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Perfect Love Casts Out Fear: Exploring The Effectiveness Of A Person-Centered Disability Awareness Seminar In A Congregational Setting, Joshua H. Jones

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

People with disabilities and their families frequently experience barriers toward inclusion and belonging in multiple spheres of life. These barriers are also present in Christian congregations. However, many congregations express a godly desire to love people with disabilities and their families without these obstacles.

The Old and New Testaments provide examples of how God’s people sought to love people with disabilities in their midst creatively and intentionally in response to God’s gracious actions, invitation, and command. Recent research in disability studies routinely highlight the necessity of being attentive to the uniqueness of each person with disabilities and his or her …

A Lutheran Response To The Role Of Healing And The Healer In African Independent Churches, Jasper Olawo

Master of Art Theology Thesis

A conversation with a parishioner, who left the church when her son was suffering from epilepsy and claims he could not be healed even after a series of prayers from her Lutheran pastor, revealed the extent of the influence of African Independent Churches (AICs) among members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya (ELCK). Many people in Kenya who are suffering from chronic illnesses find it difficult to maintain their faith in such moments of crises and are tempted to seek quick remedies from AICs’ healers. These healers claim that salvation and the healing of the body are not separate …

The Sword & The Mask: Toward A Confessional Lutheran Account Of Spiritual Warfare, Jon Furgeson

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Furgeson, Jon C. “The Sword and the Mask: Toward a Confessional Lutheran Theology of Spiritual Warfare.” Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2020. pp. "[Number of pages]"

This dissertation, a work in Trinitarian & ecclesial theology, seeks to recover the foundations of a full doctrine of spiritual warfare. Considering seeming disparate voices such as Walter Wink, C. Peter Wagner, John Kleinig, Gustav Wingren, and Leopoldo A. Sánchez, this dissertation asserts a constructive and integrative approach to spiritual warfare wherein the warfare is only enacted by the fallen powers of the sinful nature, the fallen world, and the fallen angels. This warfare is …

Recapitulation And Christ’S Active Obedience A Lutheran Retrieval Of Irenaeus, Andrew Bloch

Master of Art Theology Thesis

That will conclude the discussion on theologians and their views of the active obedience of Christ. Next, we will look back to the Reformation. Georg Karg questions the imputation of Christ’s active obedience. Through a historical lens, there could be merit to what Karg argues. This will lead to the problem with which this thesis is concerned: Is the active obedience of Christ necessary? Some of the theologians discussed below suggest that the active obedience of Christ is something that can be discarded from the atonement with no major consequences (or even perhaps that removing it strengthens the theology of …

The Eclipse Of Elegance: Towards A Contemporary Lutheran Aesthetics Of Discipleship, Andrew Whaley

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

WHALEY, ANDREW D. “THE ECLISPE OF ELEGANCE: TOWARDS ACONTEMPORARY LUTHERAN AESTHETICS OF DISCIPLESHIP.” Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2018. 214 pp.

It is no secret that, from the time of the Reformation Iconoclast controversy through the period of Pietism, and even into the twentieth century, aesthetics has had a troublesome existence in many, if not most, protestant denominations. This, of course, includes my own denomination, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. In such cases, aesthetics has unfortunately been forgotten, ignored, or viewed with such deep suspicion that its place in theology has been outright denied. The result is that the aesthetic aspect of …

Leonardo Boff’S Social-Environmental Ecology Exposition, Analysis, And Appropriation For Lutheran Theology, Alan Furst

Master of Art Theology Thesis

Furst, Alan Diego. “Leonardo Boff’s Social-Environmental Ecology: Exposition, Analysis, and Appropriation for Lutheran Theology.” MA Thesis, Concordia Seminary, 2018. 107pp.

Ecological issues throughout the world present an urgent need for a deepened theological approach to the doctrine of creation. In fact, recent studies have shown that such issues point to a more serious problem with the entire system at work shaping social relations today. This situation calls Christian theologians to rethink the doctrine of creation in light of ecological issues. This includes Lutheran theologians, who still need to address the current situation involving ecological issues and to offer reflections and …

The Need To Equip Lutheran Congregations In Mission For Christ Church Planters For Spiritual Warfare, David John Heinrich

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this research project was to address the need for spiritual warfare training and equipping for church planters to be more efficient in mission within the Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ (LCMC) movement. The researcher designed a sequential mixed method approach to this research with LCMC church planters. The research findings demonstrated that church planters were well educated but 96 percent did not receive any formal spiritual warfare training and equipping in seminary or Bible school; the spiritual warfare training environment preferred was hands-on activation workshops.

Faith Comes By Hearing: The Interrelationship Of Theology, Faith, And Practice, Nathan Olson

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Olson, Nathan, J. “Faith Comes By Hearing: The Interrelationship Between Faith, Theology, and Practice.” Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2017. 202 pp.

This work provides a constructive systematic framework which sets forth a conception of faith as Trust in a Promise, utilizing an understanding of justification as God’s declaration of man being made right with Himself, a theology of the Word as an effectual promise and effectual act, and a pneumatology which acknowledges the Spirit’s role to elicit faith by killing and making alive in those who hear the gospel. Through a critical assessment of selected church practices and of the …

Eschatological Pneumatology As A Theological Framework For Evaluating The Pneumatology Of The International Church Of God’S Grace In Brazil, Gerson Linden

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Linden, Gerson, L. “Eschatological Pneumatology as a Theological Framework for Evaluating the Pneumatology of the International Church of God’s Grace in Brazil.” Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2017. 238 pp.

The purpose of this dissertation was to understand the phenomenon of Neopentecostalism in Brazil, particularly as seen in the International Church of God’s Grace (ICGG), a large and well-known Denomination in Brazil, with communities in several countries in the world. This Denomination may be seen as part of a larger movement, as an expression of what has been called the third wave of Pentecostalism. On the other hand, the ICGG has …

Christ, Church, And World: A Christological Ecclesiology For Post-Christendom, Theodore Hopkins

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Hopkins, Theodore J. “Christ, Church, and World: A Christological Ecclesiology for Post-Christendom.” Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2016. 296 pp.

The North American church is facing a profound crisis. The post-Christendom situation is changing the landscape of the church’s relationship with culture, society, and individual communities, creating problems of ecclesial identity and purpose. This dissertation argues that the unique challenges of post-Christendom require three criteria for ecclesiology: storied identity, doctrinal substance, and visible concreteness. Most recent Lutheran ecclesiology has begun with either God’s word of the Gospel or the Holy Spirit, leading to an emphasis on individual justification or the practices …

Cooperative Catechesis: A Model For Equipping Lutheran Parents And Pastors To Catechize Children In The Christian Faith, Phillip E. Booe

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Parents have a God-given duty to bring up their children in the faith. God calls pastors to shepherd flocks, point them to the Gospel, proclaim sound doctrine, and teach the people about the will and ways of God. The problem this project addressed was the decline of parental involvement in and responsibility for the Christian catechesis of their children in the context of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Parents have all but abdicated their responsibility to catechize their children to the church, and pastors have been complicit in allowing it. The purpose of this research was to identify the attitudes pastors …

The Gospel In Singapore - The Impact Of Civil Religion And Civil Law, Mark Madson

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Madson, Mark, J. “The Gospel in Singapore: The Impact of Civil Religion and Civil Law.” Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2015. 240 pp.

The author explores the development of civil religion in the Republic of Singapore, paying special attention to its sources in English common law, Confucianism, and the Peoples’ Action Party (PAP) ideology of economic pragmatism. Colonial and modern civil religious law, including the Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act of 1990, serve as the basis for analyzing the interaction of the state and traditional religious traditions. The Singapore Story, as told by Lee Kuan Yew and the PAP, provides a …

Shaped By The Spirit: Spirit Christology As A Framework For Preaching Sanctification, Jonathan Rusnak

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Rusnak, Jonathan W. "Shaped by the Spirit: Spirit Christology as a Framework for Preaching Sanctification." S.T.M. Thesis, Concordia Seminary, 2014. 128 pp.

This thesis offers an account of preaching sanctification grounded broadly in the trinitarian economy of salvation and specifically in the person and work of Jesus Christ as receiver, bearer, and giver of the Holy Spirit. Grounded in atonement theory alone, other accounts of preaching sanctification are unable to address any number of concerns that arise in the sanctified life. In addition, atonement theory alone does not ground an account of preaching sanctification that maintains the nexus indivulsus of …

The Integration Of The Volga Germans Into American Lutheranism, Richard Allen Davenport

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

This paper traces the incorporation of Lutheran Volga Germans arriving in this country between 1870 and 1910 into American Christianity and identifies factors in their affiliation with American church bodies. It analyzes whether Lutheran bodies identified the Volga Germans as a distinct ethnic group among German immigrants in America and recognized the specific challenges and adaptations necessary to work among them. Where Volga German congregations were established, the factors which decided joining one denomination over another are explored. Specific theological, ecclesiastical, and cultural issues that determined whether a group of Volga Germans aligned with one church body versus another are …

No Beauty We Could Desire-A Lutheran Evaluation Of C. S. Lewis' Sehnsucht, Jonathan Graf

Master of Art Theology Thesis

Together, the experiences and glimpses of what Lewis called' Joy' or Sehnsucht served as the central thread of his life" and provided him with the ontological lens through which he viewed reality. 13 It is the plan of this paper to further examine Lewis' treatment of Sehnsucht" by engaging it in dialogue with a Lutheran theological perspective. In doing so, there are two main objectives that I hope to accomplish. The first objective is to demonstrate that the experience of Sehnsucht should not be merely dismissed or fully embraced; rather, it should be placed within a proper theological narrative that …

Opus Dei And Christian Formation: Compatible With A Lutheran Understanding?, Timothy Winterstein

Master of Sacred Theology Seminar Papers

This paper is an examination of the formational practices of Opus Dei and whether Lutherans and Lutheran congregations might profit from a more sustained consideration of what it means to be formed as Christians.

Women's Ordination- A Litmus Test For Antinomianism, Joseph Omolo

Master of Art Theology Thesis

When the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya (ELCK), to which I belong, established a deaconess college at the beginning of this century to train young women for parish work, it was not clear which kind of education they were going to be offered. Many observers, both from within and without, saw this as a signal that the church was moving towards the ordination of women. When the first crop of deaconesses graduated and were deployed into the parishes, a great confusion reigned among the members, both clergy and ordinary Christians, regarding the role of these new workers. To compound the …

Angels And The Future Of The Elect, Tina Ziemnick

Master of Art Theology Thesis

As a Director of Christian Education in a parish, I encountered many youth and adults who believed that people become angels at death. As I talked with them, I realized that they were looking for comfort and hope in a world filled with uncertainty and tragedy. They wanted a picture of eternity and this notion of dying and becoming an angel made the concept of eternal life tangible. As I talked with other DCEs and Pastors I found that they had similar conversations with members of their congregations.' The frequency of these conversations within my professional meetings as well as …

Conrad Dieterich (1575-1639) And The Instruction Of Luther's Small Catechism, Gerhard Bode

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Bode, Gerhard H. "Conrad Dieterich (1575-1639) and the Instruction of Luther's Small Catechism." Ph.D. Diss., St. Louis, MO: Concordia Seminary, 2005.350 pp.

Luther's catechisms have had a lasting impact on catechesis in the Lutheran church and are still widely used in Lutheran circles more than 475 years after Luther wrote them. Conrad Dieterich (1575-1639) wrote several catechisms based on Luther's Small Catechism that were widely used in Lutheran circles during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Two of Dieterich's works were intended for use by upper-level students in Latin schools and employed dialectical method in presenting the catechetical doctrine. The dissertation …

A Lutheran Look At President Bush's Faith-Based Initatives, Darren Olson

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

In recognition of this resolution it is important to examine President Bush's policy of faith-based initiatives. LCMS congregations that are faced with the opportunity to participate in faith-based initiatives should be informed of the nature and content of this government program. The purpose of this paper is to show that, theologically, legally, and practically, the church that participates in faith-based initiatives not only compromises but also loses her unique Christian witness. Theologically, the church that participates in faith-based initiatives is required by the government to separate her religious message from the social services she provides. By means of this requirement …

Bishop Bo Harald Giertz-Pietism And The Ordo Salutis-The Office Of The Holy Ministry, The Word, And Soul Care, Eric Andrae

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Though acknowledged as one of the most influential European churchman of the past century, and widely lauded in American Lutheran circles as the author of the acclaimed The Hammer of God, much remains to be learned in the U.S. of Bishop Emeritus Dr. Bo Harald Giertz (Gothenburg [Goteborg] diocese, Church of Sweden, served 1949-1970) and of his theology, especially concerning the specific doctrine which served as the foundation of the novel, the Order of Grace. Furthermore, interest in Giertz in America is increasing rapidly: several translation projects are underway, a film based on the first chapter of The Hammer of …

Who Do I Say That You Are? Anthropology And The Theology Of Theosis In The Finnish School Of Tuomo Mannermaa, William Schumacher

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Part of what drives the present study is the conviction that anthropology matters in theology. That is to say, theology must find new ways (or recover and translate old ways) to answer questions about what it means to be human. One purpose of this study, then, is to try to reclaim the doctrine de homine as a vital and pertinent dimension of the whole theological enterprise, rather than relegate anthropology to non-theological (or even anti-theological) disciplines. The anthropological suggestions that arise from the studies of the Finnish school, intriguing and stimulating in some respects, ultimately fall short of this goal, …

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 …

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 …

John 6 And The Lord's Supper, Jon Bischof

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

This thesis ventures to reopen an old argument on ground which has been a "no man's land" for Lutherans for nearly 500 years. There is a tradition within Lutheranism of interpreting John 6:51-59 as having no reference whatsoever to the Eucharist. This tradition within Lutheranism can rightly claim the support of Luther who said, "it [the sixth chapter of John] does not refer to the sacrament in a single syllable". Naturally, no confessional Lutheran wants to find himself in disagreement with Luther. We would always rather defend his views when they are maligned. But Luther corrected his own views many …

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 …

"What Is A Christian To Do: A Study Of Christian Service From Pertinent Writings Of Dr. Martin Luther In Light Of Recent Developments In The Church", Daniel Quinn

Master of Sacred Theology Seminar Papers

This paper will, from the Lutheran perspective, address the imbalance that occurs when the priesthood of all believers is exalted at the expense of the clergy, specifically when what God has given the laity to do is made to be the same as what God has given the clergy to do, i.e., the tasks of the office of the Ministry. Applying pertinent writings of Luther, this paper will attempt to exalt both the laity and the clergy by emphasizing the distinctiveness of what each has been given by God to do.

August Vilmar's Theology Of Fact Versus The Theology Of Rhetoric, Martin Conkling

Master of Sacred Theology Seminar Papers

The work and theology of August Vilmar has largely been neglected in this country even though he was a prominenet theologian who lent substantial weight in a momentous effort to resurrect and restore the Lutheran confessions- to Germany in the first half of the nineteenth century. This translation is an attempt to recognize the vast contributions which Vilmar made to this effort and to identify those writings which would serve the church well today. Vilmar left no school of thought or method behind him as other great figures in the German universities often did. There are many reasons for this …

The Liturgical Confession Of The Lord's Supper In Five Representative Orders Of 16th Century Lutheranism, William Weedon

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

In the ceremonies she retained, in the ceremonies she added, the Lutheran church of the 16th century gave a solemn public confession of her doctrine regarding the holy eucharist. Her liturgy gives ample testimony to what she confessed and taught regarding the nature of the sacrament, its benefits, and its proper use. The examination of this liturgy as public confession is the burden and joy of this thesis.

Postliberal Approaches To The Theology Of Religions: Presentation, Assessment, And Critical Appropriation, Joel Okamoto

Doctor of Theology Dissertation

This study focuses on the third type—the postliberal approaches to the theology of religions. In undertaking this, I have two basic purposes. One is to examine these postliberal approaches. This examination will include a description and analysis of selected postliberal proposals concerning issues and concerns in the theology of religions. The second is to assess these proposals on key issues and appropriate certain insights from the postliberal approach for the purpose of developing a Lutheran theology of religions.

While few proposals in the theology of religions have been characterized as “postliberal," there are considerable differences among them. Therefore I shall …