Practical Theology Commons^™

Complete Spring Issue

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

African-American Pastors' Mental Health Literacy, Leadership And Counsel: A Systematic Review, Michelle A. Townsend

Social Work Doctoral Dissertations

The African-American pastor is a trusted provider of leadership and counseling within the Black church and community. Pastors and ministry leaders are often the first responders of mental health issues faced by their congregants and community members. As a trusted and sought-after source for counseling, the African-American Pastor is a mental health provider to a community who often does not pursue professional mental health counseling. Although the community is susceptible to the same mental illness as other ethnic groups, there is mistrust for the medical and mental health community and inequality in the available resources. This study 1) examined what …

Church Planting: Exploring The Actual Experiences And Stories Of Four Church Planters Of The Plant1000 Evangelism Initiative In The North American Division Of The Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Hyveth Williams

Dissertations

Problem. Plant1000 was launched in 2016 by the North American Division (NAD), the fifth largest of 13 divisions of the worldwide Seventh-day Adventist Church. Since then, it has been reported that over 1000 new church plants have been started, but we do not really understand how healthy most of these are, or not. We also do not know what they are actually experiencing in their developing into viable congregations. The focus of this dissertation is the story of four selected church plants that may be able to help us understand those dynamics that, at the moment, are little understood. -- …

Theological Practices For Sustaining Community Renewal At Speedway Church Of Christ, Kent A. Ellett

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This project assembled a group of potential small-group facilitators for the purpose of drafting a small-group discussion guide to be used at the Speedway (Indiana) Church of Christ. The guide was intended to aid the discernment of missional practices which sustain the renewal of the wider community. Focusing on the Gospel of John, the intervention attempted to recover a temple Christology, construing the incarnation, ministry, death, and the lifting up of Jesus within the larger story of the temple’s ongoing re-creation of the world. In bestowing his glory upon the church, Jesus sends the church into all the world, as …

The Multiple Simultaneous Stakeholder Phenomenon: Stakeholder Theory In The Church, Steve Jeantet

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

Stakeholder theory is useful in identifying individuals or groups that are invested in, benefit from, or are potentially harmed by an organization. This article identifies a weakness in the current literature. Unlike most for-profit organizations where the various groups of stakeholders are relatively discrete, churches frequently have individuals who are meaningful stakeholders in several arenas simultaneously. The same person can be a program participant (customer), volunteer (unpaid employee), elder or deacon (board member), and donor (investor). This phenomenon is labeled the multiple simultaneous stakeholder effect herein, and proposed implications for pastors and opportunities for future research are discussed.

Complete Fall Issue

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

‘Sisters In Strength’: Re-Evaluating Agency Among Women In Two Low-Income Congregations In South Los Angeles, Lane Valley, Makaela Brass, Isaac Voss

Essays

No abstract provided.

Complete Spring Issue

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

Church Revitalization: Fashioning Church For Growth, Willie Lee Wormack

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This thesis research project is an approach to resolve the issues of the critically declined and dying Friendship Baptist Church whose membership cannot support a viable ministry. Friendship Baptist Church exists with minimal infrastructure at 38503 Mosstown Road, Dade City, Florida, in the rural Lacoochee, Florida area. Friendship Baptist Church needs a visionary plan with leadership and team support directed to assist with church development and growth. The case study approach will implement exploration on the meanings and beliefs of Christianity for the church in the church’s social setting. Investigations about cultural associations of faith with the church is engaged …

Perceived Effectiveness Of A Mentoring Program For Training Adventist Chinese Evangelists, Terry Man-Yuen Tsui

Dissertations

Problem

The fact that evangelism in the Unorganized Territories of the Chinese Union Mission was done mainly as personal evangelism and that public evangelism was limited to a one-day seed sowing meeting had led to a serious need for equipping pastors in effective public evangelism methods. It required a model of public evangelism, which is adaptable to the local Chinese culture, and a mentoring program that accompanies evangelists, who were still developing their skills in public evangelism.

Method

This study used a parallel mixed methods design to measure the perceived effectiveness of selected methods in the mentoring program. This design …

Formulating A Communal Covenant For The Elders And Ministers Of South Fork Church Of Christ, Drew Baker

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This project addressed the lack of a communal covenant for the elders and ministers of South Fork Church of Christ. The purpose of the project was to formulate a covenant that would promote the spiritual discernment and leadership of the elders and ministers. For the theological framework, I relied upon Mark’s portrait of Jesus. I looked at Jesus’s lived example as well as his teachings to discern values and practices that defined his leadership and should therefore be normative for Christian leaders. These values and practices were analyzed according to three relational categories—relationship with God, with each other, and with …

Complete Fall Issue

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

Dissertation Notices, H. L. Penna, H. Parker, E. C. Scott, C. J. Danquah, D. R. Williams, C. O. Agbarakwe

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

A Mixed-Method Study: Executive Pastors And The Performance Of Fast-Growing Churches, Donald Wouter Bosch

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Based on available literature, little systematic investigation has explicitly considered the extent to which investing in church management, including hiring executive pastors, affects church performance. The purpose of this exploratory sequential mixed-methods study is to assess phenomenological and correlational data from one hundred of the fastest-growing churches in the United States, as ranked by LifeWay Research (2018) for calendar years 2017-2018 and draw available conclusions on church executive leadership capacity versus performance. Phenomenological data was used to qualitatively examine the executive management functions at these churches and analyze how each determined its need for such expertise based on leadership team …

Following The Guide: A Wilderness Theology Of Youth Ministry, Rachel M. Weisz

Honors Projects

Scripture offers readers a unique characterization of wilderness spaces and provides us with a great deal of information about what to expect. This discussion traces various scriptural narratives of encounter with God in the wilderness, offering the reader a model for what a wilderness experience of God may entail, and then turns to more current conversation about wilderness youth ministry. The project traces current research of fields that are tangentially related to wilderness youth ministry including wilderness therapy, outdoor adventure education, and camp ministry, and seeks to highlight the ways that they can enhance, alter, and confirm various practices within …

Adolescent Spiritual Formation: Practical Theology As A Filter For Youth Ministry, Jeremy Smith

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

There seems to be a disconnect between the practice and scholars of youth ministry. Historically, the practice of youth ministry has been overly concerned with method, creating multiple approaches, each with its own inherent shortcomings. Responding to this overemphasis on method, scholars of youth ministry have argued for a more theological framework, assuming that the problem lies within a lack of theological education among youth ministry practitioners. In 2001 youth ministry scholarship made a case to place the field of youth ministry under the discipline of practical theology in hopes of grounding the practice of youth ministry in theology. Over …

Cultivating Virtue: Developing A Guiding Document For Youth Ministry At Cookeville First United Methodist Church, Adam Daniels

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to produce a guiding document of virtues that represented the type of Christ-like character qualities desired in youth at Cookeville First United Methodist Church. The six virtues chosen in the document represent a comprehensive vision for character growth over the course of students’ time in the program. To provide a theological foundation for this project, I examined the idea that virtue has a narrative shape where words find their meaning in a story. For our purposes, this story is generally stated as the story of Jesus at first but is then seen as best …

Complete Issue

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

Dissertation Notices, C. M. Bonnet, C. J. Danquah, C. Hollilns, J. D. Frey, J. Plancich Shinners, J. W. Bunkowske

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

Missional Leadership In Times Of Congregational Transition, Tormod O. Svensson

Doctor of Ministry Theses

Congregational transitions are points of change, providing opportunities to introduce a missional understanding and direction of ministry. Missional leadership in times of congregational transition includes case studies of three ELCA congregations in transition, led by pastors who have a missional understanding of leadership, processed through the lenses of transformational pastoral leadership, congregational transitions, what it might mean to be sent by God, the Holy Spirit leading and empowering, missional ecclesiology, and congregational spiritual practices. It draws on resources by Allen Roxburgh, Patrick Keifert, Dwight Zscheile, Craig Van Gelder, Lee Bolman, Terrence Deal, Peter Northouse, William and Susan Bridges, and others.

Complete Issue

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

Dissertation Notices, A. D. Maloof, K. L. Wood, K. M. Smith, D. M. Muwina, C. A. Serrano, J. W. Bunkowske

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

The Practice Of Children’S Ministry: Developing A Cohesive Vision Of Practice With Church Leaders, Shannon Clarkson Rains

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to create a congregational workshop for church leaders that leads to the development of a cohesive vision for the practice of children’s ministry. In order to do this, I began by presenting the evolution of children’s ministry in the Churches of Christ along with the current tensions that exist between ministers and church leadership created by a lack of cohesive vision for the practice of children’s ministry. This foundational understanding of the origins of this tension supports my discussion of a vision for children’s ministry that includes attention to the spiritual formation of children—an …

Pastoral Leadership In A Cross-Cultural, Multicultural, Conflict-Driven Congregation: A Filipino Case Study, Ed Volfe

Doctor of Ministry Projects and Theses

Pastoral Leadership in a Cross-Cultural, Multicultural, Conflict-Driven Congregation: A Filipino Case Study

Christ Redeemer was a Cross-Cultural, Multicultural church where the majority of the members were Filipinos. The church experienced way too many conflicts that distracted everyone in the congregation from the real calling to “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.”[1] The ethos of Christ Redeemer seemed to be driven by conflict, regardless of whether the leadership provided came from a Filipino or a non-Filipino pastor. The congregation fed conflict upon conflict, creating a cycle of tension with little engagement in critical issues in the …

Complete Issue

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.

Servant Leadership: A Study About Organizational Health, Leadership Styles And Practices In Missao Bahia Sudoeste Of The Seventh-Day Adventist Church And The Possible Relation Between The Ministerial Areas Low Engagement Level In The Small Groups Program, Osmar Borges Lima

Master's Theses

Problem

Due to the low engagement of the pastors of Missão Bahia Sudoeste (MBSo) in the Small Groups program as compared to other field within the União Leste Brasileira (ULB) it was decided to investigate the organizational health, the leadership practices and styles, as well as the job satisfaction on the part of the MBSo’s pastors.

Method

The study was conducted among 52 pastors who represented the three levels of leadership designated by the OLA research instrument (Top Leadership, Management and Work Force) which analyses the perception of the participants six key areas of leadership, as well as six levels …

The Role Of The Black Church In Addressing Collateral Damage From The U.S. War On Drugs, Donald L. Perryman

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This research is a qualitative examination of African American pastors from urban communities who address the needs of congregants and/or local communities affected directly, or indirectly by mass incarceration. The Black Church, because of its unique sociocultural location and historic role as resource for Black social and economic problems, must help supply the answers to the devastating collateral damage of mass incarceration that primarily affect children and families. The study sets out to understand urban pastors’ perceptions of the role of the Church in the post mass incarceration era. Specifically, the study examines the unique contributions of the African American …

Validating Leadership Styles Along A Life Cycle Framework Of Faith-Based Organizations, Ronald R. Rojas

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

Although pastors may recognize contingency leadership models as a valuable response, to date there has been very little research done on validating the use of these constructs within the pastoral setting. A qualitative research project was conducted to provide reliable guidance for selecting the best fit of leadership styles in pastoral situations using a grounded theory approach on 32 pastor-team sets as a basis for conceptualizing growth stages that serve as a basis for deciding optimal fit of leadership styles. From this research emerged a life cycle model with seven stages of growth with practical implications for pastors as faith-based …

Shared Leadership: A Rediscovery Of An Old Paradigm And Its Historical Context, Marlon C. Robinson

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

The paradigm shift in the leadership field has resulted in several contemporary approaches to leadership. These approaches focus on process as opposed to traits–the emphasis of the traditional approaches. The purpose of this article is to examine shared leadership: the historical background, biblical foundation, differences between traditional leadership and shared leadership, dissimilarities of shared leadership and teamwork, benefits and limitations, and shared leadership in practice. Several benefits of shared leadership are highlighted, such as increased trust among team members and performance improvement. While shared leadership has several advantages, leaders need to be aware that it does not fit for every …

Macarthur And Eisenhower: A Comparison Of Their Use Of Faith As Leaders, Steve Firestone

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

No abstract provided.