Arts and Humanities Commons^™

The Lord's Providence To Work Evil For Good - Genesis 50:15-21, Elisabeth Nieshalla

Biblical Studies Student Projects

Genesis, the great first book of the Bible, concludes with a redemptive and reconciliatory scene between Joseph and his brothers that strikes the heart of those. Joseph had endured much hardship at the hands of his brothers, having been sold by them into Egyptian slavery and then thrown into prison when he was falsely accused of sexual assault by Potiphar’s wife. Through it all, however, he remained faithful to God and was entrusted with authority over all of Egypt to lead them through a famine that would have otherwise devastated the entire region. This scene in Genesis 50 testifies to …

The Worship Leadership Model At Calvary Chapel, Costa Mesa: A Phenomenological Study Of The Lead Pastor And Worship Leader Relationship, 1961–2013, David L. Ream

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

By 2050, it has been estimated that 1 billion people will be Pentecostals in the broadest sense of the term. Today, one person in twelve globally is a part of this fastest-growing segment of Christianity. The ministry model of Calvary Chapel, Costa Mesa as served by Pastor Chuck Smith is a paradigmatic model that houses and stabilizes the ministry of the Holy Spirit as it reproduces. This phenomenological qualitative study explores the experiences of Worship Leaders who led worship during Sunday Morning services from 1985–2013 and sought to discover the essential characteristics of the Lead Pastor and Worship Leader interactions …

The Gospel For The Whole Person: Attending To Sin And Grace Throughout The Human Experience, Charles Ridley

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Preaching is the means by which the Holy Spirit speaks to God’s people through the preacher who stands in the stead of Jesus, the Lord of the Church. Through a sermon that is faithful to God’s revealed will and written Word, the Spirit convicts the world concerning sin and proclaims the gospel of forgiveness, life, and salvation which is found in Christ alone. The basic task placed before us in preaching is not only to be faithful to scripture, but also to make a coherent and compelling presentation of the gospel. Most of those reading this will be familiar with …

Venerating Earth: Three Sacramental Perspectives, Jame Schaefer

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

three prominent ways in which the sacramentality of creation has been nuanced over the centuries are explored: (1) Experiencing the presence of God in the world with focus on Ignatius of Loyola’s final contemplation in his Spiritual Exercises; (2) reflecting on manifestations of God’s goodness, power and wisdom that eminent patristic and medieval theologians discerned when studying the world and novel attributes that are discernible today when informed by current scientific findings; and (3) receiving the Eucharist as a heightened encounter with God that can strengthen individuals and communities to act cooperatively. These three ways of perceiving the world within …

Grace That Goes Before : John Wesley's Doctrine Of Prevenient Grace And Its Significance For Youth Ministry, Brandon W. Dasinger

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Touched By Grace? A Look At Grace In Bergman's Winter Light And Martin Luther's Writings, Kjartan Leer-Salvesen

Journal of Religion & Film

Ingmar Bergman holds a prominent place in the lineup of directors who have used cinema to investigate the meaning of life in a godless world. The so-called “Trilogy of God’s Silence” is often identified as the place where Bergman struggled most profoundly with core themes from the Christian faith. In Winter Light, he explores the topic of doubt, devastatingly, through a minister’s religious and existential crisis. This article, however, proposes that Martin Luther’s theology may provide resources for reappraising Bergman’s canonical film.

Terrence Malick Beyond Nature And Grace: Song To Song And The Experience Of Forgiveness, Elisa Zocchi

Journal of Religion & Film

In The Tree of Life Terrence Malick poses the question of the relation between the order of grace and the order of nature in the cosmos and in human existence, a question presented through the relation of mother and father in the O'Brien family. The aim of this article is to analyze this issue and to present the role of glory in The Tree of Life as the transfiguration of nature operated by grace. Specifically, the example of forgiveness as one strand of this glory seems to be an helpful tool to understand the movie. Forgiveness, already present in The …

Culture As Divine Gift: The Future Of In All Things, David Henreckson

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

"We have to be on the lookout for God’s Spirit at work in the world, and then be willing to follow wherever it leads us."

Posting about ­­­­­­­­Christian engagement in culture from In All Things - an online journal for critical reflection on faith, culture, art, and every ordinary-yet-graced square inch of God’s creation.

http://inallthings.org/culture-as-divine-gift-the-future-of-in-all-things/

Misinterpreted End-Time Issues: Five Myths In Adventism, Jiri Moskala Thd, Phd

Journal of the Adventist Theological Society

"realize that my unpleasant Christian experience was built on five misunderstandings which assumed that the Bible and/or the Spirit of Prophecy: (1) teach that believers will only receive the seal of God at the end of time; (2) stand against the assurance of salvation; (3) affirm that living believers can be called and examined in the pre-advent judgment at any time; (4) proclaim that after the close of probation the Holy Spirit will be removed from the earth meaning that even believers will be without any supernatural help; and (5) declare that believers in Jesus Christ will be on their …

Creator Spirit, Spirit Of Grace: Trinitarian Dimensions Of A Charitological Pneumatology, Wesley Scott Biddy

Dissertations (1934 -)

This dissertation takes up the question of the link between the creative and the redemptive work of the Holy Spirit. It presents creation as ordered to redemption and redemption as the completion of creation, especially for human beings. On the understanding of the relationship between the two orders of the Spirit’s activity proposed here, creation is of a piece with redemption and is therefore an operation of grace just as the latter is. I ground my depiction of the Spirit’s role in both aspects of the divine economy in an account of her role within the immanent Trinity. Indeed, this …

The Indwelling Of The Holy Spirit And Human Intentionality: A Constructive Proposal, John R. Kern

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

How does the Holy Spirit, by indwelling believers, guide them to act in ways that contribute to their spiritual progress? In this thesis, I will argue that, by indwelling believers, the Spirit redirects their intentionality towards their ultimate end in union with God, thus placing believers in the best possible position for acting in ways that contribute to that end. If the Spirit guides believers in the spiritual life on a day-to-day basis, then such guidance must connect with the actual processes by which humans generally act (especially intentions). Thus, by exploring the indwelling of the Spirit, grace, and human …

Covenant, Kingship, Grace, Sacrifice, And Prophetism In The Old Testament, Rickie S. Scott

The Kabod

This essay examines the major themes of covenant, kingship, grace, sacrifice, and prophetism that reoccur throughout the Old Testament and contribute to a proper understanding of the ancient biblical text. Through covenant, God reveals his divine nature and relates to his people. Through kingship, God reveals his plan for Israel. Through grace, God loves his chosen people and shows them mercy, and through sacrifice, God cleanses and sanctifies the Israelites. Finally, through prophetism, God discloses his divine calling for the Israelites. Each of these themes exposes God’s self-revelation and contributes to an enhanced understanding of the Old Testament.

Renovatio: Martin Luther's Augustinian Theology Of Holiness (1515/16 And 1535-46), Phillip L. Anderas

Dissertations (1934 -)

In this book I argue that much of mainstream Luther scholarship (and Lutheran theology) is quite wrong to think that Martin Luther downplayed, denied, derided, or just plain ignored “the holiness without which no one shall see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14). In fact, from the first inklings of his “Augustinian turn” c. 1514 to his death in 1546, Luther held and taught a robust theology of progressive renewal in holiness, carefully calibrated to the sober reality of residual sin and the astonishing gospel of grace in Jesus Christ. As it is set forth in the works that embody his most …

What Is Grace And What Grace Is Given In The Sacraments?, Rosamaria Agostino

Aristos

The Catholic understanding of the word grace is extremely rich and multifaceted. A more focused exploration of grace from its biblical roots to its use in the sacraments provides one with a profoundly humble appreciation of how deeply grace is interwoven into the faith and how undeserving yet privileged one is to be able to receive it. This understanding allows grace to manifest itself more clearly in the everyday life of the believer and continue to deepen their faith. The sacraments play an important role in this as they are where grace is received, restored, nourished and maintained.

The New Reformed Pastor: Zwinglian Wisdom For Modern Ministers, Scotty Jermaine Williams

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Throughout churches in the Reformed tradition, there is a growing interest in renewing Eucharistic practices. This growing interest has led to a series of discussions among Reformed clergy regarding the role of pastors in the Eucharistic context. According to some church leaders, many Reformed pastors have a faulty sacramentality that stems from a misunderstanding of John Calvin’s pastoral vision. Instead of compelling faith in action through the Eucharist, where communicants share the grace they receive, this sacramentality leads them to be passive recipients that keep Eucharistic grace within the church. Unlike other research, which addresses the aforementioned issue by only …

Sanctity Without Starch A Layperson's Guide To A Wesleyan Theology Of Grace, Robert G. Tuttle Jr.

Heritage Material

No abstract provided.

Christ, The Meeting Point Of Sacramental And Trinitarian Theology, Nathan Peter Chase

School of Theology and Seminary Graduate Papers/Theses

This paper explores the relationship between the liturgical life of the Church and the operation of the Trinity in the economy of grace through the work of Fr. Edward Kilmartin. Kilmartin sought to better explain how humanity’s relationship with God through prayer and the sacraments was established. For him, theologians’ understanding of the Trinity in what has become known as the procession model allowed for the katabatic flow of grace to humanity but failed to explain the anabatic flow of grace from humanity back up to God. This paper looks at the complementary model, the bestowal model, that Kilmartin developed …

The Practical Theology Of The General Rules, Andrew C. Thompson

The Asbury Journal

The “General Rules of the United Societies” were a central component of the early Methodist movement under John Wesley’s leadership. Examinations of the General Rules in contemporary literature tend to focus on their role in personal and organizational discipline for early Methodists and for the movement as a whole. Yet a close examination of the rules shows that they served a greater purpose: as the practical theological articulation of how Methodists could expect to experience sanctification in the context of their lives. This crucial aspect of the General Rules’ use can be seen by exploring Wesley’s understanding of the means …

The Church And The Mediation Of Grace: A Reformed Perspective On Ordained Ministry And The Threefold Office Of Christ, Michael Joe Matossian

Dissertations (1934 -)

This dissertation explores the relationship between grace, the church, ordained church offices, and the threefold office of Christ (munus triplex). The goal is to discern, in what ways and in what senses, we can speak of the mediation of grace through the church while maintaining a Reformed theological commitment to the principle that Christ alone is Mediator. Chapter one seeks to establish that Reformed doctrine regards the church both as locus and instrument of grace including the fact that the ordained offices are instruments of grace. Chapter two offers a definition of the concept of mediator, introduces categories of mediation, …

A God Of Mercy, Grace And Wrath: The Essential Nature Of God In The Old Testament, John Willis, Tim Willis

Leaven

No abstract provided.

What Is Freedom?, James W. Thompson

Leaven

No abstract provided.

The Action Of Grace In Territory Held By The Devil: Flannery O’Connor And Cormac Mccarthy, Scott A. Singleton

The Kennesaw Journal of Undergraduate Research

This paper compares the lives and work of Flannery O’Connor and Cormac McCarthy. The two authors share similarities in their backgrounds, careers, and work. The paper begins with an examination of biographical information of both authors to contextualize their work and note commonalities in their lives and careers. The central idea is that Flannery O’Connor and Cormac McCarthy both create grotesque characters to reveal the depraved condition of humanity in order to highlight the need for redemption and the possibility of divine grace. To prove this, examples are discussed from multiple pieces of work by O’Connor and McCarthy including The …

Reexamining The Place Of Public Confession Of Sins In A Reformed Context., Matthew John Webber

CTS Master of Theology (ThM) Theses

A dangerous tendency plagues the scripturally mandated practice of confession within many mainline Christian churches. The danger is that the theological thrust of the practice has been ignored or compromised in such a way that the manner in which confession is practiced ignores fundamental elements which underlie the need for confession, specifically public confession performed before one's fellow believers. It is especially evident that the confession of one's sins, which once took place in pubic before the ecclesial body, has seen a significant amount of change within the Reformed context. The focus of this essay is to identify the theological …

Claude Pajon (1626-1685) And The Academy Of Saumur., Albert J. Gootjes

CTS PhD Doctoral Dissertations

This thesis examines the life, writings and polemics of Claude Pajon (1626-1685) throughout the first so-called Pajonist controversy (1665-1667). Previous scholarship situated him in the context of a development it saw within the theology originating from the Academy of Saumur and passing from John Cameron (ca. 1579-1625), through Moïse Amyraut (1596- 1664), and then to Pajon. This study argues that this trajectory needs revision. Pajon developed a theory of grace which denied the necessity of an immediate, internal work of the Holy Spirit on either intellect or will, preceding the mediate work through the Word and other means. To characterize …

Covenant Nation: The Politics Of Grace In Early American Literature, Justin M. Scott-Coe

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The argument of this dissertation is that a critical reading of the concept of "covenant" in early American writings is instrumental to understanding the paradoxes in the American political concepts of freedom and equality. Following Slavoj Zizek's theoretical approach to theology, I trace the covenant concept in early American literature from the theological expressions and disputes in Puritan Massachusetts through Jonathan Edwards's Freedom of Will and the essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson, showing how the covenant theology of colonial New England dispersed into more "secular" forms of what may be called an American political theology. The first chapter provides an …

A Theology Of Religious Change, David J. Zehnder

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Zehnder, David, J. “A Theology of Religious Change.” Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2011. 218 pp.

This essay sets up a dialogue between the sociology and psychology of religious change (conversion’s human side) and conversion (theologically defined) to prove that empirical research into change experience, ideology as an attracting force to religion, and social networks’ influence on conversion does not threaten theology’s assertions but can help to clarify theology’s tasks in communicating to various audiences. Science helps theology through a correlational model of interaction developed in the study. The correlational method first asks of science: Why do people change religiously? Once …

A Brief Look At Methodology And Grace In Wesleyan Theology, Kyle Blanchette

The Asbury Journal

In a recent piece for the Asbury Theological Journal, Nathan Crawford has attempted to put current understandings of emergent phenomena within the neurosciences in conversation with Christian soteriology; in particular, Crawford has sought to link up themes found in emergence with distinctively Wesleyan perspectives on sanctification. In this article, I offer some reflections on theological methodology in light of Crawford's analysis, and I identify some needed clarifications of Kenneth J. Collins's model of John Wesley's soteriology. In the latter half of the piece, I present a critical analysis of the issue of monergism and synergism in Wesley's understanding of grace.

Conversion, Justification, And The Experience Of Grace In The Post-Aldergate Wesley: Towards An Understanding Of Who Is "A Child Of God.", Marlon D. De Blasio

The Asbury Journal

Aldersgate is highlighted from the angle of its significance on Wesley's theological thinking and subsequent ministry, rather than from an emphasis on his point of conversion. The Post-Aldersgate Wesley developed a soteriological understanding that identified a "child of God" with distinct qualifications, namely justification by faith, the experience of grace, and the indwelling Spirit. A theology of conversion also emerges with definitive markers that constitute a new standing from non-Christian to Christian. Shifts in Wesley's theological understanding of Christian faith are evaluated. Justification by faith remained a strict soteriological principle in the mind of the mature Wesley. As well, the …

Sanctifying Grace, David L. Mckenna

ATS Chapel Services

No abstract provided.

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 …