Arts and Humanities Commons^™

The Liturgical Action Of Christ's Body: A Theo-Philosophical Extension Of Bonhoeffer's Ecclesiology, Joseph Carson

Senior Honors Theses

Bonhoeffer’s theological contributions may provide significant relevance and theoretical illumination on contemporary issues in ecclesiology. Not only did Bonhoeffer offer creative theological insights, but he also incorporated philosophy into his theological positions in a way that maintains the supremacy of theology. Specifically, Bonhoeffer develops an ecclesial theology, starting in Sanctorum Communio and extending throughout his writings, that relies on social theory and philosophy (especially Hegel) while simultaneously making theology the theoretical authority over these other disciplines. In his ecclesiology, Bonhoeffer argues for an ontological unity between the Church and Christ, which he calls the Christ-reality and Christ existing as Church-community …

A Correlational Study Of Emotional Competence And Christian Practices Among Millennials, Nancy Watkins Flanagan

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

While emotions management is critical to effective leadership, literature describes present and emerging leaders in the millennial generation as not being proficient at managing their emotions. If this is true, how could the Christian community promote leadership development for millennials? Toward determining if a connection exists between emotions management and faith, this non-experimental quantitative correlational study explored the relationship, if any, between millennials’ emotional competence and Christian practices. Survey instrumentation was employed. The survey included two validated instruments, one for emotional competence and the other for spiritual growth. Study invitations were emailed to 395 millennials at a church in VA’s …

Tale Of Two Judiths: Queering Judith With The Works Of Judith Butler, Kat S. Lewis

Religious Studies Honors Projects

Biblical texts play a significant role in shaping expectations for behavior based on gender in Western societies. In my queer reading of the Book of Judith, I argue that Judith’s performance of gender is fluid and gender expansive. I use reader-response criticism to interpret Judith in conversation with the works of Judith Butler and Saba Mahmood on gender performativity, drag, and agency. This queer reading of Judith provides representation of gender expansiveness in biblical texts and explores queer possibilities in Judith as a way to challenge and subvert a patriarchal, heterosexist gender binary.

In His Image And Into His Likeness: Human Nature's Theosis In C.S. Lewis's Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold, Jacob Ross Taylor

Honors Theses

C.S. Lewis’s standalone title Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold transforms the Greek mythos “Cupid and Psyche” into a novel about human nature being deified. In TWHF, Lewis presents an arc from pagan dualism through rationalism and finally to our relational God who makes us holy like Him. Lewis studies have suffered from the lack scholarship applying St. Thomas Aquinas’s christened Aristotelianism which would illuminate the metaphysical foundations that Lewis founds his words and builds his worlds upon. In Aristotle metaphysical biology he proposed that the human soul is neither an altogether separable spirit divorced from the bodily …

Skepticism Of God's Justice And Ways In The World In Job And Ecclesiastes, Andrew O'Neill

Undergraduate Theses

The biblical books of Job and Ecclesiastes have mystified and entranced readers of Hebrew and Christian scripture for thousands of years. This is done almost effortlessly due to their exploration of the themes of justice, fairness, and God’s relationship with human beings. These topics were relevant at the time they were written and are still relevant in the twenty first century. This thesis presentation will discuss how these two books represent a shift in biblical thinking towards God’s justice and ways in the world and will discern what implications the text’s conclusions pose for people reading these texts as scripture …

The Soteriological Necessity Of A Full Incarnation And Its Implications For Believers, Addison Yates

Tenor of Our Times

At the center of Christian theology lies the study of Jesus the Christ, his being, and his work. Differing beliefs about Jesus’ divinity and humanity were a source of early Christian controversies, and the first ecumenical councils addressed these Christological controversies by affirming that Jesus was both fully human and fully divine. Though this doctrine is widely accepted in modern Christian theology, many practicing Christians, particularly those who are unfamiliar with Christian history, may never have explored Jesus’ nature in his incarnation or considered its implications. The aim of this work is twofold: to establish that a full incarnation of …

Book Reviews - Spiritus 6.1 (Spring 2021), Daniel King, Michael A. Donaldson, Robert Mcbain, Christopher J. King, Cletus L. Hull, Iii, Daniel D. Isgrigg

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Reviews

Edith Prakash. Yesterday, Today, and Forever: The Extraordinary Life and Ministry of Tommy Lee Osborn. Daniel King ............................................175

Chris E. W. Green. Sanctifying Interpretation: Vocation, Holiness, and Scripture. 2nd ed. Michael A. Donaldson .................................................................177

Leulseged Philemon. Pneumatic Hermeneutics: The Role of the Holy Spirit in the Theological Interpretation of Scripture. Robert D. McBain......................180

Daniela C. Augustine. The Spirit and the Common Good: Shared Flourishing in the Image of God. Christopher J. King .................................182

William Blaine-Wallace. When Tears Sing: The Art of Lament in Christian Community. Cletus L. Hull, III .....................................184

Gene L. Green, Stephen T. …

Pentecostalism And Coronavirus: Reframing The Message Of Health-And-Wealth In A Pandemic Era, J. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

One of the global effects of the COVID-19 pandemic is the religious responses that it has generated. For contemporary Pentecostalism in particular, which is a religion that preaches and teaches a theology of human flourishing through the principles of prosperity, the negative effects of the coronavirus on people proved a theologically challenging endeavor. Pronouncing curses on evil or blaming Satan for it in human life has always been part of the means to achieve health and wealth for contemporary Pentecostals. This is very much the case in Africa where the instrumentalist use of religion as a means of personal and …

Covid-19, Science, And Race: A Black Pentecostal Engagement, David Daniels

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

A Black Pentecostal engagement of COVID-19, science, and race points towards a rapport between the Spirit-empowered Movement and health sciences where religious and secular (science) actors are respected agents in the public arena with each offering valuable perspectives and resources to pivotal conversations about public health in this case. In this article, it is argued that the Church of God in Christ (COGIC) represented in the episcopal letters of Bishop Charles E. Blake, Sr., the presiding bishop of COGIC from 2007 to 2021, demonstrate a religious perspective that possesses a critical perspective on engaging health science during the COVID-19 pandemic. …

The Limited Impact Of Pentecostal Interracialism On Systemic Racism In The Usa, Harold D. Hunter

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

The centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre demands a careful review of the impact of systemic racism on Christian communities. This study starts by looking at early Pentecostal interracialism in the USA. There is a striking difference between those churches that founded the Pentecostal Fellowship of North America (PFNA) and those who were not invited or even barred. The renewed ascendancy of white supremacy forces a review of black Pentecostal victims who suffered discrimination, violence, even death. Pentecostals who would extend Jim Crow laws into the heavenly realm need to revisit the founders’ emphasis on repentance, reform, and restitution.

Pentecostal Culture, Or Pentecost Of Culture?: Transformation, Paradigms, Power, Unity, Dimitri Sala Ofm

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

This article will explore the relationship between Pentecostals and the broader cultures we inhabit. It will acknowledge that, like all religion, Pentecostalism can tend to create a culture within itself (a “Pentecostal culture”), which at times effects a withdrawal of its adherents from the surrounding world. This necessitates a conscious decision, first to navigate away from that tendency where it exists, and then to define a positive role for Pentecostalism within culture, viz., the transformation of civilization (a “Pentecost of culture”). Thereby the article proposes a more extensive definition of the baptism of the Spirit, looks at how God is …

Towards A Pentecostal Conscientizing Praxis Of Mass Culture Engagement: Contrasting Pneumatologies Of Amos Yong And Simon Chan, Monte Lee Rice

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

This essay notes promises and problems with Pentecostal cultural engagement through its dualistic “spiritual warfare” cosmology. I propose a promising foray by forging Amos Yong’s and Simon Chan’s theologies of cultural engagement. For both employ their Asian particularities towards addressing cultural phenomena in manners that distinguish their contrasting yet I shall argue, complementary pneumatologically themed theologies of culture. Yet neither have engaged methodological disciplines of cultural analysis and critique. In response this essay suggests a Pentecostal conscientizing praxis of mass culture engagement, in conversation with Amos Yong and Simon Chan. This essay concludes by suggesting need for discerning possible prophetic …

Global Poverty And Transnational Pentecostalism In The Middle East, Eric N. Newberg

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Driven by the impact of global poverty, large numbers of documented and undocumented workers from Eastern Europe, Asia, and Africa have migrated to countries in the Middle East. Many of these migrant workers are Pentecostals. The article provides a survey of Pentecostalism in the Middle East and reports on the findings of ethnographic research on transnational Pentecostals in the Levant and the Arabian Peninsula. Compelled by the pressures of globalization, these migrants find better economic prospects as contract workers than they could as free laborers in their home countries. Transnational Pentecostals in the Middle East derive spiritual, social, economic, and …

The Name Of Jesus In Luke-Acts With Special Reference To The Gentile Mission, James Shelton

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Peter declares “There is no other name . . . by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12); yet later he says, “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation, anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him” (10:34–35a). Are there then those among the Gentiles who follow God without hearing the name of Jesus, or are all who have not heard the name lost? The question, often posed in “either/or” discourse terms, fails to understand the meaning and scope of the name of Jesus and the urgency of the mandate …

Three Unique Theological Themes Of Oral Roberts’ Preaching, Julie Ma

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

The study examines three unique theological themes of Oral Roberts: “Seed-faith,” healing of the whole being, and the “Fourth Man.” Since his message was a reflection of his theology, I also investigate his theological formation, informed particularly by his experiences such as miraculous healing.

In Memoriam: Dr. James B. Buskirk (1933–2020), James Shelton, Arden C. Autry Phd, Sally Jo Shelton

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

James Buskirk is honored as the founding Dean of ORU’s Graduate School of Theology. A Master of Arts degree was already in place; Buskirk was tasked with establishing a Master of Divinity, a Doctor of Ministry, and a PhD in theology—each fully accredited. During his tenure, faculty and student numbers increased along with denominational diversity. The MDiv and DMin achieved accreditation. The PhD was not started, however, as Oral Roberts dealt with competing financial priorities. Roberts’ declared decision not to offer a PhD led to Buskirk’s departure. He remained on good terms personally with Roberts. Buskirk’s effect on others is …

Editorial - Spiritus 6.1 (Spring 2021), Jeffrey S. Lamp

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

No abstract provided.

Front Matter- Spiritus 6.1 (Spring 2021), [email protected]

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

No abstract provided.

Full Issue - Spiritus 6.1 (Spring 2021), [email protected]

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

The full issue of Spiritus 6, vol 1 (Spring 2021)

Messiahship And Discipleship, Kendall Davis

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

The question of discipleship in the synoptics is really a question of what it means to be a faithful member of God’s people of Israel. In late Second Temple Judaism the answer to this question was by no means obvious. For some, such as the Pharisees, the answer was to follow the traditions of the elders fastidiously in every area of life (cf. Matt 15:2). For others, such as the Qumran community, the answer was to escape the sinful compromise of modern Israel and create a pure community in the desert. For others, such as the zealots and other revolutionaries, …

Cd Poem, Christian Dollar

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Poetry composed by Christian Dollar.

Sanctification And Ecclesiology, Gregory Moffitt

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

The question of the nature of the Christian community is complex, with farreaching implications. For instance, the way in which we conceive the Christian community impacts how we think about questions such as the sanctification of the individual as he or she lives out their vocation as a part of the community. In this paper I will examine how Dietrich Bonhoeffer discussed the Christian community, focusing particularly upon how he discusses questions concerning ecclesiology and sanctification in his Discipleship and Life Together.

Letter From The Chairman, Kendall Davis

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

It’s almost certainly a cliché at this point, but it’s been an incredibly long year and a half for all of us. This year’s fourth year class was forced to learn alongside their churches how to do ministry in the midst of a pandemic. This year’s vicars will have done their entire vicarages during a pandemic. Even though we’ve been inperson for classes, things have still been markedly different on campus. Classrooms are socially distanced and have even been conducted online at times. The usual events that characterize the seminary calendar have been mostly gone. Even outside of the pandemic …

Reflections On The Dangers, Christian Dollar

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

The culture is changing. Such a statement is as obvious and non-controversial as they come. No matter what side one fights for in the innumerable culture wars being simultaneously waged in our country and world, all can agree on one thing: the morals, rituals, beliefs, and behaviors of wide swaths of people are changing. New morals are crashing into old ones. Old beliefs are being revitalized, and behaviors once thought unimaginable or relegated to distant lands are being championed at home. Infinitely more controversial than the presence of cultural change is what exactly culture is. For the sake of simplicity …

A Christ Poem, Hayden Brown

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Poetry composed by Hayden Brown.

Expense For Just Their Kind, Cody Macmillin

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Poetry composed by Cody MacMillan.

Faithfully Unmasked, Cody Macmillin

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

The Church has found herself in a difficult situation these past twelve months. Wrestling with the practical concerns of gathering safely and legal restrictions on worship, many Christians have found themselves in some form of spiritual exile. They have been isolated from the people who would otherwise demonstrate God’s love and care. The voices that once sang together in their sanctuaries have since been muted for fear of feedback in their monitors, and the Christians who have found the courage to attend in-person worship are now met with floating eyes over choking cloth. Indeed, the oft-debated and dreaded drapery which …

Behind The Mask Of God, Cody Macmillin

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Poetry composed by Cody MacMillan.

Grapho 2021, Kendall Davis

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

The complete Grapho for 2021.

Sin In Christian Thought, Kevin Timpe

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

No abstract provided.