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A Model For Enhanced Nurture Of New Believers In The Reang Tribe In India, Lalmuansanga Chawngthu

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The Reang tribal people live in Tripura State, Northeast India. The Reang are largely illiterate and most live in poverty. Sicknesses and starvation are common among this tribal group. Although Adventists and other Christian groups have had reasonable success evangelizing the Reang, many converts appear to become Christians in search of the material aid they need. The Seventh-day Adventist Church needs a systematic and comprehensive plan of spiritual nurture for its Reang converts that will lead them into mature discipleship.

Method

This study begins by developing a theological foundation for spiritual nurture based on selected biblical passages and the …

The History Of The Emergence Of The Seventh-Day Adventist Church In The State Of Manipur, India, Cornelius Kamei

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The Seventh-day Adventist church emerged in the state of Manipur, India, through a lay-led church planting movement. Currently, no written account exists of the early history of this work in Manipur. Today, the work in Manipur is clergy-dependent and growth in this region has stagnated. In order for the work to move forward successfully, there is a need to remember the early history of the work in this region.

Method

In the absence of earlier written works on the rise of Adventism in Manipur, oral sources were relied upon as primary sources for accuracy. The sources were gathered through …

A Curriculum To Prepare Pastors For Tribal Ministry In India, Calvin N. Joshua

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The dissertation project establishes the existence of nearly one hundred million tribal people who are forgotten but continue to live in human isolation from the main stream of Indian society. They have their own culture and history. How can the Adventist Church make a difference in reaching them? There is a need for trained pastors in tribal ministry who are culture sensitive and knowledgeable in missiological perspectives.

Method

Through historical, cultural, religious, and political analysis, tribal peoples and their challenges are identified. The contribution of Christianity to India, particularly, the impact of the Adventist Church among tribals is reviewed. …

A Strategy For Evangelism Among The Bengali Folk Hindus Of Calcutta, Eric Kujur

Professional Dissertations DMin

The purpose of this study was to develop a strategy to reach the unreached Bengali Folk Hindus of Calcutta. First, general information on the target group was presented. This included information on their lifestyle and traditional religious beliefs and practices. This is a large group of people who do not belong to the castes and do not enjoy the benefits of financial, educational, and political status. A brief review of what Roman Catholic and Protestant churches have done for the Folk Hindus of Calcutta, with their medical, educational, spiritual, and social services, helped us to understand the strengths and weaknesses …

Church Growth In The Khasi-Jaintia Conference, Meghalaya, India, Khrawbor Kharbteng

Professional Dissertations DMin

The population of the Khasi-Jaintia Conference territory is made up of 80 percent Khasis and 20 percent other ethnic groups. The Khasis, an accepting and happy people, are receptive to the Christian message. This receptivity comes from their monotheistic concept of God and their admiration for the dedicated missionaries who brought the gospel but did not attempt to modify their culture, except for their refusal to accept social evils such as drinking, gambling, and sexual promiscuity. Seventh-day Adventism came to the Khasi region in 1915 with the arrival of E. G. Hardinge and family. The actual work of the Seventh-day …

A Training Program For Local Church Elders/Leaders In Northeast India, Kongyui Awungshi Shimray

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Local church elders and leaders in the Northeast India Union have regularly cared for nurturing and evangelism within the church. They have performed pastoral responsibilities because there are only eighteen paid district pastors in charge of over 130 organized churches and more than 300 companies. However, elders and leaders have no training to perform the task effectively. To enable local church elders and leaders to minister effectively, leadership training is required.

Method

The project considered first the concept of Christ's servant leadership as a basis for the work of elders and local leaders within the chinch. It also reviewed …

Using The Heritage Of The St. Thomas Christians To Develop An Outreach Strategy, Kunjunjukutty Yohannan

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

The St. Thomas Christians in Kerala claim their spiritual heritage from Thomas the apostle. Yet they are not generally aware of a number of scriptural teachings including the seventh-day Sabbath, which Thomas and their forefathers observed. For the last one hundred years there has been no developed Seventh-day Adventist strategy to proclaim the full biblical message, which was their heritage, to this people group.

Findings

The St. Thomas Christians of Kerala, India, believe that Thomas the apostle took Christianity to India. Their very existence bears witness to it. Thomas is reported to have arrived in Kerala in A.D. 52. …

A Church-Growth Strategy For Revitalizing The Kolhapur Church, Bhupal R. Chandanshive

Professional Dissertations DMin

The task of this dissertation was to study the factors that have affected the growth of the Kolhapur church in south Maharashtra and to develop a strategy to revitalize the church. Twenty-five years ago, Seventh-day Adventist churches in Maharashtra were spiritually lively and active. But in recent years the churches have become weak; the attendance is nominal and there is little vibrancy.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Kolhapur was viewed through the dynamics of church-growth principles, especially those applicable in the Indian context. The history of the church, together with membership statistics, provided information on the church over the last …

A Church Growth Study Of Three Churches In Kottayam, Robinson Stephenson

Professional Dissertations DMin

Problem

Many of the churches in the North Kerala Section have been stagnant for years. In some churches over 50 percent of the members are inactive. This study analyzes the hindrances to the growth of three churches in the Kottayam District and suggests a strategy for church growth.

Method

The theological, historical, missiological, and practical dimensions of church growth were examined. A church growth approach was used which included an analysis of the factors involved in the growth and decline of three SDA churches in the Kottayam district. The growth patterns of three churches over the past ten years were …

A Church Growth Study Of The Chachkapi Church In Bihar State Of India, Manohar Kujur

Professional Dissertations DMin

Chachkapi Church is the only growing church in its pastoral district. However, its growth is very slow. Adventism first came at Chachkapi in 1957 and by 1998 it had grown to 161 members. This shows its potential for growth. The church members are Oraon and the majority of the people who live around the area belong to the same community. Oraons were the first to accept Christianity in Chotanagpur South Bihar. Growth was by a people movement. According to present trends, churches among the Oraons are growing slower in comparison to the other tribals in Chotanagpur.

In an attempt to …

Urban Evangelism In India: An Evangelistic Project Conducted In The City Of Poona, John Willmott

Professional Dissertations DMin

After two thousand years in its advent to India, Christianity still remains an unknown entity to the main core of the population. There are more than 3,000 cities and 550,000 villages in India with a population of 683,810,051 people. The urban development in India presents the greatest challenge to the church. It must discover ways of employing effective methods of evangelism to reach the massive population. Guidelines for evangelistic outreach in the cities of India were drawn from certain theological implications for evangelism under the headings: evangelistic priority, participation, incarnation, and proclamation. An actual evangelistic project was carried out in …