Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

Deacons, The Biblical System Of Church Leadership?, Michael Harbuck

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This project will examine the deacon-led model of church leadership that is employed in many churches today, in order to ascertain whether this model of leadership is consistent with both the New Testament and the witness of the early church. With more than 3,700 churches failing yearly, it is imperative that churches be organized and led in a biblical manner so that they might be positioned for ministry successes in their local contexts. Without a biblical framework and reference for polity, it is highly unlikely that the church will yield results of any lasting nature. This analysis will be done …

Connecting The Church Beyond Prison Ministry: Transitioning The Discipled Prisoner Into A Discipleship Community, Joyce Weathers

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The prison population in the United States surpasses all other countries on a per capita basis. The number of released inmates, who return to prison (recidivism) is staggering. In-prison Christian discipleship programs have successfully transitioned parolees into the free world, but little research has been done to confirm a standard practice for the transition process. Theories abound from clergy and laity alike; yet apathy and fear remain persistent deterrents. The church is confronted with a biblical mandate to assist the incarcerated (Matt. 25:36) and to make disciples (Matt. 28:19). By addressing the current concerns of church and prison ministry leaders, …

The Mountain Stands: An Autoethnographic Inquiry Into Zulu Christians' Approaches To Spiritual Health, Makayla Lagerman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Spiritual health is a vital component of individual wellness that can be described in many ways; most commonly, it is thought of as the connectivity of the inner spirit to others, the world, transcendental beings, and more. From personal experience, I know that the state of my spiritual wellbeing can greatly impact my physical and mental health. For this reason, actively considered how to think about spiritual health for one of the first times in my life.

This project sought to explore Zulu Christians’ approaches to spiritual health in concurrence with my own. This was done by interviewing one Swazi …

What Lies In The Gray: Creative Analytic Pieces On The Formation And Evolution Of Beliefs In Masxha, Robin Mwai

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this project was to look at how members of Durban's Masxha township develop their belief systems and ideas about their world. This topic was developed out of a desire to better understand the factors that promote or inhibit individuals from changing their mind about topics relating to their community, society, and culture. I sought to gain a deeper understanding of the specific context of Masxha and the experiences and lives of those with whom I spoke.

To accomplish the goal of learning from lived experiences, this study employed a narrative inquiry approach. Using loosely-structured interviews involving eight …

Reconciling Universal Salvation And Freedom Of Choice In Origen Of Alexandria, Lee W. Sytsma

Dissertations (1934 -)

Origen has traditionally been famous for his universalism, but many scholars now express doubt that Origen believed in a universal and permanent apocatastasis. This is because many scholars are convinced that Origen’s teaching on moral autonomy (or freedom of choice) is logically incompatible with the notion that God foreordains every soul’s future destiny. Those few scholars who do argue that Origen believed in both moral autonomy and universal salvation either do not know how to reconcile these two views in Origen’s theology, or their proposed “solutions” are not convincing. In this dissertation I make two preliminary arguments which allow the …

Chaos And Clairvoyance : Apollo In Asia Minor And In The Apocalypse, Andrew Jonathan Coutras

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Insights Into The Translation And Interpretation Of The Targum To The Book Of Jeremiah, Meng Loeng Yip

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Creedal Symbols Of My Great Grandparents : The Adinkra Symbols Reveal The Theology Of The Akans People Of Ghana, Kofi Amoateng

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Mysteries Of Paradise Revealed & Concealed, Brittany Bryant

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

No abstract provided.

Not Quite Calvinist: Cyril Lucaris A Reconsideration Of His Life And Beliefs, Stephanie Falkowski

School of Theology and Seminary Graduate Papers/Theses

Cyril Lucaris is primarily remembered as an Eastern Orthodox patriarch who held Calvinist beliefs. A more nuanced view is gained from often ignored facets of his life and times, the extant letters he wrote, and in recognition of various possible interpretations of the existing evidence. This paper, challenging common misconceptions about Lucaris, explores three main areas relevant to this discussion: his biographical influences, his beliefs and their development, and his own intentions and self-understanding of his relationships with Protestants. The result shows a man engaged in a world influenced by Western theological developments from the Reformation, fostering friendships as he …

Parallels Of Morality: Wilde And Nietzsche’S Challenge To Social Obligation, Amzie A. Dunekacke

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This thesis explores Irish author Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray in relation to a selection of texts by the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. To demonstrate the similarities between Wilde and Nietzsche’s challenges to European morality, this work considers these themes, which are present in the ideologies of both Wilde and Nietzsche: the body and sensual pleasure, social construction, and the hypocrisy of altruism. Both radical thinkers castigate Platonic notions of the body as ignoble and weak, and they mock European propriety’s shyness of the body. In addition, Wilde and Nietzsche offer similar criticisms of social laws, adopting a …

The Parables Of Jesus Christ: The Solid Rock Versus The Shifting Sand, Harold Willmington

The Second Person File

No abstract provided.

The Parables Of Jesus Christ: Two Gates, Two Goals, Harold Willmington

The Second Person File

No abstract provided.

The Parables Of Jesus Christ: The Ultimate Evil Eye, Harold Willmington

The Second Person File

No abstract provided.

The Parables Of Jesus Christ: Don't Darken Your Light, Harold Willmington

The Second Person File

No abstract provided.

The Parables Of Jesus Christ: A Traveler, Three Stewards, And Eight Talents, Harold Willmington

The Second Person File

No abstract provided.

The Parables Of Jesus Christ: Virgins, Vessels, And Vigilance, Harold Willmington

The Second Person File

No abstract provided.

The Parables Of Jesus Christ: Watch And Work, For We Know Not When, Harold Willmington

The Second Person File

No abstract provided.

The Parables Of Jesus Christ: Two Invested Wisely, One Wickedly, Harold Willmington

The Second Person File

No abstract provided.

The Parables Of Jesus Christ: Hourly Workers And Daily Wages, Harold Willmington

The Second Person File

No abstract provided.