Christian Denominations and Sects Commons^™

Covid-19, Science, And Race: A Black Pentecostal Engagement, David Daniels

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

A Black Pentecostal engagement of COVID-19, science, and race points towards a rapport between the Spirit-empowered Movement and health sciences where religious and secular (science) actors are respected agents in the public arena with each offering valuable perspectives and resources to pivotal conversations about public health in this case. In this article, it is argued that the Church of God in Christ (COGIC) represented in the episcopal letters of Bishop Charles E. Blake, Sr., the presiding bishop of COGIC from 2007 to 2021, demonstrate a religious perspective that possesses a critical perspective on engaging health science during the COVID-19 pandemic. …

The Limited Impact Of Pentecostal Interracialism On Systemic Racism In The Usa, Harold D. Hunter

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

The centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre demands a careful review of the impact of systemic racism on Christian communities. This study starts by looking at early Pentecostal interracialism in the USA. There is a striking difference between those churches that founded the Pentecostal Fellowship of North America (PFNA) and those who were not invited or even barred. The renewed ascendancy of white supremacy forces a review of black Pentecostal victims who suffered discrimination, violence, even death. Pentecostals who would extend Jim Crow laws into the heavenly realm need to revisit the founders’ emphasis on repentance, reform, and restitution.

Pentecostal Culture, Or Pentecost Of Culture?: Transformation, Paradigms, Power, Unity, Dimitri Sala Ofm

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

This article will explore the relationship between Pentecostals and the broader cultures we inhabit. It will acknowledge that, like all religion, Pentecostalism can tend to create a culture within itself (a “Pentecostal culture”), which at times effects a withdrawal of its adherents from the surrounding world. This necessitates a conscious decision, first to navigate away from that tendency where it exists, and then to define a positive role for Pentecostalism within culture, viz., the transformation of civilization (a “Pentecost of culture”). Thereby the article proposes a more extensive definition of the baptism of the Spirit, looks at how God is …

Towards A Pentecostal Conscientizing Praxis Of Mass Culture Engagement: Contrasting Pneumatologies Of Amos Yong And Simon Chan, Monte Lee Rice

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

This essay notes promises and problems with Pentecostal cultural engagement through its dualistic “spiritual warfare” cosmology. I propose a promising foray by forging Amos Yong’s and Simon Chan’s theologies of cultural engagement. For both employ their Asian particularities towards addressing cultural phenomena in manners that distinguish their contrasting yet I shall argue, complementary pneumatologically themed theologies of culture. Yet neither have engaged methodological disciplines of cultural analysis and critique. In response this essay suggests a Pentecostal conscientizing praxis of mass culture engagement, in conversation with Amos Yong and Simon Chan. This essay concludes by suggesting need for discerning possible prophetic …

Global Poverty And Transnational Pentecostalism In The Middle East, Eric N. Newberg

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Driven by the impact of global poverty, large numbers of documented and undocumented workers from Eastern Europe, Asia, and Africa have migrated to countries in the Middle East. Many of these migrant workers are Pentecostals. The article provides a survey of Pentecostalism in the Middle East and reports on the findings of ethnographic research on transnational Pentecostals in the Levant and the Arabian Peninsula. Compelled by the pressures of globalization, these migrants find better economic prospects as contract workers than they could as free laborers in their home countries. Transnational Pentecostals in the Middle East derive spiritual, social, economic, and …

The Name Of Jesus In Luke-Acts With Special Reference To The Gentile Mission, James Shelton

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Peter declares “There is no other name . . . by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12); yet later he says, “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation, anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him” (10:34–35a). Are there then those among the Gentiles who follow God without hearing the name of Jesus, or are all who have not heard the name lost? The question, often posed in “either/or” discourse terms, fails to understand the meaning and scope of the name of Jesus and the urgency of the mandate …

Three Unique Theological Themes Of Oral Roberts’ Preaching, Julie Ma

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

The study examines three unique theological themes of Oral Roberts: “Seed-faith,” healing of the whole being, and the “Fourth Man.” Since his message was a reflection of his theology, I also investigate his theological formation, informed particularly by his experiences such as miraculous healing.

In Memoriam: Dr. James B. Buskirk (1933–2020), James Shelton, Arden C. Autry Phd, Sally Jo Shelton

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

James Buskirk is honored as the founding Dean of ORU’s Graduate School of Theology. A Master of Arts degree was already in place; Buskirk was tasked with establishing a Master of Divinity, a Doctor of Ministry, and a PhD in theology—each fully accredited. During his tenure, faculty and student numbers increased along with denominational diversity. The MDiv and DMin achieved accreditation. The PhD was not started, however, as Oral Roberts dealt with competing financial priorities. Roberts’ declared decision not to offer a PhD led to Buskirk’s departure. He remained on good terms personally with Roberts. Buskirk’s effect on others is …

Editorial - Spiritus 6.1 (Spring 2021), Jeffrey S. Lamp

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

No abstract provided.

Front Matter- Spiritus 6.1 (Spring 2021), [email protected]

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

No abstract provided.

Full Issue - Spiritus 6.1 (Spring 2021), [email protected]

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

The full issue of Spiritus 6, vol 1 (Spring 2021)

Restoration Quarterly: Vol. 63, No. 2

Restoration Quarterly

PDF of the cover of Restoration Quarterly: Vol. 63, No. 2.

This repository hosts selected Restoration Quarterly articles in downloadable PDF format. For the benefit of users who would like to browse the contents of RQ, we have included all issue covers even when full-text articles from that issue are unavailable. All Restoration Quarterly articles are available in full text in the ATLA Religion Database, available through most university and theological libraries or through your local library’s inter-library loan service.

Calvin Theological Journal (Vol 56 No 1 - April 2021), Calvin Theological Seminary

Calvin Theological Journal

From the Editor: Karin Maag - 9 / Articles: Church and State in the Swiss Reformation by Jordan J. Ballor - 11 / “Unto the Fullness of Christ”: Organism and Dogma in James Orr by Todd Statham - 37 / Body and Soul: Baptismal Solidarity at a Funeral by Laura de Jong - 67 / Sermon: “Be Filled with the Spirit!”—A Sermon on Ephesians 5:15–21 by Denise L. Posie - 87 / Short Study: Sins of Omission: An Ethical Analysis by Gregory Mellema - 93 / Book Reviews - Scripture and Interpretation: Bauckham, Richard, Who Is God? Key Moments …

Sleeping With The Devil, William L. Blizek

Journal of Religion & Film

This is a review of the short film, Sleeping with the Devil (2021), directed by Alisa Wang.

The (Un)Holy Bible: Slavery, Female Objectification, And Harm, Natalia A. D. Martins

Senior Theses

This project further elucidates the ability that the Biblical text has of being used as a justification for immoral actions. By using a textualist approach, we find that analyzing the effects that the literal text could have if used to justify action, allows us to see what Scriptural-based morality is subject to at all times. We approach this matter by classifying Scriptural interpretations under a spectrum that varies by degree. This is useful to see that the lowest bar for an action to be theologically justifiable, is whether it is in accordance with a literal reading of the Biblical text. …

Responding To: What Do Seventh-Day Adventists Believe? Sharing Jesus, Cedric Vine

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Widened Angle Of View: Teaching Theology And Racial Embodiment, Mara Brecht

Journal of Global Catholicism

Today’s undergraduate students are digital natives, shaped by constant access to information and countless experiences of encountering the world through the convenience of a screen. The ostensible comfort students have with difference gives way to a paradox, and one that’s made especially apparent in the theology classroom: Students are comfortable with seeing difference and particularity at a distance, but not adept at locating difference and particularity “at home.” I contend that Catholics & Cultures can help students from the dominant culture—namely, white students who comprise the vast majority of Catholic college students—destabilize their notion of the Catholic tradition as tightly …

Infectious Ideas: Why Do Radical Innovations Take Root?, Steven Pfaff

Sociology Faculty Articles and Research

"Living in the midst of a pandemic, we have all become familiar with the idea of contagion. An epidemic spreads through exposure to an infectious agent, like a novel virus. In a basic contagion model, the spread of a disease is a function of contact with the agent and its degree of infectiousness. Epidemiologists often model the risk of contagion as a function of contact (or frequency or level of contact) with the infected and the agent’s virulence.

When it comes to triggering radical institutional change, do ideas work the same way?

In a recent article, a team of …

The Rhetoric Of Spirituality, Gender, And The Environment In The Wicker Man (1973) And Midsommar (2019), Emma Frances Bloomfield

Far West Popular Culture Association Annual Conference

The Wicker Man (1973) and Midsommar (2019) are horror films that address dominant ideologies including the patriarchy, anthropocentrism, and Christianity. Both films have a nature-connected cult that sacrifices for the community and performs rituals informed by pagan eco-spirituality. I perform an ecofeminist rhetorical criticism to analyze how, despite these shared themes, spiritual, gender, and environmental messages differ between the two films. In The Wicker Man, the audience is invited to sympathize with Neil’s character, his Christianity, and his individualistic masculinity as he is sacrificed in the cult’s harvest ritual. Alternatively, the main character in Midsommar, Dani, gets revenge …

Health Beliefs, Behavior, Spiritual Growth, And Salvation In A Global Population Of Seventh‑Day Adventists, Duane C. Mcbride, Karl G. D. Bailey, Peter Landless, Alina M. Baltazar, David J. B. Trim, Galina Stele

Faculty Publications

Background The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a growing global denomination with strict substance use abstinence and recommended dietary requirements that together are called the “Health Message.” Abstinence from alcohol and tobacco is a requirement of membership and a plant-based diet is strongly advised. Purpose While a wide variety of research has reported the Adventist health advantage, very little research has been conducted on Adventist members’ attitudes toward and adherence to the Health Message. This research examines members' views, from a global survey, about the health message, personal adherence, and belief that adherence ensures salvation. Methods The survey was conducted in …

Book Review: Lori D. Ginzberg. Women And The Work Of Benevolence: Morality, Politics, And Class In The Nineteenth-Century United States. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1990., Merritt A. Morgan

Bound Away: The Liberty Journal of History

Lori D. Ginzberg's 1990 work, Women and the Work of Benevolence: Morality, Politics, and Class in the Nineteenth-Century United States, focuses on the ideas and socially benevolent practices of Protestant women of the prosperous middle and upper-middle-class during the 1820s to the 1880s in the northeast region of the United States. The author analyzes how contemporaries affirmed these values in women's benevolent work, which also promoted their status and brought about significant social changes in American culture.

John Eliot: A Successful Application Of Missiological Methodology, Brent Meyers

Bound Away: The Liberty Journal of History

For many seventeenth-century explorers and settlers arriving in the “New World,” new and exciting opportunities arose not only for building new lives for themselves, but also to spread their Christian faith. John Eliot, a Puritan missionary from Widford, Hertfordshire, England, engaged in conversion efforts among the Amerindians of New England, employing "missiological methodology," or proselytizing the natives while simultaneously subjugating them to European cultural norms. His work, while mixed in its effects, anticipated many aspects of modern missionary movements.

Joining Together And Getting To Know You: A Case Study German Evangelical Martin Luther Church Of Ottawa Inc. And Mount Calvary Lutheran Church Ottawa, Gudrun Curri, Marianne Thornton

Consensus

No abstract provided.

Conflict Between The Clergy And The Laity In The Quaker Church In Kenya, John Muhanji

Doctor of Ministry

The Quaker church missionaries came to Kenya as part of the West's Christian movement to the dark continent. Historians have usually referred to the Society of Friends' spiritual life as quietism, which did not resonate well with African spirituality which was disregarded by the missionaries as evil. Africans unquestioningly believe in the supreme creator of the universe and humanity. There is no ethnic group in Africa that does not have a specific name for a supreme God.1 Therefore, the Quaker belief that "there is that of God in everyone" was not considered by the Western missionaries that Africans believed in …

Not-Quite-Equal: Mentoring Women For 21st Century Leadership, Susan Rose

Doctor of Ministry

Women are being ordained to ministry in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) at a higher rate than men, but they are not achieving parity in ministry opportunities, salary and benefits. Women comprised 52% of the ordinations in the PC (USA) denomination from 2006-2018. However, they receive fewer full-time positions, fewer congregational positions, less pay for the same positions as men, and Board of Pensions benefits at a lower percentage than men. Reviewing the history of women’s leadership in the church contextualizes biases and prejudices women continue to face today. In Section 1, this paper examines the history of women’s leadership in …

Domestic Broils: Shakers, Antebellum Marriage, And The Narratives Of Mary And Joseph Dyer, Elizabeth A. Dewolfe

History Faculty Books

In 1813, Joseph Dyer, his wife Mary, and their five children joined the Shaker community in Enfield, New Hampshire. Joseph quickly adapted to the Shaker way of life, but Mary chafed under its strictures and eventually left the community two years later. When the local elders and her husband refused to release the couple's children to Mary, she embarked on what would become a fifty-year campaign against the Shakers, beginning with the publication in 1818 of A Brief Statement of the Sufferings of Mary Dyer. The following year the Shakers countered by publishing Joseph's A Compendious Narrative, a …

Archaeology Of The International Space Station, Justin Walsh, Alice Gorman, Wendy Salmond

Art Faculty Data Sets

The explicit goal of the International Space Station Archaeological Project (ISSAP) is to provide an understanding of material culture as a key component of life in space, on par with the research by biomedical and psychological scholars that has been ongoing since the 1960s. We take as our inspiration a phrase first used in the National Academy of Sciences report Human Factors in Long-Duration Spaceflight, which described a crewed spacecraft as “a microsociety in a miniworld” (Lindsley 1972, 23). One of our primary methods is the cataloguing of people and elements of material culture (objects and built spaces) from photographs …

Contextual Leadership Within Chin Immigrant Churches In The United States, Bawi Bik Thawng

Doctor of Ministry Theses

This research explores the leadership practices of Chin immigrant congregations in the United States, focusing on how they can develop a more effective leadership practice in dealing with the new context of the new land. It attempts to answer the question: What kind of leadership practice will help Chin immigrant leaders apply adaptive leadership theory for implementing contextual oriented leadership theory for the church? The initial motivation for this research arose out of the researcher’s interest in the perception of Chin immigrant congregations on the issue of leadership. A qualitative case study research method was employed in this research.

The …

Hospitality In The House Of God: Deconstructing Habit And Building Missio Dei, Julia A. Carlson

Doctor of Ministry Theses

This research project addresses neighborliness, change, and hospitality in the life of a mainline church of 1,200 members. It is a congregation that has traditional worship and programming with progressive values. The congregants are not comfortable with change and are coming to terms with the missing Millennial generation. Mixed method Action Research using missional practices of hospitality and neighbor interviews offered new faith formation and relationship growth with neighbors. There were also educational opportunities on change, the missional church movement, and neighborliness. The work relies on the theology of Serene Jones, Kosuke Koyama, and Miroslav Volf.

The Episcopal Church Of Liberia Gravitating Towards Financial Independence: Strategies And The Way Forward, Slewion P. Lewis

Doctor of Ministry Theses

This thesis project sought to solicit and find strategies and the way forward as to how the Episcopal Church of Liberia can be financially independent and sustain itself as a diocese. The Episcopal Church of Liberia, a faith tradition of which I am a member and an ordained clergy, continues to a large extent rely on support from the Episcopal Church in America for the running and operation of the church. This has and continues to be the practice and trend of successive leadership dating as far back as the days of the church under missionary bishops. With the church …