Digital Commons Network^™

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

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

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Investigating The Impact Of Spiritual Gifts On Church Growth, Johnnie James Finkley

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This thesis project uses spiritual gifts found in scripture as teachable models for church growth to address a decline in church attendance at Friendly Missionary Baptist Church. The research assumes that if church members are aware of their spiritual gifts, they will use them to build a healthy church. Therefore, the question that this thesis project asks is, “Will an understanding and development of spiritual gifts grow Friendly Missionary Baptist Church?” The Bible is the primary literary resource for God’s provision in transforming believers into His image. It is the foundation for church members’ spiritual growth. The book of Acts …

Japanese-English Translation: Katayama Hiroko—Jesus And Simon Peter (June 1953), Christopher Southward

Comparative Literature Faculty and Student Scholarship

Translation of 「イエスとペトロ」、片山廣子著、昭和２８年６月

Source: Aozora Bunko (a digital archive of public-domain Japanese-language works)

General website: https://www.aozora.gr.jp

Current text: https://www.aozora.gr.jp/cards/001346/files/50159_41222.html

Teaching The Art Of Sacred Storytelling For Use In Ministry, Abbylynn Haskell

Doctor of Ministry

Storytelling is of immense value in ministry today for enriching preaching, liturgy, teaching, worship, pastoral care, mission, evangelism and discipleship. I serve as a part-time pastor in rural Maine and have a passion for using storytelling in all these aspects of ministry. I observed an opportunity for teaching storytelling in my local ministry schools and churches.

I designed a curriculum for oral storytelling instruction that includes teaching techniques for sharing personal experiences and the re-telling of myths, legends, wisdom, folklore and Biblical stories for use in preaching, ministry, mission and pastoral care. This storytelling educational program consists of online and …

Overcoming Obstacles To Dna Group Engagement, Charles Edward Kelly

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Discipleship is the primary command given by Jesus to his disciples. The elements of discipleship growth are best carried out in smaller cell groups of ten to twenty people. In the model used by the researcher, these cell groups (called missional communities) are subdivided into groups of three comprised of the same gender. These subdivided groups are called DNA groups. It is within DNA groups that a more intimate environment is created for transparency, biblical learning, and accountability. The researcher found three primary obstacles to engagement in a previous iteration of DNA groups. Those three obstacles are overscheduling / busyness, …

A Study Of Soteriology: A Commentary, Course, And Conclusion Of Brown’S Creek Baptist Church’S Soteriological Beliefs, David Shawn Head

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This thesis identifies a church’s lack of theological awareness of biblical soteriology, investigates the literature for solutions to the ministerial problem, implements the review of literature into a course with curriculum, and the influences on the congregation’s beliefs. The church was a hodgepodge of soteriological beliefs. More specifically, the congregants purported to believe in Calvinism, Arminianism, and Semi-Pelagianism but could not accurately define, adequately describe, or appropriately defend said beliefs. A review of literature led this student to be selective of the soteriological literature known to exist. Simply, the ministerial problem was not because of a lack of literature but …

Breaking The Davidic Covenant And The Rape Of Zion, Holly Strother

MA in Religion Theses

Second Samuel 7 lays out the relationship between God and David through a covenant. David breaks the covenant with God when he takes Bathsheba and kills Uriah, and the consequences impact David, his lineage, and Daughter Zion (his kingdom). The language used to describe the city's fall is that of sexual violence, highlighting the horrors of rape within David’s life and lineage after he breaks his covenant with God by taking Bathsheba. The methodology of this thesis is a narrative approach to the biblical text that uses reader-response criticism while exploring the narrative of 2 Samuel 7, 11, and 12. …

“Change And Become Like Children”: Eschatological Childhood As Critique And Intention Of Ecclesiological Life, Joel Young

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Why On Earth Does “Tongue(S)” Become Ecstatic Speech?, Ekaputra Tupamahu

Faculty Publications - Portland Seminary

This chapter deals with the history of interpretation. Why is the phenomenon of “tongue(s)” in the New Testament understood today as ecstatic speech? In the history of interpretation, there are two major modes of reading the phenomenon of speaking in tongue(s) in the New Testament: the “missionary-expansionist” and the “romantic-nationalist” modes of reading. The earliest readers of the New Testament up until those of the mid-nineteenth century commonly understood the phenomenon of tongue(s) as a miraculous ability to speak in foreign languages—often called xenolalia—for the purpose of expanding Christianity and preaching the gospel. The shift in understanding began to …

Household Order And The Discipleship Of The People Of God: An Exegetical Survey Of Ephesians 5:21–6:9 And Other New Testament Household Texts, Eric J. Blessing

College of Theology and Ministry Dissertations, Projects, & Theses

The apostle Paul had a clear theology around the family, as presented by Ephesians 5:21–6:9 and similar Household Codes in his epistles, demonstrating his understanding of how families function as an outflow of the Gospel and how they play into the formation of local churches. His letters unfold vital teachings about how relationships in the family are to function, and that these functions are integral to the health of local churches and their mission to spread the Gospel. However, these teachings are only evident when read within their proper context, a task that the modern Western Church generally has failed …

The Transformative Female Body: Embodied Womanhood, Domestic Imagery, And Scriptural Language In Mother's Milk: Poems In Search Of Heavenly Mother By Rachel Hunt Steenblik, Kaitlin Hoelzer

AWE (A Woman’s Experience)

No abstract provided.

The Calvin Forum: Winter 2022, Calvin Theological Seminary

Calvin Theological Seminary Forum (2002- )

CONTENTS - Vol. 30. No. 1, WINTER 2022

Main Features: 3 - Rooted in Christ, reforming for the future.

4 - Seminaries aren't just for pastors anymore: Equipping the priesthood of all believers

8 - Formation and the act of being attentive

11 - Vocational Ministry in Action

12 - Ready and open to God's leading: Seminary renovations to be completed this Spring

18- Handlon's priesthood of believers

22- Next steps initiative

26- Center for excellence in preaching

Calvin Seminary News: 26 - Faculty Book Highlight

27 - New Staff

The Pauline Tradition, Benjamin L. White

Publications

No abstract provided.

The Calvin Forum: Summer 2022, Calvin Theological Seminary

Calvin Theological Seminary Forum (2002- )

CONTENTS - Vol. 30. No. 2, SUMMER/FALL 2022

Main Features: 3 - The gift of hospitality.

4 - The hospitality of God.

8 - Hospitality in the doctrine of election

12 - Misreading Jesus' command to serve

18- Bringing Global Mission experience to Calvin Seminary

24- Alumni serving around the world

Calvin Seminary News: 28 - New faculty hires

30- Calvin Theological Seminary retirees

34- Faculty Book Highlight

35- New Staff Member

36- Distinguished Alumni

Strengthening An Understanding And Practice Of Spiritual Transformation For Sunday School Teachers Of Ellis Chapel Baptist Church, Patterson Springs, Nc, Linda Williams Lockhart

Doctor of Ministry Projects

The spiritual formation process can be clearly viewed through the lives of those who lived during the biblical era. People desire to change; however, the problem is that they do not know how because training in the spiritual formation process is not present within many churches today. This project was designed to train selected Sunday School teachers of Ellis Chapel Baptist Church through a four-week spiritual transformation process, hoping to strengthen their understanding of becoming image-bearers and practitioners of the Gospel that Jesus taught and exemplified. Through utilizing spiritual disciplines in journaling, training sessions, and assessments, selected teachers became aware …

A Mini-Course On The Our Father/Lord's Prayer: Lecture Notes And Workshop And Discussion Topics [Lecture Notes], Scott Gambrill Sinclair

The Scott Sinclair Lecture Notes Collection

Lecture notes on a series of talks by Scott G. Sinclair's on his version of the Historical Jesus.

The Life, Teaching, Death, And Resurrection Of Jesus Of Nazareth And Some Implications [Lecture Notes], Scott Gambrill Sinclair

The Scott Sinclair Lecture Notes Collection

Lecture notes on a series of talks by Scott G. Sinclair's on his version of the Historical Jesus.

"Crossing Borders" The Life And Work Of Peder Borgen In Context, Torrey Seland, Paul N. Anderson

Faculty Publications - George Fox School of Theology

Crossing Borders: The Life and Work of Peder Borgen in Context documents his personal sojourn and contributions to church and society, in addition to covering the scholarly contribution of a world-class biblical scholar and theologian. Too rarely is a scholar’s personal story considered as the back-drop, or even the foreground, of one’s academic work. In that sense, Torrey Seland’s detailed biography is inextricably linked to Borgen’s bibliography: a multitude of connections that contextualize the intrigue and significance of an exemplary scholar’s work.

How Can We Account For The Extraordinary Culture Of Biblical And Religious Scholarship In Churches Of Christ?, Richard T. Hughes

Churches of Christ Scholarship Oral History Project

Richard T. Hughes paper presented at the Christian Scholars Conference at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee on June 5, 2014.

The Shape Of Faith: Understanding God Through Pottery, Kenton Ke

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

The Bible uses the relationship between a potter and the clay as a metaphor to describe the relationship between God and humans. “Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.” (Isaiah 64:8, NIV). This paper will expand on this metaphor, and draw parallels between the development of personal relationships with God and the complicated processes of pottery making.

Restoration Quarterly: Vol. 64, No. 1

Restoration Quarterly

PDF of the cover of Restoration Quarterly: Vol. 64, 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.

Informed By Joy: A Christian Librarian's Reflection On C.S. Lewis, David H. Michels

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

In Surprised by Joy C. S. Lewis offers us his account of his conversion to Christianity. Using his experiences of joy as “signposts,” he leads us through his early life up to his conversion at age thirty-one. I reflect on Lewis’s account as a librarian, researcher, and fellow Christian, considering his information world and the people who aided and hindered him on his faith journey. I conclude with some thoughts on his and my own conversion, as both unique yet shared experiences within the Christian tradition.

"Real joy seems to me almost as unlike security or prosperity as it is …

Frontmatter (Volume 42, Issue 7), Paul B. Mojzes

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

A Wesley Bibliography. -- Twelfth Edition, Kenneth J. Collins

Academic Books

No abstract provided.

Intentional Discipleship Impact : The Effects Of Disciplemaking In The Lives Of The Youth Among Evangelical Churches In Zamboanga City, Edilberto A. Marasigan Jr.

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.