Practical Theology Commons^™

Advent 4 One Year Series 2016, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

No abstract provided.

Developing A Spiritual Leadership Curriculum At West University Church Of Christ, Daniel Mcgraw

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

In the fall of 2015, I worked with a small group of congregational members to develop a spiritual leadership curriculum for the West Houston Church of Christ. Many of the congregation’s leaders were feeling a sense of burnout and weariness in ministry. They yearned to deepen their own connection with God to energize their ministry. This article relates the history of the congregation before the intervention, outlines the process of the intervention, from its theological underpinnings to the development of the curriculum, and finally, examines the efficacy of this intervention.

Advent 3 One Year Series 2016, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

No abstract provided.

Advent 3 Series A 2016, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

No abstract provided.

Implementing Vocational Training At Escuela Quiteña De Estudios Bíblicos, Joshua K. Marcum

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This DMin project addressed the problem of the absence of a viable training model to equip graduates of EQEB (Escuela Quiteña de Estudios Biblicos) for self-sustaining ministry. Based upon a theology of vocation, the project implemented and evaluated the inclusion of a technical-skills component to EQEB’s current seminary training. The project followed the integration of sixteen EQEB students in the vocational program implemented during the 2015-2016 school year. Qualitative research data gathered from five group interviews with these students, my own field notes, and a faculty interview provided the substance upon which I based the project´s findings. Over a seven-month …

Reframing Poverty For Christian Students, James Hensley

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

This paper presents a project in which I led a group of students at a suburban Christian school in experiences that challenged them to be more engaged with those in their community who are experiencing an economic disadvantage. At the outset, the two presenting problems were: (1) a lack of experience with those who are at an economic disadvantage; and (2) a prevalence of troubling attitudes about poverty, namely, ambivalence toward helping people who live in poverty. A lack of concern for the poor is contrary to the teachings of Jesus. In response to this problem, two teachers and I …

The Minister-Elder Relationship Within “Churches That Work”, Steve Cloer

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

This essay is the summary of a research project focused on how the minister-elder relationship in Churches of Christ can facilitate missional transformation in an established church. Twenty-five reputable congregations of Churches of Christ were researched that were profiled as “Churches That Work” by The Christian Chronicle from 2006-2013. A survey was conducted of these congregations’ elders and ministers assessing their leadership practices and perspectives. Four congregations were selected based on results of the survey and qualitative strategies of interviewing, focus groups, observation, and document gathering were used. Five patterns of a missional polity developed: elders as nurturing pastors, ministers …

Advent 2 Series A 2016, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

No abstract provided.

Advent 2 One Year Series 2016, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

No abstract provided.

Bridging The Gap Between Religion And Business: A Conversation, Michael E. Cafferky, Doug Jacobs

Faculty Works

This article explores some of the tensions that congregational pastors experience in terms of business and religion. It is a dialogue regarding the perceived gap between pastors and business professionals.

“Bridging the gap between religion and business: A conversation" by Michael Cafferky and Douglas Jacobs published in the December 2016 issue of Ministry,® International Journal for Pastors, www.MinistryMagazine.org. Used by permission.

Scriptural Foundations For Academic Disciplines: A Biblical Theme Approach, Michael E. Cafferky

Faculty Works

This article presents the thesis that major themes of the Bible can form the biblical foundation for academic disciplines as taught in Christian primary schools, secondary schools and undergraduate and graduate studies in higher education. The Bible is not a comprehensive encyclopedia of knowledge; however, its perspective offers a deeper theological and philosophical basis for any academic discipline.

This article is reproduced/used/uploaded with permission from The Journal of Adventist Education®.

Formulating A Covenant Of Discipleship For The Membership Of The Gwinnett Church Of Christ, David Chisholm

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This project addressed the lack of a covenant of discipleship for the membership of the Gwinnett Church of Christ (GCC). The purpose of the project was to develop such a covenant document to help all the members of GCC better live out the process of becoming more like Jesus. To provide a theological foundation for this project, I explored discipleship in the exhortation sections of the book of Hebrews, which specifically addresses the need for greater commitment and intentionality amongst a community of faith. I also explored the theoretical framework of how formulating a discipleship covenant document could create progress …

Principles Of Incorporating Spirituality Into Professional Clinical Practice, Thomas G. Plante

Psychology

Incorporating spirituality into contemporary professional clinical practice has become more common in recent years most notably with the popular interest of mindfulness meditation, mindfulness based stress reduction, and yoga in particular. However, many other spiritual and religiously based assessment and treatment approaches have also been successfully utilized with a great deal of evidence-based research to support their use and effectiveness. The purpose of this brief article is to outline several guiding principles for those professionals interested in integrating spiritual and religious wisdom and approaches into their professional clinical practices in the spirit of diversity and multiculturalism sensitivity and respect. Psychology …

A Catholic Life Skills Program: The Adoration Module Of The Adoration, Community, Theology, And Service - Life Long Learning (Acts-L3) "Journeyman", Francis Brian Cassidy

Pastoral Institute

The location for my Pastoral Project will be the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) John B. Connally Unit, located two miles south of the town of Kenedy on Hwy 181 in Karnes County, Texas. The Adoration, Community, Theology, and Service Life Long Learning (ACTS-L3) - Journeyman program will provide a learning experience for those participants seeking a faith-based approach to personal development. The beliefs of the Catholic Church and lay faithful will be the basis for learning objectives. The planned curriculum intends to increase awareness of the vocation of lay people in all temporal affairs to our incarcerated communities. …

Christ And Culture Valued: Test Cases On Fairness, John Carson Iii

Senior Honors Theses

This research engages H. Richard Niebuhr’s work, Christ and Culture. Niebuhr’s book is a seminal work on the historical trends of Christian cultural engagement. This research applies several tests to the paradigm demonstrated in Niebuhr’s work. These tests demonstrate that Christ and Culture presents a paradigm that lacks fairness and does not adequately meet the goals of an explanatory paradigm. Niebuhr’s paradigm has shaped the discussion of Christian cultural engagement for over fifty years, and this research was done to demonstrate the need for new conversation-shaping paradigms in the field of Christian cultural engagement.

A Non-Voluntarist Theory: An Alternative Evangelical Apologetic For Dealing With The Euthyphro Dilemma, Evan Posey

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation presents an alternative response to the Euthyphro dilemma that will be referred to as the Non-Voluntarist Theory. It offers a critical evaluation of contemporary evangelical divine command theories to demonstrate the inherent ambiguity as they relate to Divine Command Theory, and their lack of apologetic force for answering the Euthyphro dilemma. To accomplish this task, it is important to understand how the Euthyphro Dilemma relates to theology and apologetics in general, and the contemporary attempts to ground objective moral values and duties in particular. The topic relates to theology, since one’s response to the Euthyphro Dilemma can implicitly …

The Study On The Problems Of The Current Korean Churches, Hai Lee

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Christianity in South Korean experienced unusually rapid growth for almost 100 years: The revival of church members, the growth of prayer, worship, and evangelism. However, current Korean churches face many problems that have stopped the growth, and actually put the Korean church in a decline. The problems, but are not limited to, are unethical aspects of pastor; including tax problem, huge church constructions, and loving materials. Korean churches should know why these kinds of problems occur and what the solutions are. There are many studies regarding the development of Korean churches but there are few studies examining the problems of …

Equipping A Local Congregation For Saturation Evangelism At The Emmaus Missionary Baptist Church, Willie David Mcclung Ii

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of the research project was to determine if a local church has failed to equip the congregation with the tools needed to share their faith, and saturate the local community with the Gospel message; and if so, to provide immediate training and test the results for its effectiveness at the Emmaus Missionary Baptist Church, Owings Mills, Maryland. Participants heard four consecutively evangelistic sermons, which were preached during the 10:45 a.m. worship service. In addition, after each sermon the participants attended a workshop that covered: (1) The biblical mandate, biblical definition, and meaning of evangelism; (2) The biblical method …

Creating A Christ-Centered Climate For Educational Excellence: Philosophical, Instructional, Relational, Assessment And Counseling Dimensions, Elvin Gabriel, Carole Woolford-Hunt, Esther M. Hooley

Faculty Publications

Interest is peaking among educators in North America, and around the world, on issues relating to school climate. A primary reason for this strong interest is research confirmation that school climate may have a positive or negative effect on educational processes. A Christ-Centered school climate provides the best opportunities for stakeholders to work collaboratively to achieve four primary educational outcomes. These are: (1) creating and sustaining bias free learning environments where relationships are nurtured by love, respect, tolerance, and kindness; (2) establishing faith-based instructional and service learning programs which cater to the needs of students; and (3) utilizing quality assessment …

Advent 1 One Year Series 2016, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

No abstract provided.