Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

Evaluating “Grit” (Genuine Relationships, Intergenerationally Tied) Groups At The Highland Church Of Christ: An Intergenerational Enhancement Of Small Group Community Life, Beth Ann Fisher

Doctor of Ministry Theses

ABSTRACT This project, Evaluating “GRIT” (Genuine Relationships, Intergenerationally Tied) at the Highland Church of Christ: An Intergenerational Enhancement of Small Group Community Life is a response to the request for intergenerational partnership in worship, fellowship, and ministry by the university students at Highland Church of Christ in Abilene, Texas. The church’s robust small group life was a logical place to create a vehicle in which intergenerational partners could ride for a determined period in pursuit of their common goals of furthering Highland’s mission and vision. The “Genuine Relationships, Intergenerationally Tied” or GRIT groups were formed by combining existing small groups …

Review Of Oneness Pentecostalism: Race, Gender, And Culture. Edited By Lloyd D. Barba, Andrea S. Johnson, And Daniel Ramírez, Peter Althouse

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Reviews | 143 Oneness Pentecostalism: Race, Gender, and Culture. Edited by Lloyd D. Barba, Andrea S. Johnson, and Daniel Ramírez. University Park, PA: The Pennsylvania University Press, 2023. 282 pp.

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Peter Althouse

A Pneumatology Of Race In The Gospel Of John: An Ethnocritical Study. By Rodolfo Estrada Galvan, Iii., Harold A. Gutierrez

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

A Pneumatology of Race in the Gospel of John: An Ethnocritical Study. By Rodolfo Estrada Galvan, III. Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2019. 362 pp.

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Harold Gutierrez (hgutier2@oru.edu) is a PhD student in Contextual Theology at Oral Roberts University, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. He currently serves as intercultural ministries director for the BC/Yukon District of PAOC and is an adjunct faculty member at Summit Pacific College in Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada.

Review Of Tongues Of Fire: A Systematic Theology Of The Christian Faith. By Frank Macchia., Michael D. Young

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Tongues of Fire: A Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith. By Frank Macchia. Eugene: OR: Cascade Books, 2023. 478 pp.

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Michael Young (mdyoung@seu.edu) currently serves as an adjunct professor at Pacific Rim University in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.

Review Of Pentecostal Orthodoxy: Toward An Ecumenism Of The Spirit. By Emilio Alvarez., Samuel Hogan

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Pentecostal Orthodoxy: Toward an Ecumenism of the Spirit. By Emilio Alvarez. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2022. xiv + 174 pp.

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S. Slade Hogan (slade111s@oru.edu) is a PhD student in Contextual Theology at Oral Roberts University, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA, and Pastor of the Community Church of Milton, Milton, New Hampshire, USA.

Covid-19 And Church Attendance Behavior Trends: Evidence From Ghanaian Pentecostal-Charismatic Churches, Justice A. Arthur, Lydia Andoh-Quainoo

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

The concept of religious economy views churches as corporate entities, pastors as marketers offering a range of products, and church members as consumers whose preferences shape the goods and services provided by ministers. Within this framework, church members react quickly to changing economic, social, and cultural conditions. The COVID-19 pandemic has not only had an economic impact, with job losses and financial struggles, but has also brought about social and cultural changes that have affected consumer behavior in many areas of life worldwide. For instance, during the pandemic, church gatherings were restricted or prohibited, socializing was replaced with social distancing, …

Pentecostalism And Current Development In West Africa: Reimagining The Pentecostal Landscape, Politics, And Vision, Fred Cudjoe Adadey, Yisa Barnabas

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

A growing body of literature on African Pentecostals in sub-Saharan Africa is highlighted in this article, highlighting a more defined contribution of African Pentecostals to the development landscape. Until recently, the African Pentecostal development landscape recorded little visibility at the national level, on the assumption that their experience only highlights cultural and theological relevance. However, this emerging visibility has identified, as a conceptual category, an imaginary social space with practical ramification. Based on a critical analytical review of literature, this article examines the shift from traditional Pentecostal theology to a more focused attention on the social transformation created by a …

Managing Financial Sector Crisis: Do “Faith” And “Leave It To God” Matter?, Rebecca Attah, Christine Avortri, Emmanuel Appah, Alexander Preko

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

The purpose of this study is twofold: first, to elucidate the understanding of two religious concepts related to the financial sector clean-up among bank customers; and second, to explore how these concepts have been employed as strategies to mitigate the impact of financial sector clean-up shocks in Ghana. This qualitative research is anchored in the theory of belief and meaning-making theory, utilizing purposive and snowball sampling methods, with twenty-eight in-depth interviews for data gathering. The findings of this study revealed that financial sector clean-up customers understood religious faith as “aggressive faith,” “passive faith,” and “offensive faith,” which were found to …

Holiness As Wholeness In Afro- Pentecostal Tradition: A Theological Perspective, Ivan L. Hartsfield Dr

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Using the Church of God in Christ (COGIC) as the exemplar, I explore the theological rationale that undergirds the COGIC priority of holiness as a prescription for human wholeness. By wholeness, I mean human flourishing of the total person. For the COGIC, “Salvation is a deliverance from dangers and enemies.” Through the democratization of what was historically reserved for spiritual heroes, namely the designation of “saint,” common people of little means were immediately uplifted. They grabbed ahold of this moniker, which redefined them and identified their new place of spiritual residence in Zion. By faith, they expected to experience a …

The Prayer Tongue And The Jesus Prayer: The Witness Of Abbot David Geraets, Clyde Glandon

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

To my knowledge Abbot David Geraets (1935–2012) of the Pecos Benedictine Monastery has been the only Christian witness and writer, past or present, to join the practice of the ancient Jesus Prayer and the prayer tongue. He simply says that “repeating the name of Jesus can become a masterful art of glossolalia prayer.” Abbot David’s statement is not found as such in the centuries of Eastern Orthodox literature about the Jesus Prayer. Nor is such a joining found among classical Pentecostal Christians who, while fully familiar with the prayer tongue and with life and power in Jesus’ name, commonly have …

A Proposed Pentecostal Quadrilectic: Explorations For Asian Pentecostal Hermeneutics, Lora Angeline E. Timenia

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Developing a general framework for Asian Pentecostal hermeneutics is necessary for a continent where the Holy Bible is “Scripture among scriptures.” Although Pentecostal Christianity in Asia is growing, interpreting Scripture in a manner relevant to local contextual realities is necessary to propagate grassroots theologies. As such, the current Pentecostal hermeneutical triad of Spirit-Scripture-Community (Archer) or Spirit-Word-Community (Yong) needs further articulations of a reader’s tradition and cultural/ethnic contexts. The concept of an interpretive “Pentecostal community” needs clarification in the Asian setting where multiple interpretative communities exist. This study proposes a framework that recognizes the dialectical role of the text’s context and …

“Study To Show Thyself Approved”: An Analysis Of Oral Roberts’ Personal Copy Of The Commentary On Exodus By Umberto Cassuto, Daniel D. Bunn Jr

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Having happened upon what was previously Oral Roberts’ personal copy of the commentary on Exodus by Umberto Cassuto, I observed his active interaction with the volume by way of notes and underlines. I determined to analyze his interaction with it. This essay shares the results of the analysis of that book. It begins with a brief overview of his personal life during the time in which he possessed the commentary. Then, it makes observations about his interaction, showing specific examples. Finally, it will look more intently at a sermon in which his use of the commentary is made explicit.

Editorial - Spiritus 9.1 (Spring 2024), Jeffrey S. Lamp

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

No abstract provided.

Front Matter Spiritus 9.1 (Spring 2024), Spiritus@Oru.Edu

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

No abstract provided.

Full Issue Spiritus 9.1 (2024), Spiritus@Oru.Edu

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Spiritus 9.1 (Spring 2024) full issue. Edited by Jeff Lamp, Ph.D.

Orpheus And The Harrowing Of Hell In The Tale Of Beren And Lúthien, Giovanni Carmine Costabile

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Critics have observed that Beren and Lúthien’s tale is a Christian retelling of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. The “Harrowing of Hell” tradition is widespread in Italy as attested by the mosaic of San Marco among others, but it is in France that the Ovid Moralized reconnects it to Orpheus who descended into the Underworld to save Eurydice (an already late antique parallel) and therefore attests a happy ending version of the story that can be found in medieval England and also in various classical sources, perhaps even in the original legend of Orpheus. The apocryphal Harrowing is also …

Ephesians 2:11-22, Unity In Christ: A Biblical Theological Analysis, Kaeley Sells

Biblical Studies Student Projects

Often, in large group settings there can be a tendency to stick to one’s own in-group. This tendency then leads to the diminishing and exclusion of those outside of that particular group. In the early church, this was the story of the Gentile believers who, despite receiving the same life through the sacrifice of Christ were subject to discrimination, cultivating an inferiority complex in many of the early believers. Paul attempts to critique this trend by highlighting not only the grace extended to all but the intentional life, death, and resurrection of Christ that enables all believers to be citizens …

An Appeal To Mystery Without "Punting": Revisiting Molinism’S Biblical Problem In Light Of Ephesians 1:4–11 And Romans 11:33–36, Jeffrey S. Kennedy

Eleutheria: John W. Rawlings School of Divinity Academic Journal

Molinists maintain that middle knowledge is the best candidate for settling the historical debate on God’s sovereignty and man’s free will. The philosophical sophistication of the view can be alluring, and the efforts of Molinists to rationally defend it against criticisms have been impressive. But does Molinism still have a biblical problem? Proponents argue that the doctrine is compatible with the Bible's teaching on God's knowledge of counterfactuals, though admittedly, it is not explicitly taught in Scripture. But this claim is more problematic than advocates for the theory have alleged. The present study maintains that in the absence of a …

Restoration Quarterly: Vol. 66, No. 1

Restoration Quarterly

PDF of the cover of Restoration Quarterly: Vol. 66, No. 1.

This repository hosts selected Restoration Quarterly articles in downloadable PDF format. For the benefit of users who would like to browse the contents of RQ, we have included all issue covers even when full-text articles from that issue are unavailable. All Restoration Quarterly articles are available in full text in the ATLA Religion Database, available through most university and theological libraries or through your local library’s inter-library loan service.

Homily For Mass Of The Holy Spirit, Dale Launderville Osb

Obsculta

This year, the monks of Saint John’s Abbey, the sponsoring religious order of the Saint John’s School of Theology and Seminary, convened to elect a new abbot, after the retirement of the previous, who had served for twenty years. This homily was given by Father Dale Launderville, OSB at the Mass of the Holy Spirit, which both opened the official election process and was the culmination of a year-long process of discernment and prayer that enable the monks to enter the voting confident of the aid of the Holy Spirit.

A Narrative Analysis Of Gensis 15, Patrick Russell

Obsculta

This paper seeks to read Genesis 15 through a narrative lens. While historical critical method provides some framework, the main purpose is to read this text as a work of literature: a story told to an audience to convey something of shared importance. What theological insights a reader gains from this literary approach may be different from that which one sees when analyzing the text with a more tradition lens.

Junia The Apostle: History And Future Of Women In The Church, Hannah Miers

Obsculta

The piece sheds light on the identity of the individual mentioned as Junia in Paul's writings to the Romans. Numerous sources, spanning from the Patristics to contemporary academia, shed further insight into her life and character. The more significant question for our times becomes why Junia is less well-known and how she exemplifies a change (though slow) in the Roman Catholic Church's perspective on women.

Paul And Gender: Early Reception And Modern Implications, Phoebe Carstens

Obsculta

Within Paul’s letters, there is a wealth of theological and ministerial material with a variety of implications and interpretations—what Paul seems to say about the position of women in the Church is the object of much debate. This piece highlights the ways in which Paul displays an openness to greater involvement of women in the Christian movement and a breaking of traditional female gender roles, yet simultaneously upholds rigid boundaries of marked gender distinction, thus mirroring a current stance of the Church today.

Interpretation Of Luke 15:11-32: For Parents Of Children Who Have Fallen Away From The Faith And Have Other Children At Home, Anisabel Palma

Obsculta

This piece aims to interpret the pericope of Luke 15:11-32, the parable of the Prodigal Son, for parents with children fallen away from the faith and other children with them. Its purpose is to bring the Good News of Jesus Christ during those difficult moments, offering hope and trust in the loving God of the merciful Father. It is aims to explore the graces that God bestows upon parents who mourn the estrangement of their child.

Rejoice Always: Philippians 4:4-7 And Paul’S Equation For Peace Of Heart, Andrea Frey

Obsculta

Paul's instruction to the Philippians to "Rejoice always", found in Philippians 4:4-7, is a guide to help a community and its members achieve peace. Focusing on these verses, this paper examines the elements Paul suggests to achieve peace of heart and mind.

The Importance Of Luke 3, Patrick Russell

Obsculta

This paper attempts to show the literary and theological significance of the genealogy in Luke 3. Though the text can be read as merely something to convey facts; the textual placement and the theological themes at work within the genealogy in relation to Luke-Acts are not arbitrary. In light of the overall use of genealogies in the ancient near east this pericope becomes something far more dynamic than it might otherwise seem upon first glance.

We Hope: Sot/Sem Midday Prayer Reflection - November 9, 2023, Kathleen A. Cahalan

Obsculta

Every week, the faculty, staff, and students of the Saint John’s School of Theology and Seminary gather together in common worship for Ecumenical Midday Prayer and Convivium, a shared meal. This reflection was given by Kathleen Cahalan—Professor of Practical Theology—in November of 2023 and explores the role of hope in the life of the Christian disciple.

Review Of Pentecostal Hermeneutics In The Late Modern World: Essays On The Condition Of Our Interpretation. By L. William Oliverio, Jr., Rick Wadholm, Jr.

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Review of Pentecostal Hermeneutics in the Late Modern World: Essays on the Condition of Our Interpretation. By L. William Oliverio, Jr. Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2022. 252 pp.

Review Of Deliver Us From Evil. By John Swinton., Robert D. Mcbain

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Review of Deliver Us from Evil. By John Swinton. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, 2022. 130 pp.

Review Of A Seminary Dean’S Experiment With Servant Leadership: Stories And Lessons From My Journey Through Ivy League To Whole Person Education. By Thomson K. Mathew., Wonsuk Ma

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Review of A Seminary Dean’s Experiment with Servant Leadership: Stories and Lessons from My Journey through Ivy League to Whole Person Education. By Thomson K. Mathew. Kottayam, Kerala, India: GoodNews Books, 2021. 233 pp.