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Imhbco (In My Humble But Correct Opinion), Rick Anderson

Against the Grain

No abstract provided.

Grand Valley Forum, Volume 039, Number 05, September 22, 2014, Grand Valley State University

2014-2015, Volume 39

Grand Valley Forum is Grand Valley State's faculty and staff newsletter, published from 1976 to the present.

A Tale Of Two Schools: The Spiritual Development Of Leaders In Protestant Seminaries, Patricia A. Rhodes Phd

Dissertations

Scholars and practitioners increasingly consider the spiritual development of leaders to be essential, not only for individual well-being, but that of the culture at large. This is particularly important for clergy, a profession centered on spiritual leadership. While the institutions in which most Protestant ministers pursue training have historically privileged scholarship over spirituality, this has changed substantially since the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) added spiritual development of students to its accreditation standards in 1992. Since then, seminaries have sought to comply in various ways. This study explored two Protestant seminaries, addressing these questions: (a) what is the process seminaries …

Developing An Intentional Mentoring Model For Disciple Formation At The Mayfair Church Of Christ, Jason Bybee

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This doctor of ministry thesis presents the results of a project to lead a team in the development of an intentional mentoring model for disciple formation at the Mayfair Church of Christ. This intervention involved the team members in a series of sessions during September and October 2013. Project sessions were designed to provide participants an intentional mentoring experience through exposure to four core practices: exploration of the biblical text, appreciative inquiry exercises, communal sharing, and prayer. Sessions were informed by (1) an understanding of discipleship as following behind Jesus and walking alongside our fellow sojourners, (2) the nature of …

Integrated Relationships: The Impact Of European Integration On The Special Relationship, 1969-1973, Benjamin Jared Pack

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The special relationship has long been a topic of interest to historians of US foreign relations. The general consensus has been that the years 1969-1973 were a low point for Anglo-American relations, and have therefore been dismissed as largely insignificant. Rejecting this interpretation, this thesis contends that while certainly one of the lowest moments in the history of the special relationship, the Heath-Nixon relationship reveals much about the nature of the special relationship and America's relations with its allies more broadly. Focusing on the question of European integration (and the corresponding British entry into the European Community in 1973) and …

Entire Issue: Volume 3, Issue 1, Stacy Creel

SLIS Connecting

Entire issue of SLIS Connecting, Volume 3, Issue 1

From The Gas, Congratulations, Publications, And Presentations, Teresa S. Welsh

SLIS Connecting

Read a highlight from one of the GAs, and all about what our alum, students, and faculty have been doing

The Rhetoric Of Gay Christians: Matthew Vines And Reverend Nancy Wilson As Exemplars, Josu Miller

Graduate Research Symposium (2010 - 2017)

In the United States, there is a perception that the gay rights debate situates Christians against gay rights advocates. According to this perception, Christians oppose gay rights, because the Bible condemns homosexuality as a sin, and those who support gay rights do so using purely secular arguments. This perception of the gay rights debate is flawed and overly simplistic, because simply not all Christians oppose gay rights. In fact, there are multiple interpretations of biblical texts that support homosexuality and have caused a gay rights debate within the church that is as complex and intricate as gay rights debate outside …

Game Theory Meets The Humanities And Both Win Or Book Review: Game Theory And The Humanities: Bridging Two Worlds, By Steven J. Brams, Karl-Dieter Crisman

Journal of Humanistic Mathematics

This review discusses Brams' wide-ranging book Game Theory and the Humanities and gives some basic examples of the methodology and style, including how the Theory of Moves contributes to understanding such games.

Expertise And Service: A Call To Action, Rebecca Butler

Library Faculty Publications

Although theological librarianship occurs most often at seminaries or graduate level theology programs, there are also librarians working with theology on an undergraduate level. In many cases, these librarians are responsible for additional subject areas and may or may not have any theological expertise or training. While the two groups do the same types of work, they are doing so in different ways. To explore these commonalities and differences, a study was conducted among undergraduate theology liaisons and those results were compared with the literature and data regarding graduate level theological librarianship. One hundred ten undergraduate librarians responded to a …

2014-2015. Catalog., Hope College

Hope College Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Romans 12 Motivational Gifts In The Military: An Exploration Of Person-Job Fit, Job Performance, And Job Satisfaction, Matthew P. Earnhardt

Publications

The study researches the Romans 12 motivational gifts and their relationship to person-job fit, job satisfaction, and job performance in the U.S. Air Force. Results of the study identified two clusters among U.S. Air Force personnel and found a positive relationship with person-job fit and job satisfaction — and no relationship with job performance. Several practical applications can be gleaned from the current research, especially in the area of motivation and training.

Preaching That Leads To Transformation At The North Street Church Of Christ In Nacogdoches, Texas, Curtis Barbarick

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This doctor of ministry thesis presents the results of a project to develop a process whereby the sermon would be enhanced for listeners at the North Street Church of Christ in Nacogdoches, Texas, so that preaching would be more effective in leading to transformation. The theology and methodology of John Wesley were utilized as a lens by which to think about and implement this practice.

The intervention involved a six-week session with a focus group that represented a cross-section of the congregation. Participants in this group were asked to engage in a lectio divina exercise on a particular text daily, …

Religious Change Experiences Of The Participants Of The Inner Healing Retreat At The English-Speaking Site Of The Divine Retreat Centre, Kerala, India, Joe Cardoso

Theses

The Divine Retreat Centre, Muringoor, Kerala, India is internationally known for the changes it effects in the lives of its retreat participants. To date, over ten million participants have attended the retreats over a decade. However there is a dearth of empirical research on the change processes involved in this retreat experience. This study was formulated to investigate the following research question: how do the participants at the Divine Retreat Centre come to be what they come to be as a result of each day‟s experience of the six day Inner Healing Retreat? This study is a qualitative investigation and …

United We Stand': A Biblical Perspective On Ecumenical Relations, Gerald A. Klingbeil

Journal of the Adventist Theological Society

No abstract provided.

Meek Leadership: The Mosaic Model, Lael O. Caesar

Journal of the Adventist Theological Society

No abstract provided.

Annotated Bibliography: A Bible Study Reference Bookshelf, Jeannie Ferriss

The Christian Librarian

No abstract provided.

What Makes A Man: Gender And Sexual Boundaries On Evangelical Christian Sexuality Websites, Kelsy Burke

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

This article examines how some evangelical Christian men create alternative meanings associated with gender-deviant sex in order to justify it within an evangelical framework. The author shows how Christian sexuality website users construct gender omniscience—a spouse and God’s all-knowing certainty about one’s ‘‘true’’ gender identity—to reconcile men’s interests in non-normative sex with their status as Christian patriarchs. By constructing gender as relational and spiritual, they simultaneously normalize their behaviors while condemning others who participate in similar acts but fail to meet the requirements of gender omniscience. Challenging common assumptions about evangelical sexuality, this article offers insights into the intersection of …

An Exploratory Study Of Recovery And Recovery Maintenance For Victims Of Childhood Sexual Abuse Who Completed Faith-Based Residential Treatment Programs, Ann Kerlin

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This interpretive phenomenological analysis of the experience of recovery and recovery maintenance for women with a history of childhood sexual abuse and its sequelae included interviews and a non-standard questionnaire. Ten women with this history who had completed a faith based treatment program for substance abuse and/or eating disorders described recovery. Themes that emerged related to the process of change included: Changes in Relationships with Others, to Self, to God, and lastly, Forgiveness as a Catalyst for Change. Six practices emerged in the exploration of maintenance recovery. This research highlighted the need for thorough bio-psycho-social-spiritual assessment and areas of concern …

From The Reference Desk-Reviews Of Reference Titles, Tom Gilson

Against the Grain

No abstract provided.

The Development Of A Biblical Hebrew Parser, John D. Crawford, Dr. Deryle Lonsdale

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this project was to produce a phrase-structure grammar for Biblical Hebrew and to determine the best way to apply said grammar in a computerized parser in order to test its durability. Overall I believe this project was a success. Although the parser has only been tested within the first few chapters of Genesis, there is sufficient variety of syntax there to test the parser’s capabilities. In addition, the problems of developing a parser have made the more difficult aspects of the application of linguistic theory to real data much more real and interesting for me.

A Plan For Developing An Effective Community Outreach Strategy For Churches In The Northeast, Roscoe Lilly

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Community outreach is an essential part of a church's mission to be "salt and light" to those around them. Community outreach creates the crucial platform for a church's evangelistic efforts. While many churches want to reach out to their community, few have a clear understanding of how or where to begin. The purpose of this project is to help churches in the Northeast better understand how to increase their community's receptivity to the gospel through a strategic community outreach plan. The project will use NorthStar Church as a case study. It is the aim of this project to demonstrate how …

To The Jew First: A Socio-Historical And Biblical-Theological Analysis Of The Pauline Teaching Of `Election' In Light Of Second Temple Jewish Patterns Of Thought, Anthony Thornhill

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Paul's "doctrine" of election has remained a controversial and enigmatic topic for centuries. Few studies, however, have approached Paul's doctrine through the context of Second Temple Judaism. This study examines Paul's view of election through the lens of Second Temple Jewish texts written prior to 70 CE. In doing so, it is argued that the best framework through which to view Paul's discussion of election is through a primarily corporate model of election. While such a model is rooted in Judaism, Paul departs from his Jewish contemporaries in arguing that the locus of election is in God's Messiah, Jesus.

Christ's Response To The Last, The Least, The Lost, The Left Out - Is The Church Living Up To Christ's Standard?, Jerry Staples

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There is a plethora of statistics concerning how many un-churched people there are in the United States and the socioeconomic ladder does not discriminate who fits this lost category. Yet, the concern of this project deals with the gang member, drug dealer, drug users, pimps and prostitutes. The intent is to take outreach to the street through cook outs, Holy block parties, street revivals and the like. The rationale of this project is to show how one can reach, teach and keep this group of people, the potential dangers, and positive consequences associated with it. The potential value of this …

God Made It Happen: A Rhetorical Analysis Of Jerry Falwell's Response To 9/11, Terry Littleton

Cultural Studies Capstone Papers

Using rhetorical analysis, this project examines the two texts (Listen America! and 700 Club interview after 9/11) of Religious Right preacher, Jerry Falwell to examine conceptual continuity over twenty years and uncover key ideological concepts. While the Religious Right employs many methods to influence the votes of the evangelical congregation, this paper will focus specifically on Falwell and the use of Biblical metaphors in his popular evangelical discourse. The project examines the fear-mongering used to create hate and paranoia in audience of these two texts.

Editor's Statement, Abby Stocker, Leah Patton, Brad Cox, Jacob Manning, Roberta Fultz, Jared Hedges, Stacie Lewis

Colloquy Undergraduate Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Making Disciples Of Jesus Christ: Implementing An Effective Discipleship Strategy For Churches In America, Victor Ogundiran

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Various research findings on spiritual formation in the America church reveal that the current state of making disciples of Jesus Christ who are observing all that Jesus has commanded is woefully grim. This author believes what we have in place for making disciples is inadequate, unimplemented, or both. The purpose of this thesis project is to explain the current state of spiritual formation in the American Church and the reasons why it falls short of God's desire and design. This effort will include and incorporate research from at least 20 churches to see what discipleship systems they are using, if …

Elder Selection: Engaging The Monterey Church Of Christ In A Collaborative Elder Selection Process, Benjamin D. Pickett

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This doctor of ministry thesis presents the outcomes of a project intended to foster greater collaboration at the Monterey Church of Christ in its selection of elders. The intervention involved the engagement of the Monterey Church in a process that involved multiple steps. These steps involved engagement with teachers in the context of a teacher training seminar, with Bible classes in a series of Bible lessons, and with elders, elder nominees, and their spouses in order to discern the perceived degree to which Monterey members participate in the elder selection process. The Bible lessons presented an alternative model for theological …

Hangin' With Judas: A Narrative Analysis Of Stephen Adly Guirgis's 'The Last Days Of Judas Iscariot', Constance Falconer

Masters Theses

Stephen Adly Guirgis has created an era-melting play, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, which explores the timeless debate between divine mercy and free will. A systematic application of Walter R. Fisher's narrative analysis, through form identification and a functional analysis, determined how Guirgis accomplishes persuasion. This qualitative study focused on Guirgis's narrative, using Walter R. Fisher's narrative paradigm as a framework to answer the research question(s): (1) If Guirgis's ideology and created world in The Last Days of Judas Iscariot are foreign and imagined, how is narrative probability and narrative fidelity achieved?; and, (2) How does Guirgis persuade his …

Clay-Potter Imagery In The Bible: Theological And Practical Implications For Daily Christian Life, Karl Stelzer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

God, the Master Potter, uses clay-potter imagery to explain spiritual truth. These passages are ignored, explained superficially, or misinterpreted and have not had the divinely intended impact. Theologically, doctrines of Theology Proper, Bibliology, and Anthropology have been compromised. Practically, the Holy Spirit has been hindered. To demonstrate the need for clay-potter instruction, research will include a comparative analysis of information gathered through questionnaires to churches that have held a clay-potter conference and those that have not, and an examination of written material and popular presentations. This author combines professional pottery expertise and biblical training to present accurate exposition. This thesis …