the church has …

Spirit Possession In Luke-Acts And Modern Eyewitnesses : An Analysis Of Anthropological Accounts As Evidence For The Plausibility Of The Lukan Accounts, Joy L. Vaughan

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Secret Treasure Of Coming Home: Ruth Suckow Park, Earlville, Iowa, James C. Schaap

Pro Rege

Editor's Note: This article was aired on Dec. 2, 2019, by Siouxland Public Media, KWIT FM 90.3 and KOJI FM 90.7, and published at https://www.kwit.org/post/secret-treasure-coming-home. This article is one in a series of broadcasts on KWIT and is available at KWIT.org as well as Schaap's website - floydriverpress.com.

Jesus, Judgment, And The People Of God: Learning From Jesus And The Reformed Tradition About The Works Required For Salvation, Joshua E. Leim

Pro Rege

Editor's Note: Dr. Joshua E. Leim presented this paper at the Prodigal Love of God Conference, in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Canons of Dort, April 2019, sponsored by Dordt University and co-sponsored by the Lilly Fellowship Program, as a regional conference.

Empty Chairs At Empty Tables: Dort In French Protestantism, Matthew Paul Harmon

Pro Rege

Editor's Note: Rev. Harmon presented this paper at the Prodigal Love of God Conference, in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Canons of Dort, April 2019, sponsored by Dordt University and co-sponsored by the Lilly Fellowship Program, as a regional conference.

Prodigal Love And A Hermeneutic Of Charity: How Grace Changes Learning, Alexander Sosler

Pro Rege

Editor's Note: Dr. Alexander Sosler presented this paper at the Prodigal Love of God Conference, in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Canons of Dort, April 2019, sponsored by Dordt University and co-sponsored by the Lilly Fellowship Program, as a regional conference.

How America's Political Parties Change (And How They Don't) (Book Review), Jack Vander Slik

Pro Rege

Reviewed Title: How America's Political Parties Change (And How They Don't) by Michael Barone. New York and London: Encounter Books, 2019. 130 pp. ISBN: 9781641770781.

Different Accents In The Story: An Autobiographical Exploration, Susan Vanzanten

Pro Rege

Editor’s Note: Dr. Susan VanZanten presented this paper at the Prodigal Love of God Conference, April 2019, sponsored by Dordt University and co-sponsored by the Lilly Fellowship Program as a regional conference.

American Prodigal: White Church, Black Church, And The Feast Of Social Justice, Melissa Vanden Bout

Pro Rege

Editor's Note: Dr. Vanden Bout presented this paper at the Prodigal Love of God Conference, in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Canons of Dort, April 2019, sponsored by Dordt University and co-sponsored by the Lilly Fellowship Program, as a regional conference.

Reforming Christian Higher Education: Why Christian Colleges And Universities Need Reformation Theology, Javier Garcia

Pro Rege

Editor's Note: Dr. Garcia presented this paper at the Prodigal Love of God Conference, in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the Canons of Dort, April 2019, sponsored by Dordt University and co-sponsored by the Lilly Fellowship Program, as a regional conference.

Frontmatter (Volume 40, Issue 2)

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

Thirty Years Of Religious Freedom In Russia: The Case Of Ekaterinburg, Elena Glavatskaya

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

"The religious revival, which began nationwide during the USSR’s last decade, affected all religious denominations, including the so-called “traditional” religions, which had deep roots in Imperial Russia’s history, and new religions that appeared after the collapse of Soviet ideology. The religious renaissance manifested itself through the rapidly increasing number of religious communities, religion’s fast penetration into social and political life, and the church buildings that mushroomed all over the country. This article focuses on the history of the religious landscape in Russia since 1989, using the city of Ekaterinburg as a case study. We use the religious landscape concept to …

Atomization, Decentralization, And Sustainability: Prominent Trends On The Russian Protestant Church Scene, William Yoder

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

"At least in Russia–and China–the age of euphoria prominent 30 years ago is gone. The church missions committed to short-term gains have left for greener pastures and the congregations remaining behind are now, more than ever, required to determine their own fates. Increasingly required to live from their own funding, church projects are becoming more sustainable. Huge building and educational projects are only a memory. This general and expected course of events can be attributed in part to short attention spans in the West; increased government pressure is only one of numerous factors."

Guest Editorial: Interreligious Encounter And Religious Change In Former Yugoslavia, Aleksandra Djurić-Milovanović

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

In this issue of OPREE, three case studies by Gašper Mithans, Evelyn Reuter, and Aleksandra Djurić-Milovanović explore interreligious encounters in Yugoslavia and religious transformations that brought new dynamics in interreligious relations between majority and minority religions.

Anti-Jewish Propaganda In The Ndh And The Slovak State, Madeline Vadkerty

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

"This paper examines the nature of the anti-Semitic propaganda used by the Slovak State and the Independent State of Croatia (Nezavisna Država Hrvatska -- NDH) during World War II, taking into account the two countries’ unique and common objectives, evolving political contexts, strategies, and tactics. The paper also analyzes how those activities fit into the wider strategy of nation building and the attempt to create a new collective identity which was to be predicated on the concept of exclusivity and racial/cultural superiority."

Believers Armor: How The Christian Church In The United States Can Survive And Overcome Spiritual Warfare, Michael A. Webb

Doctor of Ministry

This research seeks to discover why the Christian church in the United States has struggled to withstand the effects of spiritual warfare. Resisting Satan’s evil schemes continues to be a personal need and spiritual challenge facing people in today’s fastpaced digital world. Failing to resist Satan creates a severe problem for the Christian church. As a result, believers are unprepared to both understand and withstand the effects of spiritual warfare. The author, inspired by the Holy Spirit, created an artifact that has become a powerful ministry tool to address this challenge. The Armor of God challenge coin was fashioned from …

Religious Conversions And Religious Diversification In Interwar Yugoslavia And Slovenia, Gašper Mithans

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

With the foundation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, the respective nationalities and ethnic communities were faced with the reality of a multi-confessional state. Internal migration and minority policy, in particular, set in motion a slow diversification in the religious sphere, even in the ethnically and religiously extremely homogeneous territory of Slovenia. This paper aims to analyze the role that religious converts—who were largely former Catholics—played during the interwar period in Slovenian regions in the phenomenon of the gradual transformation of the religious landscape over a long period of time. Converts were an important part of almost all …

Book Review: God’S Spies: The Stasi’S Cold War Espionage Campaign Inside The Church, James R. Payton Jr.

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

Review of Elisabeth Braw, God’s Spies: The Stasi’s Cold War Espionage Campaign Inside the Church. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2019. $25.00 (hardcover). ISBN: 978-0-8028-7525-9.

The Handmaid Of The Lord Redux: Constructing The New Orthodox Womanhood Between Cradle And Convert, Katherine Kelaidis

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

"In an era when questions of sexuality and gender dominate much of the debate in theological circles, regardless of religious or confessional affiliation, the meaning of Orthodox Christian womanhood remains a simultaneously over-discussed and under-theorized aspect of these conversations. This article attempts to address this discrepancy by articulating and problematizing some of the myriad of forces that are shaping the construction of Orthodox Christian womanhood and the identity of Orthodox Christian women today. In particular, we explore how the “Culture Wars” (a once largely American political phenomenon) have internationalized and become a major force in the articulation of gender both …