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Mere Christian Theism And The Problem Of Evil: Toward A Trinitarian Perichoretic Theodicy, Ronnie Campbell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There is perhaps no problem confronting Christian theism more than that of the problem from evil. Evil in the world is not merely a problem for the Christian worldview, however, but also for various other metaphysical systems. This project takes up a comparative analysis of four major worldviews—naturalism, pantheism, process panentheism, and theism—and argues that of the four, theism provides not only the best explanation for the phenomena of evil in the world but it also gives an overall thicker worldview response to the challenges that evil presents. But theism in-and-of-itself is not enough. A specific form of theism is …

Spiritual Warfare And The Occult

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

No abstract provided.

Blessed Are The Balanced: A Seminarian’S Guide To Following Jesus In The Academy, Bruce Hartung

Concordia Journal

Pettit and Mangum’s book focuses specifically on a seminarian’s spiritual life while at the “academy.” There are echoes of Tripp.

Zechariah 9–14. International Exegetical Commentary On The Old Testament. By Paul L. Redditt, Reed Lessing

Concordia Journal

Redditt’s commentary is a welcome contribution, not only in Zechariah studies, but also for those who continue to research and write on the Book of the Twelve.

Christian Counseling The Past Generation And The State Of The Field, Richard Marrs

Concordia Journal

Gary Moon, vice president of Richmont Graduate University, says that Christian counseling, pastoral counseling, biblical counseling, and spiritual direction are all “sibling soul care disciplines.”

Things We Do Not Fully Preach About Preparing To Die, Glenn Nielsen

Concordia Journal

So what is the final and ultimate victory over death? The last day finds God not abandoning His creation but remaking it. He redeems His creation in its physicality, where space and matter matter.

Martin Luther’S Platzregen In Action The Changing Face Of Global Christianity, Douglas Rutt

Concordia Journal

The study of the momentous demographic shifts in Christianity that have taken place in the past two decades has become a growth industry of sorts.

Flight Lead: The Mission Of A Father And Husband, John Marselus

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Similar to fighter pilot flight leads, the Lord created multiple roles and responsibilities for husbands and fathers to lead their families. Millions of dollars are invested into the training and readiness of a fighter pilot to lead a flight into combat. Flight leads must perform multiple missions to ensure the success of friendly armed forces against their enemy. The multiple roles and responsibilities for husbands and fathers are remarkably similar to the functions a flight lead must execute to successfully complete a mission. This study compares the author’s military experience with scholarly research, Scriptural analysis, quantitative survey, and case study …

Concordia Seminary Magazine | Summer 2015, Jeffrey Kloha

Concordia Seminary Magazine

Sent to Serve

Power, Corruption And Dissent: Varieties Of Contemporary Croatian Political Catholicism, Vjekoslav Perica

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

"Two decades after the major Balkan war in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina 1991-1995, the dynamic of feuding ethnic nationalisms has shifted from the initially strongest Serbian to the currently dominant Croatian nationalism. The two strongest nationalisms of the (post)Yugoslav region are comparable to each other in many respects including the ethno-confessional nationalistic ideology amalgamated with religion and crucial roles for the churches as national institutions allied with nationalistic parties. The relative advantage for Croatian Catholicism is the outcome of several factors such as the following:..."

Communication Support And Religious Support In Managing Occupational Stress In Military Careers: A Career-Span Approach, Shantonee' Malee Mitchell

Communication & Theatre Arts Theses

This thesis reports an exploratory and descriptive study of communication support and religious support used by military personnel to manage occupational stress over the course of a career and their perceived effectiveness at helping to manage occupational stress. Drawing on a lifespan communication approach, this study employed a careerspan perspective where occupational stressors and sources of support (human and religious) are examined over the course of military careers. Results find three different groups of sources of communicative support were used in different ways to help manage military occupational stress: sources within the military, sources outside of the military, and religious …

Gustavo GutiéRrez – Liberation Theology & Marxism, Todd Cameron Swathwood Jr

The Kabod

Since 1968, liberation theology has emerged as a prominent feature of religion and politics, particularly in South America. Originally stemming from the writings of Peruvian priest Gustavo Gutiérrez, this at-once theological and overtly political ideology decries the institutionalized violence of the world’s capitalist society on the poor and oppressed, and argues that God is particularly concerned with the plight of the suffering masses. Christians should therefore make assistance of these poor souls their highest priority, and advocate for any and all methods of alleviating suffering, especially those that work from the premise that society must be toppled and rebuilt for …

Monster Violence In The Book Of Job, Brian R. Doak

Faculty Publications - George Fox School of Theology

In this paper, I explore the book of Job in terms of the symbolic and ideological warfare waged between God and the human protagonist, Job. Specifically, I argue that the invocation of various kinds of creatures under the “monster” rubric (such as Leviathan, Rahab, Yamm, the Twisting Serpent, and Behemoth) can be illuminated through a consideration of contemporary work—in the history of religions, literary theory, and film studies—that categorizes the monstrous in terms of ecological disorientation, metaphors of the torn human body, and the boundaries of the “home.” Moreover, I draw on the work of Marie Hélène Huet in her …

Scholarship In The Seminary, Seventh-Day Adventist Theological Seminary

Current: Faith Meets Life and Culture

No abstract provided.

The Last Generation: How The Advent Hope Defines Us, Skip Bell

Faculty Publications

The term “last generation” evokes differing mental images. For some, the term introduces the horrifying reality of earth’s inability to infinitely sustain life; for others, the devastating destruction of nuclear warfare; and for others, an impending cosmic calamity. Ironically, for those who anticipate the return of Christ, these fearful predictions are themselves affirmations of Christ’s return, and they sustain our hope to be among the last generation.

Farming In The City!, Skip Bell

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Orthodox "Imagined Communities" In The Ottoman Balkans, James R. Payton Jr

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

As a young scholar being trained in Early Modern European history, I imbibed unstated assumptions along with the canons of western historiography. My teaching and research career, though, soon moved eastward, to focus on Byzantium, the Balkans, and the Eastern Christianity which permeated both. With this transition, I became uneasily aware of how little attention western scholarship has given to these fields, or to the momentous developments which took place in the eastern half of the European continent. Some of these developments challenge and undermine some hallowed scholarly perspectives; among them is the assessment commonly held among western scholars about …

The Kingdom Of God And The Holy Spirit: Eschatology And Pneumatology In The Vineyard Movement, Douglas R. Erickson

Dissertations (1934 -)

This dissertation explores the relationship between eschatology and pneumatology in the Vineyard movement. The Vineyard movement is a growing expression within the evangelical Protestant tradition that seeks to combine the core doctrines of Evangelicalism with the experience of the gifts of the Spirit that is often associated with Pentecostalism. As a relatively new faith expression, the Vineyard has not received a great deal of academic interest, and thus much of its core theological commitments have not yet been explored. I shall argue that the central theological distinctive of the Vineyard is their understanding of the inaugurated, enacted, eschatological kingdom of …

Models Of The Interaction Of Science And Religion, Tony N. Jelsma

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

"As Christians we are... immersed in this scientific culture and yet God’s Word communicates to us from very different cultural contexts."

Posting about religion and science­­­­­­­­ from In All Things - an online hub committed to the claim that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ has implications for the entire world.

http://inallthings.org/models-of-the-interaction-of-science-and-religion/

Aquinas The Pacifist? A Comparative Study, Lloyd George Pemberton

Masters Theses

It is claimed by some scholars that when recent analytical tools of interpretation are placed upon the Summa Theologica, a presumption against harm emerges from the mind of Thomas Aquinas as he formulated his just war theory. This presumption against harm is thereby construed as Aquinas having an affinity toward pacifism. The present thesis offers a comparative study between two scholars, Richard Miller and Gregory Reichberg. Miller supports this claim while Reichberg finds it unjustifiable. The thesis lays out the arguments put forth by both, ultimately siding with Reichberg as making the better case. In addition, I offer my own …

Frances Burney's Evelina: A Critique Of The Ancient Regime And Plea For Its Moral Reform, Mary Dengler

Pro Rege

Reviewed Title: Evelina: Or the History of a Young Lady's Entrance Into the World (A Bedford Cultural Edition), ed. Kristina Straub (N. Y.: Bedford Books, 1997).

Dr. Dengler presented this article at the 2014 Southwest Conference on Christianity and Literature, John Brown University, Siloam Springs, Arkansas, November, 2014.

'Sing Unto The Lord A New Song--Just Not That One!' A Case Study Of Music Censorship In Free Will Baptist Colleges, Jon Edward Bullock

Masters Theses

Like so many of the world’s other religious institutions, the Christian church has a long and well-documented history of using music to enhance and enliven the spiritual experiences of believers. Many of the church’s greatest champions throughout history have spoken about the inherent power of music, but as history always seems to demonstrate, along with power comes the need for control. As long as church leaders have used music to attain spiritual progress, they have also censored music that threatens to impede that progress. Even today, many church leaders still rely on music censorship to protect the future and identity …

Unlocking A Narrative: Stories Of Islam And Peacebuilding And Conflict Transformation, Jeremy Sinensky

Capstone Collection

This paper, “Unlocking a Narrative: Stories of Islam and Peacebuilding and Conflict Transformation,” highlights largely repressed and ignored experiences and information related to peacebuilding and conflict transformation within Islam, conveyed through eight semi-structured, in-depth interviews with a diverse range of self-identified Muslims as well as relevant academic literature on the subject. I elected to focus on the research question of: “How can Islam be understood as a tool or lifestyle used for peacebuilding and conflict transformation endeavors?” so as to raise awareness of a largely invisible body of knowledge (within dominant social circles, popular media, and the breadth of …

The Day Of Judaism In The Catholic Church Of Poland, Piotr Dudek

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This master’s thesis discusses “The Day of Judaism in the Catholic Church of Poland,” a special time in the Polish Church calendar to rediscover her roots in Judaism. Thus, the aim of this study is to present the changes taking place in the Catholic Church in Poland in the wake of the Second Vatican Council—changes that seek to present Judaism in an impartial and authentic way, and changes that seek to understand the Christian identity of Catholics.

The scope of the current work covers the history of Polish-Jewish relations from Communist Poland to the present day (2015), in parallel with …

Process As Practice : Expressions Of The Numinous, Morgan Dowty

Undergraduate Theses—Unrestricted

This statement explores the ways in which language and art making approach description of spiritual and largely ineffable experiences. Through the lens of Rudolf Otto’s discussion of the numinous, visual languages, including darkness, scale and silence, are explored as methods for expression of the spiritual. Throughout the exploration of material and process, an emphasis is placed on exploring a relationship between the transcendental and the everyday, between the physical and spiritual world. The making process is highlighted for its ability to create space and time to reflect on these questions. Printmaking as a translator of both object and image plays …

Role Of The Church In Fighting Hiv-Aids Stigmatization Among Women In Kenya, Christine Adhiambo Ouko

Master of Art Theology Thesis

Ouko, Christine Adhiambo. “Role of the Church in Fighting HIV-AIDS Stigmatization among Women in Kenya.” MA thesis, Concordia Seminary, 2015, 116 pp.

Practical Theology, a discipline under which this thesis is based, is the application of God’s word in real life problems. HIV/AIDS stigmatization is a persistent and pernicious problem to any effective response to the pandemic. It is, therefore, a perennial danger confronting the church. The peril is acute when women and children struggle in alienation and despair in familial, social, and religious places believed to be lifesaving stations. Apparently, it is not easy to bear the burden of …

Violence For A Peaceful End: Rhetorical Violence, Fundamentalist Eschatology, And The Interpretive Tradition Of Revelation, Tommi Karin Waters

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

With the rise of extremist fundamentalist groups, such as ISIS, it is important to note similar happenings in other traditions. This thesis traces the interpretive tradition of the Book of Revelation, from its composition in 90 C.E. through the dispensationalist usage of it by John Nelson Darby in the 19th century, and how its modern use by American Christian fundamentalist groups leads to rhetorical violence, including feelings of marginalization and societal targeting, and creation of insider/outsider dynamics with those outside the tradition. While rhetorical violence—language and behaviors that harm others and that occur so regularly that they often become routinized …

Trauma Of The Heart: Augmenting The Family Paradigm To Stem The Spread Of Hiv/Aids And To Facilitate Healing And Recovery In The Wake Of Hiv/Aids, Gibson Danjuma

CTS Faculty Publications and Creative Activity

This article briefly reflects on the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the African American community. The article suggests an alternative paradigm that views the high-risk behaviors that contribute to the spread of the virus as a reaction to ‘trauma of the heart’ as opposed to viewing the epidemic solely in terms of a lack of HIV and sexually transmitted disease awareness. It further suggests a pastoral intervention of expanding the paradigm of family beyond the classical nuclear construct to family as a system of individuals committed to embracing and ‘adopting’ individuals who have experienced trauma of the heart. This augmented understanding of …

Prometheus And Promethean Theology In The Thought Of Thomas Merton, Patrick Cousins

Theses - ALL

Abstract

The Trappist monk Thomas Merton is best remembered for his spiritual autobiography The Seven Storey Mountain and many other books on prayer and contemplation. His later writings, however, reveal a deep concern about the relationship between God and human freedom. Merton was particularly worried that obedience to God, traditionally understood as a central virtue, not constitute a form of authoritarianism that stripped humanity of the capacity for authenticity. Hence, he used the figure of Prometheus, long a symbol of rebellion against God, to challenge authoritarian theism and iconoclastic anti-theistic humanism. In the process, he deconstructed his own God-image away …

Developing Alternative Leadership Training Model For Evangelical Church Leaders In Ethiopia : An Evaluative Study In The Hiwot Berhan Church, Endale Gebremeskel Ousman

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.