Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

Unintended Outcomes, Curious Inventions & Misshapen Creatures: Juxtapositions Of Religious Belief And Faith-Formed Practice & The Renewed Case For The Educational Mission Of The Church, Mark A. Lamport

The Asbury Journal

Christianity is fundamentally a peculiar way of life. Christian initiation is the process a person goes through within a Christian community of being formed and transformed into a new being, modeled after the likeness of Christ. Yet, two facts need faced. First, after almost two thousand years after the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, the vast majority of the world's population has not accepted the Gospel. Second, after almost two thousand years of performing baptisms in the church, the lives of the baptized are not significantly different than the lives of the non-baptized. Fact two explains fact one, but …

Spreading Scriptural Holiness: Theology And Practices Of Early Methodism For The Contemporary Church, Laceye Warner

The Asbury Journal

The early Methodist movement-above all else-was evangelistic. However, the contemporary language of mission and evangelism with which we are familiar was not in use during the 18th century. In the "Large" Minutes, John Wesley summarized his understanding of Methodism's purpose: "What may we reasonably believe to be God's design in raising up the Preachers called Methodists? A. To reform the nation and, in particular, the Church; to spread scriptural holiness over the land." The early Methodist movement offers resources to local congregations among Protestant denominations in the contemporary North American context preoccupied with a shallow connotation of evangelism as merely …

Book Notes, Kenneth J. Collins

The Asbury Journal

A Century of Holiness Theology: The Doctrine of Entire Sanctification in the Church of the Nazarene 1905 to 2004
Mark R. Quanstrom
2004. 232 pp.,paper, $29.99
Kansas City, Missouri; Beacon Hill Press

John Wesley's Moral Theology: The Quest for God and Goodness
D. Stephen Long
2005. 257 pp., paper, $34.00
Nashville: Abingdon Press

Methodist Theology Today
Clive Marsh, Brian Beck, Angela Shier-Jones, and Helen Wareing, eds.
2004. 256 pp., paper, $21.95
New York London: Continuum

Salient Experiences That Shape My Pedagogy, Frances S. Adeney, William A. Benfield

The Asbury Journal

Predicated upon Plato's dialogical method of inquiry, this professor's teaching style acknowledges the value found in community dialogue and the importance of incorporating Bloom's six levels of cognitive thinking in the classroom. Rejecting rote memorization and one-way dialogue, she explores truth in fiction and narrative and often uses the dramatic moment as a teaching tool- finding and using a key moment in a scholar's discovery, a contradiction in a text ,or a face-off of the "truth" of opposing positions to unveil prejudicial attitudes, reveal places where a student's thinking is struck, or show the irreducible complexity of an ethical issue.

Teaching As Hospitality, Ellen L. Marmon

The Asbury Journal

Looking at teaching as a form of hospitality (Nouwen, 1975), this essay explores the roles of teacher/host and student/guest. Drawing upon scripture, Wesleyan theology, insights from educational psychology, and personal experience, this article traces my journey from violent toward redemptive teaching. Balancing support and challenge in the classroom, a good host believes that her guests contribute to the learning process. She also desires the guests to see beyond their own experiences and assumptions to something deeper, developing perspectives more and more reflective of the Kingdom of God.

Imprecatory Speech-Acts In The Book Of Acts, David H. Wenkel

The Asbury Journal

Theologies of prayer in Acts have long neglected imprecatory prayers or curses as integral to the theological agenda of Luke. This article seeks to survey the instances of imprecations in Acts to determine how they function as speech-acts. The article makes two conclusions about imprecations in Acts based on the survey. First, imprecations identify the true People of God in the midst of competing claims. Second, imprecations reveal how one can participate in the salvific work of God.

Book Review, J. Ellsworth Kalas

The Asbury Journal

Yahweh's Other Shoe

Kilian McDonnell

Collegemlle, MN: St. John's University Press

2006, 128pp., paper, $14.95

Reviewed by J. Ellsworth Kalas

Book Notes, Kenneth J. Collins

The Asbury Journal

Canonical Theism: A Proposal for Theology and the Church
William Abraham, Jason Vickers, and Natalie Van Kirk, eds.
2008. 352pp., paper, $36.00
Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing, Co.
Reviewed by Kenneth J. Collins

John Wesley's Ecclesiology: A Study in its Sources and Development
Gwang Seok Oh
2008. 324 pp., paper; $50.00
Lanham, Maryland: The Scarecrow Press
Reviewed by Kenneth J. Collins

Early Evangelicalism: A Global Intellectual History, 1670-1789
W.R. Ward
2006. 226pp., paper, $88.00
Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press
Reviewed by Kenneth J. Collins

Journal In Entirety

The Asbury Journal

Salient Experiences that Shape My Pedagogy
Frances S. Adeney

No Higher Calling: Personal Reflections on the Task of Teaching
David R Batler

A Chinese Christian Learns from Confucius
Kiem Kwa

Teaching as Hospitality
Ellen L. Marmon

Reflective Teaching in the Context of Community
Ruth Anne Reese

The Wesleyan Impulse in Teaching
Don Thorsen

Pioneer Girls: Mid-Twentieth Century American Evangelicalism's Girl Scouts
Timothy Larsen

Imprecatory Speech-Acts in the Book of Acts
David H. Wenkel

A Guide to Scholarlly Advancement for Graduate and Postgraduate Students
Fredrick J. Long and Matthew P. O'Reilly

Yahweh's Other Shoe by Kilian McDonnell A Book Review
J. …

A Chinese Christian Learns From Confucius, Kiem Koik Kwa

The Asbury Journal

This essay readily admits the deep influence the author's Chinese culture of learning and studying has had on her life and her professional approach to teaching. She believes all teachers, formal and informal, can draw important lessons from the four main principles of Confucius' pedagogy: apperception, activity, individualization and motivation. The author draws parallels between Confucius and Jesus' use of the four principles and uses anecdotes from her own learning and teaching to further illustrate the principles.

The Wesleyan Impulse In Teaching, Don Thorsen

The Asbury Journal

This professor's pedagogy and theology has long been informed by Wesley, and his essay investigates several themes in Wesley's writings and ministry, including the Wesleyan quadrilateral, experimental religion, catholic spirit, and social holiness. Prom the perspective of teaching theology, the Wesleyan quadrilateral is very useful because it acknowledges the complexity with which Christians formulate their beliefs, values, and practices. Wesley advocated experimentation with regard to how he developed his Christian beliefs, values, and practices leading this professor to use experimental methods in his pedagogy. The catholic spirit prompts him to present theology in a way that includes the breath of …

No Higher Calling: Personal Reflections On The Task Of Teaching, David R. Bauer

The Asbury Journal

This essay draws upon twenty-five years of teaching and a strong belief in the inevitable and desirable overlap between pastoral and professorial roles to present four personal convictions about the character of teaching. First, passion for teaching must be great enough to overcome the toil. Second, effective teaching focuses upon the learner and causes not blind acceptance but critical thought. Third, effective teaching engenders a commitment to search for the truth while dispelling indoctrination and dogmatism. Finally, teaching is an event where content acquisition sits within a broader experiential matrix.

Pioneer Girls: Mid-Twentieth-Century American Evangelicalism's Girl Scouts, Timothy Larsen

The Asbury Journal

Founded in 1939, in the mid-twentieth century, Pioneer Girls was a vital Christian youth movement providing an explicitly evangelical alternative to Girl Scouts. Using David Bebbington's classic four-point definition, this article will explore the evangelical identity of the organization, including its continuities and discontinuities with fundamentalism as part of the new evangelicalism of the post-World War II era. While 1950s America is well known for the ways in which this time and place was oppressive for girls and women, and the evangelical movement in general is often criticized for suppressing girls and women, a study of Pioneer Girls does not …

Editor's Note: Religion's Role In The Environmental Movement, Terry C. Muck

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Salvation Means Creation Healed: Creation, Cross, Kingdom And Mission, Howard A. Snyder

The Asbury Journal

Global warming, hurricanes and violent storms raise fundamental questions about how Christians understand the relationship between God, human beings, and the entire created order. The issue is not just the ethical one of responding to environmental concerns; it is the more basic one of the nature of salvation itself as revealed in Scripture. Salvation through Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit is the story of God redeeming and healing his creation, and this in turn defines the nature of Christian mission.

For multiple reasons explored here, evangelicals have often neglected or positively denied Christian responsibility to address ecological issues. This …

A Biblical Theology Of Creation Care, Sandra Richter

The Asbury Journal

This essay briefly considers the seemingly modern topic of creation- care through a biblical theological lens, asking the question: "Is environmentalism a Christian value?" Tracing the narrative of Redemption from the Garden to the New Jerusalem (with particular attention given to the norms of Israelite society as regards land tenure and creature care), this article demonstrates that biblical law from every era communicates a similar theme: the earth, its produce, and its inhabitants belong to God, not to humanity. Moreover, according to Scripture, humanity's role as regards the creation is that of steward. God takes great pleasure in his creation, …

Journal In Entirety

The Asbury Journal

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Editor's Note

Salvation Means Creation Healed: Creation, Cross, Kingdom, and Mission
Howard A. Snyder

Anticipating the New Creation: Wesleyan Foundations for Holistic Mission
Randy L. Maddox

A Biblical Theology of Creation Care
Sandra Richter

Situating the Word: The Significance of Christian Space for Evangelism
Laceye Warner

FEATURES

Believers and Engagement in Society
A Review Essay
James R. Thobaben

Dramatic Enactment of Christian Faith
A Review Essay
Sarah Heaner Lancaster

Paved with Good Intention...Sometimes
A Review Essay
Randy Woodlry

Book Notes
Kenneth J Collins

Grace Notes
Terry C. Muck

Believers And Engagement In Society: A Review Essay, James R. Thobaben

The Asbury Journal

A sampling of books from the perspectives of:

Mainliners

Secularists

Roman Catholics

Evangelicals

Grace Notes: Layering Small Grace Upon Small Grace, Terry C. Muck

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

The Spirit, Christian Practices, And The Religions: Theology Of Religions In Pentecostal And Pneumatological Perspective, Amos Yong

The Asbury Journal

The discussion of Christian theology of religions has focused primarily so far on the question of whether or not the Christian understanding of salvation is available through other religions to their adherents. The predominant responses of exclusivism, inclusivism, and pluralism have shaped the debate and serve as a typology for organizing the various theologies of religions. While Pentecostals have generally fallen into the exclusivist category - e.g., that salvation is available only to those who have converted to Christian faith - there are also other resources related to their views regarding the universal work of the Holy Spirit that have …

What Is The Range Of Current Teaching On Sanctification And What Ought A Wesleyan To Believe On This Doctrine?, Christopher T. Bounds

The Asbury Journal

This article seeks to answer two questions: What is the range of teaching on sanctification in Protestantism and what ought a Wesleyan to believe on holiness? In response to the first question, we summarize the different positions on sanctification in the major theological traditions of Protestantism, beginning with the most optimistic views and ending with the most pessimistic. The similarities and differences among the major Christian traditions are brought to the fore, as well as the nuances of understanding among Wesleyan-Arminians. We seek to foster an appreciation for each tradition's understanding of holiness, while arguing for the need of the …

John Wesley's Use Of The Atonement, Darren Cushman Wood

The Asbury Journal

Even though John Wesley claimed that the atonement was crucial to his theology, he never articulated a systematic theory of the atonement. This paper explores the way in which the atonement functions within his theology as the best approach for deciphering his understanding of the atonement as a foundational concept for his moral theology. The cross functions in his via salutis in two ways. It plays a substitutionary role in the removal of sin and guilt and has a participatory function, through the work of the Holy Spirit, to affect holiness in the life of the believer. These aspects of …

"We Would See Jesus..." A Wesleyan Approach To Three Recent Films, Fred Guyette

The Asbury Journal

Many Hollywood films are content to offer Americans an escape from the conflicts of contemporary life. A handful of special films lead us instead to probe and question the way we live. Here we look at three films through the lens of John Wesley's theology: Forrest Gump, Babbette's Feast, and Places in the Heart. The aims of the essay are threefold: (1) to initiate a more meaningful conversation about the way film can help us raise religious questions, (2) to learn more about God's power to renew His image in our lives, and (3) to seek the transformation of society …

The Eucharist: A Disputed Question, Leon O. Hynson

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

Book Notes, Kenneth J. Collins

The Asbury Journal

Evangelical and Methodist: A Popular History
Riley B. Case
Nashville: Abingdon Press
2004, 32 pp. paper, $25.00
Reviewed by Kenneth J. Collins

God is not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything
Christopher Hitchens
New York: Twelve Press
2007, 307 pp. paper, $14.99
Reviewed by Kenneth J. Collins

Sanctified Sanity: The Life and Teaching of Samuel Logan Brengle
David Rightmire
Alexandria, Virginia: Crest Books
2003, 235 pp. paper, No price given.
Reviewed by Kenneth J. Collins

Wesley and Men Who Followed
Iain H. Murray
Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth Trust
2003, 210 pp. paper, $21.00
Reviewed by Kenneth J. Collins

Grace Notes: Layering Small Grace Upon Small Grace, Terry C. Muck

The Asbury Journal

God's truth comes to us from different places at different times. Each truth event sounds a small note of grace that together, if we listen, make up the musical score of God active in the world today. Listen to these ten small notes ofgrace from ten recent books.

Journal In Entirety

The Asbury Journal

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The Spirit, Christian Practice, and the Religions: Theology of Religions in Pentecostal and Pneumatological Perspective
Amos Yong

What is the Range of Current Teaching on Sanctification and What Ought a Wesleyan to Believe on this Doctrine?
Christopher T. Bounds

John Wesley's Use of the Atonement
Darren Cushman Wood

"We Would See Jesus..." A Wesleyan Approach to Three Recent Films
Fred Guyette

The Twentieth Century Holiness Movement and Korean Holiness Groups
Myung Soo Park

The Eucharist: A Disputed Question
Leon 0. Hynson

FEATURES

Book Reviews

William B. Lawrence on Mike Graves, ed.,
What’s the Matter with Preaching Todqy? …

Situating The Word: The Significance Of Christian Space For Evangelism, Laceye Warner

The Asbury Journal

With Protestant denominational membership declining steadily, and at times dramatically, since the 1960s, numerous local churches eagerly search for ways to attract new members. In efforts to reverse this trend, or at least slow it down, many have turned to techniques more informed by market logic and capitalist ideologies than the triune God revealed in biblical texts. One such technique insists upon creating "gathering spaces" with little if any evidence of Christian identity. Not even the nomenclature (e.g. "gathering space" instead of "worship space" or "sanctuary") indicates the nature of the purposes intended for these spaces. Many conclude the more …

Dramatic Enactment Of Christian Faith: A Review Essay, Sarah Heaner Lancaster

The Asbury Journal

The Drama of Scripture: Finding Our Place in the Biblical Story

Craig G. Bartholomew and Michael W. Goheen

Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic

2004, 252 pp. paper, $19.99

Theology and the Drama of History, Cambridge Studies in Christian Doctrine series

Ben Quash

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

2005, xiv, 235 pp. hardcover, $15.00

The Drama of Doctrine: A Canonical-Linguistic Approach to Christian Theology

Kevin J. Vanhoozer

Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press

2005, 488 pp. paper, $39.95

Anticipating The New Creation: Wesleyan Foundations For Holistic Mission, Randy L. Maddox

The Asbury Journal

This essay provides a brief orientation to the public debate over the last forty years about the implications of the Christian worldview for environmental concern. It then explores the mature writings of John Wesley (and some of Charles Wesley's hymns), seeking to highlight those convictions that emphasize God's care for the whole creation and that call upon us to participate in this care. These Wesleyan convictions are developed in direct dialogue with the most common charges leveled against the Christian worldview as unsupportive or even detrimental to environmental concern. The article also highlights how Wesley sharpened his commitment to those …