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Practical Theology Commons

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Luther Seminary

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Articles 1 - 30 of 82

Full-Text Articles in Practical Theology

Emerging Trends In Confirmation And Equivalent Practices, Terri L. Elton, Katherine Douglass, Richard Osmer Jan 2018

Emerging Trends In Confirmation And Equivalent Practices, Terri L. Elton, Katherine Douglass, Richard Osmer

Faculty Publications

This article highlights the findings of The Confirmation Project research, a mixed methods project that studied confirmation and equivalent practices in five denominations in the United States. (The denominations were United Methodist, Presbyterian USA, African Methodist Episcopal, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and the Episcopal Church.) What that discovered was confirmation can provide an opportunity for young people to encounter the gospel anew. It is an important ministry when it strengthens young people’s understanding of faith, deepens their experience with Christian community, and equips them to discern their calling to join in God’s mission in the world. As congregations …


Encountering The Gospel Anew: Confirmation As Ecclesial, Personal, And Missional Practices, Terri L. Elton Jan 2018

Encountering The Gospel Anew: Confirmation As Ecclesial, Personal, And Missional Practices, Terri L. Elton

Faculty Publications

Given the challenges facing congregations and young people today, some church leaders are wondering if confirmation continues to have a role in discipling young people. Based on the findings from The Confirmation Project, this article asserts that confirmation is, in fact, uniquely positioned to be a vibrant ministry for young people to encounter the gospel anew when congregations integrate ecclesial, personal, and missional practices. Such an approach strengthens confirmands’ understanding of faith, deepens their experience with Christian community, and equips them to discern their call to join in God’s mission in the world.


Confirmation Basics, Terri L. Elton, Lisa Kimball, Gordon Mikoski Jan 2018

Confirmation Basics, Terri L. Elton, Lisa Kimball, Gordon Mikoski

Faculty Publications

This article moves the findings of The Confirmation Project research from theory into practice. Three members of the research team highlight three themes (purpose, design, and leadership) and walk congregational leaders through a process of discovering how these ideas can help them find a way forward that is meaningful to their congregation.


Looking High And Low For Salvation In Luke, Matthew L. Skinner Jan 2018

Looking High And Low For Salvation In Luke, Matthew L. Skinner

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Stewardship 101: An Invitation To Financial Stewardship, Adam J. Copeland Jan 2018

Stewardship 101: An Invitation To Financial Stewardship, Adam J. Copeland

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Luther Seminary: It Takes A Village, Adam J. Copeland, Jason Misselt Jan 2017

Luther Seminary: It Takes A Village, Adam J. Copeland, Jason Misselt

Faculty Publications

The authors describe how, framed within an initiative to equip faith leaders and congregations around matters of stewardship, Luther Seminary’s Economic Conditions Facing Future Ministers (ECFFM) program has emerged as part of the work of the seminary’s Center for Stewardship Leaders. The ECFFM initiative focused on conducting new research and strengthening current campus programs in order to decrease student debt through building financial literacy, stewardship training, and financial support.


The Neighbor, Mark A. Granquist Jan 2017

The Neighbor, Mark A. Granquist

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


A Participatory God For A Participatory Culture: Christian Theological Perspectives On Networks, Dwight J. Zscheile Jan 2017

A Participatory God For A Participatory Culture: Christian Theological Perspectives On Networks, Dwight J. Zscheile

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


White Religious Educators Resisting White Fragility: Lessons From Mystics, Mary E. Hess Dec 2016

White Religious Educators Resisting White Fragility: Lessons From Mystics, Mary E. Hess

Faculty Publications

Decades of work in dismantling racism have not yielded the kind of results for which religious educators have hoped. One primary reason has been what scholars term “white fragility,” a symptom of the structural racism which confers systemic privilege upon White people. Lessons learned from Christian mystics point to powerful ways to confront and resist the siren call of such formation and instead to make resisting racism an integral part of Christian identity for White people.


A Tribute To Frederick J. Gaiser: Upon His Retirement As Editor Of Word & World, Mark A. Throntveit Oct 2016

A Tribute To Frederick J. Gaiser: Upon His Retirement As Editor Of Word & World, Mark A. Throntveit

Faculty Publications

This tribute to Frederick Gaiser at the end of his term as editor of Word & World comes from a longtime colleague and collaborator in the publication of this journal. Mark Throntveit is the Book Review Editor of this journal, and the Elva B. Lovell Professor of Old Testament at Luther Seminary.


Sabbath And Creation, Kathryn M. Schifferdecker Jul 2016

Sabbath And Creation, Kathryn M. Schifferdecker

Faculty Publications

Work and rest, planting and letting lie fallow—these are the rhythms by which both we and the earth are sustained, as on creation’s first Sabbath. “Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy.…Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest.” It is, of course, a word of law. For those who have ears to hear, however, it is also a word of promise.


Preaching John 8:31-36: Reforming Contexts Then And Now, Karoline M. Lewis Apr 2016

Preaching John 8:31-36: Reforming Contexts Then And Now, Karoline M. Lewis

Faculty Publications

The Gospel reading for Reformation Sunday is always John 8:31–36, yet preaching on this passage tends to overlook the critical contexts in which this pericope is located. Preaching John 8:31–36 on Reformation now will demand a careful analysis of the role of the passage in the Fourth Gospel, both as a means by which to respect its literary integrity as well as invitation to how it might shape a new hermeneutic for a new day.


Preaching Texts Of Multiple Masculinities To A World Of Multiple Masculinities, Cameron B. R. Howard Jan 2016

Preaching Texts Of Multiple Masculinities To A World Of Multiple Masculinities, Cameron B. R. Howard

Faculty Publications

Today’s preachers proclaim the word into a world that is fraught with dissonances about the expectations of gender roles. The Bible itself demonstrates a similar complexity, though sometimes in different modes. Ultimately, an exploration of biblical masculinity can offer preachers and their congregations new ways of navigating those intersections between the ancient text and our world today.


Preaching As Foolishness, Steven D. Paulson Jan 2016

Preaching As Foolishness, Steven D. Paulson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Preaching The Psalter's Words Of Praise, Prayer, And Trust, Rolf A. Jacobson Oct 2015

Preaching The Psalter's Words Of Praise, Prayer, And Trust, Rolf A. Jacobson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Christian Youth Ministries And Youth Sports: A View From The Trenches, Mark A. Granquist Oct 2015

Christian Youth Ministries And Youth Sports: A View From The Trenches, Mark A. Granquist

Faculty Publications

Although youth sports have long been a challenge to Christian youth ministries, these activities are now consuming more and more time of the youth involved, often drawing them away from activities and ministries sponsored by churches. What are the issues (and opportunities) in this challenge, and what can be learned from those currently doing Christian work with youth?


Sports Fandom: Worthless Idol And Wonderful Thing, Rolf A. Jacobson Oct 2015

Sports Fandom: Worthless Idol And Wonderful Thing, Rolf A. Jacobson

Faculty Publications

When thinking about the spectacle of sports fandom in light of the Bible, two assertions immediately come to mind. First, sports have become—for much of North American or Western society—an idol. Second, sports have also co-opted many aspects of the life of faith. These two immediate perspectives are so obvious that one is left to wonder whether there is anything more to say about sports in light of the Bible. Maybe there is.


Learning With Digital Technologies: Privileging Persons Over Machines, Mary E. Hess Jan 2015

Learning With Digital Technologies: Privileging Persons Over Machines, Mary E. Hess

Faculty Publications

Learning with digital technologies, at least when framed by moral commitments, requires lifting up specific epistemological frames, beginning with a conviction that learning involves human persons in interdependent communities who are involved in a shared search for truth. Such a conviction necessitates moving from teaching-centered to learning-centered pedagogies, and from explicit content to shaping tacit forms of knowing. Digital technologies can prove highly beneficial when used within those constraints.


Stop Worrying About The Millennials*: *And Learn To Love Them Instead, Andrew Root Jan 2015

Stop Worrying About The Millennials*: *And Learn To Love Them Instead, Andrew Root

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Practical Advice On Prayer From Martin Luther, Mary Jane Haemig Jan 2015

Practical Advice On Prayer From Martin Luther, Mary Jane Haemig

Faculty Publications

Martin Luther’s comments and instructions on prayer permeated his work. Luther sought to build an evangelical prayer practice that reflected the key insights of his theology: just as God redeems the unworthy human, so God promises to hear and respond to the one praying, despite his or her unworthiness.


Praying The Psalms, Kathryn M. Schifferdecker Jan 2015

Praying The Psalms, Kathryn M. Schifferdecker

Faculty Publications

The Psalms teach us how to pray. When we pray the Psalms, we follow in the footsteps of a long line of Christians and Jews who have used the Psalter as a guide to prayer. We learn from those saints to bring all of ourselves to God in prayer: our sorrows, our laments, and our anger as well as our joys and praise.


The Story We Find Ourselves In: Nurturing Christian Identity In A Consumer Culture, Terri L. Elton Apr 2014

The Story We Find Ourselves In: Nurturing Christian Identity In A Consumer Culture, Terri L. Elton

Faculty Publications

Consumerism has become society’s prevailing story, the story in which young people cultivate their identity. If ministry leaders are to help young people nurture their identity as children of God and help them discover a faith that speaks into the current culture, it will be important to help them shift from viewing themselves as objects within a consumer society to seeing themselves as subjects and agents of God’s love.


We Are Our Stories: Narrative Dimension Of Human Identity And Its Implications For Christian Faith Formation, Rolf A. Jacobson Apr 2014

We Are Our Stories: Narrative Dimension Of Human Identity And Its Implications For Christian Faith Formation, Rolf A. Jacobson

Faculty Publications

Increasingly, representatives of diverse disciplines have come to a significant consensus about human identity. Each of us constructs and lives in a narrative that is, in fact, us. If this is the case, we will need an outside source to construct a narrative that is both good and true—one to which and in which we can give our lives. Such a story is given us in Holy Scripture and in the collective memory of the church.


From The Other Side: Funeral Directors Talk About The Changing Face Of Funerals, Mark A. Granquist Jan 2014

From The Other Side: Funeral Directors Talk About The Changing Face Of Funerals, Mark A. Granquist

Faculty Publications

This report of interviews with funeral directors will provide pastors with insight on funeral trends from the side of these professionals. More, it might serve as an impetus for useful conversations between pastors and funeral directors in their areas.


Jesus' Prophetic Reach: Drawing Children To The Center Of Congregational Life, Tim Coltvet Jul 2013

Jesus' Prophetic Reach: Drawing Children To The Center Of Congregational Life, Tim Coltvet

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


From Establishment To Innovation: Rethinking Structure In A New Apostolic Age, Dwight J. Zscheile Jan 2013

From Establishment To Innovation: Rethinking Structure In A New Apostolic Age, Dwight J. Zscheile

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Digital Storytelling: Empowering Feminist And Womanist Faith Formation With Young Women, Mary E. Hess Jan 2013

Digital Storytelling: Empowering Feminist And Womanist Faith Formation With Young Women, Mary E. Hess

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


The Really, Really Empty Nest: Single Parents Launching Only Children, Carla M. Dahl, Katie Dahl Jan 2013

The Really, Really Empty Nest: Single Parents Launching Only Children, Carla M. Dahl, Katie Dahl

Faculty Publications

When only children of single parents leave home, the nest is really, really empty. This situation requires particular understanding and certainly is an area for fruitful ministry.


Things We Never Preach About, Part I: Gluttony, Dirk G. Lange Oct 2012

Things We Never Preach About, Part I: Gluttony, Dirk G. Lange

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Dwelling In The Word: Affirming Its Promise, Dwight J. Zscheile Oct 2012

Dwelling In The Word: Affirming Its Promise, Dwight J. Zscheile

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.