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The Role Of Spiritual Formation And Ministry Governance In Developing Mission-Oriented Governing Boards, Allen Schoonover

Doctor of Ministry

Congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America have struggled over the last generation to reach out effectively to new members. This struggle is the byproduct of a changing ministry context leaders are trying to address. By the 1980s, those elements that had fueled the growth of the Lutheran Church the United States throughout the previous century had largely faded. An awareness of these changes and the corresponding decline in membership and contributions has prompted leaders to examine how to reach out more effectively to those outside traditional ethnic and cultural Lutheran enclaves. In order to improve their congregation’s effectiveness, …

Ordinary Community: Missional Communities As A Helpful Ecclesial Response To The Problem Of Postmodernism And Consumerism For The American Evangelical Church, Christopher W. Marshall

Doctor of Ministry

There is a storm approaching the shores of the American evangelical church that is two-fold. First, there is a macro shift in cultural worldview from modernity, which was embedded in the tenets of the Enlightenment project to a new era called postmodernity. Postmodernity is characterized as a harsh reaction against the utopian ideals of the modern world. What is the appropriate ecclesial response of the American evangelical church to the postmodern world? Secondly, the dominant cultural challenge to Christianity in America is the organizing of life around the attachments of a consumer lifestyle. Consumerism dominates American life however it is …

Minutes Of The Northwest Yearly Meeting Of Friends, 2013, George Fox University Archives

Northwest Yearly Meeting Minutes

Minutes of the Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends, previously known as the Oregon Yearly Meeting.

No Longer In Kansas: The Mainline Church In The Postmodern Age, Susan Leo

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

The Faith Journey In H3, Randall J. Davis

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

Finding The Way Forward: Re-Introducing The Practice Of Discernment As A Means Of Determining God's Direction For The Church Of God Reformation Movement, Bruce W. Steffensen

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

Thriving In Broken Futures: The Paradox Of Church In Historic Watersheds, Christopher Lars Arney

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

Worship As Playground: Living The Song-Story Of God, H. Colleen. Butcher

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

Redeeming Disruptions: A Recommended Model Of Spiritual Formation For Christian Churches Of The Pacific Northwest, Tony L. Nelson

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

Continuity In Charismata: Swedish Mission And The Growth Of Neo-Pentecostal Churches In Russia, Torbjorn Aronson

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

Glimpses Behind The Curtain - Surveillance And Pressure During Church Delegation Visits, Walter Sawatsky

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

Minutes Of The Northwest Yearly Meeting Of Friends, 2012, George Fox University Archives

Northwest Yearly Meeting Minutes

Minutes of the Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends, precursor to the Oregon Yearly Meeting.

Faith And Practice: A Book Of Christian Discipline 2012, George Fox University Archives

Faith and Practice

Faith and Practice: A Book of Christian Discipline, Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends Church 2012. Publication of the Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends.

Positive Deviance : Empowering Ecclesial Contextualization With Theological Praxis, Douglas Wayne Balzer

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

Preparing Men For Eldership In An Upper Middle Class Local Church Through Small Group Mentoring, Greggory Borror

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

Music As A Bridge: An Alternative For Existing Historical Churches In Reaching Young Adults, David B. Parker

Doctor of Ministry

The problem of young adults leaving the existing historical churches has
caused many churches to look for ways to communicate the message of the gospel in new
ways. New churches are springing up around the country in an attempt to minister to
younger generations. Churches large and small are using technology to communicate in a
new era, but one tool has been relatively untapped by existing historical churches when
trying to continue ministry to younger generations. Music is a critical piece of the
ministry in the twenty-first century and churches need to see the gift of music not as a …

Catechetical Approach To Redefining Relationship Between Pastors And Members Of The Congregation With An Eye To Mitigating Pastoral Burnout, Laurie J. Mulkey

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

“That They All Might Be One”: John R. Mott’S Contributions To Methodism, Interreligious Dialogue, And Racial Reconciliation, Benjamin L. Hartley

Faculty Publications - George Fox School of Theology

An extraordinary organizer and leader, Methodist layman John R. Mott (1865–1955) was influential in the establishment and growth of many different world-wide Christian organizations in the early twentieth century. He was even asked to serve as ambassador to China by President Woodrow Wilson—a position he declined. For his work in organizing people and resources for world peace Mott was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1946. This article focuses on Mott’s efforts at ecumenism for the sake of Christian mission by analyzing three dimensions of Mott’s work: Mott’s Methodism, his efforts in global interreligious dialogue, and work in racial reconciliation …

Fingerprints Of God: Change And Innovation At Work In The Church, Kristin D. Longenecker Bullock

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

Beyond Change- Overcoming The Barriers To Small Rural Church Revitalization, Allen F. Wachter

Seminary Masters Theses

Many of the rural churches of the Free Methodist Denomination in the Northeast region of the United States have experienced substantial stagnation and/or decline of their attendance rates over the past five years. This begs the questions, "What is preventing these churches from being revitalized so they too can be used as vessels to grow the Kingdom of God?" Though many obstructions to kingdom growth1 exist, this study focuses on the following five barriers: resistance to change, under-utilization of spiritual gifts, relational dysfunction, apathy, and lack of love. The source of these barriers was discovered through personal observation and experience …

Beyond Change-Overcoming The Barriers To Small Rural Church Revitalization, Allen F. Wachter

Doctor of Ministry

Many of the rural churches of the Free Methodist Denomination in the Northeast region of the United States have experienced substantial stagnation and/or decline of their attendance rates over the past five years. This begs the questions, "What is preventing these churches from being revitalized so they too can be used as vessels to grow the Kingdom of God?" Though many obstructions to kingdom growth1 exist, this study focuses on the following five barriers: resistance to change, under-utilization of spiritual gifts, relational dysfunction, apathy, and lack of love. The source of these barriers was discovered through personal observation and experience …

The Nature Of Evangelism In Missional Churches, Russell York

Doctor of Ministry

Evangelism has long been at the heart of God's mission for the church. The arrival of the twenty-first century brought with it renewed interest in both the mission of the church and evangelism, a practice central to the church's mission. A leading factor in this resurgence is the decline in church attendance over the past several decades. The most influential factors leading to the decline in attendance are culture changes from modernism to postmodemism and from a Christendom society to a post-Christian pluralistic society. These culture shifts resulted in the diminishing influence of the church and non-Christians' often harboring hostile …

Dependence Versus Independence: An Evaluation Of The Relationship Between World Gospel Mission And The Africa Gospel Church In Kenya, Patrick L. Murunga

Doctor of Ministry

Africa Gospel Church has a serious problem of an unhealthy relationship with the World Gospel Mission. Since its inception, the mission has struggled to let go off the church. The church on the other hand, has been happy to see this relationship go on in the same dependent way without much concern. The Africa Gospel Church is over seventy years now and is at a place in its life where it needs to chart its own course.

This study evaluates the relationship between the mission agency and the Africa Gospel Church in Kenya. It investigates the historical challenges that might …

Contextualizing The Gospel To Muslims, Maya J. Morgan

Seminary Masters Theses

Muslims are considered some of the least reached peoples in the world. As "Christianity" is often associated with Colonialism, the Crusades, and Western culture, traditional models of “casting the seed” have proven ineffective. Those seeking to share the goodness with Muslims must explore new contextual ways to communicate the message of Christ to the Islamic community. This thesis begins by defining and giving a brief history of contextualization. Basic methods of contextualization are explained, and issued of syncretism are addressed in chapter one.

Contextualization must be practiced when communicating the good news. Chapter two focuses on the aspects of cross-­‐cultural …

Under One Umbrella: Multiple Communities, One Church, Timothy Jacob Gillespie

Doctor of Ministry

It is my claim that the need for alternative communities within established church structures is not only growing, but is also paramount to the continuation of the gospel of Jesus Christ into the post-Christian, post-Modern world. These alternative communities often take the form of "emerging" worship services, Young Adult services, and "churchwithin- a-church" expressions of worship and community. They are seen in large, medium, and small church settings; as such, we see many of the same problems to varying degrees. The search for relevance has led us to these communities, and this author sees them as valid expressions of faith …

Anglican Eucharistic Liturgy: A Church-Planting Hope For The Post-Christian Culture Of The Pacific Northwest, Anthony D. Kriz

Doctor of Ministry

The question addressed in this dissertation may be stated as follows: 1tJ1l1at hope does Anglican Eucharistic Liturgy bring to the future of church planting within the increasingly post-Christian urban centers of the Pacific Northwest? According to our research of a sample zip code of inner-city Portland, Oregon, only one in four people self-identify with Christianity and less than one in five attend church. Churches are shrinking and closing rapidly and our culture is increasingly defined as post-Christian. The plans of the recent church-planting efforts are losing ground. There is no one-size-fits-all solution, but there is significant evidence that the Anglican …

Charles Cullis, Gaetano Conte, And The Reconfiguration Of The Evangelical Holiness Movement In Boston, 1860-1905, Benjamin Hartley

Faculty Publications - George Fox School of Theology

Excerpt: "In contrast to the presenters before and after me, my presentation focuses on the lives of two individuals rather than one. Charles Cullis (1833-1892) and Gaetano Conte (1859-1917) both represent a kind of “new beginning” for some sectors of Protestant religion in Boston and thus fit particularly well into our panel’s attempt to explore the somewhat paradoxical theme of “strangers in a strange land” of New England. I’ve chosen these two figures because of their influence in re-shaping the evangelical movement in Boston and their relative obscurity in spite of the fame they both shared during their own day. …

Designing Communitas, Kevin Tyler Bates

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

An Inductive Study On How Business As Mission Entrepreneurs Decide To Start Businesses, Michael J. Bates

Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)

No abstract provided.

The Relationship Between The Great Commission, The Most Important Commandment, And Abundance, Mark Mcnees

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.