Religion Commons^™

Influence Of Culture On The Practice Of Christianity Among Yoruba In Nigeria And Its Implications For Christian Missions, Olayinka John Akinola

The Asbury Journal

This study investigates the profound influence of Yoruba culture on the practice of Christianity among the Yoruba people in Nigeria. The Yoruba people group is in the western part of Africa with a larger percentage found in Nigeria. The Yoruba people of Nigeria have a rich cultural heritage that significantly influences the practice of Christianity among them. By employing a qualitative research approach, using descriptive research method, this study delves into the intricate relationships between Yoruba cultural values, beliefs, and practices and Christian teachings and practices.

The findings of this study reveal that Yoruba culture has significantly shaped the practice …

The Rise And (Sudden) Fall Of The New York Magdalen Society: How A Methodist Doctor Upset The Entire City Of New York, Philip Hardt

The Asbury Journal

In the 1820s, several new interdenominational societies distributed Bibles and tracts, formed Sunday Schools, and launched missions in areas of the city that lacked a religious presence. Another society called the New York Magdalen Society (hereafter, NYMS) was formed on January 1, 1830, to rescue women from prostitution. To be sure, this society was greatly needed as this activity had been steadily increasing. Their primary focus was a dilapidated area known as the “Five Points.” Purchasing an asylum (i.e., a large house), they started to accept women who sincerely wanted to change. Yet, their first annual report, issued in July …

A Brief History Of Women At Asbury Theological Seminary, Robert A. Danielson

The Asbury Journal

Understanding the past roles of women within the 100-year lifespan of Asbury Theological Seminary is an important exercise in institutional history. Educational institutions frequently experience turnover in students, faculty, and administration at high rates. Institutional memory frequently is held by a few older members of the faculty and staff and more importantly by the archives of the institution. Institutional memory provides the foundation for changing policy decisions, understanding the institutional mission, and following how previous administrations dealt with a constantly changing cultural and social context. In the case of Asbury Theological Seminary, this paper explores an institution rooted in the …

Eldad And Medad’S Effusive And Momentous Worlds: A Diachronic View, David J. Zucker

The Asbury Journal

In Numbers 11, Eldad and Medad, two of the seventy chosen elders of the people of Israel remain in camp, while their counterparts join Moses at the Tent of Meeting. At the Tent, God takes some of the divine spirit that is on Moses and puts it on the elders, who then speak in ecstasy (others: prophesy, have a vision). Suddenly and simultaneously Eldad and Medad also speak in ecstasy (others: prophesy, have a vision). This article addresses how the text has been received and interpreted in the postbiblical world, largely in rabbinic writings, but also in religiously based homilies …

The Discrimination Of Methodist Students At Oxford University, 1768, Nicholas M. Railton

The Asbury Journal

Discrimination and persecution are perennial features of church history. This paper deals with six Oxford students who were expelled from the university for what were called ‘Methodist’ practices and beliefs. Their university trial is analysed as are the support structures within the evangelical network in the eighteenth century. The paper sheds light upon the lives of the students post-exmatriculation.

From The Archives: Amy Hinshaw And The History Of Nazarene Missions In The Woman’S Missionary Society, Robert A. Danielson

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Journal In Entirety

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

From The Editor, Robert Danielson Ph.D.

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Announcing The Vennard College Collection, Robert Danielson Ph.D.

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Ghost Theology: Christology And Integral Christianity, Pamela Bruns

The Asbury Journal

Ken Wilber’s Integral Theory has gained in popularity within various disciplines. When applied to Christianity, the theory creates a distorted Christian narrative which must divorce Jesus from Christ. This paper explores the effects of an Integral approach on Christology, specifically. It looks at the concepts of Integral Christianity through the work of Richard Rohr, Paul Smith, and Steve Harper. It considers the way scripture gets reappropriated into the Integral Christian narrative and offers a corrective to this syncretistic understanding of scripture.

Positive Cosmology: On The Good Creation Into Which Christ Incarnated, Jason Horstman

The Asbury Journal

This article argues that a positive cosmology has been the majority report in the Christian tradition, which is to say that creation is good. Evidence of this report is highlighted from scripture, from the contemplative tradition, and from the hospitality tradition. Sin as a complicating factor in understanding creation as good is engaged, and a solution to this complication from the Christian monastic tradition is considered.

The Role Of Christian Hospitality In Mission To The Diaspora Community, Angela Kalim

The Asbury Journal

Immigration enriches a country’s cultural landscape but also brings change to existing norms. Some people see immigration as a threat, but many missiologists see it as an opportunity from God for God’s church to engage the nations. In this paper, I will explore the role of Christian hospitality in mission to the diaspora community. I will first explore what Christian hospitality is, and how it is different from conventional hospitality by looking at how Christian hospitality was practiced in the Bible as well as in Christian tradition, specifically in the Benedictine community. Second, I will discuss the role of Christian …

The Life And Ministry Of Dr. Kate C. Woodhull, Elaine B. Peters

The Asbury Journal

This paper examines the life and ministry of Dr. Kate C. Woodhull, the first female physician sent to China by the Woman’s Board of Missions, as a case study in women’s medical missions in late Qing China. Drawing on archival and published sources, it traces Woodhull’s medical training, her twenty-eight years of service in Fuzhou, and the integration of healthcare, education, and evangelism in her work. The study highlights both the cultural assumptions shaping her missionary outlook and her sustained advocacy for Chinese women, whom she trained as medical and Christian workers, leaving an institutional and social impact.

Booking “Uncle Bud”: Reflexive Communication Scholarship In Writing A Religious Life, Abram J. Book

The Asbury Journal

Originally presented at the Nazarene Historical Society Annual Meeting on 19 March 2026 at Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, WA, this paper examines the scholarly writing process of exploring the popular Nazarene holiness preacher “Uncle Bud” Robinson from a communication studies approach. It reflects on how religious lives are sustained through communication rather than preserved through record alone. Uncle Bud Robinson’s influence endures because his story continues to circulate as cultural memory, shaped by narrative repetition, identification, and mediated remembrance across generations. Writing his biography thus becomes an extension of the same communicative process that once sustained his ministry—an act of …

John Wesley And The Jews, Nicholas Railton

The Asbury Journal

This article focuses on John Wesley’s attitude to Jews and his understanding of their place in the divine plan of salvation. Wesley attended some synagogue services and got to know Jews personally. His understanding of biblical prophecy was expressed most clearly in the explanatory notes on the Bible that were once the standard guide for Methodists. Wesley’s eschatology encompasses a belief in the future conversion and restoration of the Jewish nation in the Holy Land. British Methodism has drifted from these moorings, and this is reflected in the resolutions it passes on the State of Israel.

Encountering Angels In The Hebrew Scriptures, The Christian Scriptures, And The Qur’An, David J. Zucker

The Asbury Journal

Angels appear in the Hebrew scriptures, the Christian scriptures, and the Qur’an. They are very different from the contemporary “popular” view of angels. Sometimes in these three scriptures angels are acknowledged as simply being, other times they appear with, or interact with people. They generally have benevolent roles. At times, in the Hebrew and Christian scriptures they are recognized by humans, at other occasions they appear to be in human form and are not, at least immediately understood to be angels. In Hebrew, the most common word for angel is mal’akh, but a mal’akh can also be a human messenger. …

Why The New York Conference Was “An (Ineffective) Auxiliary Of The Colonization Society In Everything But Name”: Rejection, Apathy, (Lack Of) Funding, And (Its Own) Abolitionists, Philip Hardt

The Asbury Journal

Several years after the founding of the American Colonization Society (hereafter, ACS) in 1816, Methodist clergy and laymen in the New York Conference and especially in New York City began to support its twin goals of evangelization and emigration of free blacks to Africa. Of course, they did not expect the entire black population to emigrate. Instead, they (mistakenly, for the most part) thought many free blacks would prefer to leave the racism of America and start a new life in Africa. Their efforts, however, met with little success because of nearly unanimous black opposition, general white apathy, chronic financial …

Cartoons That Are No Laughing Matter: Stories Jesus Told, Darius L. Salter

Books

No abstract provided.

Prayer Presence Patience: How The Church Multiples Around The World, Carolina G. Miller

Books

No abstract provided.

An Imperial Pivot: How The Qing Court Shaped The Kapāla And Its Global Value, Haiyi Wang

MA in Art Business Dissertations

This thesis examines the journey of the kapāla, a Tibetan Buddhist ritual skull cup, from a sacred implement to a global commodity. It argues that the modern identity, display, and commercial value of the kapāla in the Western world are not a natural extension of its original religious meaning but are fundamentally a product of its aesthetic and political re-creation by the Qing imperial court. This study posits the Qing court's intervention as the "decisive pivot" that systematically replaced the object's native "religious value system," based on ritual efficacy, with a new "imperial value system" rooted in craftsmanship, precious materials, …

The Need To Identifying An Assessment Method To Evaluate Narcissistic Leadership Traits In Christian Churches In The Minneapolis Area And Determining Their Impact On Assemblies From The Perspective Of Congregants, Rita Lekova

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examined the need for effective assessment methods to evaluate narcissistic leadership traits in Christian congregations in the Minneapolis area and the consequential effects of these traits on assemblies, as perceived by the congregations. This study addressed growing concerns about destructive leadership behaviors that compromise spiritual well-being, organizational trust, and biblical paradigms of servant leadership, as exemplified by Jesus. Employing an interdisciplinary framework that includes the theological, psychological, and leadership studies literatures, the research examined the expression of narcissistic traits by ecclesiastical leaders and ministers and how these tendencies are perceived by congregants and attendees. Qualitative and quantitative research …

Examining Leadership Accountability Standards And Protocols In The U.S. Church, Grace E. Emmert

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research project addresses the current condition of accountability standards and protocols in the U.S. church. This research focused on U.S. Protestant denominational and nondenominational churches. First, a review of the Scriptural mandate for leadership accountability was examined through a study of the specific impact accountability played in the leadership failures and successes in the lives of Kings Saul and David throughout Books of 1 and 2 Samuel. Second, a literary review examined current formal leadership accountability standards and protocols in the U.S. Protestant church. This review encompassed surveys and polls from the last fifteen years, church censuses, theological journals, …

Authentic Transformational Leadership: A Model For Empowerment And Organizational Effectiveness For Training And Coaching Modern Ministry Leaders, David Macharia Njau

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examined the influence of authentic transformational leadership on the integration of empowerment and organizational effectiveness among leaders and followers, as a holistic engagement process, to foster ethical leadership and flourishing communities within the Kenyan diaspora in Western Pennsylvania. The review examined the literature on the transformational leadership dimensions of idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration. Research investigated leader-follower reciprocal relationships to foster authentic transformational leadership and empowerment strategies for organizational effectiveness, setting a compelling vision and commitment for leaders and followers aligned with the organizational mission and strategy. This study concluded that authentic transformational leadership …

Understanding And Avoiding Institutional Betrayal Of Congregants When Accusations Of Domineering Pastoral Leadership Are Made, Jonathon R. Hansel

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines institutional betrayal within evangelical churches as experienced by congregants who reported concerns about domineering pastoral leadership and encountered minimizing or dismissive responses from church elders. Institutional betrayal, understood as harm that occurs when trusted institutions fail to respond protectively to wrongdoing within their own systems is examined as a distinct and compounding form of spiritual and relational injury.
The study employed a qualitative research design consisting of two primary data sources: (1) an anonymous online survey of congregants who self-identified as having experienced harm following reports of domineering pastoral leadership and (2) semi-structured interviews with church elders …

The Spiritual And Emotional Impact Of Color In Luis Barragán’S Convento De Las Capuchinas Sacramentarias, Ivana Martin

MA Theses

This thesis examines how Luis Barragán’s Convento de las Capuchinas Sacramentarias (1955) is a medium for spiritual experience. In his work, Barragán explores the use of color, light, and emotion as central elements and the ways in which they transform sacred space into an embodied, contemplative experience. There is also a comparison to other churches and other similar projects that were done during the same time period, specifically in Mexico. Modernist architecture in mid-century Mexico was largely defined by rationalist and more functional ideals, but Barragán separated himself from these tendencies to create an architecture that privileges silence, intimacy, and …

Part 3: Confluences In Shakers At The Center: Manifesting Spirits & Spectacles In Nineteenth-Century America, Douglas L. Winiarski

Religious Studies Faculty Publications

Introduction to Part 3 of Shakers at the Center: Manifesting Spirits & Spectacles in Nineteenth-Century America

"One of the last inspired message Eunice Bathrick recorded was also one of her longest— and most controversial. One day in November 1851, a Harvard sister “gifted in spiritual sight” informed her that Socrates had entered their room and “wanted to make himself known.” Bathrick hesitated. “I did not feel the least disposed to find out what this Spirit wanted,” she later explained, and so she ignored the presence of the “Ancient Philosopher.” She returned to her employments in the Square House, where she …

Epilogue: Spirits, Spiritualism Spirituality In Shakers At The Center: Manifesting Spirits & Spectacles In Nineteenth-Century America, Douglas L. Winiarski

Religious Studies Faculty Publications

Epilogue to Shakers at the Center: Manifesting Spirits & Spectacles in Nineteenth-Century America

"Exploring the theological, social, and cultural dimensions of one of America’s most ambitious prophetic movements 

The Shakers’ Era of Manifestations ranks among the most astounding events in American religious history. During the 1840s, members of the United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing embarked on an audacious project of receiving visions, revelations, and other manifestations from the spirit world and convincing both themselves and the world’s people of their reality. Gifted Shakers known as “instruments” surrendered their bodies to possessing spirits and celestial beings who, in …

Part 2: Performances In Shakers At The Center: Manifesting Spirits & Spectacles In Nineteenth-Century America, Douglas L. Winiarski

Religious Studies Faculty Publications

Introduction to Part 2 of Shakers at the Center: Manifesting Spirits & Spectacles in Nineteenth-Century America

"Shakers, Era of Manifestations, Mother's Work, New Era, Eunice BathrickEunice Bathrick bore witness to the spectacular developments of the Era of Manifestations. She wrote voluminously for the spirits and received dozens of personal messages and gifts in return. She participated in all the ritual innovations of the period, including the Passover feasts at Harvard’s Holy Hill of Zion. And she endorsed the “Sacred Roll” without hesitation. Bathrick’s extensive writings from this period— along with those of hundreds of other Believers—called forth an extravagant new …

Going Through The Motions At The Shaker Feast Grounds, Douglas L. Winiarski

Religious Studies Faculty Publications

Sally Bushnell rose unusually early on the Sabbath morning of June 4, 1843. A seasoned Believer of over two decades, Bushnell served as eldress of the gathering, or novitiate, order of the South Family in Canaan, a satellite community of the largest Shaker village at New Lebanon, New York. Although she had participated in all the dramatic events of the Era of Manifestations, she understood this day to be particularly special. The young Believers over whom Bushnell presided had been granted a privilege to visit the Holy Mount, the outdoor feast ground located on a high knob in the Berkshire …

(Nuevo) ConsagracióN Diaconisas-Liturgia – Ceh, Ceh

Liturgias

Consagración diaconisas-liturgia – CEH