Digital Commons Network^™

Great Commission Research Journal Spring 2023, David R. Dunaetz

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Natalia, Dereck Daschke

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of Natalia (2023), directed by Elizabeth Mirzaei.

Lars Von Trier’S Cinema: Excess, Evil, And The Prophetic Voice, Jeanette Solano

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a book review of Rebecca Ver Straten-McSparran, Lars Von Trier’s Cinema: Excess, Evil, and the Prophetic Voice (Routledge, 2021).

Disruptive Homiletics: Liberationist Hermeneutics And The Preconditions Of Critical Consciousness, Joel (J.T.) Young

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

A Gentle Whisper: Restorying The Narrative Of Eleven Ministers To Create A Collective Voice In The Battle Against Burnout, Darrel Sears

DMin Project Theses

This March 2023 Doctor of Ministry project thesis at Lipscomb University investigates how there has been much research poured into the subject of burnout over the last fifty years and how its effects take a toll on an employee’s emotional, physical, and mental health. Burnout is especially prevalent in helping professions like human services, nursing, social work, psychology, and criminal justice to name a few. Vocational ministry, also a helping profession, has received its fair share of attention pertaining to burnout. Countless hours and hard work concerning stress management, clergy outpatient therapy, emotional contagions, self-care practices, spiritual-care practices, and a …

Church Personnel Perceptions Of Disorderly Students: A Case Study Of Misconduct In Child Ministry Programs, Regina M. Davis

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The problem: undisciplined children in church settings disrupt biblical teachings and provide the impetus for other children to act inappropriately. Therefore, discipline issues must be addressed. Christian teachers have a unique responsibility to establish high moral and ethical standards in their classrooms based on God’s Word, thus, student discipline issues must be addressed for the wellbeing of all concerned.

The purpose of this Qualitative Case Study is to understand the student discipline issues experienced by teachers in child ministry programs and how they coped with these issues. Student discipline issues can be defined as incidents of disruptive behaviors exhibited by …

Best Practice Spiritual Formation Models In The Christian Hybrid Church, Crystal Deneene Stalling

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore best practice spiritual formation models and the perceived effectiveness of spiritual formation in the hybrid church community brick-and-mortar and online church settings for individuals in Christian hybrid churches. The concern was whether the churches effectively implemented best practice models through their traditional brick-and-mortar locations and digital platforms that would cause individuals within the Christian community to experience spiritual formation. Spiritual formation is generally defined as “the holistic work of God in a believer’s life whereby systematic change renders the individual continually closer to the image and actions of Jesus Christ” (Pettit, …

Changing An Individualistic Cultural Identity Into A Christocentric Identity At Community Alliance Church Of The Christian And Missionary Alliance In Towanda, Pennsylvania, Jacob Samuel Howard

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Jesus instituted a new way of doing community which would transcend all cultural backgrounds and creates a new belonging and identity. This thesis aimed to engage a small group of men from Community Alliance Church in a covenant community, establishing a christocentric identity. The small group of five men, including the facilitator, met for eight weeks to practice several spiritual disciplines together, including confession and accountability, to know what God says about whom they are in Christ, and how to live out that identity in every circle of influence. This mixed-method action research project included both entry and exit surveys …

Review Of Islam And Anarchism: Relationships And Resonances, Hamza Dudgeon

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

Review Of We Are The Voice Of The Grass: Interfaith Peace Activism In Northern Uganda, J.J. Carney

The Journal of Social Encounters

No abstract provided.

The Soul Of A Leader: A Case Study In The Theory And Development Of A Reflective Instrument, Shelby Coble, Carson Reed

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

This case study details the authors’ work to fulfill a consultative request from an elder group to do significant self‐reflection about their spiritual life and their practice of being good leaders. In response, the authors developed a rationale for considering resilience and spiritual vitality while exploring congregational leadership as vision work, relational work, and administrative work. With this theological grounding, the authors prepared an instrument that measures the capacity for resilience and spiritual vitality in the life of lay leaders. The instrument also creates reflection around three dimensions of leadership. The survey categories included: spiritual and personal life, a leader’s …

Evangelical Ressourcement: How Retrieving Our Sacred Roots Can Renew And Refocus The Global Evangelical Movement, Don Davis

Essays

No abstract provided.

What Shapes Visitor Experience At Religious Destinations? Deploying A Systematic Review To Identify Visitor Experience Constructs, Priyanka Singh, Amit Kumar Singh, Anil Kumar Singh, Irfan Ahmed Ansari

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

While religious sites are identified as unique experience spaces, offering diverse experiences, discourse on what constitutes a visitor’s experience still seems unsettled, primarily due to the fragmented approach owing to the classic binary of pilgrim-tourist. However, post-modern theories emphasise de-differentiation and blurring of boundaries between pilgrim-tourist and stress the need to add a new perspective to enhance the understanding of visitor experience at religious sites to manage tourism at such destinations efficiently. Therefore, the present study is undertaken to respond to this call and aims to identify constructs that shape visitors’ experience at religious sites. Building upon the synthesis of …

The Marian Paths Of Portugal And Local Development, Eunice Almeida Duarte, João Caldeira Heitor

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage

This study aims to analyse the contribution of Marian Paths to the development of individual sites. The theoretical framework of the work is an empirical study which uses databases such as Science Direct, Emerald, Google Scholar, and Web of Science databases to identify suitable themes for empirical evidence (2015-2021) on pilgrimage paths and local development. Based on this, 19 interviews were undertaken to develop an understanding of developments, particularly in the area of Fátima, Portugal. The contents of the interviews were analysed using NVivo. This article concludes that there is no management model implemented on the Portuguese Marian paths, more …

“I’Ll Give Them All The Time They Need”: How Lgbtq+ Teens Build Positive Relationships With Their Active, Latter-Day Saint Parents, Sydney A. Sorrell, Emalee J. Willis, Jane H. Bell, G. Tyler Lefevor, Samuel J. Skidmore

Psychology Student Research

Strong and supportive relationships with parents are key to promoting the mental health of LGBTQ+ teens. Overwhelmingly, studies have focused on ways to improve parental acceptance, largely neglecting understanding the parent–teen dyad as a unit and ignoring teens’ contributions to their relationships with their parents. To address this gap, we conducted 19 separate interviews with LGBTQ+ teens and their Latter-day Saint (LDS) parents (38 total interviews) to explore the ways that teens contributed to the development of positive relationships. Additionally, we explored teen-related factors that presented challenges to the parent–teen relationship. Thematic analyses suggested that LGBTQ+ teens engaged in several …

Developing A Community Chaplaincy Ministry: Through A Need Satisfaction Care Model For A Native Language Church, Shanti Samuel

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Believers in Jesus Christ are mandated to "go" into the world, and caring for people is part of the seeking. God has provided models and processes of His care in the scriptures. A chaplain holds spiritual care functions outside the church's four walls on the field. Unfortunately, many Asian Indian Americans in the booming immigrant population have not received care. Therefore, this action research thesis assumes need-based church training to build a culture-sensitive model of care to provide care. This research project explored the causes and impediments to care through participative sessions with the spiritual care provider volunteers of the …

A Phenomenological Study Of How Active Engagement In Black Greek Letter Sororities Influences Christian Members' Spiritual Growth, Lorraine Mary Aragon

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This phenomenological study explored how being part of a Black Greek Letter. Organization (BGLO) sorority impacts the spiritual growth of its Christian members. One of the issues explored was the influence relationships within these sororities have on members striving to be like Christ. There is a dichotomy of perspectives regarding Black Greek Letter Organizations (BGLOs). They have a significant role in the Black community as organizations that foster leadership, philanthropy, and sisterhood and promote education. They are admired on and off college campuses and in the broader community in graduate chapters. The objective of phenomenology is to describe phenomena of …

Being And Trauma: A Theory Of Listening As A Dis/Appropriation Of The Listener To The Call Of The Unspeakable In Trauma, Kathleen M. Douglass

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

What is it to have a voice, to be heard? And how is this connected to the need to have someone listen? Through a close reading of Heidegger’s later works woven together with readings of Judith Butler, Jean Luc Marion, Michel Foucault, and Shoshana Felman, I explore a concept of Listening as it is connected to the event of our being, creating a theory of Listening that emphasizes what happens in the Listener as she Listens.

The concept of Listening is relied on, but under-considered, in both clinical and philosophical theories. In order to understand what it means to have …

Story Communion: A Guidebook For Creating Sacred Space To Foster Kinship Amid Diversity In Christian Communities, Amber Hogan Jones

Doctor of Ministry

Christian communities are deeply divided theologically, socioeconomically, ethnically, and politically; thus, the popularity of the saying: “The most segregated time in America is on Sunday mornings.” Though there is wide consensus that this is problematic due to God’s clear desire for kinship among God’s people, most Christians are unsure what to do about this problem. This project aims to remove common barriers to diverse Christian communion by offering an affordable, easily repeatable, portable model for transformational connection across diverse Christian communities. Utilizing a blended methodology that draws upon bibliographic resources, data derived from stakeholder collaboration, and human-centered design and iteration …

Where Disruption And Vocation Meet: One Path Toward Teaching Reproductive Justice In Challenging Times, Lena R. Hann

Intersections

No abstract provided.

Use Of Sources In Ancient Compositions, James W. Barker

Faculty/Staff Personal Papers

This essay contextualizes the Synoptic Gospels in terms of ancient writing materials and processes. Greco-Roman writers predominantly used waxed tablets and bookrolls, although codices emerged in the first century CE. Authors could recall texts from memory, but writers could also maintain visual contact when studying, collating, copying, quoting, or paraphrasing sources. Previous scholarship has highlighted the difficulties of interweaving multiple sources and rearranging their sayings and narratives. However, neither operation was unprecedented or overly complicated, as evinced by Septuagint recensions, Josephus’s Antiquities, and Tatian’s Diatessaron. Some writing processes were more complicated than others, but ancient authors did not always work …

Korean American Young Adults: Spiritual And Emotional Formation Though Art, Hesed Lee

Doctor of Ministry

It is a well-known phenomenon in America that many young adults are disengaged from the Church, at the same time they are battling internal emotional conflicts while trying to understand their faith journey. Even though most of them grew up in the Church, participated in church programs, and learned about God, they are anxious, lonely, and struggling to discover their spiritual identity. What then, what are we missing? After conducting an anonymous online survey with Korean American young adults and gathering narrative research from Korean American young adults as well as Asian American English Ministry pastors, this paper explores the …

The Mass Exodus Of Black Millennials From The Black Church: In Search Of Biblical Blackness, Jacqueline A. Trim

Doctor of Ministry

A mass exodus of Black millennials away from the Black churches of the African diaspora has taken place in recent years. There is a plethora of reasons for this given by the Black millennials, spiritual authors/researchers, and the spiritual leadership of the Black church. The most important of these reasons has been put forward by Black millennials that the Bible and Christianity are irrelevant to the social, economic, and political issues of their lives and they want no part of it. This research is undertaken to investigate the real cause(s) of this exodus and to determine where the responsibility lies …

Pure And Undefiled Religion: Ministry To Widows In The American Church Today, Holli R. Reeves

Theology Undergraduate Work

Within the more than 300,000 Christian congregations in the United States, very few ministries exist for the marginalized, especially for widows. Considering that over 900,000 adults in the United States are widowed each year, the lack of care and support available within Christian congregations for widows is alarming. The neglect of care and support available for widows within Christian congregations in the United States today is specifically important to address as care for the marginalized—the orphan, the widow, and the foreigner—is a frequent topic in the Bible and, therefore, a subject especially near to the heart of God. This research …

Practicing Presence: How The Local Church Should Target Poverty Of Solidarity With Their Neighborhood’S Youth, Sarah Lowder

Theology Undergraduate Work

A high school student attends a youth group at a local church in his neglected neighborhood. He participates in Bible studies, youth group events, and experiences an altar-call moment to accept Christ into his heart. The church was there to help him live like Christ and grow spiritually. He gets to know God at an early age through the church; however, as he graduates high school, the connection with the church starts to dwindle. One day, he finds himself in jail, still struggling with his life's physical, mental, and social factors. This is the true story of Nick, a young …

Contextualizing The Gospel For Young Urbanites, Reylourd Reyes

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Increasing Conceptual Clarity Of Act Interventions For Burnout: A Novel Workshop For Women In Ministry, Lydia Hogan

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

The purpose of this study is threefold; to address a gap in the literature concerning mechanism of change of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) interventions for burnout, to create an evidence-based burnout intervention for women in ministry, and to propose a theory of burnout etiology and recovery. Participants in this novel 6-week online ACT-based workshop showed significant improvement in burnout, particularly those who endorsed higher pre-intervention burnout. Change in burnout scores was inconsistently mediated by changes in psychological flexibility across dimensions of personal burnout, work burnout, and client burnout as measured on the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory. Findings of this study …

I Was Looking For God: A Study Of Wehrmacht Personnel And Their Personal Relationships With Religion, Christopher Bishop

Master's Theses

The Wehrmacht was Germany’s fighting force in the field during World War II. Its brutality and discriminatory practices rivaled that of the Nazi paramilitary and police units dispatched alongside them in newly conquered areas during this conflict. Coming from a society that was not at all unfamiliar with Christianity, some within the Wehrmacht related to Christianity in some form and attempted to use it to either justify actions or make sense of the world around them.

While considerable scholarship exists on the Nazi Party’s relationship to Christianity as a convenient propaganda tool for both soldier and civilian alike, the historiography …

Nationalist And Non-Nationalist Christianity In The United States, Aaron Epperson

University Honors Theses

Christian nationalism has broken into the American news cycle over the last few years through its connection to former President Donald Trump, and it's closely associated with violent events like the January 6th insurrection and the Charlottesville, VA, Unite the Right rally. However, its close association with Trump and depiction in a 24-hour news cycle makes defining what Christian nationalism is--and is not--difficult for those unfamiliar with nationalism and the broader American Christian tradition. This paper hopes to briefly explore what Christian nationalism is within the United States through an exploration of nationalism itself and a discussion of nationalist and …

Gathered Together: The Impact Of In-Person Experiences In A Virtual Age, Consuela Knox

DMin Project Theses

This February 2024 Doctor of Ministry project thesis at Lipscomb University analyzes how following the height of a global health pandemic which required that individuals quarantine, in-person attendance at West Harpeth Church worship services has not reached the pre-pandemic level. The goal of this project was to enhance West Harpeth members’ theological understanding of the importance of in-person corporate gatherings as compared to virtual gatherings. The key research question was: Can awareness of the value of in-person corporate gatherings at West Harpeth, in comparison to virtual gatherings, be raised among members by them engaging in theological reflection? Related questions were: …