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Censorship And Censureship: Insiders, Outsiders, And The Attack On Bhandarkar Institute, Adheesh Sathaye

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

On January 5, 2004, the Bhandarkar Institute, a large Sanskrit manuscript library in Pune, was vandalized because of its involvement in James Laine's controversial study of the Maharashtrian king Shivaji. While most of the manuscripts escaped damage, less fortunate was the academic project of South Asian studies, which now faces some serious questions. if our intellectual pursuits should result in the destruction of the very materials we study, or injury to those who help us to study them, are they worth conducting at all? Or might they be conducted in such a way as to avoid violent reaction? As groundwork …

Singing Of Satnam: Blind Simon Patros, "Dalit" Religious Identity, And "Satnami"-Christian Music In Chhattisgarh, India, Chad M. Bauman

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Christianity in every context -- whether western or nonwestern, contemporary or ancient -- emerges as a composite entity, combining elements of the religions and cultures that predate it with aspects of the Christian faith, in whatever form it arrives. There is, of course, nothing distinctly Christian about this process, for just as the expansion of Christianity into India involved the Indianization of Christianity, so too did the growth of Hinduism in Bali entail the Balinization of Hinduism. Other religions follow a similar pattern when they cross cultural boundaries.

Embodying "Bhakti Rasa" In Bharata Natyam: An Indian-Christian Interpretation Of "Gayatri" Mantra Through Dance, Katherine C. Zubko

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

As the five female dancers from the Indian-Christian fine art college of Kalai Kaviri encircle the South Indian brass lamp, or vilakku, awakening it to life with the flames from their own individual votives, the beginning melody of a song cues the women to stretch out their arms in preparation to rise from their seated positions and dance. As they raise their arms in unison, the light glinting off their bangles and gold threaded costumes, the Sanskrit words Om Bhur Bhuvah Svah signal the invocatory phrase of the popular Gayatri mantra chanted daily by many Hindus all over the …

The Personhood Of The Holy Spirit And Why It Matters, Ron E. M. Clouzet

Journal of the Adventist Theological Society

No abstract provided.

Was Ellen White Confused About Justification?, Thomas A. Davis

Journal of the Adventist Theological Society

No abstract provided.

Developing An Interdisciplinary Analysis And Application Of Worldview Concepts For Christian Mission, Paulo Candido De Oliveira

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem. The Adventist emphasis on cognitive knowledge and behavioral change instead of deep changes of worldview assumptions and allegiance is the main concern of the present work. It is easier to emphasize cognitive beliefs and behavior than to do the difficult task of working to change the underlying worldview premises that drive behavior. The emphases on cognitive beliefs and behavior have frequently generated syncretism, created loyalty based on surface advantage instead of deeper allegiance, and hindered the Seventh-day Adventist Christian message from being adapted to different cultures.

Method. An interdisciplinary library research is conducted to establish the foundational knowledge of …

A Strategy To Reach Animistic People In Madagascar, Jacques Ratsimbason

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The majority of the Malagasy people who live in Madagascar are unreached with the gospel message. A preliminary investigation of current literature indicated that 50 percent of the Malagasy are followers of traditional religions. This present study was to develop a strategy to reach the animistic people with the gospel message.

Method

This study presents Malagasy people, their social characteristics, population, worldviews, and lifestyles. A study;and evaluation of Malagasy beliefs and practices were developed using Hiebert's model of critical contextualization.

Results

The study reveals that the Seventh-day Adventist Church must update its evangelistic methods to reach animistic people and …

Meeting The Challenge Of Diversity : Ministry And Mission In A Multicultural Milieu, Chadwick L. Short

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Exploring The Missional Potential Of International Churches : A Case Study Of Capital City Baptist Church, Mexico City, Ernest Eugene Klassen

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Addressing The Aggravated Meeting Points Of Race And Religion, David Keane

University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class

No abstract provided.

Components Of Lay-Mobilizating Cultures And Systems, Tracy D. Hoskins

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Toward A Contextualized Church In A Unified Korea/Corea: Exploring Resources In Wesleyan Theology And Eastern Philosophies, Ohoon Kwon

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Christian Response To Islam: Is Islam A Peaceful Religion?, Steven E. Tsoukalas

The Asbury Journal

The following is a lecture delivered on 6 October 2005 as part of the Theta Phi Lecture Series at Asbury Theological Seminary, Wilmore, Kentucky As a Christian response to Islam, it covers several topics in relatively brief fashion. In the evangelistic encounter, the goal of which is a holistic encounter, the Christian must keep in mind the social-religious dynamics ofMuslims and incorporate this knowledge into a missiologically healthy approach that is built on a sound epistemological foundation. In short, for both a Christian response to Islam and evangelism of Muslims, Christians must possess a solid epistemology as foundational to "a …

Behold, Ye Shall Have Joy With Me’: A Study On The Lord, The Servant And The Allegory Of The Olive Tree, Dan Belnap, Daniel L. Belnap

Faculty Publications

In chapter 5 of the book of Jacob, we find a unique text commonly referred to as the allegory of the olive tree. President Joseph Fielding Smith once said that “the parable of Zenos . . . is one of the greatest parables ever recorded.”1 Composed of seventy-seven verses, this allegory is thought to follow the progression of a particular olive tree and its offspring in the Lord’s vineyard. Many readers have commented on the special nature of the allegory, with studies ranging from theological meaning, to linguistic comparisons, to actual viticultural practices. Though these studies differ in content, they …

From Clay Tablets To Canon: The Story Of The Formation Of Scripture, Kerry M. Muhlestein

Faculty Publications

Presented at the 35th Sperry Symposium. The Sidney B. Sperry Symposium is sponsored by Brigham Young University Religious Education and the Church Educational System. It is difficult for us, in the age of information, to appreciate the impact of both the sweeping movements and technical advances that allowed for the creation of the canonized book we call the Bible. We live in a time when we regularly turn to written documents for the "final word", and we take for granted an astounding volume of written works and easy access to them. Indeed, it has been argued that U.S. culture has …

A Prologue To Genesis: Moses 1 In Light Of Jewish Traditions, E. Douglas Clark

BYU Studies

Referring to ancient and long-lost scripture that Joseph Smith restored, Wilford Woodruff declared it to be part of “the rich treasures that are revealed unto us in the last days.” One such treasure is Moses chapter 1, a scriptural jewel we have hardly begun to appreciate but whose luster has become more apparent in light of various ancient texts and traditions that have emerged since Joseph Smith’s day. So striking are the parallels as to recall Joseph’s own prophecy that “the world will prove Joseph Smith a true prophet by circumstantial evidence.”

Orientalism And Religion In The Romantic Era-Rammohan Ray’S Vedanta(S), Amit Ray

Articles

Abstract:

This chapter examines how Raja Rammohan Ray utilized Vedanta philosophy as a strategic response to colonial critiques of Hinduism during the early nineteenth century. Ray emerged as a pivotal figure who navigated between British orientalist discourse and Indian religious reform, employing Advaita Vedanta to counter accusations of idolatry and polytheism leveled against Hindu practices. The analysis demonstrates how Ray's translations of the Upanishads and his promotion of Vedantic monotheism served dual purposes: defending indigenous civilization against missionary attacks while accommodating European notions of rational religion. Ray's approach involved significant textual interventions, including rendering the neuter brahman as masculine "God" …

Mass And Mission: Enacting God's Mission In The Christian Assembly Today, Thomas H. Schattauer

Institute of Liturgical Studies Occasional Papers

(Excerpt)

I doubt that I need to underscore the ferment surrounding the matters that are the theme of this year's Institute: worship and mission. The practice of worship in our congregations has become fragmented by multiple and competing proposals for what should happen when we gather. As a teacher of worship, the questions and discussions I encounter day by day reveal a general distrust of conventional liturgical practice and a genuine hunger for something-anything-that will engage and enliven people at worship in our time and place. There is no simple and direct approach to matters of worship-this is what we …

Exploring The Possibilities Of Using Lisanga Small Groups In Disciple-Making Among The Avalogoli People Of Kenya, Nebert A. Mtange

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Exploring The Possibilities Of Using Lisanga Small Groups In Disciple-Making Among The Avalogoli People Of Kenya, Nebert A. Mtange

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Mormon And Still A Jew: The Life Of Alexander Neibaur, Fred E. Woods

Faculty Publications

Alexander Neibaur was a man of many talents. An educated man and gifted poet, he was fluent in seven languages. One account describes Neibaur as "a small, thin man, with a round ruddy face, with sharp eyes." He was also unusual inasmuch as he was Utah's first dentist and matchmaker, and the first known male Jewish convert to Mormonism; and he left the only known contemporary diary account of Joseph Smith's first vision experience. Neibaur was also a good family man, honest and loyal, and a kind friend and trusted neighbor, not only to fellow Church members but also to …

The Lived Experience Of God And Its Evolution In Children And Adolescents, Anne P. Devenish

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Children's and adolescents' spirituality is important, especially to those entrusted with their education. To effectively nurture children's spirituality, parents, teachers, and ministers would benefit in knowing how young people experience God, what they think about God and how they relate to God: in effect, their lived experience of God. Learning about these phenomena could help greatly in communicating with children and adolescents about God. This study aims to build on the work of those who have investigated elements of the spirituality of children and adolescents in a qualitative way.

Sufism: Islamic Mysticism, James L. Smith Jr.

Verbum

In lieu of an abstract, below is the essay's first paragraph.

"Sufism is the esoteric aspect of Islam. The aim of Sufis is to gain direct knowledge of the eternal, in this life, as opposed to the exoteric, or traditionalist, aspect of Islam which focuses on achieving a state of blessedness after death by way of carrying out divinely prescribed works. The history of Sufism is a long one, some tracing it directly back to The Prophet Muhammad."

Full Issue, No Author

Verbum

This is the full issue of Volume 3, Issue 1 of Verbum, published in Fall 2005 by the REST Club at St. John Fisher College. Articles from this issue are available as separate PDFs at http://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/verbum/vol3/iss1/

Joseph Smith And The Past, John W. Welch

BYU Studies

My thoughts on Joseph Smith’s interest in past worlds cluster into three sections. The first deals with the challenge of evaluating and assessing Joseph Smith’s recoveries of texts or views from past worlds or civilizations. The second develops a list of ways in which the past functioned in Joseph Smith’s process of continuing revelation. The third focuses on the dynamic link between the past and the present in Joseph Smith’s concept of priesthood authority and its restoration.

Joseph Smith: Prophecy, Process, And Plenitude, Terryl L. Givens

BYU Studies

Joseph Smith was an explorer, a discoverer, and a revealer of past worlds. He described an ancient America replete with elaborate detail and daring specificity, rooted and grounded in what he claimed were concrete, palpable artifacts. He recuperated texts of Adam, Abraham, Enoch, and Moses to resurrect and reconstitute a series of past patriarchal ages, not as mere shadows and types of things to come, but as dispensations of gospel fullness equaling, and in some cases surpassing, present plenitude. And he revealed an infinitely receding premortal past—not of the largely mythic Platonic variety and not a mere Wordsworthian, sentimental intimation—but …

World Religion: Dynamics And Constraints, Douglas J. Davies

BYU Studies

Mormonism as a world religion and Joseph Smith as its originating prophet furnish the subject of this paper. A brief theoretical reflection on approaching The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints provides both an opening context for the quantitatively focused debate on Mormonism’s potential for growth into world religion status and an introduction for a more extensive consideration of several factors of a more qualitative kind that may foster or inhibit that development. The paper then ponders the issue of identity in relation to Joseph Smith.

Reformed Worship (Rw) 78 - Lent / Easter (December 2005), Reformed Worship Editors

Reformed Worship Magazine

Features

Practicing Easter by David Vroege....4

The Way of the Cross by Mari Broman Olsen....6

Listening at the Foot of the Cross by Michael F. Abma....8

A Rhythm as Old as the World by Cornelius Plantinga Jr.....20

Easter Vigil by Carrie Steenwyk....22

Celebrating Easter Down Under by Graham Redding....25

New Organ Music for Lent and Easter by Judy A. Congdon....29

Meals, Nourishment, Reconciliation, and Celebration by Larry Sibley....32

Equipping Worship Leaders by Shirley Roels and Kari Slotsema....34

Thou Shalt Not Steal by Emily J. Cooper....36

Students Celebrate Holy Week by …

Functional Diversity, Eric M. Brown

Doctor of Ministry

The question at the heari of this dissertation is, "can it be different?" The "it" is the way church is organized, worship happens, and the very flavor of the church in the United Methodist Church in Oregon and Idaho. Today, church is generally organized following the traditional Anglo experience. The hymns, food, and organizational patterns generally follow the patterns of the white, English-speaking majority in the churches. A different formula would be one that is more multicultural and multiethnic. In this dissertation, the different way of organizing and thinking of church is called functional diversity.

Functional diversity is explored through …

On Living An Intercultural Life: Reflections Of A Suburban U.S. Soccer Mom 15 Years After Hngr, Laura Hartley

Faculty Publications - Department of Sociology

Reflections on the course of the author's life subsequent to graduating from the Human Need and Global Resources program at Wheaton College.