Religion Commons^™

Christian Sensitivity In Interreligious Relation, Paul D. Numrich

The Asbury Journal

This essay reflects on the implications of my mandate to guide seminary students "to think creatively and responsibly about how to proclaim the Christian gospel in multi-cultural contexts with a sensitivity to interfaith perspectives." I ask the question, What does it mean for Christian seminarians--and Christians generally--to engage adherents of other faiths with sensitivity to their perspectives? I offer a general definition of "sensitivity" and distinguish Christian sensitivity from other kinds, in that it is informed by the revelation of God in Jesus Christ and the continuing presence of the Holy Spirit in the living heritage of the Christian faith. …

The Johannine Writings: Symbolism And The Symbol Of 'Light' In The Gospel Of John, Clyde Muropa

The Asbury Journal

Jesus says ofhirnself "I am the light of the world" (John 8:12) and the gospel of John intercepts the meaning of this statement through the motif of symbols and symbolism.

Christian Publishing In Central And Eastern Europe, Katharina Penner

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Poetry As The Handmaid Of Piety: Hymns As A Catalyst For Human Development In Early Methodism, Brian Yeich

The Asbury Journal

In the preface to the 1780 edition o f Hymns for the People Called Methodist, John Wesley stated, 'When Poetry thus keeps its place, as the handmaid of Piety, it shall attain, not a poor perishable 'Wreath, but a crown that fadeth not away."l While John Wesley may have never used the term ''human development," a student of Wesley would quickly observe that Wesley and the early Methodists were focused on the transformation of individual human lives as well as the society in which they lived. This paper explores the connection between the hynmody of early Methodism and …

Impacting The Orienting System: The Role Of Theological Education In Influencing Socio-Cultural Images Of God, Anne K. Gatobu

The Asbury Journal

Theological educational has classically been associated with educating pastors for local church ministries, non-pastoral ministries and theologians for higher education. In this article I postulate that the role of theological education goes beyond these practical ministry perception to the shaping of societal images of God expressed through the orienting system.

In the first part of the article I argue that one's faith formation is closely related to one's development of God's image. This is not an isolated process, but an appropriation of God's image disseminated through nurture by one's immediate family and society at large. The proliferation of all these …

Journal In Entirety

The Asbury Journal

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Editorial

God's Silence: Psalm 28 Terry C Muck

Essays

"Justification by Faith": Richard Baxter's Influence upon John Wesley Joseph W Cunningham

A Classless Society? The Pneumatology of E. StanleyJones in Conversation with Mortimer Arias Angel Santiago-Vendrell

New Directions in Transformational Development Stephen Offutt

Christian Sensitivity in Interreligious Relations Paul Numnch

Sensing the Spirit: Wesley's Empiricism and his Use of the Language of Spiritual Sensation James E. Pedlar

Symbolism and the Symbol of Lig!ot in the Gospel of John Clyde Muropa

Features

Christian Publishing in Central and Eastern Europe Katharina Penner

Sensing The Spirit: Wesley's Empiricism And His Use Of The Language Of Spiritual Sensation, James E. Pedlar

The Asbury Journal

This paper examines the relationship betweenJohn Wesley's empiricism and his use of the language of "spiritual sensation." Through a close reading of Wesley's own espousal of empiricism, as well as his use of the language of the spiritual senses, it will be argued that Wesley, while committed to empiricism as a natural epistemology, views the experience of the Spirit as something which is known intuitively. H is references to the spiritual senses are therefore best understood as an analogy for this intuitively known experience of the Spirit. While Wesley's discussions of spiritual sensation are not simply an extension of his …

Green Eggs And Shawarma: Reinterpreting The Bible, Reforming Mission, With Leviticus' "Non-Indigenous Resident" As A Test Case, Mark A. Awabdy

The Asbury Journal

This article encourages Christians to revisit and reinterpret the Bible in order to more faithfully align with God's mission in the world. As a test case, the article reinterprets the socio-religious status of the "non-indigenous resident" in Leviticus and concludes with some possibilities for reforming mission theology and praxis. The first section of the article reviews the conventional interpretation of Leviticus' as one granted absolute religious freedom. Against this view, the body of the article contends that the in Leviticus was bound in covenant to Yahweh, yet free to practice some foreign customs and practices. To argue for this, the …

Editorial: Bible, Theology, And Mission, Terry C. Muck

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Inhabiting The Garden: Bible, Theology And Mission, Lawson G. Stone

The Asbury Journal

This essay explores the role of biblical exegesis in the task of Christian theology and in the contemporary global mission of the church from the perspective of an Old Testament scholar. It poses the question what a biblical exegesis would look like that was consistently Christian in its assumptions while, at the same time, honest and competent in dealing with the phenomena of the biblical text. Using the exegesis of the early centuries of the church as a case study, the essay develops insights into the role of serious biblical study in empowering the early church's vibrant expansion through the …

The Pannenbergzan Retroactive Significance Of Resurrection, Brian M. Ebel

The Asbury Journal

According to Wolfhart Pannenberg the Scriptures are born out of the historical acts of God in salvation history. It is this focus upon history, most importantly from the resurrection of Jesus Christ, that sets Pannenberg apart from his contemporaries. Previous attempts to hurdle these historical issues such as theological positivism have given way in the postmodern era to the recognition that there are few uninterpretable facts as modernity claimed. As such, hermeneutics are key to the manner in which the Scriptures are interpreted. It is therefore the purpose of this paper to consider how Wolfhart Pannenberg, an important theologian of …

A Review Essay: The Church And Postmodern Culture Series, Aaron Perry

The Asbury Journal

The Politics of Discipleship: Becoming Postmaterial Citizens
Graham Ward
Grand Rapids: Baker Academic
2009, 317 pp. softcover, $24.99

Whose Community? Which Interpretation?: Philosophical Hermeneutics for the Church
Merold Westphal
Grand Rapids: Baker Academic
2009, 160 pp. softcover, $19.99

Missional Holiness In A Post-Christendom World, Timothy C. Tennent

The Asbury Journal

The following address was given by Dr. Timothy Tennent, president of Asbury Theological Seminary as the Fall 2010 Convocation Address, first on the Florida-Dunnam Campus (September 7, 2010) and then on the Wilmore (Kentucky) Campus of Asbury Theological Seminary (September 9, 2010). It has been left in its oral form of address.

A Brief Look At Methodology And Grace In Wesleyan Theology, Kyle Blanchette

The Asbury Journal

In a recent piece for the Asbury Theological Journal, Nathan Crawford has attempted to put current understandings of emergent phenomena within the neurosciences in conversation with Christian soteriology; in particular, Crawford has sought to link up themes found in emergence with distinctively Wesleyan perspectives on sanctification. In this article, I offer some reflections on theological methodology in light of Crawford's analysis, and I identify some needed clarifications of Kenneth J. Collins's model of John Wesley's soteriology. In the latter half of the piece, I present a critical analysis of the issue of monergism and synergism in Wesley's understanding of grace.

Exegetical And Extispicic Readings Of The Bible In Turkana, Kenya, And North America, Kevin P. Lines

The Asbury Journal

While a missional hermeneutic elucidates missiological interpretation of scripture, translation would be the key descriptive of missiological me of scripture. Articulating, a Turkana extispicic hermeneutic as both a critical and a valid process for interpreting the Bible, this paper proposes that Christians have the opportunity to engage in alternative intercontextual critical hermeneutical processes when "reading" the Bible. This engagement could reveal an ontic expansion of God-if we are able to overcome eclectic diversity and the fear of relativism. Three locations: theological institutions, missionaries, in the church, and diaspora communities are suggested for practical application of intercontextual hermeneutics.

Book Reviews, Desiree Segura-April, Meesaeng Lee Choi, Joseph R. Dongell, Michael D. Matlock, Jason R. Jackson, Stephen Seamands, Wm. Andrew Schwartz, Ben Witherington, Laurence W. Wood

The Asbury Journal

Catherine Stonehouse and Scottie May
Listening to Children on the Spiritual Journey: Guidance for Those Who Teach and Nurture
2010. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic
Reviewed by Desiree Segura-April

Dyron B. Daughrity
The Changing World of Christianity: The Global History of a Borderless Religion
2010. New York: Peter Lang
Reviewed by Meesaeng Lee Choi

Derek Tidball
The Message of Holiness: Restoring God's Masterpiece
2010. Downers Grove, IL Inter-Varsity, Press
Reviewed by Joseph R. Dongell

Accordance. Scholars Collection
DVD-ROM and CD-ROM, version 8
2008. OakTree Software, Inc.
Reviewed by Michael D. Matlock and Jason R. Jackson

Paul L. Gavrilyuk, Douglas M. …

Journal In Entirety

The Asbury Journal

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Editorial
Terry C. Muck

Colloquium Essays:

Inhabiting the Garden: Bible, Theology and Mission
Lawson G. Stone

Green Eggs and Shawarma: Reinterpreting the Bible, Reforming Mission, with Leviticus' as a Test Case
Mark A. Awabdy

The Pannenbergian Retroactive Significance of Resurrection
Brian M. Ebel

Exegetical and Extispicic Readings of the Bible in Turkana, Kenya and North America
Kevin P Lines

Essays:

Missional Holiness in a Post-Christendom World
Timothy C. Tennent

Methodology and Grace in Wesleyan Theology
Kyle Blancbette

Features:

Review Essay
Aaron Perry

Book Reviews
Desiree Segura-April
Meesetlg Lee Choi
Joseph R. Dongell
Michael D. Matlock and Jason …

A Transnational Faith: El Salvador And Immigrant Christianity, Robert A. Danielson

The Asbury Journal

Immigration is radically shaping the makeup of the United States; however immigration today is radically different than in previous generations. Modern immigration is characterized by transnationalism, where more immigrants are maintaining connections with their homelands. These connections have both positive and negative impacts on both the United States and the immigrant's countries of origin. El Salvador is one example of this trend. Financial remittances and gangs are representative of the way transnational migration affects a country of origin, like El Salvador, as well as the United States. The Church needs to adapt to this global trend and recognize its impact …

Conversion, Justification, And The Experience Of Grace In The Post-Aldergate Wesley: Towards An Understanding Of Who Is "A Child Of God.", Marlon D. De Blasio

The Asbury Journal

Aldersgate is highlighted from the angle of its significance on Wesley's theological thinking and subsequent ministry, rather than from an emphasis on his point of conversion. The Post-Aldersgate Wesley developed a soteriological understanding that identified a "child of God" with distinct qualifications, namely justification by faith, the experience of grace, and the indwelling Spirit. A theology of conversion also emerges with definitive markers that constitute a new standing from non-Christian to Christian. Shifts in Wesley's theological understanding of Christian faith are evaluated. Justification by faith remained a strict soteriological principle in the mind of the mature Wesley. As well, the …

United We Sing: Union Hymnals, Holiness Hymnody, And The Formation Of Korean Revivalism (1905-2007), William T. Purinton

The Asbury Journal

The history of Christianity long has recognized the transatlantic revival connections in both the First and Second Awakenings, with preaching being noted as the primary means of communicating the revival message. During the past century, transpacific revivalism has become a significant part of the world history of Christianity. In Korean Protestantism, revivalism has been rooted within the majority religious experience, with hymns and gospel songs as an important medium. "While North American denominations have used separate hymnals and have tended to exclude revival hymns from their selections, Korean Protestants have used the same hymnal from the beginning and have retained …

From Saul To Paul: The Apostle's Name Change And Narrative Identity In Acts 13:9, David Wenkel

The Asbury Journal

It has long been accepted as a safe conclusion that the difference between the names Saul and Paul in the Book of Acts merely reflects cultural accommodation in a Hellenistic milieu. This study challenges this conclusion by examining the literary pattern and narrative usage of names. This study concludes that the name change reflects the true identity of Paul amidst conflict with Bar-Jesus/Elymas. The name 'Paul' is significant because of its etymology and the information provided by the narrative.

Living Water In Indian Cups: A Call For Cultural Relevance In Contemporary Indian Missions, Prabhusingh Vedhamanickam

The Asbury Journal

There has been a concentrated effort in contemporary India to stereotype Christianity as a western agent involved in destroying Indic religions, desecrating Indian cultures and destabilizing the nation. While there have been some attempts to contextualize the gospel in Indian missions, in the theological and missiological realms, there is an urgent need to incarnate the gospel in culturally relevant ways due to three critical factors: The cultural diversity of the nation, the rise of Hindu nationalism and the paradigmatic shift from Indian cross cultural missions to local, indigenous movements. While the multinational companies in India are tailoring their strategies according …

Leading A Polytheistic Faith To The Monotheistic God: A Study In Identifying Barriers To The Gospel In A Chinese Buddhist Community And Ways To Overcome Those Barriers, Agnes Wood

The Asbury Journal

This article is written for the purpose of exploring a way to lead a polytheistic faith, prevalent in the local Chinese Buddhist community (LCBC) in Brunei, to the reality of a monotheistic God as revealed in the Bible (1 Corinthians 8:6). It serves as a guide for the local Chinese church (CC) to lead the LCBC to see that God as a Creator is sufficient to be their God.

This article identifies the need of a missiological package in order to lead the LCBC to Christ. The CC needs to assist the LCBC to become receptive before the core of …

Spanish Language Christian Academic Publishing, Robert A. Danielson

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Journal In Entirety

The Asbury Journal

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ESSAYS

A Transnational Faith: El Salvador and Immigrant Christianity

Robert A. Danielson

Conversion, Justification, and the Experience of Grace in the Post-Aldersgate Wesley: Towards an Understanding of who is “a child of God”

Marlon D. De Blasio

United We Sing: Union Hymnals, Holiness Hymnody, and the Formation of Korean Revivalism (1905-2007)

William T. Purinton

Living Water in Indian Cups: A Call for Cultural Relevance in Contemporary Indian Missions

Prabhu Singh

From Saul to Paul: The Apostle’s Name Change and Narrative Identity in Acts 13:9

David Wenkel

Leading a Polytheistic Faith to the Monotheistic God: A Study in …

Reaching Secular Peoples: A Review Of The Books Of George G. Hunter, Iii, Gary L. Mcintosh

The Asbury Journal

Rethinking Evangelism: A Symposium (1971)

Focus on Evangelism: Readings for Thinking It Through (1978)

The Contagious Congregation: Frontiers in Evangelism and Church Growth (1979)

Finding the Way Forward (1980)

Church Growth: Strategies That Word (1980 with Donald McGavran)

. . . and Every Tongue Confess: Toward a Recovery of O U f Essential Mission (1983)

To Spread the Power: Church Growth in the Wesleyan Spirit (1987)

How to Reach Secular People (1992)

Church for the Unchurched (1996)

The Celtic Way of Evangelism: How Christianity Can Reach the West ... Again (2000)

Leading & Managing a Growing Church: (2000)

Radical Outreach: …

Book Reviews, Anthony J. Headley, Nathan Crawford

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

A Review Essay: Four Views On Church And Politics, Brian Edgar

The Asbury Journal

Good and Bad Ways to Think about Religion and Politics

Robert Benne

2010. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans

Politics According to the Bible: A Comprehensive Resource for Understanding Modern Political Issues in Light of Scripture

Wayne Grudem

2010. Grand Rapids: Zondervan

Christianity and Politics: A Brief Guide to the History

C.C. Pecknold

2010. Eugene, Oregon: Cascade Books

The Challenge of Pluralism: Church and State in Five Democracies, 2nd ed.

Stephen Monsma and J. Christopher Soper

2009. Lallham, Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers

Journal In Entirety

The Asbury Journal

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Editorial

Terry C. Muck

Our Personal Core Identity: A Wesleyan Perspective

Jim Boetcher

Identity Formation for Conciliatory Existence: How We Perceive the Other

Chris Kiesling and Lalsangkima Pachuau

An Aboriginal Missiology of Identity Reclamation: Towards Revitalization for Canada's Indigenous Peoples through Healing of Identity

Wendy Peterson

Racial and Ethnic Identity: Social Scientific and Biblical Perspectives in Dialogue

Ruth Anne Reese and Steven Ybarrvla

Marriage and Ministry: Conjugal and Occupational Conflicts in Wesley's Life and Ministry

Tony Headley

Book Notes

Kenneth Collins

Book Reviews

Frances Adenry

Gwinyai Muzorewa

Laurence W. Wood

Identity Formation For Conciliatory Existence: How We Perceive The Other, Chris Kiesling, Lalsangkima Pachuau

The Asbury Journal

In this article we interface mission, theology and psychology in an exploration of what hinders and what enables conciliatory existence. Whereas common approaches to reconciliation focus on redressing past wrongs, we propose identity formation that would prevent such wrongs. We consider how people integrate elements of their social context into a social identity that influences how they perceive "the other."

Understanding this to be divine action that transforms psychological processes, we draw from all three disciplines to understand the dynamics of how we come to see the other.

Biblical theology provides penetrating narratives into the nature of fallen humanity and …