Digital Commons Network^™

Richard Wilbur's Book Of Nature, William Tate

Pro Rege

No abstract provided.

Morality And The Personhood Of God: A Moral Argument For The Existence Of A Personal God, Stephen Scott Jordan

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The concept that God is personal is an important part of religious belief. If God were not personal, it would be odd to think of him as moral or loving; it would also seem counterintuitive to speak of him as One with whom humans can have a personal relationship, One who can be trusted, cares for the people he created, listens to their prayers, acts on their behalf, has their best interests at heart, and so on. In short, to talk of such matters in a sensible manner and to experience them in everyday life seemingly requires that God is …

Agnosticism And Atheism As Amoralism And Anti-Ideological Sociopolitical Paradigm In The Balkans, Specifically In Bosnia And Herzegovina, Faruk Hadžić

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The study investigates whether atheism in B&H is treated, a priori, as amoralism and how this affects plural civic space. If religion is privileged, is it a politically dictated value system or pure ideology? Besides in-depth critical literature review, the author refers to a number of structural interviews focusing on both groups (theists and agnostic atheists) as a direct indicator of variability. The B&H Constitution obstructs the creation of a plural civic identity, hypostasizes the collective political mentality, and stigmatizes atheism and agnosticism in everyday life. Spiritual usurpation has moved into the realm of identity. The ideological ethnonationalism has metastasized …

Preparing The Next Generation For A Pluralistic World: The Need To Teach Systematic Theology To Christian Youth, Terrance Jermayne O'Neil

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The continuation of Christianity is rooted in the historical practice of the preceding generation theologically educating the next generation. This process has led to the spreading of the gospel throughout the world. However, in recent years, the Christian church has watched an entire generation walk away from the faith. Many youths who affirmed their faith in Christ are abandoning their confessions and practice. The challenges and skepticism of a pluralistic and relativistic culture have questioned historic Christianity. Regretfully, Christian youth are unable to respond theologically and accurately with confidence. The church has failed to prepare them. This study sought to …

Looking For “Deep Rest”: Confronting The Idolatry Of Personal Success, Justin Bailey

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

"Despite our best efforts to build platforms and manage our personal 'brands', God is the one who gives ultimate meaning to our lives.

Posting about finding rest in God from In All Things - an online journal for critical reflection on faith, culture, art, and every ordinary-yet-graced square inch of God’s creation.

https://inallthings.org/looking-for-deep-rest-confronting-the-idolatry-of-personal-success/

C.S. Lewis Collection Finding Aid, Taylor University

Finding Aids

The C. S. Lewis Collection features a variety of books and articles by and about Lewis. It also includes letters and manuscripts written by Lewis, as well as rare and first editions of his books.
Last Updated: August 29, 2022

Review Of Lisa Kemmerer's Sister Species: Women, Animals, And Social Justice, Marine Lercier

Between the Species

What do we have in common with animals, and what do these women have in common? We are Sister Species, if not sisters at all. Lisa Kemmerer invites us to realize that we are more alike than different and to become aware of what our animal brothers and especially sisters experience: the suffering they endure because of our absurd inconsistencies and oppositions - even within the animal rights movement, often unbeknownst to us. The goal: more effective discourse and action, educating us to the other in the face of a norm imposed by a power, a discourse of normalization …

Spiritual Care In Sparsely Populated Regions, Robin Haensel

Consensus

No abstract provided.

Connections: Church In Community, Shirl Christian

Consensus

No abstract provided.

A Culture Of Scarcity And A God Of Abundance: Leading A Church Into A Bigger, Better, More Beautiful Story, Jamie Mccallum

Doctor of Ministry

Christians live in the ever-present tension of two competing stories. The first is the story our culture promotes. It is one of scarcity. In this story, there is never enough money, resources, time, or love to go around. The other story is the one God tells in Scripture. It is a story of an abundant Creator who gives more than enough for life, love, purpose, and enjoyment in this world. This paper explores my journey in leading Belfair Community Church away from a mindset of scarcity and into a living theology of abundance. When we truly trust that God is …

The Green Lectionary: Creation Care And The Revised Common Lectionary, George Jacob Bolton V

Doctor of Ministry

As Christian communities become increasingly interested in engaging with humanity’s biblical connection to the earth, and the spiritual response to this relationship, there is uncertainty regarding the most contextually appropriate methods to pursue. Impressive projects that conserve and honor elements of creation, activities such as community gardens or solar panel installation projects, are often disconnected from the liturgical life of the congregation. Conversely, honoring creation and the biblical connection people of faith have with nature is a widely under practiced liturgical activity. This paper argues that the most direct and practical method to enhance a congregation’s awareness of their spiritual …

A Mentoring Ministry For The Spiritual Development Of Youth In Rural Congregations Of North Central And Northeast Arkansas, Glen Knabe

Harding School of Theology Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

Re-Enchanting Adolescence: Using Story To Give A New Generation Fresh Hope, Susan Stratton

Doctor of Ministry

The repercussions of four distinct world shifts—the Reformation, Renaissance, Enlightenment, and the Scientific Revolution—has produced a narcissistic culture that impedes Gen Z’s ability to cultivate a transcendent personal narrative that is open to authentic spiritual formation. This “immanent buffered self,” so prominent in western culture, is taking a toll on the spiritual lives of 21st-century individuals of every age. The devastation in Gen Z, the newest generation, has severe consequences for the health of Gen Z and also for the church. One in three young adults do not believe in a Divine Being, and those young adults who are in …

From Recreational To Sacramental: Observing Past Entheogenic Practices And Considering Their Potential Application In The Future Of Christianity, Heath Hollensbe

Doctor of Ministry

This dissertation aims to consider whether Jesus followers in North America could begin to adopt entheogens as items of sacramental worship.

Section One will describe the opportunity on the horizon for the institutional church in North America.

Section Two will focus on alternative readings of biblical texts and look at the basis of convictions about entheogenic use. By looking at the history of entheogens around the world, I attempt to show that entheogenic use is not a new trend to adopt, but part of religious history.

Additionally, I will present a proposed path forward on culture-wide adoption of entheogens.

Section …

A Consideration Of A High View Of God And Our Relationship With Work In A Charismatic Context, Andrea Lathrop

Doctor of Ministry

This research explores the connection between the theological truth that God is not a user and how charismatic Christian ministerial staff change the world without exhausting themselves. Burnout and experiences of being "used" in fast-paced charismatic ministry is a reality that needs addressing with theologically sound ways of working and resting. It is not suggested that God does not use us to change the world, but that God is not an exploiter. There is great work to do and, concurrently, God is interested in us for far more than what we can produce.

The first section describes the problem, suggests …

Building For The Future: Sacred Space Yesterday, Today, And Tomorrow, Eric Lee

Doctor of Ministry

United Methodist churches in the United States must address the problems of ineffectiveness and insolvency caused by decreasing human and financial resources combined with increasing costs of owning and maintaining real estate. My work addresses these problems by first exploring the history of sacred space in the Christian context. Then, by assessing the development of sacred space into church-owned property, and then considering the proliferation of church-owned real estate, especially by the United Methodist Church in the United States. Finally, I will consider the current trend of church closures and the bleak future of churches as primarily brick-and-mortar entities. The …

Conflict Resolution To Preserve Church Unity, Christina Mccully

Doctor of Ministry

God has called the church into unity that reflects the unity of the Triune God in the midst of a culture that is polarized and entertained by drama caused by conflict. Local churches are comprised of relationships, and conflict is a byproduct of relationship. Conflict can lead to divisiveness that causes disunity in the congregation, or it can be a spark that leads to relational growth that encourages unity. Pastors and ministry leaders can learn skills and conflict management strategies from businesses, marriage experts, and the life and ministry of Jesus and Paul. Workplace conflict teaches church leaders how crucial …

Handbook For The Deceased: Re-Evaluating Literature And Folklore In Icelandic Archaeology, Brenda Nicole Prehal

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The rich medieval Icelandic literary record, comprised of mythology, sagas, poetry, law codes and post-medieval folklore, has provided invaluable source material for previous generations of scholars attempting to reconstruct a pagan Scandinavian Viking Age worldview. In modern Icelandic archaeology, however, the Icelandic literary record, apart from official documents such as censuses, has not been considered a viable source for interpretation since the early 20th century. Although the Icelandic corpus is problematic in several ways, it is a source that should be used in Icelandic archaeological interpretation, if used properly with source criticism.

This dissertation aims to advance Icelandic archaeological theory …

The Power Of A Personal Testimony Booklet: Increasing Gospel Witness In Everyday Life, Patrick Bram Walker

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Evangelism is a key component of the Great Commission and a major responsibility for every Christ-Follower. The practice of personal evangelism, however, is frequently neglected by a majority of Christians. This project will initially examine the current state of personal evangelism in America and the scriptural expectation for all Christians to be frequent communicators of the gospel message. The ultimate purpose of this project is to demonstrate that a member of LivingStone Community Church can increase their Gospel witness in everyday life through the use of a written Personal Testimony Booklet. This pocket-sized booklet consists of two components. The first …

The Illusion Of Self Revisited: Replies To Critics, Karsten J. Struhl

Comparative Philosophy

Anand Vaidya, Sean Smith, and Mark Siderits have presented thoughtful comments and provocative challenges to my article “What Kind of an Illusion is the Illusion of Self?” Their challenges raise significant questions about the nature of illusion, whether Buddhism is denying the self in all senses of the term, whether there could be a self that exists for some limited duration of time and has at least some measure of control, whether there is a phenomenal illusion of self, whether the neuropsychological assumptions embedded in Thomas Metzinger’s Phenomenal Self Model is consistent with Buddhist metaphysics, the usefulness of evolutionary psychology …

Born Believer?, Mark Siderits

Comparative Philosophy

No abstract provided.

Personhood, Threshold And Equality, Benjamin Leon Williamson

Quaerens Deum: The Liberty Undergraduate Journal for Philosophy of Religion

Whether abortion and infanticide are permissible has been debated for a long time in philosophical literature and continues to this day. In this paper, I will assume without argument that one’s view about the moral status of the fetus and newborn will determine what side he/she comes down on in this debate. I am also proceeding with the assumption that personhood is not a conventional or linguistically effective device that has little or no connection to reality. Persons exist and personhood itself is real. With that being said, I will defend a more controversial claim that will undoubtedly stir a …

Augustine's Diverse Epistemology: Love, Reason, And Presupposition, Joseph Carson

Quaerens Deum: The Liberty Undergraduate Journal for Philosophy of Religion

In Saint Augustine’s works, especially in The City of God, The Confessions, and On Free Choice of the Will, he offers three features integral to his epistemology: love, reason, and presupposition. By love, Augustine argues that virtuous lovers of God will know the Truth more than those with disordered loves. By reason, Augustine held that reason must guide the journey to Truth. By presupposition, Augustine claimed that the search for Truth only starts from Christian doctrine. While modern philosophers might see a tension when simultaneously holding these three principles in his epistemology, Augustine claimed they were mutually …

Shopping For Salvation: A Comparative Appraisal Of The Place Of Worship And Marketplace In South Africa, Rufus Olufemi Adebayo

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

Recently South Africa has been experiencing accelerated challenges on a spiritual level relating to ‘place of worship’ and spiritual pilgrimage. This has been one of the biggest challenges facing religious activities in South Africa. Arising from that, this paper examines possible connections between salvation seekers and consumers (in the marketplace). To this end, this paper seeks to understand the assertion of ‘distance to travel not being a limitation in the spiritual realm’ (Adeboye, 2014), where some Christians claim that at a certain place there is a blessing waiting for them and that they cannot find that blessing at any other …

Landscape Theology: Exploring The Outfields Of The Telemarkian Dream Song, Thomas Arentzen

Landscapes: the Journal of the International Centre for Landscape and Language

The article explores the Norwegian ‘national ballad’ Draumkvæde (the Dream Song) in Maren Ramskeid’s version. This work has traditionally been interpreted as a folklore adaptation of medieval visionary literature such as the Vision of Tundale, related to Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy. The ballad, however, lacks demons and devils and infernal torture – it is even almost completely devoid of human beings. Instead it tells of a corporeal encounter with an imagined natural landscape. This dreamscape of the song is intimately intertwined with the local terrain of the singer. Maren Ramskeid engaged her own landscape in Telemark, the …

St. Francis Borgia Deaf Center Church Bulletin, January 3, 2021

Saint Francis Borgia Deaf Center Church Bulletin

A newsletter published for Deaf Catholics in Chicago, IL

Saint Francis Brogia Deaf Center Church Bulletin Finding Aid

On James Sterba’S Refutation Of Theistic Arguments To Justify Suffering, Bruce R. Reichenbach

Faculty Authored Articles

In his recent book Is a Good God Logically Possible? and article by the same name, James Sterba argued that the existence of significant and horrendous evils, both moral and natural, is incompatible with the existence of God. He advances the discussion by invoking three moral requirements and by creating an analogy with how the just state would address such evils, while protecting significant freedoms and rights to which all are entitled. I respond that his argument has important ambiguities and that consistent application of his moral principles will require that God remove all moral and natural evils. This would …

Faith, Farming And Food Justice, Catherine Curran

Charles Rice Post-Graduate Research Fellowship

Through a liberationist lens, religion and social justice are more similar than different. Food illuminates opportunities for building collective agency and community resilience in which religion and social justice might serve one another (White 2018). Specifically, faith communities can contribute to local food systems by using church-owned lands to provide access to farmland for beginning and BIPOC farmers, improve access to fresh, healthy produce, and enhance food security (FaithLands 2021). Faith communities are shifting mindsets from charity to justice and scarcity to abundance while addressing rural child hunger (Lietz-Bilecky 2020). Overall, this paper explores unique ways the Christian food movement …

Reverence And Reliance: Informing An Environmental Ethic, Malik Geraci

Charles Rice Post-Graduate Research Fellowship

This research fellowship studies the relationship between introduced religious identity and traditional cultural identity within indigenous communities as it relates to environmental conservation practices in Peru.

Deification And Creation: A Comparative, Historical And Systematic View, Cole Desantis

Theology Graduate Theses

Deification - the belief that the souls of those in heaven are united to, and participate in, the Inner Life of God - is an important (though in Western Christian thought underappreciated) aspect of traditional Christian soteriology. In this thesis, I will argue that the traditional Christian views on deification presuppose the notion that grace does not contradict nature, but rather elevates it, and therefore one’s view on creation, anthropology and the metaphysical parameters of how a transcendent God relates to His creation delineate or determine the parameters of how one views the doctrine of deification. In demonstrating this point, …