Religion Commons^™

An Excerpt On Slavery From Synodical Proceedings, Christian J. Einertson

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Looking back on the impact and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. the issue of civil rights for minority communities obviously comes to the fore. Historically, King’s work for civil rights is inextricably linked with the Civil War and surrounding events such as the ratification of the thirteenth through fifteenth amendments a century before his time. In an attempt to engage the issue of civil rights theologically, I present a translation of the report on the debate over slavery from the proceedings of the Norwegian Synod’s convention in July 1861 as it is found in Kirkelig Maanedstidende v.6, 258–262.1

Letter From The Chairman Of Student Publications, Jordan Voges

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Why a student journal? The simple answer is: you, you the writers, and you the readers. To those who want an outlet for their mind and creativity, who want to test their work in the public forum, who have something to say in words to the academy, in poetry, in pictures, or in prose, we offer you these pages. And to those who want to read and see the work of Concordia Seminary students, to debate and discuss, to think and question, to appreciate and applaud, and to thereby be enriched and learn, we offer you these pages now filled …

A Letter Of Hope To The Concordia Seminary Community, John Nunes

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Shortly after the death of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., these remarkably blunt words from Lutheran pastor and civil rights leader, William H. Griffin, were released by Concordia Publishing House: “Unless the church faces up to the racism in its own midst, the witness of the church against the racism outside the church will go unheedeed."

A Map Key To Martin Luther King Jr, Jordan Voges

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

When and if one hears the name Martin Luther King Jr. at a confessional Christian school like Concordia Seminary, it is often only in passing. The most well-known leader of the African-American civil rights movement is treated much like a roadside monument to a rare geological anomaly: something worth pointing out on the way to somewhere else, worth looking at and reading a paragraph or two about, but hardly a destination for contemplation in and of itself. In addition to the casual manner with which his presence is noted along the highway of theological dialogue, most references to the man …

Mythical Typology In The Lord Of The Rings, Andrew Jones

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

When considering potential gospel patterns in J. R. R. Tolkien’s work, every critic is met with two conflicting realities. Firstly, the presence of gospel patterns is abundantly apparent in Tolkien’s work. Secondly, Tolkien himself stated rather emphatically that he did not intend to create a Christian allegory. Clyde S. Kilby writes, “The story, says [Tolkien], is ‘not ‘about’ anything but itself ’ and certainly ‘has no allegorical intentions, general, particular or topical, moral, religious or political.’ [Tolkien] declares in fact that he has a ‘cordial dislike’ of allegory.”1

Rethinking Law And Gospel In The Way We Do Preaching, Benjamin Berteau

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

This paper evaluates the impact of C. F. W. Walther’s Law and Gospel and Richard Caemmerer’s goal, malady, means approach to homiletics, also discussing the potential trap of law-gospel reductionism. A suggested pathway forward is a reemphasis on a creedal approach to Lutheran theology and preaching as well as a renewal of rhetoric as foundational to ultimately restoring a positive view of the third use or function of the law in Lutheran preaching. Having done so, the reader may certainly apply this positive view of the law as it relates to preaching on other topics related to the Christian Life …

Under The Power And Control, Chris Heaton

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

Jesus has power over the spiritual realm of Satan, who is bound first through Jesus’s ministry and ultimately through his death and resurrection.

That my hearers may endure spiritual testing with full confidence of the victory won over Satan by Jesus, under whose power they are now under in baptism.

A Lost Prayer, Jaron Melin

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

What can we learn about prayer from a Jew who survived the Holocaust? Even though we face horrors, tragedies, and trials, prayer is part of who we are even when we don’t know why we do it. We also get an existential view of looking at the hidden God in the midst of atrocity. Finally, we see an example of a modern-day lament to God about cruel injustice. So then, we can bring our laments to God about injustice even today. As Christians, we can respond to this lament by saying, “Come quickly, Lord Jesus!”

A Bible Study On Leviticus 19_1-2, 9-10, Joshua Ulm

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

As he wrote, spoke, and marched in the name of civil rights, Martin Luther King Jr. constantly addressed the issue of poverty. It was his opinion that equal rights can never be fully realized until poverty and financial inequality are eliminated. Toward the end of his 1967 Southern Christian Leadership Conference Presidential Address, King said: “[L]et us go out with a divine dissatisfaction. Let us be dissatisfied until America will no longer have a high blood pressure of creeds and an anemia of deeds. Let us be dissatisfied until the tragic walls that separate the outer city of wealth and …

Grapho 2018, Jordan Voges

Grapho : Concordia Seminary Student Journal

The complete Grapho for 2018.

Limited Atonement In 1 John 2:2, Steven Clark

Celebration of Research

Atonement, the theological issue dealing with the precise nature of Christ’s work, is a central doctrine to the Christian faith and yet it is one which historically has not always achieved consensus among theologians. This problem becomes more complicated when we entertain the possibility that different biblical authors may have had competing understandings even within the New Testament canon. This project explores what might happen if we were to interpret 1 John 2:2’s idea of Jesus as an atoning sacrifice for the sins of the whole world in light of Rudolf Bultmann’s basic thesis about the Gospel of John’s view …

Another Scientific Revolution: Now Yielding A 'Cosmic Biology' Consistent With Natural Theology, Theodore Walker

Perkins Faculty Research and Special Events

Beyond the Copernican revolution, another scientific revolution is now in process. Inspired by Sir Fred Hoyle and others, this contemporary extension of the Copernican revolution is replacing biology conceived as exclusively Earth science with biology conceived as including study of stellar evolution and cosmic evolution. Furthermore, astrobiology, panspermia, and cosmic biology (Hoyle and Wickramasinghe) are advancing in ways consistent with natural theology, especially with panentheism. Some of this was anticipated and advocated by Alfred North Whitehead, Charles Hartshorne, and other philosophers of nature.

Don't Call King A 'Civil Rights' Leader: Toward Abolishing Poverty And War By Correcting Our Fatally Inadequate Remembering Of Mlk Jr., Theodore Walker

Perkins Faculty Research and Special Events

Remembering Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.—primarily as a domestic “civil rights” leader—is inadequate, and sometimes harmful. The term “civil rights” fails to embrace King’s abolitionist movements toward the global abolition of poverty and war. Moreover, King was a Baptist preacher called by God. He advanced an optimistic realism (including a “realistic pacifism”) that improves upon pessimistic-cynical versions of political realism. And King went beyond advancing “civil rights” to advancing economic justice, economic rights, and human rights. He prescribed adding a social and economic bill of rights to the US Constitution, plus full-employment supplemented by “guaranteed income,” …

Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Gregory Chad Wilkes

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a film review of Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) directed by Rian Johnson.

The Mystery Of The Incarnation: Towards A Reconciliation Of Cyril And Nestorius, Kyle Williams

Seminary Masters Theses

This thesis studies the fifth-century christological controversy surrounding Cyril of Alexandria (c. 378-444) and Nestorius of Constantinople (c. 381-451) and their debate around the person and nature of Jesus Christ, sparked by the theotokos dispute. At the First Council of Ephesus (431) the christologies of these two bishops and theologians were pitted against each other, and have since been studied in contrast to one another. The goal of this study is to examine the christologies of Cyril and Nestorius with the intention to seek reconciliation between the two. In the Introduction I first orient the reader to the problem and …

Definitively Lutheran?: An Exploration Of Definitive Lutheran Characteristics In Higher Education, John Eggen

Doctor of Ministry Theses

This mixed-method, exploratory case study explores definitively Lutheran practices in higher education. This research explores emerging themes from Intersections and other publications reflecting upon institutional religious identity. This research explores the student experiences, expectations, and perspectives through a student survey and the perspectives of institutional leadership through qualitative research. It evaluates definitive characteristics of Lutheran higher education through the lenses of adaptive change, organizational theory, open systems theory, Lutheran identity, vocation, and exploring an understanding of missional, cruciform, perichoretic communities from the Pauline epistles. The results reveal limited statistically significant difference among students based on religious affiliation, but a divergent …

The Doctrine Of Man: What Is The Destiny Of Man Following His Death?, Harold Willmington

The Adam File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of Man: What Does The Roman Catholic Church Say About Man’S Destiny?, Harold Willmington

The Adam File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of Man: What Do The Advocates Of Soul Sleep Say About Man’S Destiny?, Harold Willmington

The Adam File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of Man: What Do Various Non-Christian Systems Say About Man’S Destiny?, Harold Willmington

The Adam File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of Man: What Do Major Religions Say About Man's Destiny?, Harold Willmington

The Adam File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of Man: What Do The World's Philosophical Systems Say About Man's Destiny?, Harold Willmington

The Adam File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of Man: What Do The Cults Say About Man's Destiny?, Harold Willmington

The Adam File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of The Holy Spirit (V-W), Harold Willmington

The Third Person File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of The Holy Spirit (A-M), Harold Willmington

The Third Person File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of Man: What Does Judaism Say About Man’S Destiny?, Harold Willmington

The Adam File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of The Holy Spirit (T-U), Harold Willmington

The Third Person File

No abstract provided.

The Doctrine Of Man: What Does Evangelical Christianity Say About Man’S Destiny?, Harold Willmington

The Adam File

No abstract provided.

"Turn In Your Bible To...": Examining Rhetorical Agency In Sermonic Discourse, Marshall Thomas Covert

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Rhetorical agency is an ideologically contentious facet within communication and rhetorical research. While its importance in scholarship can be traced back to early works by Kenneth Burke and Pierre Bourdieu, debate continues regarding the source of agency, how it is enacted in rhetorical application and communication, and who/what can claim responsibility for the communication practices one may utilize in enacting their respective levels of agency. Thus, the ways in which the rhetoric of popular, influential individuals/antecedents affects the rhetorical agency and invention practices of those without significant levels of influence must be examined. American Christianity, in particular the culture created …

The Doctrine Of Man: Is There A Difference Between Purgation And Purgatory?, Harold Willmington

The Adam File

No abstract provided.