Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Hermeneutical Implications Of Certain Pre-Pauline Passages In The Pauline Corpus Of The New Testament, Inta Ivanovska

Master of Art Theology Thesis

Postmodern linguistics and philosophy have challenged the possibility that an author, a text, or a reader of a text possesses or can possess complete objectivity. It claims that an "independent, objective, reason-driven reader" is merely a "communally dependent, subjective, presupposition-bound agent." Similarly, an author is regarded as subject who through the text merely expresses the perspectives he has acquired through his own, contextually-shaped experiences. Moreover, once created, a text is not to be regarded as an entity which bears its own intrinsic meaning; nor is a text the expression of an "original," authorial intent. Rather, a text is merely a …

Witness And Worship In Pluralistic America, John F. Johnson, Joel Okamoto, Charles Arand, David Adams, Richard Warneck, Andrew H. Bartelt, Paul Raabe, William Schumacher, Paul Robinson, James Voelz, Robert Kolb

Ebooks

American society in the twenty- first century poses a myriad of challenges for the church as it seeks to be an effective witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Among these challenges is an increasingly pluralistic cultural and religious context.

Virtue Ethics And The Place Of Character Formation Within Lutheran Theology, Joel Biermann

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

This study strives to provide a way for all parish pastors to reconsider the task of providing ethical training in a parish setting. The intent of this investigation is to encourage a shift in perception that will allow training in ethics to be evaluated and eventually adopted as both practically positive and theologically valid. Failing that ambitious goal, the study can at least prompt further discussion of the appropriate place of training in ethics, that is, teaching the practical matters of living the Christian life. Understood scripturally, the goal is quite simply to provide a way for congregations faithfully to …

Systemic Catechesis, Kevin Wyssmann

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

Systemic Catechesis is designed to merge several academic disciplines into a new catechetical model. Learning theories, systemic psychology, and a distinctive Lutheran approach to confirmation are combined in an effort to catechize whole family systems while specifically targeting junior high youth. This multifaceted program utilizes class time, home work, periodic evaluations, camps and retreats to maximize learning. The results of this project is a two-year curriculum that fully integrates educators, congregation, and the family into the catechetical process.

Avery Dulles's Advocacy Of Reformulation Of Dogma And Doctrinal Development, Richard Warneck

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

The first chapter of this study examines the setting for Father Dulles's energetic work in the years immediately following Vatican Council II. With respect to the Church’s dogmatic formulations, it was apparent to Father Dulles that the Council tacitly proclaimed the end of irreformability. The Church's doctrinal statements must undergo reformulation in order to express adequately and communicate incisively the Christian faith to the world of the late twentieth century. Furthermore, his own epistemology, methodology, and theology did, in effect, shape his outlook regarding reformulation. These subjects are treated at length in chapter two, complemented by close attention to his …

A Study In The Theology Of Carl Fr Wisloff With Particular Focus On Faith And The Means Of Grace In The Bestowal Of Salvation, Eugene Boe

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

The general topic for this work is the relation of faith and the means of grace in the bestowal of salvation. The Lutheran Church from her beginning has believed, confessed and taught that we are saved by grace through faith alone. This is stated briefly in the Augsburg Confession, Article IV.

Our churches also teach that men cannot be justified before God by their own strength, merits, or works but are freely justified for Christ's sake through faith 2 when they believe that they are received into favor and that their sins are forgiven on account of Christ, who by …

A Look At The Authority Of The Parish Pastor, Martin Koeller

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

Changes in society, misuse and abuse of authority in the pastoral office and changes in congregations concerning the role of the pastor, have all led to a need for defining and identifying what authority in the church is, and what authority the pastor has.

The scope of this project was to look at the Scriptural and Confessional foundations of Pastoral Authority along with discussions with the Board of Elders, Constitution Committee and Bible Study groups, to draw a basis for: 1) a definition of “Pastoral Authority"; and 2) the right use of that authority in the office of the parish …

Orality As The Key To Understanding Apostolic Proclamation In The Epistles, Thomas Winger

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

Redaction criticism and its modern successors in the literary field, while they give more credit to the text and the author, have at the same time mired the academy again into a modern mud of sources and manipulation. There is promise in certain new paths—rhetoric, reader-response, speech-act theory, methods which we will note briefly in the first chapter. But finally we must move out of the "academy" and into the church. For the orality of Scripture is not just about its origin but also about its use and purpose. The Scriptures are a liturgical piece. They belong not on the …

A Model For Small Group Development And Enrichment At St. Luke's Lutheran Church, Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, Timothy Wenger

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

A MODEL FOR SMALL GROUP DEVELOPMENT AND ENRICHMENT ATST. LUKE'S LUTHERAN CHURCH, WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WISCONSINBY TIMOTHY E. WENGER

The project was begun with the assumption that a greater use of small group ministry could strengthen the congregation as a whole and provide better opportunities for individuals to experience spiritual growth and a deeper sense of fellowship within the church. The approach to this project included research into the theological foundation of small groups and research into the utilization of small groups in society. The observance and appraisal of current small group ministry at St. Luke’s and the enrichment and development …

From Invocation Through Creed: A Historical And Doctrinal Analysis Of The Service Of The Word In The Common Service, Timothy Roser

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Cursory study of the text of this liturgy reveals that it was not assembled according to some academic standard. Perhaps a better word for its development would be "organic," as over the centuries it grew to meet the needs of the time. Each addition was tested, tried, and proven not by a single congregation nor even a group of congregations acting in concert, but by the Church at large working over the course of decades and centuries. This is not to suggest that these words are the only way3to receive God's service to us and return our service to Him. …

A Systemic View Of Collaborative Leadership-A Partnership Of Joy, Dale Kleimola

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

This Major Applied Project (MAP) recognizes the relationship between the office of the public ministry and the priesthood of all believers. The thesis is that ministry is enhanced, and joy grows when the partnership between pastor and people is appreciated and celebrated.

To accomplish this goal, the project looks at the doctrine of church and ministry, as understood by the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, and applies to it, systems theory.

Recognizing the need for a paradigm shift in understanding church and ministry, the MAP looks at church and ministry from two systemic view points: the church as a complex organizational …

Κοινo͂Nia: The Biblical Proclamation Of Κοινo͂Nia And Its Relationship To The Proclamation And Celebration Of The Lord's Supper, Gregory Seltz

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

"Fellowship." What does it mean? How is one to “achieve" it? Or, does one achieve it at all? What are the modern views concerning koin ͂οnia and do they parallel Paul’s use of the term in his writings? Where is the koin ͂οnia hall in the church? Pastors, theologians and lay people alike are challenged to answer these questions, either overtly or subtly, for true faith looks to root itself on solid, common, KOINON, ground. The task of this study is to pursue clarity regarding koin ͂οnia which may help in recognizing when it is spoken of in lesser, other, …

Integrity And Integration In Ecclesiastical Historiography: The Perspective Of Mosheim And Neander, Paulo Buss

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

This investigation attempts to apply the motif of integrity and integration in an examination of Lutheran ecclesiastical historiography. This is not a comprehensive survey involving all the significant Lutheran historians of the past but rather focuses on selected Lutheran historians of different centuries to determine possible tendencies in their views of integrity and integration. Although these terms themselves are not employed as such by the theologians/historians analyzed here, this study starts with the hypothesis that the concepts expressed by these terms are not unfamiliar to them.

In a study of Lutheran historiography the question about Luther's view of history deserves …

Marriage And The Image Of God As It Is Reflected In Paul's Understanding Of Women And The Ministry In Four Passages: 1 Cor. 11:2-16; 14:33b-36; Eph. 5:22-33; 1 Tim. 2:11-15, Lane Burgland

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

This study proposes to examine the Pauline texts which bear most directly upon the subject of women and their involvement in the ministry of word and sacrament. Several evangelical feminist6writers will be engaged in the study at specific points in the interpretation. The primary goal of this paper, however, is to produce an exegesis of these four passages which identifies the basis of Paul's comments and demonstrates their unity. This work is intended to answer the question: "how does what Paul's says about women in four passages reflect his understanding of the image of God and Christology?"

The contribution this …

The Missiological Significance Of The Doctrine Of Justification In The Lutheran Confessions, Klaus Schulz

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

Generally the Lutheran Confessions are understood in the traditional sense as the normative sources for Lutheran doctrine; in addition, they are also documents which offer valuable missiological insights. To support the latter observation the following study attempts to read the Lutheran Confessions with a heightened missiological perspective. Such a reading takes up the interests and concerns frequently raised by Lutheran theologians who in light of the increasing changes in mission see the theological integrity of Lutheran mission endangered. Consequently, they plea for a return to the Book of Concord from which guiding principles for Lutheran mission m Confessions, though, should …

Designing A Member Development Process For Our Redeemer Lutheran Church In Delavan, Wisconsin, David Lieske

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

There is a need for having more Christians active in building Christ's church. The procedure was to design a process to encourage more people to be active. There was a survey of needs and a personal study of leadership that equips. A small group Bible study was designed and taught to teach the priesthood of all believers, to help people discover spiritual gifts, and to learn personality type. Fifteen people participated in the Bible study. Awareness was increased. An organizational system was designed for helping people begin to serve. Implementation and revision of the process are ongoing.

Celebrating God's Grace: An Adult Information Course Which Teaches The Doctrine Of The Church As It Is Expressed In The Worship Of The Church, James Heining

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

The writer did a thorough study of the ongoing relationship of worship and doctrine as an influence in the formation of Lutheran worship practices.

He developed a class entitled "Celebrating God's Grace," which summarized the basic teachings of the church as they are expressed in the worship of the church. This was part of a revamped adult education program in his congregation.

In addition to the obvious benefits for those attending the class, the writer came to better understand the centrality of grace in the Christian faith and is now better able to plan and lead worship.

The Arminian Libertarian Doctrines Of Freedom And Responsibility Evaluated According To Biblical-Reformed Doctrine Of Sin, Carlos Heber De Campos

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

Now the question to be asked is this: How can the human will decide to perform acts spiritually good, or have the ability of contrary choice, if it is determined by the condition of man's nature? Has man the moral ability to perform contrary to his own nature? Those who try to study man's moral ability without seriously knowing man’s total depravity, make a serious mistake.

Theology Of The Pain Of God: An Analysis And Evaluation Of Kazoh Kitamori's (1916- ) Work In Japanese Protestantism, Akio Hashimoto

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

The overall negative appraisal of Kitamori must be considered as a critical reaction to various aspects of his own theology. Perhaps not one or two aspects of his theology alone are responsible for this. The reason for the negative responses is surely of a composite nature. However, it is not the main concern of this study to find answers individually to the questions raised above. The intention of this study is to analyze and assess Kitamori's theology as a whole. But to try to find the answers to the questions is useful for the purpose here: they provide methodological clues.

Developing A Program For Interpersonal Ministry In The Liturgy For St. Paul Lutheran Church Shreveport, Louisiana, Wesley Toncre

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

This major applied project explores the Scriptures, the Lutheran Confessions, the tradition of the Fathers and contemporary ecclesiastical thinking in an attempt to discover and begin to define the contributory role of the individual worshiper in Lutheran corporate liturgical worship today. Further, it develops a workshop structure that is designed to provide members of one particular congregation with the knowledge, attitudes, skills and opportunities to execute those roles by serving one another effectively in response to God's ministry to them while they are gathered around Word and sacrament.

It is noted that neither Holy Scripture nor the Lutheran Confessions restrict …

The Educational Needs Of The Adult Layperson Concerning The Mission Of God_Research Towards Writing An Introductory Adult Mission Education Course, Stephen Gaulke

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

What are the educational needs of an adult layperson concerning world mission? What ought an introductory adult mission education study course attempt to teach? This thesis endeavors to answer the question in three chapters.

Chapter One articulates a concise theology of mission. Rooted in Scripture, especially the mission commands of the risen Savior, and drawing on the Apostles' Creed, The Book of Concord, and Martin Luther, Chapter One sketches the "who, what, where, when, why, and how" of God's mission.

Chapter Two surveys mission professionals to discover what they believe an introductory adult study course on world mission ought to …

The Nature And Function Of The Lutheran Confessions In Twentieth Century American Lutheranism, Charles Arand

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

By concentrating on what theologians and church leaders have written on the sub­ject of the confessional principle and confessional subscription, this study has dealt with those who had or have an interest in the subject. It may or may not be representative of the way in which the church at large regards and deals with the church's symbols. Attempting to address such a concern, this study has referred to official synodical resolutions and dec­larations as illustrative that the confessional attitude of the theologians was also representa­tive of their church's position. At the same time, however, it may be pointed out …

Current Models In Roman, Lutheran, And Reformed Prolegomena: Exposition, Analysis, And Programmatic Assessment, David Lumpp

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

The marketplace is currently experiencing no shortage of systematic theologies. At both the popular and academic levels, volumes are published at a rate exceeding the ability of any one scholar to digest or evaluate. The methodological pluralism alluded to above is now a cacophony. Yesterday’s mentors are challenged by process theology, theologies of hope, and seemingly infinite manifestations of liberation theology--to name only several of the most obvious.

With this history and the above cautions in mind, this essay will explore the definition, guiding motif, and methodology of three major contemporary theologians: Bernard Lonergan, Helmut Thielicke, and Edward Farley, representing …

The Apostolic Tradition- A Study Of The Texts And Origins, And Its Eucharistic Teachings With A Special Exploration Of The Ethiopic Version, Eshetu Abate

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

This study will engage only one piece of the great body of material that is ours by way of the Ethiopic tradition. What we know of the inter-testamental period and of early Christianity would be poorer without what comes to us through the Ethiopic tradition, both where it overlaps with other traditions, and where it is unique. Among its unique witnesses of the inter-testamental period are Jubliees, 1 Book of Enoch and the Ascension of Isaiah. Of these the complete text is provided only by their Ethiopic versions. The traditions of the Early Church preserved in the Ethiopic tradition are …

A Theological Assessment Of Minjung Theology, Systematically And Biblically, Yong Wha Na

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

It is imperative for the church of Christ Jesus to teach and preach all the contents of the gospel systematically and biblically (Matt. 28:20). Therefore, if the churches emptied of the material contents of the gospel, it cannot stand at all.

This thesis attempts to show how seriously minjung theology deviates from the true teachings of the Scriptures. And, at the same time, this thesis contrasts the teachings of minjung theology with the Scriptural meanings of the gospel, with the goal that we should be sure of the fact that the kingdom of God can be planted only by the …

The Use And Implications Of Makarios In The New Testament, Young Kim

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

An exegetical study has been adopted by this writer as the most pertinent methodology for the subject. The study begins with the study of the Old Testament passages which contain the term אְּשרי which is the Old Testament counterpart of Makáeios. The study examines these of the term in the Old Testament Apocrypha and the Greek classics. The study goes on to investigate the use and implications of Makáeios in the New Testament according to writer by writer.

Watchman Nee And The Priesthood Of All Believers, Wai Man Ng

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

It is the thesis of this study that the priesthood of all believers serves to undergird the seemingly unrelated loci of his theological scheme, namely, personal sanctification and the doctrine of the church. We shall examine Nee's teaching of the priesthood of all believers with reference to his spiritual theology and the doctrine of the church. And since Nee's teaching of the priesthood of all believers has historiographical implication in that the apostasy of the church is indicated by what he considers the intermediary class of clergy and the decline of the universal priesthood, we shall examine the development of …

An Investigation Of Contemporary Feminist Arguments On Paul's Teaching On The Role Of Women In The Church, Hershel House Wayne

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

As may be readily seen, mass confusion pervades this problem. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the various approaches interpreters have used to understand the apostle Paul's teaching on the role of women in the church and to offer alternative ways to view the Pauline texts. Not only will I interact with the feminists on their specific perspectives of the pertinent Pauline texts, but I will examine the hermeneutical presuppositions of these writers and also attempt to discern their perspective of Scripture and how that affects the exegetical fruit they produce.

A Study Of Recent Research On The Concept Of Holy War In The Old Testament, Brian Truog

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

The main purpose of this thesis is to gain a general overview of recent scholarship in the area of Holy War in the Old Testament. Holy War is a "problem" for the Christian for at least two reasons. First, the concept of holy War in the Old Testament is often a major point used in stressing the discontinuity between the Old Testament and the New Testament. Contrasts are set up between the Old Testament as a book of Law and the New Testament as a book of Gospel. The Old Testament is seen as containing a primitive form of religion …

The Theology Of St. Irenaeus A Survey, Timothy Endean

Master of Art Theology Thesis

In this paper we shall attempt a general survey of Irenaeus’ theology. We will use the typical systematic categories and order(which Irenaeus himself tends to follow), yet we will constantly keep in mind the Gnostic theology and philosophy which he fought and, as Church history and even the very existence of Church history shows, successfully opposed.