Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

A Mixed-Methods Study Of The Variables That Influence Southern Baptists’ Affirmation Of The Inerrancy Of The Bible, David A. Mcgee

Christian Perspectives in Education

The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) had discovered by the late 1970s that belief in the inerrancy of the Bible was not consistently affirmed by their leadership. After a twenty year battle, the SBC attempted to clarify the doctrine of inerrancy through the Baptist Faith and Message 2000. A mixed-method analysis was conducted by surveying 502 Florida Southern Baptist (FSB) church members with a 68-question survey instrument to determine the degree to which they affirmed the doctrine of inerrancy. The study revealed that a large percentage of FSB church members affirmed the doctrine, but the underlining beliefs were not always consistently …

“Vincentian Social Justice”, John E. Rybolt

John E Rybolt

A specific Vincentian commitment to social justice, was not one of the original hallmarks of the Congregation of the Mission, though it developed later. The “Vincentian way,” begins with experience and the followers of Vincent continued to be faithful to Vincent’s way of acting, how he lived. It was his attention to individuals in their needs that formed the basis of his attitude toward social justice, but exercised on the personal level.

Cybertheology: Thinking Christianity In The Era Of The Internet, Antonio Spadaro S.J., Maria Way

Religion

How has Christianity and theology changed in the wake of the internet and mass communication? Tracing concepts in media studies, anthropology, and theology, Spadaro investigates this complex and enlightening topic.

The Lord Is There: Christian Views Of The Temple In The First Century Ad, Jonathan Wells

Masters Theses

During the first century, Yeshua (Jesus) and the original Christians viewed the temple as God's dwelling place on earth. Informed by the Hebrew Bible, which they saw as the Holy Scriptures, they continued to hold the temple in high regard. The writings of the New Testament display the thoughts of the first Christians and the teachings of Yeshua concerning their understanding of the Jerusalem temple. This study explores the views of the temple in the New Testament and other Christian writings from the first century to demonstrate that most Christians and especially the writings of the New Testament continue to …

Between Mercersburg And Oxford: The Ecclesiology Of John Williamson Nevin, Kevin H. Steeper

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Abstract

This thesis explores the ecclesiology of the American theologian John Williamson Nevin (1803-1886) and its relationship to the wider “church question” of the nineteenth century. It will argue that Nevin’s “high church” theology defended the freedom of the church against both theological and political obstacles. Nevin maintained that the American church must establish an identity separate from modern “Puritanism,” as expressed through revivalism, rationalism and sectarianism. Crucially, Nevin was aided in this struggle by the insights of the Oxford Movement. It is a common misperception that the Oxford Movement never influenced American Protestantism. This thesis will contend that Nevin …

Contesting Faith, Truth, And Religious Language At The Creation Museum: A Historical-Theological Reflection, Brent A. R. Hege

Brent A. R. Hege

The Creation Museum in Petersburg, Kentucky, attempts to demonstrate the flaws in contemporary science and to offer an alternative explanation of human origins and biological complexity rooted in a specific reading of the biblical narrative. This effort, however, is paradoxically rooted in the worldview of modern science and the Enlightenment. This article will examine the Creation Museum’s definitions of faith, truth, and religious language and will compare these definitions to those of mainline Protestant Christianity to uncover the historical and theological presuppositions of Creationist and mainline Protestant engagements with contemporary science.

Emerging From The Shadows: Civil War, Human Rights, And Peacebuilding Among Peasants And Indigenous Peoples In Colombia And Peru In The Late 20th And Early 21st Centuries, Charles A. Flowerday

Anthropology Department: Theses

Peacebuilding in Colombia and Peru following their late-20^th and early 21^st century civil wars is a challenging proposition. In this study, it becomes necessary as indigenous peoples and peasants resist domination by extractive industries and governments in their thrall. Whether they protest nonviolently or rebel in arms, they are targeted for human-rights violations, especially murder, disappearance and displacement. The armed actors, state, insurgency, paramilitaries or drug traffickers, destroy civic institutions (local or regional government) and the civil (nonprofit) sector and replace them with their own authoritarian versions. Therefore, peacebuilding has emphasized rebuilding civic institutions, civil society and local …

Review Of Baptismal Imagery In Early Christianity: Ritual, Visual, And Theological Dimensions, Robin M. Jensen, Denis Fortin

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Mixed-Methods Study Of The Variables That Influence Florida Southern Baptists' Affirmation Of The Inerrancy Of The Bible, David A. Mcgee

Faculty Dissertations

The culmination of the resurgence within the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) was finalized by adopting the Baptist Faith and Message 2000 (BFM 2000). The SBC had discovered in the 1970s and 1980s that belief in the inerrancy of the Bible was not being affirmed by their leadership, particularly within their six seminaries. After a twenty plus year battle, the SBC attempted to affirm in more precise language the inerrancy of the Bible through the BFM 2000. However, this raises the question, how has this firm commitment to the inerrancy of the Bible, as affirmed by the leadership, translated to the …

Noetic Apologetics: A Contemporary Approach In Comparison To Historic Apologetic Methods, Enuel Hernandez

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Many are intrigued by the fundamental questions of life. Questions of origin, moral, and purpose are just a few of these. Christians have endeavored throughout the centuries in the task of apologetics to give sound answers to these questions. The history of Christianity has shown that apologists answered objections and inquires about their religion. Many techniques have emerged to direct apologists in explaining their faith. However, there seems to be no unifying process for doing apologetics. This study examines the different apologetic methods and exposes their strong and weak points in order to develop a more efficient strategy. The research …

The Essence Of Discipleship: An Evangelical Perspective, Douglas Taylor

2014-2016 Graduate

Much literature presents discipleship in terms of what one does, but the latter does not define the former - it only shows what discipleship may look like when executed. Christians in general and seminary students in particular struggle to define the essence of Christian discipleship. Much literature exists today describing how one may do discipleship, but what brands something as the very thing it is is not the same as identifying the work it does. This research fills the gap not addressed by the many “how to do discipleship” books by using a hermeneutical-type approach to identify the way people …

Roosevelt, Boy Scouts, And The Formation Of Muscular Christian Character, Gordon J. Christen

Religious Studies Honors Projects

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, many prominent Christians and political leaders saw a degenerative influence in industrializing America. For them, urban culture had eroded gender roles, personal strength, and moral fiber. So-called “Muscular Christians” prescribed physical exertion and wilderness experience to cure these ills. I argue that these values were embodied in idealized characters such as Theodore Roosevelt, Jesus, and the Boy Scout to give a form to cultural remedies. In the process, they became the terms upon which proper Americanism, and proper Christianity, were constructed.

Contesting Faith, Truth, And Religious Language At The Creation Museum: A Historical-Theological Reflection, Brent A. R. Hege

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

The Creation Museum in Petersburg, Kentucky, attempts to demonstrate the flaws in contemporary science and to offer an alternative explanation of human origins and biological complexity rooted in a specific reading of the biblical narrative. This effort, however, is paradoxically rooted in the worldview of modern science and the Enlightenment. This article will examine the Creation Museum’s definitions of faith, truth, and religious language and will compare these definitions to those of mainline Protestant Christianity to uncover the historical and theological presuppositions of Creationist and mainline Protestant engagements with contemporary science.

Review Of "Thinking Christ: Christology And Contemporary Critics", Brent A. R. Hege

Brent A. R. Hege

A review of Thinking Christ: Christology and Contemporary Critics by Jane Barter Moulaison.

„Zurück Zu Schleiermacher! Und Von Schleiermacher Aus Vorwärts!“ Georg Wobbermin And The Legacy Of Schleiermacher In Weimar Liberal Protestantism, Brent A. R. Hege

Brent A. R. Hege

As dialectical theology rose to prominence in the years following World War I, the new theologians sought to distance themselves from liberalism in a number of ways, an important one being a rejection of Schleiermacher’s methods and conclusions. In reading the history of Weimar-era theology as it has been written in the twentieth century one would be forgiven for assuming that Schleiermacher found no defenders during this time, as liberal theology quietly faded into the twilight. However, a closer examination of this period reveals a different story. The last generation of liberal theologians consistently appealed to Schleiermacher for support and …

Augustine, Wannabe Philosopher: The Search For Otium Honestum, Allen Griffith Wilson

EURēCA: Exhibition of Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement

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The German Peasants’ War: The Intersection Of Theology And Society, Zachary Tyree

Senior Honors Theses

This paper examines the way that Reformation theology, particularly that espoused by Martin Luther, impacted German society. Sixteenth-century German society was very hierarchical in nature, with the Roman Catholic Church at the top, followed by the nobility, and finally the peasants, who suffered economic and political plight. Luther’s break from the Church in 1517 and the subsequent years brought tension to society. Developments extending from that break challenged the social hierarchy. One of the major social consequences of the Protestant Reformation, which was rooted in Luther’s theology, was the Peasants’ War. Luther criticized the peasants for the uprising, based on …

Proto-Feminism In Ancient Global Texts, Jody A. Dammann-Matthews

Global Honors Theses

This paper was written to explore the patriarchal interpretations of ancient global texts and to uncover erroneous interpretations of the texts highlighted. Two texts were chosen, the biblical story of Deborah and Jael and the story of Shaharazad. They were both analyzed and compared. In this work the stories were scrutinized through the lens of proto-feminism and the patriarchal interpretations that have been accepted through history. The interpretation of these texts have downplayed the proto-feminist aspects of the protagonists and the patriarchal interpretations applied to these texts have subverted and portrayed women in a negative rather than a positive light. …

Appreciating The Mystery Of "Three Persons" And "One Substance": A Study Of Tertullian's Legacy Concerning The Historical Development Of The Doctrine Of The Trinity, Brandon Walker

Masters Theses

Tertullian of Carthage is hailed by many as the most influential Western theologian prior to Augustine, and his most impressive theological contributions involved Trinitarianism and Christology. This study is a thorough investigation of the extent to which Tertullian influenced subsequent Trinitarian theologians and writers in the Western tradition. It explores how Tertullian repeated and expanded existing arguments popularized by earlier apologists and theologians. It also identifies those original features of Tertullian's theological vocabulary and reasoning which subsequent Western pre- and post-Nicene theologians found most valuable as Trinitarian doctrine progressed toward its maturity. This analysis concludes with an evaluation of Tertullian's …

Sacra Domus: The Anglican House Church In Theology And Context, Alan Andraeas

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The author is an evangelical Anglican priest with a recently formed sacramental house church. Though the house church movement is gaining popularity, no formal guidelines or methodologies exist which address this trend from a liturgical and sacerdotal perspective--even within his diocese. Because of this void, he will examine the following critical issues:

* What are the scriptural foundations for mandating the use of liturgy?

* What are the biblical, theological, and historical precedents for house churches?

* Can there be a complementary union between priestly liturgy and the house church model?

Without guidance from other `reference parishes,' the need for …

I Am Who I Am: The Book Of Exodus And African American Individuality, Joseph L. Kirkenir

Student Publications

Scholars often attempt to construct collective ideologies in order to generalize the beliefs and views of entire populations, with one target population frequently being the African American community during the latter half of the nineteenth century. Unfortunately, doing so fails to recognize the individuality of the population’s members and, especially in the case of the country’s oppressed Blacks, establishes a system where assumed notions and ignorant ideas abound. One might argue that the popularity of the book of Exodus in the time’s African American expressive outlets indicates that there did exist a collective ideology based upon the biblical narrative. However, …

Enlightenment And Catholicism In Europe. A Transnational History, Ulrich Lehner, Jeffrey Burson

Ulrich L. Lehner

No abstract provided.

The Pauline Model Of Atonement In Romans 3:19-31, Norm Mathers

Norm Mathers

The Pauline model of Romans 3:19-31 is a description of substitutionary atonement. Sin, guilt, righteousness, faith in Christ, justification, redemption, propitiation, Christ a covering, atonement in his blood, substitute, justice, justifier, and the principle of faith are descriptive of this view of the atonement. A barrage of literature has arisen against penal substitution. Penal substitution has been confused with substitutionary atonement. Penal substitution has also been referred to as penal substitutionary atonement which isn’t substitutionary atonement. Substitutionary atonement has been clouded by such atonement theories as Christus Victor. Aulen’s view of reconciliation doesn’t adequately describe the New Testament atonement. Substitutionary …

Maximus The Confessor And A Deeper Actualization Of The Apostolic Dimensions Of Pentecostal Movements, Steve Overman

Faculty Publications - Portland Seminary

Excerpt: "...I propose to explore one expression of this more ancient and eastern tradition, as found in the cosmic vision of Maximus the Confessor. After a brief sketch of his life and times and his relationship to the larger orthodox tradition I will attempt to lay out some of the chief features of both his theological and cosmological framework and his ascetic way of practice in community. I will conclude by suggesting that both this framework and way of practice can indeed help resource healing of humankind’s relationship with one another and the other realms of the creation and that …

Bridging The Latino--Anglo Gap: A Transition Towards A Cross-Cultural Church At First Baptist Church, Robbins, North Carolina, Ernesto Robledo

Doctor of Ministry Projects

In its 2,000 years of existence, the church has remained mostly segregated in regards to the inclusion of other cultures within one setting. Christians from various traditions have spent centuries trying to be more like Jesus as they worshiped in many different settings. Even though the church has been active for so long, the reality is that she has been predominantly white. Through an intentional pastoral project, twenty-four individuals participated in a four-week bilingual Bible study and a community-wide missionary event. These purposeful interactions proved that the church can change her traditional ministry pattern by engaging members of the Latino …

"The Loved One Does Not Yet Know All She Shall Become": Mysticism As Eschatology In Medieval Writers., John C. Medendorp

CTS Master of Theology (ThM) Theses

New developments in the study of Western Christian mysticism demand that the mystics be interpreted theologically if we are to accept the mystics on their own terms and take them seriously. This study argues that the medieval mystics in Europe up to the 13th century understand their work to be eschatological in nature, interpreting the mystical experience of union with the Divine as an inbreaking or foretaste of the eschaton. Reading Hadewijch of Antwerp, a 13th century Dutch mystic, together with contributions from Augustine of Hippo, Bernard of Clarivaux, and Hildegard of Bingen, this study attempts to demonstrate that the …

On A Knife's Edge: Imagination And Ἐπίνοια In The Eunomian Controversy, Tim Anderson

Biblical & Theological Studies Student Works

According to Paul Avis, the imagination has gone through the ringer in both modernity and post modernity. Modernity “assumes a dichotomy between rational discourse, on the one hand, and imagistic thinking, on the other. It privileges logos over against eidos. The former is hailed as the vehicle of knowledge, mastery and progress; the latter dismissed as the source of ignorance, superstition and illusion.”1 Post modernity, on the other hand, has attacked narrative and “An attack on narrative is an attack on metaphor, symbol and myth…Post modernity is clearly as inhospitable to a realist (reality-referring, truth-bearing) concept of imaginative truth as …

What Kind Of Confession Is The Augsburg Confession?: "I Shall Speak Of Your Decrees Before Kings, And Shall Not Be Put To Shame" (Psalm 119:46), Steven D. Paulson

Faculty Publications

What is the genre of the Augsburg Confession? Knowing this identifies the meaning and use of the document historically and presently. The confession is apocalyptic, despite the disparaging place this genre has held in recent theology. The case comes especially from Martin Luther’s own correspondence of the time and his later recollection of the events given in his 1542 Genesis lectures. In the Genesis lectures Luther connected Augsburg to the conflict Rebecca had come to in the case of primogeniture and Jacob. The first table of the commandments came into strange conflict with the second: the law of authority conflicting …

John Wesley: His Personal Spiritual Awakening, G. Dan Harris

G. Dan Harris

John Wesley became one of the key revival leaders that God used during the first Great Awakening in Europe and America. Wesley, as we can see in his words above, understood that a powerful movement of God was desperately needed. Little did he know that in the coming decades, Wesley, along with a number of other great men of the Christian Church, would be used by God to bring about one of the most powerful Spiritual Awakenings in history. But before Wesley could be used by God for a time such as this, he first needed to experience his own …

Selected Bibliography: Bonaventure And Thomas Aquinas On The Blessed Virgin Mary (1995-2013), Richard E. Lenar, Jason Paul Bourgeois

Marian Library Faculty Publications

A bibliography.