Digital Commons Network^™

Change Across Cultures: A Narrative Approach To Social Transformation / Bruce Bradshaw [Book Review], Paulo De Oliveira

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Unveiling God: Contextualizing Christology For Islamic Culture / Martin Parsons [Book Review], Lester Merklin

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Evangelism Among Resistant Peoples With Deeply Entrenched Polygamy, Russell L. Staples

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

When People Take Charge: A Case Study In Holistic Ministry, Rudi Maier

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Islam On The Web, Bruce Campbell Moyer

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Serving With Eyes Wide Open: Doing Short-Term Missions With Cultural Intelligence / David A. Livermore [Book Review], Wagner Kuhn

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Missionary Family Transition And Chaos Theory, Cheryl Brown Doss

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Developing An Interdisciplinary Analysis And Application Of Worldview Concepts For Christian Mission, Paulo Cândido De Oliveira

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Editorial, Bruce L. Bauer

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Postmodernism: An Emerging Culture, Miroslav Pujic

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

The Relationship Between Leadership Traits And Church Growth Among Pastors Of Free Churches In Germany, Edgar Machel

Dissertations

Problem. Many German Christian denominations have been losing members year by year for the past five decades. There are more and more voices that question the way pastors function as leaders. Therefore, this study looked at the differences of personality traits among pastors of Free Churches in Germany in the context of church growth. The leading research question was. What kind of leadership traits, behaviors, and attitudes are favorable to lead a church toward growth and to return stagnating churches to vibrancy?

Methodology. The “Business-focused Inventory of Personality” was sent out to 1,100 Pentecostal, Baptist, and Adventist pastors, of …

The Scandal Of The Book Of Job, Jiri Moskala

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Is God Present In The Song Of Songs?, Richard M. Davidson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Perceptions Of The Evidence Of A Servant Leadership Culture Among Educators In The P-12 School System In The North American Division Of Seventh-Day Adventists, Donovan B. Ross

Dissertations

Problem Statement. The Seventh-day Adventist church has consistently advocated that adherents to this religion should be Christ-like in every aspect of their lives. They should be of service to others as they create a community of believers who are loving, kind, and considerate of others. These ideals form some of the characteristics of servant leadership. The question therefore is whether servant leadership is being practiced in the P-12 school system. No study related to the presence and practice of servant leadership in the P-12 school system of the NAD has been conducted. Research was needed to determine the perceptions of …

Identification Of Seventh-Day Adventist Health Core Convictions : Alignment With Current Healthcare Practice, Randall L. Haffner

Dissertations

Purpose. The prevailing literature suggests that organizations can sustain their vitality and longevity by preserving their core ideology. The purpose of this study is to define and articulate the core convictions of Seventh-day Adventist healthcare and then investigate how the leaders' and employees' cognitive understandings, behaviors, and affective attachments align at Florida Hospital in Orlando, Florida.

Method. This two-phased sequential exploratory study utilizes qualitative research to define the core convictions of Seventh-day Adventist healthcare through historical literature review, analysis of official Church publications, four commissioned scholarly papers, and one-on-one interviews with seasoned healthcare administrators. These findings are then used to …

Moral Implications Of Darwinian Evolution For Human Reference Based In Christian Ethics: A Critical Analysis And Response To The "Moral Individualism" Of James Rachels, Stephen Bauer

Dissertations

The topic. This dissertation explores and analyzes James Rachels's efforts to prove that Darwin's theory of evolution has catastrophic implications for traditional Christian ethics.

The purpose. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore and evaluate the question of whether or not protology affects ethics. In particular, I propose to distill the implications of evolutionary views of origins for ethics, mainly in reference to the issue of human preference over nature in ethics. I propose to disclose Rachels's understanding of the implications of evolution on human preference (greater protections for human beings over non-humans) in ethics (such as biblical-Christian ethics), …

The Ottoman Qasr At Hisban: Architecture, Reform, And New Social Relations, Oystein S. Labianca, Lynda Carroll, Adam Fenner

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Biblically Based Strategy For Disciple-Making In The Seventh-Day Adventist Churches Of Malawi, Wenson Lyson Masoka

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The current rapid growth of the church in Malawi lacks an on-going strategy to foster the membership increase and its spirituality. The failure to systematically train the laity as disciple makers has resulted in their under utilization. By default, the church has become clergy-dependent and the majority of the members warm the pews as mere spectators. Meanwhile, their conversions seem to be equated with disciple-making. There is need for a paradigm shift which will produce active lay persons who can adequately rise to the challenge of the Gospel Commission, making disciples of all nations. Although this research has a …

A Strategy To Reach Animistic People In Madagascar, Jacques Ratsimbason

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The majority of the Malagasy people who live in Madagascar are unreached with the gospel message. A preliminary investigation of current literature indicated that 50 percent of the Malagasy are followers of traditional religions. This present study was to develop a strategy to reach the animistic people with the gospel message.

Method

This study presents Malagasy people, their social characteristics, population, worldviews, and lifestyles. A study;and evaluation of Malagasy beliefs and practices were developed using Hiebert's model of critical contextualization.

Results

The study reveals that the Seventh-day Adventist Church must update its evangelistic methods to reach animistic people and …

A Strategy For Strengthening Romanian Seventh-Day Adventist Families Dealing With Couple Separation Due To Economic Reasons, Mihail Baciu

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Financial challenges in Romania have prompted many Seventh-day Adventist people to leave their spouses and country to seek employment abroad. The impact of this phenomenon upon families has been significant. This situation occurred primarily between 1991 and 2000. Before 1990, generally speaking, the number of Seventh-day Adventist family separations or divorces was very low (around 30-40 families) in Romania. After 1991, this number increased dramatically to estimated 10-12,000 families. Temporary separation of spouses for economic reasons does not necessarily lead to a divorce. However, due to the complex implications of temporary separation on families, children and faith communities, this …

Ellen White's Counsel To Leaders: Identification And Synthesis Of Principles, Experiential Application, And Comparison With Current Leadership Literature, Cynthia Ann Tutsch

Professional Dissertations DMin

Ellen G. White’s counsel to leaders on both spiritual and practical themes, as well as her personal application of that counsel, has on-going relevance in the twenty-first century.

The author researched secondary literature, and Ellen G. White’s published and unpublished works. She surveyed current leadership literature to compare and contrast with Ellen G. White’s leadership principles and constructed a theological foundation for Ellen White’s unique leadership world view.

Ellen White’s leadership principles relating to knowing God, authority, visioning, and human relations may still inspire compassionate action and a deepening commitment to Jesus Christ in today’s Christian leader.

La Perfilación Como Método Para Identificar Las Necesidades De Los Inmigrantes, Ruben Ramos Rivera

Professional Dissertations DMin

The Hispanic community is currently the largest minority group in the United States and its annual rate of growth continues to be significant. Hispanic immigrants, in particular, face very unique problems and challenges, Seventh-day Adventist pastors and churches need to develop effective strategies that may help them to fill the needs of this group as well as to obey the divine commission of bringing them to Christ. This dissertation seeks to contribute to the wealth of resources and strategies available to pastors by providing them with a valuable tool that may help them to effectively plan their outreach ministries to …

A Preaching Program To Instill Social Consciousness In African-American Churches In Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, Willie Edward Hucks Ii

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

In Adventist African-American churches in the Dallas/Fort Worth (D/FW), Texas, Metroplex, there has been a dearth of preaching to issues pertaining to social consciousness. This dearth is due to the utilization of preaching models that are incapable of addressing all the needs of African-Americans who are constantly buffeted by the stresses of life. The primary focus of preaching has traditionally been upon longterm salvation and spiritual formation, as opposed to community concerns—especially as they relate to preaching in the African-American communities of the D/FW Metroplex. As a result, many Blacks in this region are not being reached as effectively …

Developing A Curriculum To Train The Lay Leaders In Ghana, Isaac Bimpeh Boateng

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Ghana is growing at a very fast rate. The rate of growth far exceeds the rate at which ministers are trained. There were over 300,000 baptized members at the end of 2005 and fewer than 200 pastors. The pastor to laity ratio is therefore very high. Some of the elders who are assisting the pastors do not have the needed skills to work effectively as leaders. As a result of this there is an increase in apostasies especially among new converts.

Method

In an attempt to train the laity in Ghana to assist the …