Religion Commons^™

Schism, Synodality, And Communion In The Contemporary American Catholic Church, Nicola Peck

Undergraduate Theses

Divisions in the American Catholic Church have resulted in widespread dissent from Catholic moral teaching. In response to this dissent, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has used the language of communion to bar dissenting Catholics from the Eucharist, which is to push them to the margins of the Church. In contrast, Pope Francis has used the language of communion to welcome dissenting Catholics to the table through the Synod on Synodality. This thesis explores the theological implications of these different approaches to communion. It argues that the people of the Church must embrace an understanding of communion …

Biblically Responsible Investing: Should Christians Avoid Or Engage?, Logan Young

Senior Honors Theses

Christians over the last twenty to thirty years have started to discuss how to engage in investing. This has birthed the movement of Biblically Responsible Investing out of Socially Responsible Investing. There is a tension that exists within Biblically Responsible Investing between the two different ways Christians believe they should participate in investing: avoiding companies through screening and engaging with companies through shareholder engagement. Both of these can have a significant impact on the economy and specific companies. A Biblical worldview surrounding stewardship of resources and seeking to store up treasures in Heaven must be considered as Christian look at …

“When White Men And Indians United Shall Praise:” Indigenous Inclusion In The Hartford Music Company, Savannah N. Skaggs

ATU Scholars Symposium

The Hartford Music Company and Institute of Hartford, Arkansas has attracted increasing academic interest, particularly within the last twenty years. This southern gospel music publishing company and singing school based in southern Sebastian County published a collection of shape note hymnals which boasted some of the genre’s most prolific literature. Though a growing number of Arkansans are learning that these gospel staples came from their own hill country, many do not realize that several of these songs were premiered by or recorded by Indigenous people. While this may not initially seem particularly impactful, this genre developed its own distinct identity …

The Need For Standardized Training For Volunteer Healthcare Chaplains, Dominic Anthony Korzecki

Masters Theses

For the past 50 years, many studies have examined the effects of Spiritual Care in medical environments. Though these studies have helped support the legitimacy and necessity for the presence of spiritual care in medicine, a lack of attention has been given to the level of professionalism of those who have been granted permission to administer care. The objective of my thesis is to determine the following: 1) if medical organizations that utilize volunteer-only spiritual care programs for their patients, and families, provide the same level of care as ones staffed by trained professionals, 2) if volunteer-only chaplaincy programs generate …

The Scatological Scriptures: A Biblical Theology Of Dung, Zachary C. Hill

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The Scriptures contain a theology of dung. When the semantic and conceptual cognates that pertain to dung are synthesized, the result is a scriptural scatology whereby dung is presented as a symbol for sin. To clarify, the biblical exhibition of dung presents excrement as a central symbol employed by Scripture to concretize the abstract nature of sin. When each semantic and conceptual cognate that pertains to dung is examined, in nearly every instance where dung is mentioned, sin is in close proximity. The recognition of the dung–sin symbol enlightens particular aspects related to the nature of sin, which mirrors the …

Church And Community: Bridging The Gap To Create A Culture Of Acceptance And Inclusiveness, Matthew L. Brown

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This DMIN project helped St. Paul High Street Baptist Church develop a community engagement team that helped them reestablish its long-lasting relationship with the community surrounding the church. Certain issues within and outside of the church were discussed that had led to a lack of community engagement within recent years. A community engagement team was put together to help bridge the gap between the church and its surrounding community. To help with this, several community engagement team events were held, and surveys were given to both church and community members. Through the successful completion of this project, St. Paul High …

Burnout Prevention In Christian Public And Private Middle School Leaders: A Qualitative Study, Rhonda Grider Purchase

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

There is a momentous problem in academic settings today regarding stress and burnout among academic school leaders (Francis et al., 2017). The focus of this study was to examine the prevention of professional stress in the lives of middle school academic leaders. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of what the selected participants believed was the prevention of stress and burnout in middle school leaders in Newton County, Georgia. For this study, school leaders were defined as certified principals who hold a bachelor’s level or above degree and contribute to the academic environment …

Let My People Go: A Biblical Theology Of Liberation In The Exodus Motif, Lou Ann Smith

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Liberation theologians view political liberation as the central theme of the historical Exodus event due to their interpretation of the text through the perspective of the oppressed and the oppressor. I reject the postmodern stance of liberation theologians, which overemphasizes political liberation and fails to consider the links between Yahweh’s supernatural actions on behalf of the Hebrews in light of Yahweh’s covenantal obligations to Abraham’s descendants. This study argues against the use of liberation theologies as the paradigm for interpreting the historical Exodus event and asserts that a biblical theology of the Exodus motif reveals “covenant” as the interpretive key …

An Exegetical And Theological Exploration Of Paul’S Self-Identity In Consideration Of Modern Social Sciences, Chala Baker

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The Apostle Paul possessed a multifaceted background unusual for the period in which he lived. It is now well-known by scholars and laypeople alike that Paul was a Hebrew, Pharisee, Roman citizen, persecutor of the church, Christian, and Jew who hailed from Tarsus (Acts 21:29). Paul utilized each distinct portion of his background to advance the gospel. Throughout the New Testament, the apostle sets the example of using everything at his disposal for the cause of Christ. Paul himself writes that he became “all things to all people” with a direct purpose in mind that he “might save some” (1 …

Forgiving Childhood Hurt Biblically, Latisha Shearer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The profound impact of childhood experiences on an individual's mindset, emotional well-being, and transition into adulthood is a compelling problem addressed in this thesis paper titled “Forgiving Childhood Hurt Biblically.” This DMIN action research project is to implement biblical forgiveness as a transformative tool to address the physical, mental, and emotional wounds inflicted by childhood trauma. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), marked by early-life toxic stress, establish a foundation for the intergenerational transmission of trauma, significantly affecting the health and lives of adults. Given the vulnerability of childhood, addressing and forgiving the sources of trauma is crucial for effectively reprogramming and …

Coherent Chiastic Oeuvre In The Unity Of Luke-Acts: Two Volumes Conjoined As A Single Book, John Matthew Powell

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

A thorough examination of the life and works of Saint Luke has always been an interest and desire to survey, and because of his eruditeness, which produced two amazingly inspired books in the New Testament resulted in the reason behind this dissertation project. Another important thing for this research is animated from the perspective that Luke is the only gentile writer in the NT. It encourages the world that God placed gentiles on equal footing with Jews of the Old Testament era. Unlike the additional three inspired Gospel writers (i.e., Matthew, Mark, and John), Luke did not take it for …

Exploring How Church Leadership Strives For Effective Ministry By Developing A Viable Leadership Training Program At A Small Nondenominational Church In Scranton, South Carolina, Willa Dean Montgomery

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The problem at Gospel of Grace Church in Scranton, South Carolina is the church lacks a viable leadership training program to develop competent leaders. The purpose of this DMIN action research project is to develop and implement a viable leadership training program. If a viable leadership training program is implemented, then leadership at Gospel of Grace Church would model servant-leadership characteristics found in Jesus’s Servant Leadership Model. This viable leadership training program aims to teach leaders how to apply biblical principles to their daily lives. They will learn to be a servant first, to serve the needs of others before …

Rest, Rhetoric, And Suffering In The Letter To The Hebrews: How The Author Of Hebrews Uses Classical Rhetoric To Resolve Tension Between Invitation To God's Rest And Present Suffering, Dickson Kûng’Û Ngama

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The Epistle to the Hebrews invites the followers of Jesus to enter God’s promised rest. Unlike the Israelites of the wilderness generation who failed to enter God’s promised rest, the followers of Jesus can enter that rest now and more fully in the future by obedience to God. This is possible because of God’s most recent intervention. God has sent his own son to become a sacrifice for their sins and a high priest for their intercession. Because the way to God is now open, the followers of Jesus can boldly approach God in prayer, gather regularly in worship, and …

Mentorship For African American Female Officers Of Faith In The United States Air Force, Tanquer L. Dyer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Mentorship has emerged as a critical component for the cultivation and development of leaders. Mentoring is beneficial for the mentee and mentor both personally and professionally. The United States Air Force (USAF) encourages formal and informal mentoring for their leaders through initiatives and regulations. Other branches emphasize leadership development; whereas, the USAF emphasizes career development. While African American female officers of faith continue to hold leadership positions, it is unclear whether mentorship serves as a factor of success. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore and understand the lived experience of African American female officers in the USAF …

Ripe For The Harvest: Developing Servants Through Spiritual Formation At Fairhaven Church Of Rootstown, Vincent A. Maltempi

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This action research project addresses the need to develop committed Christian servants within a church ministry context by utilizing a spiritual formation initiative focused on service as a means towards and evidence of spiritual formation and development. Fairhaven Church of Rootstown had not been instructed on the fundamental need for members to serve together. Consequently, service within the church was not a necessary part of discipleship or its spiritual growth plan. The purpose of this intervention was to create and implement a three-fold spiritual development initiative focused on Christian service that includes a sermon series, a midweek study, and a …

Others First: A Visual Roadmap 4 Transformation, Toby D. Wagoner

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Small rural churches tend to have an inward-focus mindset fueled by the need for self-preservation and survival. This transactional ministry mindset negatively impacts sharing the love of Christ with others, culminating in apathetic attitudes toward church functionality. The problem this DMin action research project sought to address is the inward focus of First Baptist Church of Ravenswood members. The church needs to improve its evangelism and discipleship efforts, embrace sharing their love of Christ with others, begin engaging guests on a meaningful level, and consider facility upgrades. Members were reminded of the importance of demonstrating their love of Christ to …

God’S Narrative Of Redemption: Creation, Imago Dei, And Water Imagery, Dawn Lewis Sutherland

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This research demonstrates that the reclamation of imago Dei identity is the ultimate and terminal end-state of God’s plan for humanity’s redemption; this plan is universally expressed to humanity through water imagery in the Old Testament (OT) and in Ancient Near East (ANE) context. The Creator unveils supernatural intent through natural processes and contends that the restoration of imago Dei identity represents the conclusive fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan for humanity. In pursuit of this argument, the research critically explores creational identity, the contrasting biblical notion of idolatry, and the cross-cultural significance of water imagery within the contexts of the …

Digital Ministry In The Church: Strengths, Weaknesses, And Opportunities, Willie Charles Howard Garrett

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative phenomenological study explores how churchgoers and senior pastors who are servant-leaders perceive the effectiveness, drawbacks, and opportunities of employing digital ministry in their churches as they attempt to develop healthy virtual relationships that maintain personal connections. The COVID-19 pandemic caused a change in churchgoers attending services in person. The government instituted social distancing and closures of businesses, schools, and churches. As a result, senior pastors engaged in creative ways using digital ministry to continue spreading the Word of God. While digital ministry existed pre-COVID-19, an increase occurred in response to the need to suspend in-person attendance. The theory …

An Examination Of The Parental Role In The Discipleship Of Children, Robert B. Jarman

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Parents have an enormous role in the lives of their children. They are responsible for all aspects of their children’s development to prepare them to manage adulthood successfully. Parents invest much of their time in many important areas of the home, yet regarding discipleship, they will often pass on that responsibility to others or neglect it altogether. The danger of a lack of discipleship in the home is that it can potentially contribute to the growing trend of young adults leaving the faith. This thesis project examines the Biblical mandate for parents discipling their children, the reasons for parents not …

Pursuing An Earthly Spirituality: C.S. Lewis And Incarnational Faith By Gary S. Selby, Sarah O'Dell

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Review of Pursuing an Earthy Spirituality: C.S. Lewis and Incarnational Faith, by Gary S. Selby.

Timeless Moments: Russell Kirk, Charles Williams, And Stephen King On The Afterlife, Camilo Peralta

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

What happens to us after death is one of the oldest and most difficult questions. Even the standard response of many Christians, that we go to either Heaven, Hell, or Purgatory, can only partly satisfy, because while we experience the passing of time in a linear manner, those places are said to exist completely outside of time. How, then, can it make sense to speak of “going” to Heaven or Hell after death? Must we not always and forever be there—even during our lifetimes? Russell Kirk, a Catholic historian from Michigan who often speculated about the afterlife in his fiction …

Orpheus And The Harrowing Of Hell In The Tale Of Beren And Lúthien, Giovanni Carmine Costabile

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

Critics have observed that Beren and Lúthien’s tale is a Christian retelling of the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. The “Harrowing of Hell” tradition is widespread in Italy as attested by the mosaic of San Marco among others, but it is in France that the Ovid Moralized reconnects it to Orpheus who descended into the Underworld to save Eurydice (an already late antique parallel) and therefore attests a happy ending version of the story that can be found in medieval England and also in various classical sources, perhaps even in the original legend of Orpheus. The apocryphal Harrowing is also …

Critical Faith: What It Is, What It Isn't & Why It Matters [Chapter 1], Joni Schwartz

Publications and Research

Near hysteria has erupted in the media, state and federal legislatures, community boards, and churches around critical race theory (CRT). Despite the term's history, development, and clearly defined meaning, it has become a catch-all for white America's fears, deflections, and equivocations on race, society, and the law. Christians are no exception. Their critiques routinely claim that CRT is rewriting of American history, that it is anti-democratic, and even heretical.

Critical Faith presents a counter argument to these claims and insists that CRT is a tool to grapple with the thorny issue of race in both society and the church. In …

The Spiritual Prodigy, The Reluctant Guru, And The Saint: Mirabai And Collaborative Leadership At Hari Krishna Mandir, Nancy M. Martin

Religious Studies Faculty Articles and Research

This article explores the life and influence of Indira Devi Niloy (1920–1997) who in 1949 began to encounter the sixteenth-century saint–poet Mirabai during her meditative trance states. She would recount songs, stories, and teachings that the saint gave to her as well as scenes from Mirabai’s life that she witnessed as an observer and at other times experienced directly as a participant. Their ongoing relationship would have a tremendous influence on Indira Devi as well as her guru Dilip Kumar Roy (1897–1980) and the increasingly international community that grew up around them. Their interactions and Indira Devi’s reports in turn …

Barna, George. Raising Spiritual Champions: Nurturing Your Child’S Heart, Mind And Soul. Glendale, Az: Arizona Christian University Press, 2023., Robert J. Oliverio

The Christian Librarian

No abstract provided.

Hugh Of Saint Victor On Reading And Study, Weston Fields

Beets Paper Contest

REL 341: Studies in Medieval Scholastic Theology

Thesis: Hugh's educational schema, with its dual emphasis on liberal arts and scripture, serves to sanctify all aspects of life.

Exploring The Evolution Of Religious Beliefs And Experiences: A Developmental Perspective From Adolescence To Adulthood, Bella Lee Contreras Giardiello

Whittier Scholars Program

This study explores how religious beliefs and experiences evolve and impact individuals as they transition from adolescence into adulthood. It aims to gain insights into the ways in which religion influences social interactions, emotional well-being, and personal identity formation. Research on religion in adolescence into adulthood can promote understanding and tolerance of diverse religious beliefs and practices. Through this study I aim to provide a framework for the ways in which society can appreciate the plurality of religious experiences, fostering respect and empathy among individuals from different religious backgrounds. Participants were recruited from Professor Hill's Intro to Psychology class at …

Creation Care Discipleship: Why Earthkeeping Is An Essential Christian Practice (Book Review), Jeff Ploegstra

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

Reviewed Title: Creation Care Discipleship: Why Earthkeeping is an Essentlal Christian Practice by Steven Bouma-Prediger. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2023. 224 pp. ISBN: 9781540966322.

Are You Now, Or Have You Ever Been, Cleopatra? A Study Of Past Life Regression, Practitioners, And The Impact Of Reincarnation Beliefs, Victoria Hoover

Undergraduate Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Winstead, Sara C. (Fa 1413), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and scan (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Folklife Archives Project 1413. “The Shaker Chair,” a paper written by Sara Winstead for a WKU folk studies class.