Religion Commons^™

Luther, The Flawed Giant, Brent A. R. Hege

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Presentation given in part of the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation at the First Lutheran Church on October 21, 2017 in Columbus, Indiana.

Luther’S Life And Thought, Brent A. R. Hege

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Presentation given in part of the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation at the First Lutheran Church on October 21, 2017 in Columbus, Indiana.

Europe At The Time Of The Reformation, Brent A. R. Hege

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Presentation given in part of the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation at the First Lutheran Church on October 21, 2017 in Columbus, Indiana.

Rudolf Bultmann On Myth, History, And The Resurrection, Brent Hege

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

The Christian faith stands or falls with the confession that Jesus Christ is risen. While that assertion itself is perhaps uncontroversial, precisely what this confession means has been a subject of profound significance and immense controversy for centuries. Central to this discussion is the role of myth and history in the biblical witness and in the church’s theological engagement with the confession that Jesus Christ is risen. This book traces key trajectories of German Protestant discussions of myth, history, and the resurrection from its earliest critical analysis in the work of Hermann Samuel Reimarus and David Friedrich Strauss to contemporary …

Slow Scholarship: Do Bloggers Rush In Where Jesus’ Wife Would Fear To Tread?, James F. Mcgrath

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

No abstract provided.

"Enchantment Dissolved": A Reexamination Of The Hymn's Authorship And Significance In The Commonplace Ms. Hannah Swynock, Hannah Bradley

Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research

“Enchantment Dissolved” is a hymn written by John Newton and a part of the first publication of the Olney Hymns in 1779. However, starting around the year 1803, the hymn was misattributed in multiple publications to William Cowper, the second author of the collection. This article will analyze Cowper’s literary style and consider why the hymn may have been mistaken for his creation. This particular hymn also appears in a 17-18th century commonplace, Hannah Swynock 1687, in the Parker MSS. at the Lilly Rare Book Library at Indiana University. In this hand-written manuscript, the hymn has four additional verses that …

Obedient Unto Death: Philippians 2:8, Gethsemane, And The Historical Jesus, James Mcgrath

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Despite the extensive attention that has been given to Philippians 2:6–11 in relation to its Christology, the possibility that v8 alludes to the story about Jesus in Gethsemane has received only cursory mention when it has been considered at all. Philippians 2:8 and the Gospel tradition converge in depicting Jesus choosing to be obedient to God even to the point of death, in the absence of an interpretation of that death as itself salvific. The historical allusion, offered in the midst of a heavily theologized Christo- logical statement, offers an excellent test case for an approach to history which accepts …

Luther Goes Viral: Mass Communication In The Lutheran Reformation, Brent A. R. Hege

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Presentation given at the Indiana Association of Historians Annual Meeting on February 18, 2017 in Lafayette, Indiana.

Christian Responses To Discrimination And Violence In India And Sri Lanka: Avoidance, Advocacy, And Interfaith Engagement, Chad Bauman

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

No abstract provided.

Pentecostals And Interreligious Conflict In India: Proselytization, Marginalization, And Anti-Christian Violence, Chad Bauman

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents, Jhcs Staff

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

A list of article contents for this issue.

Issues In Christian Encounters With Yoga: Exploring 3ho/Kundalini Yoga, Michael Stoeber

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

The paper begins by drawing out current issues that have been raised by critics concerning the contemporary practice of Hindu postural types of yoga in western and specifically western Christian contexts, with some illustrative reference to contemporary movements and schools, especially to Bikram Yoga. These are: cultural misappropriation; commodification; lack of moral pre-requisites; narcissistic attachment to bodily effects; occult influences; and doctrinal differences. The paper then explores specific aspects of the theory and practice of 3HO/Kundalini Yoga (3HO/KY) by Christians in light of these possible issues, showing how this tradition of Kundalini Yoga seems to skirt or side-step most of …

Devotion And Discipline: Christian Yoga And The Yoga Of T. Krishnamacharya, Stephanie Corigliano

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

SA tu dīrgha-kāla-nairantarya-satkārāsevito dṛḍha-bhūṃiḥ, Yogasūtra 1.14 states, “Practice becomes firmly established when it has been cultivated uninterruptedly and with devotion over a prolonged period of time.”¹

As a student of the late Pattabhi Jois, I heard this sūtra countless times during Jois’s afternoon conferences with his students. In the context of practice in Mysore with Jois, I understood the concept of discipline. However, the concept of devotion, satkārā, was more ambiguous. Questions about God and devotion were usually met with a simple, “God is one.”

Some Thoughts On God And Spiritual Practice In Yoga And Christianity, Bradley Malkovsky

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

I do not approach this topic as an expert historian of the diverse schools of yoga or as a systematician of their teachings or as an exegete of their classical texts.¹ Rather I address the theme of yoga and Christianity as a Christian theologian who has been a practitioner of Iyengar yoga, a prominent method of modern postural yoga, for more than thirty years and who has done some scholarly reading on contemporary and classical yoga and on Patanjali’s Yoga-Sutra (hereafter YS) in particular.² Despite all the controversy that has arisen in recent years about whether or not …

Yoga, Christians Practicing Yoga, And God: On Theological Compatibility, Or Is There A Better Question?, Andrea R. Jain

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Houston is a wildly diverse city; nonetheless it should come as no surprise that the Houston Chronicle “Belief” section frequently features stories about church expansions or declines, pastoral developments, and other reports on Christian communities. Christians, after all, make up over 70% of the city’s population. A provocative cover of a 2011 Belief section, however, shed light on a very different face of religion in Houston. The cover featured an image of local yoga teacher and entrepreneur Jennifer Buergermeister donning fashionable yoga attire and in the posture of a South Asian goddess, complete (thanks to clever photography) with six arms. …

Theōsis: A Comparative Study Of T. F. Torrance And Rāmānuja, Steven Tsoukalas

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

This essay is an imaginative conversation as I engage two religious thinkers—the prolific Reformed theologian Thomas F. Torrance (1913-2007) and the great Vedāntin Rāmānuja (traditionally, 1017–1137). I will compare Torrance’s theology¹ of theōsis² (participation in the life of God) and theōria (contemplation as a way of participation in the life of God) with those of Rāmānuja. Though the words themselves were likely unknown to Rāmānuja, through his works one can see a notion of theōsis.

KristapurāṆA: Reshaping Divine Space, Pär Eliasson

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

If a place is simply a physical location, the word space can be used for something shaped by mental processes. Physical places influence our lives by putting limits to the physically practicable, whereas spaces exercise their influence through mental processes like shaping our beliefs, values and sentiments. A space may be a mental superstructure based on an actual place, but, since its power is mental, it is not necessary that this place physically exists. One such space, with power to affect the lives of human beings, is heaven. Belief in heaven has had and still has great impact on …

Buddha, Bhakti, And Brahman: Sebastian Kappen S.J.’S Dialogue With Indian Religions, Mathew Thekkemuriyil Antony, Idesbald Goddeeris

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

This article analyzes how Sebastian Kappen S.J. (1924-1993), a social thinker and one of the most radical Indian liberation theologians, related to Indian religions. It argues that Kappen, in spite of his criticism of the caste system, also found inspiration in Hinduism. He especially appreciated the ontic and cosmic understandings of transcendence and immanence, the inclusive interpretation of the divine, and the religious approach to nature. In addition, Kappen also valued other Asian religious traditions, such as Buddhism and the Bhakti movement. Being an anti-institutional and anti-hierarchical progressive theologian, Kappen used Indian religions as a challenge to his own Christian …

Viewpoint: Fight Or Flight: Thomas Merton And The Bhagavad Gītā1, Steven J. Rosen

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Two commemorative events of landmark stature inspired the essay you are about to read: First, the year 2018 marks the 50th anniversary of Thomas Merton’s abrupt departure from our material vision. Second, 2018 is also the semicentennial celebration of a consequential publication: It was in 1968 that His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedānta Swami Prabhupāda released his unprecedentedly influential Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. As we shall see, the trailblazing Western visionary, Merton, and this particular edition of the Gītā engaged in productive conversation with each other.

2017 Annual Meetings Sessions, Jhcs Staff

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Annual Meeting Sessions for the Society for Hindu-Christian Studies November 17, 18, 2017, San Antonio Texas.

Book Review: Absent Mother God Of The West: A Kali Lover’S Journey Into Christianity And Judaism, Holly Hillgardner

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Book review of Absent Mother God of the West: A Kali Lover’s Journey into Christianity and Judaism. By Neela Bhattacharya Saxena. London: Lexington Books, 2016. ix + 208 pages.

Book Review: Abhishiktananda (Henri Le Saux): Christian Nondualism And Hindu Advaita, Edward T. Ulrich

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Book review of Abhishiktananda (Henri Le Saux): Christian Nondualism and Hindu Advaita. By J. Glenn Friesen. Calgary: Aevum Books, 2015, 592 pages.

Book Review: Ramana Maharishi: Interpretations Of His Enlightenment, Edward T. Ulrich

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Book review of Ramana Maharishi: Interpretations of His Enlightenment. By J. Glenn Friesen. Calgary: Aevum Books, 2015, 312 pages.

Book Review: To Be Cared For: The Power Of Conversion And Foreignness Of Belonging In An Indian Slum, James Elisha Taneti

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Book review of To Be Cared For: The Power of Conversion and Foreignness of Belonging in an Indian Slum. By Nathaniel Roberts. Oakland, CA: University of California Press, 2016, xv + 312 pages.

Book Review: Caste, Gender, And Christianity In Colonial India: Telugu Women In Mission, Kerry P. C. San Chirico

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Book review of Caste, Gender, and Christianity in Colonial India: Telugu Women in Mission. By James Elisha Taneti. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013, 203 pages.

Book Review: Constructing Indian Christianities: Culture, Conversion, And Caste, Mathew N. Schmalz

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Book review of Constructing Indian Christianities: Culture, Conversion, and Caste. Edited by Chad M. Bauman and Richard Fox Young. Abington, UK: Routledge, 2014, xxiii + 264 pages.

Book Review: Vernacular Catholicism, Vernacular Saints: Selva J. Raj On “Being Catholic The Tamil Way”, James Ponniah

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Book review of Vernacular Catholicism, Vernacular Saints: Selva J. Raj on “Being Catholic the Tamil Way.” Edited by Reid B. Locklin. Albany, New York: State University of New York Press, 2017, xvii + 290 pages.

Book Review: Ritual Participation And Interreligious Dialogue: Boundaries, Transgressions And Innovations, Francis X. Clooney

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Book review of Ritual Participation and Interreligious Dialogue: Boundaries, Transgressions and Innovations. Edited by Marianne Moyaert and Joris Geldhof. London and New York: Bloomsbury, 2015. ix + 262 pages.

Book Review: Comparing Faithfully: Insights For Systematic Theological Reflection, Stephanie Corigliano

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Book review of Comparing Faithfully: Insights for Systematic Theological Reflection. Edited by Michelle Voss Roberts, Bronx, New York: Fordham University Press, 2016, 304 pages.

Book Review: The Problem With Interreligious Dialogue: Plurality, Conflict, And Elitism In Hindu-Christian-Muslim Relations, Anantanand Rambachan

Journal of Hindu-Christian Studies

Book review of The Problem with Interreligious Dialogue: Plurality, Conflict, and Elitism in Hindu-Christian-Muslim Relations. By Muthuraj Swamy. London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2016, xvi + 230 pages.