Digital Commons Network^™

The Spiritual Care Protocol: Developing Informed Responses To End-Of-Life Concerns, Gabriel Fisher

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This thesis addresses the understanding and practice of spiritual care in a nonprofit hospice. The identified problem this project seeks to resolve is a lack of a protocol to continually assess the spiritual concerns of patients and families on service with this organization. The purpose of this project intervention is to develop a protocol document that assesses spiritual concerns and helps members of an interdisciplinary team offer more informed responses to spiritual care needs. The project has multiple intents in that it will also help address a gap in organizational awareness and seek to enhance current care practices and understandings. …

An Integrated Preaching Design : A Methodological Framework For Preaching In The Indian Context, Ancy John

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

On The Task Of Today's Theologian, Henry O. Widdicombe

Obsculta

This piece was written as a reading response paper for Kristin Colberg’s Documents of Vatican II course in the Spring of 2022. It argues that today’s theologian must take seriously the demands of the Second Vatican Council and that the task of the theologian is, in light of contemporary culture, offer an ever-new articulation of the Gospel of Christ Jesus that does not lose its ever-ancient truths. In that vein, the piece utilizes the assigned readings for a particular course meeting to, with the aid of Bernard Lonergan, outline a kind of pro-Vatican II panegyric.

Kwame Bediako Makes An Offer, Joel Carpenter

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

This review essay addresses the major themes of Ghanaian theologian Kwame Bediako’s thought, as presented in Tim Hartman, Kwame Bediako: African Theology for a World Christianity. Bediako advocated examining the traditional spirituality of African peoples, studying the Bible in vernacular languages, and asking how the person and work of Jesus Christ engage local cultures. He insisted that Western theology was not central and normative to the Christian faith, and that African theology provided a better model for the development of contextual theologies worldwide.

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.

Liturgy And Musical Inculturation In A Post-Apartheid South African Catholicism, Austin Chinagorom Okigbo

Yale Journal of Music & Religion

There is a developing trend within mainstream South African Churches to incorporate styles of traditional African music and cultural elements in liturgical functions. This is happening in places where such ideas were hitherto unwelcome because mission churches witnessed the denigration of indigenous African cultures by Europeans during the eras of both colonialism and apartheid. Inculturation Theology underscores the current drive for liturgical transformation. It comprises a part of Black Theology in South Africa, which developed as an intellectual framework for liberation during the time of the anti-apartheid struggles. Using the ethnographic study of the cultural mass at Emmanuel Cathedral in …

Contributors

Pastoral Liturgy

No abstract provided.

Charism Formation In Dominican Institutions Of Higher Education, Jennifer E. Schaaf Op

Doctor of Ministry Doctoral Projects

Using a qualitative approach, this research project examined the practices of charism formation and mission education at institutions of higher education founded by Dominican Sisters in the US. Broad surveys of those in roles responsible for mission at the institutions were followed by select site visits—conducted in person and virtually—and interviews. Websites and published materials about the institutions, curriculum, visible signs on campus and activities that are integral to the mission were examined as part of this project. As the number of Dominican Sisters available to serve in their founded institutions decreases, this research may provide a path forward in …

Book Reviews

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Pastoral Ministry And Theological Education : The Evaluation Of The Effectiveness Of Theological Education/Ministerial Training For Pastoral Ministry In Southern Nigeria, Oluwakemi Grace Okonkwo

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

From The Archives: H.C. Morrison- A Man Of Mission?

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Quaker Pastoral Theology And Its Embodiment In The Community, Oscar Lugusa Malande

Quaker Religious Thought

The reflection brought forth in this writing is part of the Quaker Theological Discussion Group in answering the question, what is Quaker pastoral theology, and how is it embodied in the community? It is majorly divided in two parts. There is exploration of the meaning of Quaker pastoral theology and embodiment of Quaker pastoral ministry.

Contributors

Pastoral Liturgy

No abstract provided.

Racial Reconciliation: A Theological Approach To Building Relationships, Calvin Glass

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Racism within the Christian community in America has resulted in social unrest and has plagued the Christian church in a way that mandates urgent solutions to this untamed malady. This research focus is centered on learning a practicable methodology based on biblical principles that address racial reconciliation (building God-approved relationships) that will combat racial disunity among Christians. The study method used BBR (Building Better Relationships) consisted of interviewing and teaching a focus group representing a Black pastor and five church participants on racial relations issues within the church context. From the recommendations of the senior pastor, a focus group from …

Perfect Love Casts Out Fear: Exploring The Effectiveness Of A Person-Centered Disability Awareness Seminar In A Congregational Setting, Joshua H. Jones

Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project

People with disabilities and their families frequently experience barriers toward inclusion and belonging in multiple spheres of life. These barriers are also present in Christian congregations. However, many congregations express a godly desire to love people with disabilities and their families without these obstacles.

The Old and New Testaments provide examples of how God’s people sought to love people with disabilities in their midst creatively and intentionally in response to God’s gracious actions, invitation, and command. Recent research in disability studies routinely highlight the necessity of being attentive to the uniqueness of each person with disabilities and his or her …

Contributors

Pastoral Liturgy

No abstract provided.

Popular Ritual As Liberating Pedagogy, Christopher D. Tirres

Religious Studies

This chapter is divided into four sections. In the first section, I examine some of the challenges that contextual theologies presently face in connecting their contextualist focus with liberationist aims. In the second section, I look specifically at the ways in which some prominent U.S. Latino/a theologians have broached popular ritual as an embodied and enculturated site of liberation. A pressing question has been: In what ways is Latino/a popular ritual liberating? The third section then considers how a pedagogical approach to popular ritual helps us better answer this question. I argue that a renewed focus on pedagogy underscores a …

Book Reviews - Spiritus 6.1 (Spring 2021), Daniel King, Michael A. Donaldson, Robert Mcbain, Christopher J. King, Cletus L. Hull, Iii, Daniel D. Isgrigg

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Reviews

Edith Prakash. Yesterday, Today, and Forever: The Extraordinary Life and Ministry of Tommy Lee Osborn. Daniel King ............................................175

Chris E. W. Green. Sanctifying Interpretation: Vocation, Holiness, and Scripture. 2nd ed. Michael A. Donaldson .................................................................177

Leulseged Philemon. Pneumatic Hermeneutics: The Role of the Holy Spirit in the Theological Interpretation of Scripture. Robert D. McBain......................180

Daniela C. Augustine. The Spirit and the Common Good: Shared Flourishing in the Image of God. Christopher J. King .................................182

William Blaine-Wallace. When Tears Sing: The Art of Lament in Christian Community. Cletus L. Hull, III .....................................184

Gene L. Green, Stephen T. …

Towards A Pentecostal Conscientizing Praxis Of Mass Culture Engagement: Contrasting Pneumatologies Of Amos Yong And Simon Chan, Monte Lee Rice

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

This essay notes promises and problems with Pentecostal cultural engagement through its dualistic “spiritual warfare” cosmology. I propose a promising foray by forging Amos Yong’s and Simon Chan’s theologies of cultural engagement. For both employ their Asian particularities towards addressing cultural phenomena in manners that distinguish their contrasting yet I shall argue, complementary pneumatologically themed theologies of culture. Yet neither have engaged methodological disciplines of cultural analysis and critique. In response this essay suggests a Pentecostal conscientizing praxis of mass culture engagement, in conversation with Amos Yong and Simon Chan. This essay concludes by suggesting need for discerning possible prophetic …

Poverty Alleviation In The Rural Areas Of Kunene Region In Namibia: The Role Of The Evangelical Lutheran Church In Namibia (Elcin), Jeremia Ekandjo

Master of Theology Theses

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Theology On The Development Of Cultural Intelligence Among College Students At An Evangelical Liberal Arts University, Esther Damodar Jadhav

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Catholics & Cultures As An Act Of Improvisation: A Response, Thomas M. Landy

Journal of Global Catholicism

This essay responds to seven articles published in the same issue of the Journal of Global Catholicism on the use of Catholics & Cultures, a multimedia website, as a pedagogical resource for college classrooms. The site is deliberately presented in a fashion that undermines notions of center and periphery and presents Catholicism from a lay, lived-religion perspective as the multicultural faith that it is, minimizing reference to religious typologies. Particular attention is given to how to navigate tensions around theorizing, categorizing and sorting information for cross-cultural comparison. Given scholars’ current state of knowledge, writing about and teaching about global Catholicism …

Conflict Between The Clergy And The Laity In The Quaker Church In Kenya, John Muhanji

Doctor of Ministry

The Quaker church missionaries came to Kenya as part of the West's Christian movement to the dark continent. Historians have usually referred to the Society of Friends' spiritual life as quietism, which did not resonate well with African spirituality which was disregarded by the missionaries as evil. Africans unquestioningly believe in the supreme creator of the universe and humanity. There is no ethnic group in Africa that does not have a specific name for a supreme God.1 Therefore, the Quaker belief that "there is that of God in everyone" was not considered by the Western missionaries that Africans believed in …

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 …

Contextual Leadership Within Chin Immigrant Churches In The United States, Bawi Bik Thawng

Doctor of Ministry Theses

This research explores the leadership practices of Chin immigrant congregations in the United States, focusing on how they can develop a more effective leadership practice in dealing with the new context of the new land. It attempts to answer the question: What kind of leadership practice will help Chin immigrant leaders apply adaptive leadership theory for implementing contextual oriented leadership theory for the church? The initial motivation for this research arose out of the researcher’s interest in the perception of Chin immigrant congregations on the issue of leadership. A qualitative case study research method was employed in this research.

The …

The Peace Church And The Spirit Of Liberation: A Pneumatological Critique Of John Howard Yoder's Political Ethics, David A. Meade

Theses and Dissertations

John Howard Yoder’s Christocentric political ethics strongly maintain the church as the subject of a Christian peace witness to the world but, because of an underdeveloped pneumatology, is less effective at establishing the church as the ongoing recipient of revelation. A complementary pneumatological perspective that remains anchored in the work of God in Christ can maintain the distinctive witnessing role of the church while also allowing the discernment of the Holy Spirit’s activity in the world to call the church to a more faithful participation in the life of Jesus Christ. This pneumatology enables a synthesis with liberation theologies which …

The Reception Of Hagar In The Writings Of Origen, John Chrysostom, And Augustine, Mariah Case

MA in Religion Theses

The premise of this thesis is to explore the reception of the Hagar stories through three prominent early Christian thinkers -Origen, John Chrysostom, and Augustine of Hippo - in order to evaluate the theological significance she had for those particular contexts. Hagar functions predominately as a symbol in contexts where group identity, power, and ideology are contested. The hermeneutical and theological stances of the authors are examined to expose and mitigate the religious conflict occurring in their historical location. The resulting interpretations of Hagar and her story vary from Christianization of the character to outright scorn and rejection of the …

Book Reviews And Books Received

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Book Reviews

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Latin American Immigrants: A Cry For Liberation, Julio César De León

Say Something Theological: The Student Journal of Theological Studies

The United States, due to its economic stability and abundant opportunities (among other reasons), has attracted many immigrants from across the globe, but particularly those from Latin America. The reality is that while many immigrate under more favorable circumstances, the majority of Latinos/as (usually the ones most in need) embark on a dangerous journey, overcoming the difficulties they encounter on the way. Although there is great hope in having arrived to the U.S., for those who make it to the other side of the frontier, their suffering often continues as their social status becomes that of undocumented immigrants. Through the …