Digital Commons Network^™

Two Way Discipleship Curriculum: Correlation Of Discipleship With Pastoral Counseling For South Korean Churches, Yoonsu Lee

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In South Korea, many churches create and run discipleship programs. The programs help many people to focus on Jesus, but the programs come with significant problem. . If a person is experiencing a mental problem like stress, depression, or addiction, that person has a much more difficult time focusing on Jesus Christ rather than the struggles in his or her own life. Most discipleship programs ignore these prevalent mental issues, but including mental care in the course is vital to develop true disciples. Pastoral counseling has various mental care methods that address the problems facing many of its participants. South …

Stewards Of God’S Mercy: Vocation And Priestly Ministry In Africa, Jordan Nyenyembe

Journal of Global Catholicism

A reflection on the tasks of priestly ministry in Africa with specific reference to the example and exhortation of Pope Francis. Among the issues addressed and critiqued are Western “cultic” understandings of the priest and the, the “Igwe Syndrome" which likens the priest to a chief.

Contested Moral Issues In Contemporary African Catholicism: Theological Proposals For A Hermeneutics Of Multiplicity And Inclusion, Stan Chu Ilo

Journal of Global Catholicism

Drawing upon the broad work of Vatican II and Pope Francis’ Evangelicum Gaudium the article proposes how a hermeneutic of multiplicity and inclusion could help hold in balance the tension between tradition and innovation, universal principles and specific contextual application for Catholicism in Africa. Among the issues addressed are cultural relativism, natural law theory, and polygamy.

What Do Christians Believe About Gender Identity? (Leader's Guide And Participant's Guide), Robbin Eppinga, Ashley Huizinga

Study Guides for Faith & Science Integration

A study of Understanding Gender Dysphoria: Navigating Transgender Issues in a Changing Culture

Spiritual Leadership Training Model: Using Learning Communities To Disciple Leaders In A Congregational Setting, Kent Pierce

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

Pierce, Kent D. “Spiritual Leadership Training Model: Using Learning Communities To Disciple Leaders In A Congregational Setting.” D.Min. Major Applied Project, Concordia Seminary, 2017. 209 pp.

Over the past few decades a significant shift has taken place in the cultural landscape of the United States and, as a result, in how congregations live out Christ’s mission in their unique local context. This project seeks to address the need for spiritual leadership among the laity of the Church. Specifically, the purpose of the project was to develop a model of spiritual leadership formation that will foster a discipling culture within Campus …

Case Studies Of The Participation And Results Of Professional Visitation To Schools By Youth Ministries Of Local Churches In Korea, Young Cho

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this case study is to get results from youth ministry participation in local churches through a school visitation ministry. Youth ministry faces a crisis in Korea because the number of church attendees is decreasing. In fact, the number of church members in Korea is decreasing, but the numbers of people in the youth group are much smaller than other age groups. Thus, the study shows the failure of education from church and home. The researcher experienced this issue in his own church and tried to find alternative methods. Upon closer study, he found hope for a youth …

Book Review: Race And Theology By Elaine A. Robinson, Aaron Perry

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Toward Just Hospitality, Ron Bruner

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

The ministry of Jesus moved through times of seeking justice, sharing hospitality, and withdrawing for prayer. Though inescapably “other” because of his divine identity, he sought solidarity with humans by becoming human and interacting with humanity through hospitable practices. The Ancient Mediterranean customs of hospitality were well-defined, but Jesus took this powerful cultural framework and changed its practice so that it produced reconciliation and justice.

This work briefly reviews the practice of hospitality in the time of Jesus. It also presents the work of scholars identifying linguistic markers that would have cued readers in the Ancient Mediterranean to recognize a …

Easter 7 Series A 2017, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

No abstract provided.

Easter 6 Series C 2017, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

No abstract provided.

Discerning Lay Leaders' Biblical Understanding Of Same-Sex Relationshiops : A Theological Review And Study Of Traditionalists' And Revisionists' Understanding Of Same-Sex Relationships, Benjamin Reil Greenbaum

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Leadership Influence : Building Respect And Credibility In Church Leadership To Transform Members' Lives, Lawrence K. Dena

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Burnout Among African American Pastors: A Biblical And Practical Solution, Ronald Strong

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Pastors are dropping out of the Christian ministry at an alarming rate. These spiritual leaders often experience burnout due to excessive demands, which lead to physical, emotional and spiritual exhaustion, impairing their pastoral effectiveness. Qualitative and quantitative surveys and interviews were used to determine the relationship between burnout and ministry effectiveness by focusing on three mitigating factors: physical, emotional, and spiritual rest. The results identified overall fatigue as the primary cause of spiritual aridness and pastoral failings. Using this research, this thesis provides a model for holistic health with specific solutions for ministry burnout, thereby, improving pastoral effectiveness.

Cultures Of Intentional Connection : Effective Ministry Practices Of Congregations With Their Daycares And Schools, Mark C. Caldwell

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Before God And These Witnesses: An Evangelistic Guide To Weddings, David Anderson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Every year, according to the Center for Disease Control, an average of 2.3 million couples wed in the United States, while nearly 900,000 divorces occur. One fourth of couples marry outside of a church. Though most ceremonies take place in a church building, the church’s presence is small. An opportunity exists to reach receptive engaged couples and provide needed counseling services to those marrying outside of the church. Premarital counseling reduces the risk of divorce approximately 30 percent. To impact marriages and see growth, the church must take a proactive and evangelistic role in providing premarital counseling and weddings services …

Easter 3 One Year Series 2017, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

No abstract provided.

A Study On The Church Growth Method Through The Vitalization Of Small Groups In Traditional Korean Churches: The Case Of Daegu Dong-Sung Church, Byung Min

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Nowadays, Korean society is faced with social issues, like individualism arising from fast growth. The traditional society has become dominated by individual interest and intention, as well as by new social aspects such as the loss of community ethics at large. This can also be seen in Korean churches; we have noticed an increase in Sunday service visitors and unregistered members. This change has brought a number of spiritual crisis into churches and is even a huge crisis in and of itself. In this regard, through research on church growth through small group ministry in traditional Korean churches, this study …

The Importance Of The Culturalization Process For The Transition From A Traditional Church To A Small Group-Focused Church, Young Lee

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this research is to clarify the importance of the process of culturalization, which takes place before a full-scale transition, to Korean churches that are attempting to change the direction of their ministries from traditional to small group-oriented ministries. Since the introduction of the small group ministry, Korean churches have been trying to convert to small group churches. Many churches, however, are struggling with the transition due to hastiness instead of following the right philosophy and roadmap. Having led cell group and small group ministries for the last ten years in Korean churches in both the United States …

Lent 4 One Year Series 2017, Phillip L. Brandt

Sunday's Sermon

No abstract provided.

“Developing An Effective Divorce Recovery Ministry”, Kirk Hille

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

Hille, Kirk A. “Developing an Effective Divorce Recovery Ministry.” Doctor of Ministry. Major Applied Project, Concordia Seminary, 2017. 184 pp.

A divorce recovery ministry was initiated in a church setting using the video-based Divorce Care curriculum. Over the course of thirteen weeks, participant scores on the Fisher Divorce Adjustment Scale increased an average of 53.6 points, and a final focus group interview elicited positive evaluations from all the participants. The steps taken to initiate the group and the results are discussed in detail, including eight factors cited by participants as contributing to the effectiveness of the ministry. Issues involved in …

The Critical Role Of Mentoring For Pastoral Formation, Kenley Hall

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

Denominational leaders view the M.Div. as the gold standard in preparing young men and women for ministry. however, academic training alone does not prepare someone for ministry. It must be paired with mentoring, defined as the intentional relationship between an experienced pastoral mentor and a young pastoral mentee for the purpose of pastoral formation. this paper explores the mentoring relationships between Barnabas and Paul, and Paul and timothy as instructive examples of the importance, process and impact of mentoring for pastoral formation. It concludes that Barnabas and Paul played a crucial role in the pastoral formation of their mentees.

A Theological Dialogue With And Evaluation Of Erik H. Erikson’S Theory Of Identity Development In Light Of Pauline Baptismal Theology In Romans And Some Implications For Pastoral Care, Walter Steele

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Steele, Walter R. “A Theological Dialogue with and Evaluation of Erik H. Erikson’s Theory of Identity Development in Light of Pauline Baptismal Theology in Romans and Some Implications for Pastoral Care” Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2017. 304pp.

The Issue of identity and identity development, or actualization, is both a psychological and a theological issue. Among psychologists who have been concerned with identity, the name of Erik H. Erikson is at the forefront. His psychosocial theory has been appropriated by several people in the field of pastoral care, yet his theory has not been adequately subjected to a robust and thorough …

Concordia Seminary Winter 2017, Jeffrey Kloha

Concordia Seminary Magazine

Here We Stand

Opening To Revelation: Building Discernment Processes From Practices That Best Inform Communal Decision Making, Chris Alexander

Doctor of Ministry Theses

This sequential explanatory mixed methods research project investigates the spiritual discernment processes of a Christian congregation in the United Church of Christ. The study identifies most utilized and most helpful practices of spiritual discernment within the areas of prayer, conversation, community, and media. This research shows how engaging spiritual practices influences participation in decision making by Christian congregations.

Walk Me To The Gate: Christian Practices Of Accompaniment With People Who Are Dying And Their Families, Yolanda Kali Denson-Byers

Doctor of Ministry Theses

This mixed-methods concurrent triangulation research project asks, “What practices should we incorporate into the hospice ministry of Fellowship Lutheran Church in order to help dying people and their families experience a peaceful death with love?” Utilizing two focus groups, four interviews, and a congregational census, this project finds that research participants are terrorized by death and are hungry for hospice and bereavement ministries provided by their community of faith. This exploratory project illuminates the specific practices which missional congregations may utilize to empower the priesthood of all believers to create a beloved community which points to the hope of resurrection.

Empathy As Sacred Ethic: A Chaplain's Perspective On Difficult End Of Life Cases, Peter L. Bauck

Doctor of Philosophy Theses

Because of our increasingly intercultural world, it can be difficult for patients, families, and medical teams to decide on what they should do for patients who are, in the medical team’s opinion, near the end of life. The family and medical team can hold disparate beliefs and values around what they should do for the patient. Ethics committees often get involved in these difficult end of life cases.These cases are also emotionally charged, especially for the family as they wrestle with the intensity of their loved one’s situation and try to decide what to do. Because of the emotional intensity …

Countertransference As Koinonia, Karin A. Craven

Doctor of Philosophy Theses

This thesis inquires after the lived-through experience of community in the congregation by the pastoral leader. It is predicated upon the multiple self whose plurality is understood through psychoanalytical and postcolonial theories as well as by developmental processes illumined by interpersonal neurobiology. The phenomenological inquiry into one pastor’s experience of community in the congregation yielded in vivo themes – movement, joy, and open; connect, conflict, and centering; table, hospitality, love, and diversity -- that were understood broadly from the wondering perspective of desire. Closer theoretical analysis of these in vivo themes from theological, psychological, and interpersonal neurobiological conceptual categories was …

The Impact Of Social Media On Adolescent Grief, Kathryn Knutson

Children, Youth, and Family (CYF) Papers

No abstract provided.

Catholic Girls All Grown Up: A Practical Theological Exploration Of Sexuality Formation In Young Adult Women, Emily Susanne Kahm

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Roman Catholic Church promotes exacting norms about the sexual behavior expected of Catholics, but prior qualitative and quantitative studies have shown a mixed effect on the decisions made by young adult Catholics, especially women. This qualitative study interviewed young adult women who were raised Catholic and sought to determine both what they were taught about sex and sexuality while growing up Catholic and how they think those teachings affected their lives and decision-making as young adults. Analysis of their responses indicated an anxious climate in their childhood educational experiences where adults were hesitant to answer questions or engage in …

Public Theology Or Private Bewitchment?, Grant Miller, Reuben Lang’At

Papers

No abstract provided.