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Full-Text Articles in Practical Theology

Boundless Community: A Virtual Platform Designed For Collaborative Development Of Emotional Well-Being, Sai On Ng Dec 2023

Boundless Community: A Virtual Platform Designed For Collaborative Development Of Emotional Well-Being, Sai On Ng

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This research aims to apply the US Army concept of spiritual readiness to help Christians manage emotional stress in a civilian context through an online community. This project invites disconnected Christians to join an online community where they can address negative emotions by developing self-awareness of their maladaptive thinking and embody the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love. This approach assists individuals in building emotional resilience, a concept emphasized in the military. This project addresses five negative emotions (anger, shame, sadness, fear, and loneliness) by replacing them with positive emotions taught in the Bible. The project consists of eight …


Preparing Church Counselors For Obsessive Morbid Jealousy, David M. Reinhardt Aug 2023

Preparing Church Counselors For Obsessive Morbid Jealousy, David M. Reinhardt

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This research addressed the problem of the lack of training in pastoral counselors in the Iglesia Bíblica Bautista de Iquique, Chile, to help wives and their families suffering suspicious jealousy due to childhood traumas. This DMIN action research project trained pastoral counselors to connect childhood trauma to wives suffering suspicious jealousy. There are two stages of this action research; the first is to establish the connection of obsessive morbid jealousy (OMJ) to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). The second is to prepare pastors and counselors to recognize the symptoms and causes of obsessive morbid jealousy and to have a clear strategy …


Spiritual Abuse In Augusta, Georgia: Reconciling The Spiritually Abused To The Local Church, James A. Getts Jul 2023

Spiritual Abuse In Augusta, Georgia: Reconciling The Spiritually Abused To The Local Church, James A. Getts

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this action-based research project was to address the absence of a therapeutic process wherein pastoral counselors at Life Management Group (LMG) can responsibly attempt to reconcile spiritually abused Christians to a local church in Augusta, Georgia. One hundred percent of clients citing spiritual abuse in LMG’s pastoral counseling department were abstaining from any religious activity within a community of faith at the outset of this project. Data was researched at the international, national, state, and local levels. The researcher concluded that published research related to the topic of spiritual abuse is theoretical in nature only and not …


The Unspoken Truth: A Practical Guide For Pastors, Helping Abusers Break The Cycle Of Sexual Abuse, Teresa Johnson Jun 2015

The Unspoken Truth: A Practical Guide For Pastors, Helping Abusers Break The Cycle Of Sexual Abuse, Teresa Johnson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

For years, men, women and children have suffered silently as a result of sexual abuse. The abuser suffers and the cycle continues. Destroying the silence of sexual abuse is the beginning of breaking the cycle. Research has shown that the abuse goes far beyond the actual act and causes physical, emotional, and psychological damage. This project will investigate and encourage open discussion, address the abuse, and give valuable insight to the causes and consequences of sexual abuse. This project will offer prescriptive and preventative measures to all parties involved, in an effort to heal and stop sexual abuse. Through research …


The Relationship Between Transformational Leadership Behavior, Adult Attachment And God Attachment, Deboarah Foulkes Jan 2015

The Relationship Between Transformational Leadership Behavior, Adult Attachment And God Attachment, Deboarah Foulkes

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Transformational leaders are charged with the undertaking of not only accomplishing tasks, but also engaging followers in a manner that will achieve these tasks. An interaction with the follower is needed to achieve this, and the quality of that interaction may be impacted by environmental stressors. Past studies suggest that adult attachment orientation will determine the quality of interpersonal interactions. Additionally, past studies also suggest that an attachment to God influences the quality of interpersonal interactions and how one copes with stress. A correspondence model of God attachment posits that a person’s attachment to God will be similar to their …


The Efficacy Of Christian Devotional Meditation On Stress, Anxiety, Depression, And Spiritual Health With Korean Adults In The United States: A Randomized Comparative Study, Jinse Kim Jul 2014

The Efficacy Of Christian Devotional Meditation On Stress, Anxiety, Depression, And Spiritual Health With Korean Adults In The United States: A Randomized Comparative Study, Jinse Kim

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study investigated the comparative effectiveness of Christian devotional meditation (CDM) versus progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) on stress, anxiety, depression, and overall spiritual health among a sample of nonclinical Korean Christian adults in the United States. Seventy nine individuals at two churches in the northern Virginia area completed the study. At each church, the subjects were randomly assigned to a two-hour session of CDM training or PMR training. Each participant then was asked to practice the technique at home at least once a day for two weeks with audio recorded instructions. The participants' perceived level of stress, anxiety, depression, and …


Idealism & Reality: A Phenomenological Exploration Of Pastoral Expectations & Ministry Realities Experienced By Protestant Church Planting Pastors, Dwayne Bond Jul 2014

Idealism & Reality: A Phenomenological Exploration Of Pastoral Expectations & Ministry Realities Experienced By Protestant Church Planting Pastors, Dwayne Bond

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

With the majority of literature focused on reducing clergy stressors, there is a need to explore how pastors respond when ministry idealism dissipates, while familial and congregational expectations increase. When idealized expectations fade, how do clergy experience resiliency? The purpose of this study was to explore how idealism affects clergy resiliency and their responses, coping, and longevity in ministry. Ten new church-planting Protestant pastors were selected using snowball sampling. Each pastor was interviewed. Data from the two-hour in-depth interviews was collected, organized and analyzed. The findings for each interview were compared and contrasted, and themes were identified - a) utilizing …


Marriage As A Spiritual Discipline: Principles And Benefits, Richmond Laney Apr 2014

Marriage As A Spiritual Discipline: Principles And Benefits, Richmond Laney

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Christians use spiritual disciplines such as prayer, fasting, and journaling as methods to enhance their relationship with God. However, Christian rates of divorce are not different than the United States average where more than one in three first marriages ends in divorce. This is despite a Christian belief that marriage is a special relationship. The rate of divorce among Christians should be reduced. Marriage can be practiced as a spiritual discipline that will benefit the relationship as well as yielding sought after spirituality. Marriage as a spiritual discipline would help couples increase marital satisfaction, thus driving down the divorce rate. …