Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Comparing And Contrasting Luther’S And Aquinas’ Viewpoints Regarding The Essence Of Justification: A Step Towards Promoting Ecumenical Harmony, Paulinus Daeli Osc

Obsculta

This article is intended for Christians who recognize the importance of diversity in ecumenical unity. By comparing the views of Thomas Aquinas and Martin Luther on the idea of justification, the author seeks to convey that faith in Christ helps one to grow and develop spiritually. The similarities and differences of the two figures offered in this sense invite Christians to see that their differences need not be contradictory and that they can be juxtaposed.

A Lutheran Perspective On Righteousness In China, Futao (Gary) Liu

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

The recent history of China cannot get away from the impact of western thoughts and industrialization, including Democracy, Marxism, Republicanism, etc. For two millienium or so, the Chinese philosopher, Confucius (551–479 BCE), had dominated Chinese society through his philosophy (commonly called Confucianism) in every respect, from the hierarchical structures of governments and states to familial relations. Confucianism met its real challenge only in the recent history of China. At the collasping edge of the last feudal society (the Qing Dynasty which fell in 1911), patriotic Confucians had tried to bring what is useful of the West into traditional values and …

Liturgy & Life: How The Divine Service Connects With The Rest Of The Week, Benjamin Janssen

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

On vicarage, I was blessed to spend many hours with a faithful member named Ginger, who, alongside her husband Walter, runs and operates the congregation’s robust food and clothing distribution center. This center is completely run by volunteer efforts out of the undercroft of the church and successfully feeds and clothes 150 families a month. This work both serves the neighbor in need and brings the congregation into contact with many of those living in the immediate community. In short, it is a blessing to the congregation and the surrounding community. Therefore, at the end of each service day, I …

Making The Case For Preachers Who Read, Ethan Stoppenhagen

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

I once heard a story about a new pastor in the early 1990s who was settling into his first call in Pembroke, Ontario. A man walked into his study and silently began perusing the shelves. The pastor noticed him, but carried on with his business. The stranger spent several minutes pulling books off the shelves, flipping pages, nodding and murmuring, and setting some books apart by laying them on their spines. Occasionally he’d hold up a book with a quizzical look on his face. “Required for class,” the pastor shrugged, and the man would scoff and shove it back on …

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 …

Walther On Confessional Agreement And Church Fellowship, Christian J. Einertson

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

In its report, Church Relations in the 21st Century,1 the Commission on Theology and Church Relations (CTCR) addresses many of the challenges faced by the Missouri Synod as she enters a new era of global interconnection and is consequently confronted with a variety of church bodies near and far who seek support from, cooperation with, and even altar-and-pulpit fellowship with her. In this report, the CTCR helpfully points out that the differing histories of other church bodies around the world have caused their assumptions regarding ecumenical relationships to differ from those of the Missouri Synod, which were themselves shaped by …

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 …

A Letter Of Hope To The Concordia Seminary Community, John Nunes

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Shortly after the death of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., these remarkably blunt words from Lutheran pastor and civil rights leader, William H. Griffin, were released by Concordia Publishing House: “Unless the church faces up to the racism in its own midst, the witness of the church against the racism outside the church will go unheedeed."

Rethinking Law And Gospel In The Way We Do Preaching, Benjamin Berteau

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

This paper evaluates the impact of C. F. W. Walther’s Law and Gospel and Richard Caemmerer’s goal, malady, means approach to homiletics, also discussing the potential trap of law-gospel reductionism. A suggested pathway forward is a reemphasis on a creedal approach to Lutheran theology and preaching as well as a renewal of rhetoric as foundational to ultimately restoring a positive view of the third use or function of the law in Lutheran preaching. Having done so, the reader may certainly apply this positive view of the law as it relates to preaching on other topics related to the Christian Life …

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 …

Cruising (With) Luther – Indecent Lutheran Theologies From The South, Or What Makes A Lutheran Theology Lutheran, André S. Musskopf

Consensus

No abstract provided.

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 …

Martin Luther’S Platzregen In Action The Changing Face Of Global Christianity, Douglas Rutt

Concordia Journal

The study of the momentous demographic shifts in Christianity that have taken place in the past two decades has become a growth industry of sorts.

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 …

Two Kinds Of Authority: Law And Gospel, Steven D. Paulson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

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 …