Missions and World Christianity Commons^™

A Strategy For Helping Mother And Daughter Churches Foster A Healthy Symbiotic Relationship, Timothy Blazer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This action research project explores the dynamic relationship between mother churches and daughter churches within the context of church multiplication, with particular emphasis on the mutual benefits and shared challenges that emerge throughout the planting process. Central to the study is the guiding research question: “Will applying biblical principles of church planting partnership between mother and daughter churches enable church plants to thrive and flourish?” While much of the existing literature centers primarily on individual church planters, this study focuses on how mother churches and their church plants can experience growth and vitality through intentional and collaborative partnerships. The purpose …

Effective And Sustainable Church Planting Strategies For Persians From A Muslim Background In Britain, Jonathan Aptin Samadi

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Flourishing In The Field : Best Practices For Missionary Health And Effectiveness, Matthew H. Rasch

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Change Of Knowledge, Attitude, And Behavior On Evangelism : Measuring The Changes Of Knowledge, Attitude, And Behavior On Pastors And Mission Leaders From Churches In Meru Town In Kenya, Esayas Solomon Wechefo

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Harvest Leadership: A Philosophy For Empowering Indigenous Leaders For Ministry Among Unreached People Groups, Sarah Kelley

Christian Ministries Senior Capstone

One-third of the world's population lacks meaningful access to the gospel, underscoring a critical need for contextualized ministry and leadership development. This paper outlines a philosophy of ministry for Harvest Leadership, a ministry dedicated to empowering indigenous leaders for ministry among unreached people groups. Following William Frankena's philosophy of education as its framework, this paper argues that effective Christian education for these leaders must be contextually appropriate, emphasizing principles such as Oral Learning, Social Learning Theory, and Experiential Learning. By illustrating through the case of Pikugi, an Ache woman in Paraguay, the paper demonstrates how intentional ministry practices, informed by …

The Characteristics Of Missionary Understanding And Practices And The Impact Of Transnationalism In Reference To The Indian Pentecostal Church Of God (Ipc) In The Us, Jaewoo Joung

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Irene Blyden Taylor: God’S Apostle To Nevis, Robert A. Danielson

The Asbury Journal

Irene Blyden Taylor was an early Holiness convert from the Island of Saba in the West Indies. Her life intersects a number of key people and places in the history of the Holiness Movement, as she worked with C.O. Moulton, one of the founding Holiness missionaries in the Caribbean, attended school at God’s Bible School and College, and as she worked as an evangelist and church planter on the Islands of St. Kitts, Nevis, and Saba. Through her story, the origins of Holiness mission work in the English speaking Caribbean can be explored as well as key missiological insights. Blyden …

Towards A Missiological Model For Reaching East Indian Muslims For Christ In Kwatta Of Suriname, Kenneth Rigobert

Dissertations DIS

The presence of Seventh-day Adventists in Suriname dates to 1894, but there is no evidence, either in literature or field research, of any specific plan or missional thinking focused on the Adventist mission among East Indian Muslims in Suriname. The field research highlights some significant missiological challenges faced by the Seventh-day Adventist mission in Suriname that account for its slow numerical growth. These missiological challenges include: (1) a lack of committed and dedicated indigenous leaders; (2) inappropriate training given to the indigenous people for the mission in Suriname's multicultural and multilingual dynamics; (3) unsuitable missional methods for Suriname’s multicultural and …

“Christ For The World We Sing”: What Twentieth-Century Churches Of Christ Sang About Missions, Monty L. Lynn, Derran Reese, Kelly Cross Elliott, D. J. Bulls

Management Sciences

What twentieth-century members of acapella Churches of Christ sang to one another about missions informed, reinforced, and reflected congregational perspectives and practices. Fifty-four missions hymns from hymnals used within Churches of Christ suggest thirty-nine themes that encourage urgent and empathetic responses to spiritual distress, near and far. Hymns resonate with the trajectories of missions among Churches of Christ and provide insight into the ethos of congregations.

Timothy Keller: Champion For The City: Keller's Philosophy Of Urban Contextualization, Michael W. Cunningham

Liberty Theological Review

Timothy Keller's 2023 passing serves as an occasion to consider his ministry legacy. His magnum opus, Center Church, encapsulated his philosophy of contextualization. This philosophy was rooted in a robust theology that informed and balanced missions, evangelism, and church planting. Keller's passion for city missions defied current ministry trends that favored suburbia and avoided urban contexts. His ministry conviction overcame cultural opposition and ministry bias and grew a thriving ministry in an unlikely ministry setting. Keller’s ministry captured the imagination of rising generations of pastors, missionaries, and ministry practitioners and provided the needed theological framework and training for successful …

Long-Term Partnerships Between Communities And Mission Organizations: A Case Study, Rebecca Boggs Bishop

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the long-term partnership of World Changers with the community of Chattanooga, Tennessee to understand best practices for creating similar cross-sector partnerships involving short-term mission work. Within this research, long-term partnership is defined as an arrangement existing for at least ten years. The study utilized the theories of covenant community (Lingenfelter, 2008), legitimate peripheral participation (Lave & Wenger, 1991), and cross-sector social-oriented partnerships (Selsky & Parker, 2005) to guide the research. The study considered the perspectives of community members, ministry leaders, and mission organization leadership to determine benefits and areas of …

Strategic Oversight Leadership That Produces Church Planting Networks : The Affective, Cognitive, And Behavorial Characteristics Of Oversight Leadership And Their Application To A Church Of England Resourcing Church In Leicester, Sami Lindsey

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Imagine All The People : Strategies Toward The Majority Of Uk Baptist Churches Effectively Starting New Christian Communities Through Fruitful Evangelism, Alex Harris

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Great Latino Unchurching : Reaching Latinos In A Secular Age, AndréS Zelaya

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

"I Am A Child Of The King, And I Will Not Be A Victim!" : The Impact Of A Christian Women's Self-Defense Class, Amanda Allen

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Christian Hospitality For Interfaith Relations In Myanmar : A Historical And Theological Consideration, Stanley

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Missional Movement Through The Local Church : Applying Movemental Principles In A British Context, Nicholas Ralph Allan

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Hybrid Church Best Practice : Engagement And Discipleship Of 18-35 Year Olds, Daniel Drew

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Apostolic Priests : Releasing The Lay Planters, Gareth J. Robinson

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Testimonies On Partner Development Strategies: Mission Work In Europe, Kimberly Witte

Senior Honors Theses

This study seeks to answer how first-world missionaries can utilize research findings on the effectiveness of testimonials and apply that knowledge to partner development strategies. Research trends demonstrate that most missionaries are being sent to countries with the largest practicing Christian populations, such as those in Africa or South America, and are more likely to receive financial partnerships. Europe has a high rate of non-practicing Christians and is a cultural intersection due to the refugee crisis, leading to a need for mission work. This research will culminate in the creation of a prayer guide, highlighting testimonies of individuals impacted by …

An Approach To The History Of Missions In The Church Of The Nazarene In Cuba, Mirelys Correoso Calzadilla

The Asbury Journal

The history of a church is impossible to tell if the chronicles of its missions are ignored. It is the latter that give it life and continuity. This article aims to present a brief historical review of the development of the missions in the Church of the Nazarene in Cuba. We begin with Miss Leona Gardner, a North American missionary, who arrived on the island in 1902. She preached the gospel in the area of Casilda, Trinidad, in the former province of Santi Espíritus, for 25 years. The merit lies in the fact that although she did not manage to …

Latina Mothering As Diaspora Mission : The Role Of Latina Immigrant Mothers In The Religious Identity Formation Of The Next Generation, Rebekah R.S. Clapp

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Church Planting As Evangelism : How People Are Influenced And Worldview Assumptions Impacting Church Plants And Church Multiplication, W. Bud (Walter Bud) Simon

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Church Planting In The East Of Germany : The Importance Of Missions, Discipleship, And Community Formation, Maria Boschker

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

American Indian Residential Boarding Schools: Historical Trauma And The Role Of Government, Churches, And Tribes In Healing Indigenous Communities, Briana Slaubaugh

Liberty Theological Review

Throughout the 19^th and 20^th centuries, Native Americans and Indigenous tribes in North America faced systematic destruction of their cultures, genocide, and extreme abuse. With wars against Native Americans, forced relocation from their historic lands, and mandatory residential boarding schools where Indigenous children were forcibly separated from their parents, the social fabric of Native American communities was destroyed. These travesties were government sanctioned and enacted by churches. The American Indian Residential Schools serve as the most recent and egregious factories of abuse. The policies and actions enforced against Native Americans left a generation plagued by abuse leaving a …

Behind The Numbers: A Traditional Church Faces A New America, Larry Vogel

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

The dissertation examines membership data for The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) from the mid-1970s to the present. It considers the analysis of LCMS decline by two scholars, George Hawley and Ryan MacPherson, who independently proposed that LCMS membership decline was internal in causation due to diminished birthrates and fewer young families. While acknowledging the reality of such internal decline, this dissertation argues that the lack of external growth is a greater cause for LCMS decline. Its lack of external growth is due primarily to the racial and ethnic homogeneity of the LCMS and its failure effectively to evangelize the increasingly …

Understanding Secularized People Of Metro Manila: A Case Study Approach For A Contextualized Urban Ministry Strategy, Ermela T. Dizon

Dissertations

Problem

Secularization shapes people's thinking, feeling, and behaving in the cities. Yearly, there is a rise in the number of de-religionized or secularized people in cities of the world who engage in pursuits of materialism and show declining interest in religion. Sociologists and missiologists postulate about the spectrum of secularity and the variety of secularism in different context. Since Metro Manila is one of the world's top highly urbanized and densely populated cities, the Seventh-day Adventist Church encounters challenges in reaching its secularized people. It is a new turf for the church. Pastors trained for rural settings may not understand …

Raising Godly Leaders : For Finishing The Task In Thailand, Weerawut Hongsa

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

"Go Into All The World" : Rediscovering God's Calling For The Church, Richard Nevard

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Understanding Secularized People Of Metro Manila: A Case Study Approach For A Contextualized Urban Ministry Strategy, Ermela T. Dizon

Dissertations DIS

Problem

Secularization shapes people's thinking, feeling, and behaving in the cities. Yearly, there is a rise in the number of de-religionized or secularized people in cities of the world who engage in pursuits of materialism and show declining interest in religion. Sociologists and missiologists postulate about the spectrum of secularity and the variety of secularism in different context. Since Metro Manila is one of the world's top highly urbanized and densely populated cities, the Seventh-day Adventist Church encounters challenges in reaching its secularized people. It is a new turf for the church. Pastors trained for rural settings may not understand …