Digital Commons Network^™

Virtual Recovery: Bringing The Kingdom To An Online Community, Andrew Charles Matts

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Soon after Jesus’ Resurrection and Ascension, the fledgling church community divided into two camps: One favoring the inclusion of Gentile converts only if they observed traditional Jewish Law and custom (e.g., circumcision) and the other, led by Paul, asserting that following Jesus did not require such formality and legalism. A lengthy debate concluded by reaching into the Gentile community to provide a captivating kingdom message of hope, love, and compassion. Today, the traditional, physical church community faces a growing challenge: reaching into a growing online community by providing a captivating kingdom message, while recognizing that potential recipients of the message …

Woman, Queer, Jewish: The Sociopolitical Importance And Impact Of Identity Labels, Megan Polun

Honors Projects in English and Cultural Studies

In this thesis, I trace and analyze the historical, social, and political uses of three identity labels: woman, queer, and Jewish. These three identity categories are personally important to me because I identify as a queer, Jewish woman. The questions motivating this analysis are as follows: How have these words been defined and who gets to define them? What has it meant historically to move through the world with one of these labels, and what does it look like today? What qualifies someone to identify with one of these labels, and what experiences or qualities do we share? What challenges …

From Vocal Agnostic To Reluctant Convert: C.S. Lewis And C.E.M. Joad, Joel Heck

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

After a brief consideration of Joad’s life and career this essay will examine the events that led to his return to the Christian faith, and the extent of Lewis’ influence on it. As we will see, Joad and Lewis’ interest in philosophy and the world of ideas, their reading of one another’s work and the mutual respect that emerged out of that effort, their published debate over the issue of theodicy in 1941, their lively debate over the merits of Christianity at the Socratic Club in 1944, and their exchange over the troubling issue of animal pain in 1950, comprise …

Believe It Or Not: Discovering The Role Of Marketplace Ministry In Reconciling Race And Religion In The African American Church, Shawn Burgs

DMin Project Theses

This April 2023 Doctor of Ministry Project thesis at Lipscomb University explores the experiences of African Americans as faith holders in the crux of race, religion, and marketplace and how the interconnectedness of these facets can lend to reconciliation. The purpose of exploring how African American believers experience race and religious reconciliation is a noble goal that seeks to address the challenges faced by many African American believers in navigating their faith and cultural engagement. By examining their experiences, insights, and perspectives, we can learn more about the unique challenges they face and the strategies they employ to overcome them. …

The Traditional, Scriptural “Mary's” Characterization, Olivia Johnson

Undergraduate Theses

Women named “Mary” commonly appear in the Gospel accounts, and these stories of the “Marys,” namely the anointing Mary, Mary the sister of Martha, and Mary Magdalene, have been commonly associated with one another throughout Christian history. In researching the commentaries and interpretations produced within the patristic and medieval centuries (2nd-13th century), in conjunction with the biblical passages in which she appears, we can begin to understand how tradition has characterized the identity of “Mary.” This research explores the tradition surrounding this woman, particularly her key characteristics stemming from her posture as the “Woman at Jesus’ feet” and Jesus’ unique …

Back Matter (Volume 2, Issue 1), Grayson Carter

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

No abstract provided.

Front Matter (Volume 2, Issue 1), Grayson Carter

Sehnsucht: The C. S. Lewis Journal

No abstract provided.

Can Feminism And Christianity Coexist According To 40 Christian Women?, Riley George

Liberty University Research Week

Graduate

Applied

The Prevelence And Effect Of Pornea In Culture, Bryce Bengtson

Liberty University Research Week

Undergraduate

Three Minute Thesis

The Prevelence And Effect Of Pornea In Culture, Bryce Bengtson

Liberty University Research Week

Undergraduate

Textual or Investigative

Full Issue

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Honorary Volume Focuses On Church History And Doctrine

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Richard Lloyd Anderson - known as a devoted teacher, careful writer, and perfect gentleman - has had a great impact on the study of LDS Church history. In The Disciple as Witness: Essays on Latter-day Saint History and Doctrine in Honor of Richard Lloyd Anderson, one of two Festschrift volumes published in recognition of his work, friends and colleagues have written 18 scholarly studies in his honor. Several of these papers were presented on 8 March 1997 at a conference titled "Pioneers of the Restoration."

Embodying The Image Of God: A Call To Holistic Spiritual Formation, Katelyn Jo Brackney

DMin Project Theses

This April 2023 Doctor of Ministry project thesis at Lipscomb University explores how humanity is created good and in God’s own image. Over the years many streams of the Christian tradition have moved away from this foundation of created goodness resulting in disembodied approaches to our spiritual formation. The disconnection from our embodied selves God so lovingly and intentionally created has appeared in a variety of ways. Some particular perspectives consider bodies to be prohibitive to spiritual growth. This project seeks to return to the beginning and explore how a holistic approach to spiritual formation helps us live in a …

Songs As Theologizing: Annamma Mammen’S (1911–2002) Contribution In Shaping The Kerala Pentecostal Imagination, Allan Varghese Meloottu

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

In Indian Pentecostal theological and missiological literature, the role of Kerala Pentecostals is well documented. However, the pioneering voices that are highlighted are of men, sidelining women’s voices and contributions that shaped the grassroots Kerala Pentecostal imagination. The preacher-songwriter Annamma Mammen (1911–2002) is one such voice that impacted early Kerala Pentecostal growth. Therefore, this article, in addition to bringing forth the sidelined story of Annamma Mammen, emphasizes Mammen’s role as a songwriter and analyzes one of her early songs to highlight how her theology encapsulates early Kerala Pentecostal theological emphases (eschatological imagination, scriptural importance, contextual primacy, and Jesus-centeredness). Although Mammen’s …

Pentecostal Socio-Political Engagement And The Covid-19 Pandemic, Jonathan Cantarero

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

The coronavirus pandemic has raised important questions regarding the correct balance between religious freedom and public health. These questions have become increasingly difficult to address given the diverse reactions within the church to government-imposed restrictions on religious freedom such as limitations on public gatherings in places of worship. Nowhere has this diversity been more prevalent than within Pentecostalism. This article discusses the religious response to the pandemic in the United States within the Pentecostal Movement as gleaned through three sources: public statements, legal action, and other public activity. I suggest that Pentecostalism’s diversity in this area is consistent with its …

Grounded Theory Study On The Perceived Relationship Between Classical Leadership Theories Education And Christian Ministry Leader's Success, Yannique Thomas

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

A central aim of the research study was for colleges and universities that prepare Christian ministry leaders for ministry in the twenty-first century to include classical leadership theories education in order to meet the growing demand for equipping Christian ministry leaders of the future for success (Kessler & Kretszchmar, 2015). The research findings overwhelmingly suggested that there is a direct link between classical leadership theories education and Christian ministry leaders’ success. All of the characteristics, skills, talents, and attributes identified through receiving classical leadership theories education shifts the emphasis away from what the Christian ministry leader knows in his head …

Gender Identity And The Impact On The Mental Health Crisis, Melissa Nicole Herbolsheimer

Masters Theses

Adolescents' mental health has been at the forefront of counseling for many years. As adolescents endure the physical and hormonal changes that occur during the formative years from 10-19, many feel confused and uncomfortable in their bodies. Throughout the decades, adolescents, specifically girls, searched for a way to ease the feelings experienced during that time. As a result, many issues have been prevalent among adolescent girls, such as eating disorders, cutting, suicidal ideations, sexual activity, and gender dysphoria. Utilizing studies completed by mental health professionals, this thesis seeks to identify the impact this acceptance and freedom to choose one’s gender …

Tár, Sherry Coman

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of Tár (2022), directed by Todd Field.

Reading (In) A Quadriform Cosmos:Gospel Books In The Early Christian Bibliographic Imagination, Jeremiah Coogan

Jesuit School of Theology

Early Christian thinkers developed the widespread linguistic cosmology of the Roman Mediterranean in a novel way in order to advance a specific bibliographic project: aligning the emergent fourfold Gospel with the structure of the physical cosmos. Employing interlocking concepts from the disciplines of meteorology, geography, music, mathematics, and astronomy, a number of figures—including Irenaeus, Origen, Ephrem, Eusebius, Fortunatianus, Augustine, and Maximus—imagined a Gospel corpus consisting of precisely four texts. Number provided a way to articulate the coherence of the fourfold Gospel—both with itself and with the rest of the world. By situating both familiar and neglected evidence in the context …

Tabular Thinking In Late Ancient Palestine: Instrumentality, Work, And The Construction Of Knowledge, Jeremiah Coogan

Jesuit School of Theology

In late antiquity, a revolution in information technology transformed the practices and possibilities of knowledge. At the cutting edge of this development, several third- and fourth-century figures in Roman Palestine deployed the emerging technology of the column-and-row table as a novel tool of historical and literary scholarship. The Christian scholars Origen and Eusebius and the rabbinic sages of the Palestinian Talmud adapted this specialist technology from grammar and astronomy, and put it to work to structure complex textual corpora. As a “textual machine,” the table generated new possibilities of knowledge. Bringing together literary and material evidence, this study analyses the …

Youth Ministry Curriculum Developing Korean American Youth's Christ-Centered Identity, Jonathan Hyung Lee

Doctor of Leadership

In this Project Portfolio, I will address the following NPO: High school students growing up in Korean American immigrant churches need a culturally and ethnically reflective youth curriculum to help them grow in their Christ-centered identity. The overall insight from this research is that there is a lack of youth pastors and youth directors available for the emerging second and third-generation Korean American youths who want to grow in their faith and identity. Although they have attended church since birth, they are growing up without a proper spiritual mentoring relationship that can help them become deeply rooted in faith. They …

Building The Bridge And Crossing It: Using Digital Media To Connect Churches With Their Local Community, Andrew Blair Farley

Doctor of Ministry

This project is designed to address the NPO statement “Churches need strategies to both engage in and measure the effectiveness of digital ministry and discipleship expressions that reflect the unique character and context of their physical gatherings.” During the discovery phase of this project, it was found that many churches want to use digital ministry methods that enhance their in-person ministry and not as a replacement for it. I have found this to be true both in my research and a pastor and pioneer in the field of church communications. The project outlined includes a website to act as a …

The Watering Place™: Creating Space For Spiritually Dehydrated And Hurried Women, Donna M. Cox

Doctor of Ministry

NPO Statement and Ministry Context: The Watering Place™: Creating Space for Spiritually Dehydrated and Hurried Women seeks to address the NPO: In a speedy, frenzied world, women need [a] space to pursue healing, spiritual connection, be refreshed, and be empowered to grow into the fullest expression of themselves. This project grew out of my position as founder of Doxology Ministries International, Inc., a 501c3 religious organization. For over fifteen years, I have been leading retreats focusing on women.

Key Insights: The Doctoral Project allowed me to explore issues facing women more deeply, particularly conditions impacting women’s health, such as the …

Healthy Souls And Steady Hands: A Relational Model For Soul Care Of Rural, Assemblies Of God Pastors, Nathaniel E. Rhoads

Doctor of Ministry

The NPO: Pastors and their spouses, of rural, Assemblies of God (AG) churches, need a relational structure for sustainable soul care to maintain a healthy spirituality and ministry. Pastors expend great energy caring for the welfare of others through acts such as teaching, counseling, and visiting. But who provides care for pastors? How can pastors take care of themselves? If the souls of pastors are dry, disordered, and dismayed, their relationship with God and service to the church suffers. Pastors in rural communities, typically in small congregations, face particular challenges, especially from geographical isolation and expectations of church growth. In …

The Beam In Our Own Eyes: Antiracism And Ya Literature Through A Catholic Lens, Katie Sutton, Abigail D. Grafmeyer, Dan Reynolds

Journal of Catholic Education

As Catholic schools serve an increasingly racially diverse population of students, they must grapple with the critical requirement to address these students’ unique needs while heeding the call from modern Catholic Church leaders to engage in explicit antiracist action. Using the Historically Responsive Literacy Framework (HRL), this article equips Catholic high school English language arts (ELA) teachers with practical and powerful ways to create antiracist curriculum. To do this effectively, we place antiracist Young Adult (YA) literature (both fiction and nonfiction) in conversation with Catholic canonical texts and modern voices from Catholic clergy members. By connecting with students’ complex identities …

The Intersection Of Consumerism And The View Of The Christian Church In American Evangelicalism, Nathaniel Mumau

Senior Honors Theses

American Evangelicalism is a religious category that describes a wide variety of Christian denominations and their churches in the United States of America. Church attendance overall has declined, and rates of church membership have plummeted even faster. At the heart of this issue is a misunderstanding of the role the local church is meant to play in the lives of Christians. In modern American society, consumerism is essential to every part of living and thus has confounded the view of the church in the lives of evangelical Christians. The church is viewed as a product to be experienced and at …

The Role Of Story In The Creation And Life Of Man, Leah Ginion

Senior Honors Theses

Story was created by God as a vehicle for the revelation and glorification of Himself. Man, made in the image of God, was created as an innate storyteller. The world was created through story, and story is how it progresses and is sustained. As such, story is the foundation of all culture and the most natural and effective method of human communication. Research points to all of man’s stories being derivatives of the Great Story: the metanarrative of Scripture. Exploring man’s relationship with story reveals his place within the metanarrative and ultimately provides evidence for the existence and active presence …

Worshipers At War: The Church’S Call To Praise On The Frontlines, Keely Cox

Senior Honors Theses

As spiritual warfare wages on and battles are constantly fought, the worship leader must understand the power of worship the Church wields in the love and strength of the Lord. In order for the role of the worship leader to be fully recognized and understood as a significant part of the body of Christ, its unique history must also be examined. It can be seen in the appointment of the Levites to the ministry of the Israelite tabernacle and their leadership on the battlefield. It can be found in first-century Christian leaders who persisted to praise the one true God …

Women: Radically Glorified, Oppressed, Or Set Free?, Easton Finger

Senior Honors Theses

A woman’s identity in society has often been debated, starting from the beginning of time. The answer to this identity question has been sought in systems ranging from oppression, slavery, radical feminism, and over-exaltation of power. This thesis suggests that the value of women and their role is not found in those systems but in the knowledge of their Creator. Two questions will be posed, including how women’s identity has been previously defined and can a woman’s identity be found in her Creator God. The history of women in biblical times will be reviewed, as well as how Christ valued …

Order, Structure, And Patterns In English Grammar: Utilizing A Classical Christian Methodology, Teresa Lynch

Master of Arts in Classical Studies

Order, structure, and patterns are found in English grammar; however, they are not taught as essentials under a modern pedagogical approach. The classical Christian methodology of education not only teaches the student to recognize these attributes, but also utilizes order, structure, and patterns in the teaching methods themselves. In a world in which education is clearly in decline, a reassessment of educational methods is necessary. This work considers three models of education: modern, classical, and classical Christian. Within each of these pedagogies, the methods used to recognize order, structure, and patterns are also identified. In addition, the results of a …