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Full-Text Articles in Practical Theology

Supernatural Evil As Evidence For The Existence Of God, Shane Stone Geisler Sep 2022

Supernatural Evil As Evidence For The Existence Of God, Shane Stone Geisler

Masters Theses

This study challenges widely held beliefs about the supernatural realm. Those who believe the supernatural realm exists tend to accept there is a personable higher power at work in our world. The naturalistic worldview denies the existence of anything or anyone beyond our physical universe. This paper will first inform the reader of a history of beliefs in the supernatural. Next, an innovative approach will be taken to provide evidence for the supernatural world. Finally, the evidence will be examined to determine its reliability and identify common themes found throughout the research. The information provided is not intended to be …


‘Remember The Deeds Of The Lord:’ Collective Memory’S Role In A Reasonable Faith, Baily Ray Mcdaniel Aug 2020

‘Remember The Deeds Of The Lord:’ Collective Memory’S Role In A Reasonable Faith, Baily Ray Mcdaniel

Masters Theses

Faith has long been regarded by secular scholars as unreasonable and unjustified. One of the largest issues that Christians face today is working against the notion that faith is blind. Best-selling author Richard Dawkins states, “religious faith is an especially potent silencer of rational calculation, which usually seems to trump all others.” The irrationality of faith is echoed consistently by other scholars including Bertrand Russell. As Kelly James Clark points out, “Bertrand Russell was once asked, if he were to come before God, what he would say to God. Russell replied, ‘Not enough evidence God, not enough evidence.’” The claim …


The Extent Of The Christian Approach In Converting Chinese Buddhists Encountering Physical Or Spiritual Difficulties In Life, Ann Ge Apr 2017

The Extent Of The Christian Approach In Converting Chinese Buddhists Encountering Physical Or Spiritual Difficulties In Life, Ann Ge

Masters Theses

This research paper presents the results of a quantitative and qualitative survey of Chinese Christians from Buddhist backgrounds, with a special focus on the Christian response to life trials, since, in Buddhism, any spiritual or physical adversity tends to be attributed to bad Karma from one’s past. The biggest aim of the research is to investigate more effective ways of leading Chinese people to Christ. The survey focuses mainly on three aspects of the respondents’ conversion stories: (1) their backgrounds, (2) their life changes after conversion, and (3) their inter-religious perspectives. In terms of background, most of the respondents had …


Child Prostitution: Inadequate Response By The Church, Gabrielle Alexis Jun 2016

Child Prostitution: Inadequate Response By The Church, Gabrielle Alexis

Masters Theses

Child sex trafficking is defined as the recruitment, harboring, transportation, or obtaining of a person for the purpose of commercial sex act that is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such an act has not attained eighteen years of age. Based on that definition, there is an alarming number of children that are being sexually enslaved. This paper specifically focuses on child sex trafficking or child prostitution. It presents a detailed analysis of the extent of child prostitution worldwide, discusses the long-term effects of child prostitution, analyzes the adequacy of the Church’s …


Gaines's Preachers And Their People: Personalism, Community, And Social Action In A Lesson Before Dying, In My Father's House, And A Gathering Of Old Men, Brooke Light May 2014

Gaines's Preachers And Their People: Personalism, Community, And Social Action In A Lesson Before Dying, In My Father's House, And A Gathering Of Old Men, Brooke Light

Masters Theses

Personalist theology, along with Ernest J. Gaines's fiction, resists the idea of isolation and instead highlights the importance of the communal good, criticizing social and religious institutions that fail to uphold the value of human dignity and community. In "Personalism and Traditional Afrikan Thought," Burrow argues that "the church exists for the person and not the other way around" (347) and that churches should be judged and evaluated on the extent to which they meet the needs of the community. Representing their churches, the preachers in three of Gaines's novels (A Lesson Before Dying, In My Father's House, and A …


But You Are A Man Like My Equal: An Exploration Of The Suffering Of The Righteous At The Hands Of Fellow Community Members, Dan Cooper May 2014

But You Are A Man Like My Equal: An Exploration Of The Suffering Of The Righteous At The Hands Of Fellow Community Members, Dan Cooper

Masters Theses

This thesis explores book two of the Psalms and how it displays and reacts to the theme of the suffering of the righteous at the hands of fellow community members. It explores the nationality, tactics, and motivations of the enemies in Psalms 52, 53, 55, 62, 64, 69, 70, and 71. It is shown that the Psalmist is often pitted against other Israelites who are even within his religious circle. These enemies who are closest to the psalmist employ certain tactics and are motivated by specific worldviews. The concluding chapter explores the implications for worship and theology that these findings …


Moore Of Feminine Style: A Rhetorical Examination Of "Wednesdays With Beth", Terrie Meeks Mar 2014

Moore Of Feminine Style: A Rhetorical Examination Of "Wednesdays With Beth", Terrie Meeks

Masters Theses

Beth Moore is a best-selling author of books and Bible studies, a speaker to crowds that fill places like the Georgia Super Dome, as well as an international speaker, a radio and television personality, and she is achieving this milestone as a woman, in a world lit with male stars. Through all of these venues it is estimated that Moore speaks to hundreds of thousands of people each year. One of Moore's most recent ventures is speaking on Life Today with James and Betty Robison. Each week features an episode of "Wednesdays with Beth." Using Karlyn Kohrs Campbell's theory of …


An Apologetic To Sun Hwan Pyun's Dialogue Theology As A Liberation Theology Of Religions, Youngchan Kim Aug 2012

An Apologetic To Sun Hwan Pyun's Dialogue Theology As A Liberation Theology Of Religions, Youngchan Kim

Masters Theses

Sun Hwan Pyun was a professor at Methodist Theological University. As a theologian, he grappled with two important theological questions: "Is Christianity an exclusive religion?" and "Is Christianity only a religion for the upper class?" Regarding the exclusivism of Christianity, Pyun searched for an answer in ecumenical-religious pluralism. As an answer for "is Christianity for the poor", he accepts Minjung liberation theology. Pyun wanted to combine these two theologies and, subsequently, referred to his dialogue theology as a liberation theology of religions. The purpose of this thesis is to search for the theological and biblical answers to these theological questions …


Creating A Millennial Generation Contextualized Church Culture, Christopher Deitsch Aug 2012

Creating A Millennial Generation Contextualized Church Culture, Christopher Deitsch

Masters Theses

The Millennial generation, or Generation Y as some people know them, is the biggest generation in the United States of America history. As they flood schools, universities, and the job market it is easy to see that there are major differences between them and previous generations. Simultaneously, the church in America has hundreds of individual churches each year closing and tens of thousands each year declining; most churches are ceasing to grow. The inability to reach Millennials is one of the reasons for this decline. This thesis purposes to give a snapshot of the Millennial generation, overview a few of …