Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

Spirit-Empowered Liturgy: The Role Of The Holy Spirit In Traditional Christian Worship, Seth Whitaker

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Sometimes perceived as dead ritual in contemporary Christian churches, liturgy provides a time-tested means of experiencing the empowerment of the Holy Spirit in corporate worship. When understood within its own historical use, liturgy, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, enables a community of faith to consistently remember and participate in God’s saving acts in history, culminating in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, and actively look forward to the eschatological hope of Jesus’ return. Like the banks of a river, liturgy plays an important role to effectively facilitate the consistent and reliable movement of the Holy Spirit in …

Is Wisdom Silent?: Apophatic Glossolalia, Ryan Lytton

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Drawing on both similarities and disagreements between the apophatic theology of Dionysius and Gregory of Nazianzus, I will demonstrate how glossolalia can be better understood through the lens of apophatic theology. Gregory and Dionysius both recognize the failure of human language, but each follows that concept to a different conclusion. Dionysius switches from categories of knowledge to categories of experience and focuses the mystical life on ascetic practices in the hopes that they promote an experience of God’s presence. Pentecostals, with our emphasis on experience, often find a kinship with thinkers like Dionysius. In contrast, Gregory of Nazianzus switches from …

“Even The Dark Is Light To You”: Reconsidering The Doctrine Of Sin And The Problem Of Evil, Chris E. W. Green

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

How did evil come to be? Who is to blame for it? Why did God allow it to happen? Familiar answers, and the traditional doctrines that they represent, can and often have been understood—and perhaps more often misunderstood—to bad, even disastrous effects. So, after a brief sketch of the traditional Augustinian doctrine of evil as received through John Wesley’s teaching, which in one form or another shaped the deep structures of American Pentecostal theology and spirituality, I propose an alternative, one that holds that evil is truly nonsensical and so inexplicable; that no one is to blame for its advent, …

Editorial: 5 Year Assessment, Jeffrey S. Lamp

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

With the publication of last fall’s issue of Spiritus, we drew to a close the fifth year of publication since we rebooted the journal in 2017. The Editor, Dr. Jeff Lamp assess the progress and impact of the journal.

Front Matter: Spiritus 7.1 (Spring 2022), Jeffrey S. Lamp

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Table of Contents and front matter.

Full Issue: Spiritus 7.1 (Spring 2022), Jeffrey S. Lamp

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

The full issue of the Spring 2022 issue of Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

With All Your Heart: An Ignatian Retreat In Lent, Office Of Mission

Office of Mission Publications

This booklet is designed as a resource for a 4-week spiritual retreat during Lent. It proposes scriptural suggestions for most days of the week, and includes a weekly review (or Examen) each Saturday. It is also designed to serve as a place where you can note things that emerge in prayer on a particular day, so that you can bring them into conversation with a retreat guide or spiritual director.

This year’s retreat takes place during the “Ignatian Year.” This celebration commemorates the 500th anniversary of the conversion of Saint Ignatius Loyola and the 400th anniversary of his canonization on …

Tears & Ashes: Three Ways Of Looking At The Recent Wildfires In The West, Vincent J. Miller

Theology and Religious Studies Faculty Publications

As life in the Anthropocene unfolds ever more rapidly, what were once called “biblical” disasters — fires, floods, locusts, and whirlwinds — have become a daily reality. We watch anxiously as catastrophes occur, at least as much as our screens allow, but still go about our business: reading the next story in our newsfeed or wading into half-flooded subways to avoid being late for work. The problem we face is more difficult than mere inattentiveness: we need to cultivate a way of seeing adequate to the changed world being revealed in these catastrophes.

There Be Dragons: History And Meaning Of Dragon Imagery In Art (And Religion), Jim Lewis, Kenneth Steinbach, Josh Vana

Biblical and Theological Studies Faculty Works

Dr. Jim (James) Lewis joins Bethel University art student Josh Vana as he presents research on the historical roots of dragon imagery and symbolism in Asian and European art and how that informed the development of his displayed sculpture in the University Library. A conversation with Professors Kenneth Steinbach and Jim Lewis follows the presentation. Dr. Lewis explains the significance of the dragon motif as it finds it origins and meaning in Chinese culture in the 22:00 to 35:00 portion of the video. The panel discussion with all three presenters concludes the video starting at 48:09. The video is …

Beyond Academic Public Theology : Grassroots Asian Public Theology Of Religions And Reconciliation In Southeast Asian Burmese Context Of Buddhist Nationalism And Ethnic Conflict, David Thang Moe

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Allusion Or Illusion? : The Literary Relationship Between The Holiness Code And Other Pentateuchal Legal Corpora, Chelcent Fuad

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

An Abductive Argument From Depression And Anxiety To Christian Personal Holiness, Kelly Douglas Burchett

Masters Theses

The science on pathological depression and anxiety (D&A) describes religion and spirituality's (R/S) insulating and immunizing effects in roughly 72 to 85 percent of all relevant articles. But the descriptivism of science cannot assign any normative value to a theological worldview. Deductive logic favors theism via Leibnizian contingency, Kalām cosmology, objective morality, fine-tuning of the universe, and abstract conceptualism. The information in DNA, the irreducible complexity of intracellular machinery, the improbability of folded proteins, and the support for common modular design over common ancestry establish a design inference for all of life. Unguided naturalistic simulations fail to surmount the complexity …

Rescue Mission: Transformational Recovery Through Expository Preaching And Teaching, David Allen Mayes Ii

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The declining church stands in desperate need of regeneration, recovery, and revitalization. The primary goal for this thesis project is to lead Unity Missionary Baptist Church to a Christ-oriented, gospel-centered, and fruit-focused ministry. This endeavor implements an eight-week reconciling gospel program consisting of the sermon series Rescue Mission, eight small group discussions focused on the early church in the book of Acts, and forty-eight devotional verses for the congregation to experience spiritual growth and health. The church will discover that God’s Declaration is essential for a kingdom ministry. Ultimately becoming doers of the Word and not simply hearers. The quantitative …

What We Mean When We Say "Religion": The Q'Ero Migrants Of Cusco, Peru, Autumn J. Delong, Mirtha Irco

Journal of Gender, Ethnic, and Cross-Cultural Studies

This article is based upon ethnographic research conducted with Q’ero Indigenous migrants living in Cusco, Peru in the fall of 2018. The Q’ero community originates from the village of Paucartambo and the surrounding areas, about a three days’ trek northeast of the city. These stories collected from the migrants emphasize the centrality of their spirituality and worldview in defining their sense of identity apart from that of greater society. In their rituals, these migrants draw upon an experience of the sacred which is manifest through performance, discipline, and practice – often more so than through belief, faith, or intellectualism. Based …

Caregivers Need Care, Too: Conceptualising Spiritual Care For Migrant Caregivers-Transnational Mothers, Ma. Adeinev M. Reyes-Espiritu

Theology Department Faculty Publications

Growing research revolving around the plight of (Philippine) migrant domestic workers is noteworthy. However, the focus is largely on their role, capacity and identity as caregivers, meaning as labour migrants and transnational mothers engaged in both paid and unpaid care work. Building on the “care circulation” framework of Baldassar and Merla that conceptualises care as given and received in varying degrees by all family members across time and distance, this paper takes up the task of recognising migrant domestic workers as care receivers. In a particular way, this paper conceptualises care for migrant caregivers-transnational mothers that is based on a …

Zen And The Art Of Resistance: Some Preliminary Notes, James Mark Shields

Faculty Contributions to Books

In the Western and oftentimes Asian imagination, Buddhism generally—and Zen more specifically—is understood as being resolutely disengaged, attaching itself to a form of awakening that is not only, as the classical phrase has it “beyond words and letters,” but in the modern summation by D. T. Suzuki, perfectly compatible with any and all forms of political and economic “dogmatism,” whether capitalist, communist, socialist, or fascist. Of course, as numerous scholars have shown over the past century, on the level of historical actuality, Buddhist and Zen teachers and institutions have long participated in (usually hegemonic) economic and political structures. The …

Exploring Ai, Faith, And The Future Through A Faculty Research Group, Michael Paulus, Carlos Arias, Mike Langford, Phillip Baker

SPU Works

style="font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">The impact of artificial intelligence on our world requires engagement from Christian scholars in every discipline. This presentation describes the organization of a faculty research group (FRG) to explore AI from various disciplinary perspectives and with Christian faith. This FRG increased knowledge of AI, stimulated interdisciplinary and theological reflection, and cultivated collaboration and scholarship. The FRG has an essay collection, AI, Faith, and the Future, forthcoming from Pickwick Publications. FRG members will discuss the impact of the FRG on members’ scholarship, as well as research opportunities related to AI.

The Process Of Settling Muslims In China During The Ming Dynasty, Odiljon Ernazarov Phd

The Light of Islam

The article presents information about sociopolitical, economic, and cultural conditions of China in the XIV-XVI centuries, the spread of Islam in China and its adaptation to the local environment, the participation of Muslim nations in the social, economic, cultural life, and educational process of the country. During this period, the status of Muslims as a “community migrating from Central Asia” changed to the name of an “ethnic minority” firmly established in China. In the reign of the Ming Dynasty, the Hui Muslim population in Shanghai and Gansu increased even more. The Ming emperors granted Muslims certain religious, political, economic, and …

Return To Me: Lenten Reflections From Holy Cross (2022), Office Of Mission

Office of Mission Publications

This reflection booklet was prepared by the Office of Mission at the College of the Holy Cross to serve as a prayer aid throughout the liturgical season of Lent. Within these pages are the unique voices of many people from the Holy Cross community: faculty, staff, students, alumni, administrators, Trustees, benefactors, and Jesuits. Each contributor reflects on the readings prescribed for the Mass of the day. This year, four artists have been invited to offer visual reflections on the readings. We hope that these prayerful reflections--written and visual--will help you to pray more deply during this Lenten season, and to …

Christian Education And The Examination Of Apologetics Curriculum, Sara Elizabeth Boyd

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this action research project was to evaluate the ability of Christian high school students to explain and defend their faith. The main focus of the project was to compare the current apologetics curriculum used by Cedar Park Christian School to a new curriculum designed for the sake of this study. The new curriculum sought to provide grade-level resources as source material for each student. Additionally, it approached the course with the expectation for students to articulate their learned knowledge conversationally. There were forty-nine total participants, all who were either a junior or senior at the start of …