Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

Watch Chöd Self: An Examination Of Chöd, Its Practitioners, And Its Music, Weston Conner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The practice of Chöd is a form of Vajrayāna meditation that involves cutting one’s attachment to one’s self and compassionately offering one’s body as a feast for various deities and spirits. This study examines the practice of Chöd in the context of Boudha, Kathmandu, where there is a large community of Chödpas, Chöd practioners. This work aims to document the history of the practice, the experiences of some current Chöd practitioners, and the role that music plays in Chöd. This knowledge was acquired through observing Chödpas, speaking with them directly, and sitting in on various learning opportunities to gain firsthand …

Truly Human, Fully Divine: The Kenotic Christ Of Thomas Aquinas, Gregorio Montejo

Dissertations (1934 -)

Thomas Aquinas’ mature Christology, developed primarily during his second and final Parisian residency in the years 1269 to 1273 is notable for—among other things—its increasing focus on explicating and defending the full humanity of the incarnate Son. In several important works that Thomas undertook during this period, particularly the Tertia Pars of the Summa Theologiae, and Quaestio Disputata De unione Verbi Incarnati, an early Christian hymn preserved in Paul’s Epistle to the Philippians, 2:6-11, with its emphasis on the Son’s kenosis or ‘self-emptying,” the assumption of a human nature whereby the pre-existent Word comes to subsist in the “form of …

Aux Origines Du Mandéisme : La Question De Jean Le Baptiste, Edmondo Lupieri

Theology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Nous avons exploré les origines du mandéisme et la possibilité d’une connexion historique avec la figure de Jean le Baptiste, puis l’histoire de la « découverte » des mandéens par les Européens au xvi^e siècle et la construction d’un « mythe des origines », selon lequel les mandéens ont été considérés des Chrétiens, disciples de Jean l’Évangéliste et, après, de Jean le Baptiste. Après quelques renseignements sur la structure socioreligieuse traditionnelle des communautés mandéennes, nous avons étudié certains éléments de la théologie et puis l’histoire du salut, de la création du monde et d’Adam, jusqu’à la venue de Jean …

A Reconstruction Of Bernard Lonergan’S 1947-48 Course On Grace, Part 1, Robert M. Doran

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

The notes we have from Bernard Lonergan on the website www.bernardlonergan.com for his 1947-48 course on grace at the Jesuit Seminary in Toronto (now Regis College) are in two sets. They appear at 1600DTL040 and 16200DTL040. Translations by Michael Shields, with extensive editorial work by H. Daniel Monsour, are also available on the website, at 1600DTE040 and 16200DTE040. It is difficult, and in fact probably impossible without further external guidance, to put the two sets of notes in order and to relate them to each other. Fortunately, that guidance is available in the form of notes taken by Frederick Crowe …

Imprudence And Intergenerational Injustice: The Ongoing Vices Of Opting For Nuclear Fueled Electricity, Jame Schaefer

Theology Faculty Research and Publications

Despite the U.S. government’s failure to isolate from the biosphere the highly radioactive spent fuel that has been accumulating at nuclear power plants for sixty years, some governmental officials, scientists, nuclear industrialists, and environmentalists are urging increased reliance on nuclear-generated electricity as part of the strategy to mitigate global warming. An ethi­cal analysis of their proposal is warranted, and one promising approach is the theologically grounded process of making prudent decisions like those that Thomas Aquinas outlined and explained in the thirteenth century. Following his detailed method of discovering the facts, identifying a justifiable course of action, and commanding its …

Refractions Through The Secular: Islam, Human Rights And Universality, Zara Khan

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Universal human rights (HR) are often theorized as philosophically neutral. Because they do not espouse any particular theory of the human being, it is argued, they can be reasonably appropriated by all. In this thesis, I explore HR’s universality claim, by focusing on the discourse’s secular foundation. In the universal human right to freedom of religion, I find a distinctly modern grammar of ‘religion,’ one that separates ‘religion’ from politics and power, law from morality, and the public and private realms. The modern concept of religion also espouses a secular theory of the human, insofar as the human is defined …

Contributors To Indian Catholicism: Interventions And Imaginings, Mathew Schmalz

Journal of Global Catholicism

Contributors to Indian Catholicism: Interventions and Imaginings, the inaugural issue of the Journal of Global Catholicism.

Authority, Representation, And Offense: Dalit Catholics, Foot Washing, And The Study Of Global Catholicism, Mathew Schmalz

Journal of Global Catholicism

In reflecting on a sharp scholarly exchange at a conference, this article explores issues of authority, representation, and offense in global Catholic and South Asian Studies. Focusing on the act of foot washing by Dalit Catholics, the article examines how scholarly offense is linked to particular claims of representational authority. The article also puts this discussion within the context of contemporary debates about Western portrayals of Indian culture and society.

The Tying Of The Ceremonial Wedding Thread: A Feminist Analysis Of “Ritual” And “Tradition” Among Syro-Malabar Catholics In India, Sonja Thomas

Journal of Global Catholicism

This article presents a feminist analysis of patriarchy persisting in Catholicism of the Syro-Malabar rite in Kerala. The article specifically considers the impact of charismatic Catholicism on women of the Syro-Malabar rite and argues that it is important to interrogate this new face of religiosity in order to fully understand how certain rituals are allowed to change and be fluid, while others, especially concerning female sexuality, are enshrined as “tradition” which often restricts the parameters for women’s empowerment and may reinforce caste and patriarchal hegemonies preventing feminist solidarity across different religious- and caste-based groups.

Dalit Catholic Home Shrines In A North Indian Village, Mathew Schmalz

Journal of Global Catholicism

This article examines three Catholic home shrines in a Dalit community in North Indian and argues that it is misleading to think that home shrines and other collections of material objects are somehow static conveyors of meaning. “Meaning” can mean many things or nothing at all, depending upon the terms we are using and the scholarly methods we deploy. The crucial aspect of Dalit Catholic home shrines is that they are literally open to interpretation and reinterpretation, to touching and being touched. Their significance—their meaning—depends not on decoding their structure or symbolic logic, but interacting with them as part of …

The Grace Of God And The Travails Of Contemporary Indian Catholicism, Kerry P. C. San Chirico

Journal of Global Catholicism

This essay discusses the challenges faced by Indian Catholicism, particularly as it seeks to adapt to and in contemporary, post-colonial India through the process or program of what is called inculturation, a self-conscious program of adaptation to Indian religion and culture. Since Indian Catholicism is constituted by so many irreducible persons-in-relation, the article focuses on the life of the Catholic priest, Swami Ishwar Prasad in whose life we may chart something of the inculturation movement and the Catholic tradition as it is found in North India region, in one rather long and rich lifetime connecting two centuries. The article seeks …

In Continuity With The Past: Indigenous Environmentalism And Indian Christian Visions Of Flora, James Ponniah

Journal of Global Catholicism

This article considers whether Indian Christianity can be said to have a distinctive ecological vision. The first two parts of the article examine Christian environmentalism in two native forms of Indian Christianity: Tamil Christianity and Tribal Christianity. Continuing with the theme of conformity to the local culture—though of the elite—the third part of the article investigates how Christian Ashrams function as dynamic centers for ecological praxis. The last part of the article considers how contemporary Indian Christian communities can respond to the ecological challenges confronting them.

Antoniyar Kōvil: Hindu-Catholic Identity At The St. Anthony Shrine In St. Mary’S Co-Cathedral, Chennai, Pj Johnston

Journal of Global Catholicism

This article combines ethnographic description of the practices of Hindu and Christian visitors of the St. Antony Shrine in Chennai with the observation that this material cannot be understood using the standard world religions paradigm that essentializes Christianity as exclusivistic. Drawing upon the visual and material culture of the shrine in light of premodern and Vatican II templates for inculturation and the negotiation of religious difference, the article highlights overlap between Tamil Hinduism and the Tamil Popular Catholicism of the site to argue that the beliefs and practices documented should inform descriptive and normative accounts of Catholic Christianity. Because Tamil …

The Rhetoric Of Tyranny: Callicles The Rhetor And Nietzsche's Zarathustra, Greg Whitlock

Sophia and Philosophia

Here I will work through the rhetoric of tyranny as practiced by Callicles and as reflected in Nietzsche’s Zarathustra, in particular. In Part 2 it will be shown that Nietzsche’s account of Plato as the complex figure with a Socratic exterior but a latent alternative ego of the tyrant, arrived at an image consistent with E.R. Dodds’ later thesis. Callicles the rhetor, featured as a student of Gorgias, embodies this alter-ego. In Part 3 we find Callicles and Zarathustra shared very similar beliefs once they overcame shame and gained honesty. Indeed, Callicles expounded a number of propositions foundational to …

Disabling The Body Of Christ: Toward A Holistic Ecclesiology Of Embodiment, Nancy Jill Hale

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

Dissertation Notice:

Full Text of Dissertation

A brief history of ecclesiology is followed by an assessment of the embodied ecclesiology of selected theologians. The relationship among embodiment, liturgy, and christian formation is probed. Finally, principles are proposed that answer the question, “What would it mean for the church to be a disabled body?” The intention of these principles is to help churches disable those beliefs and practices that keep them from being the message of the kingdom of God and from embodying the new social reality of the gospel that challenges the values of other social bodies in the world.

A Compassionate And Caring Guide For Those Suffering With Hiv/Aids In The Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, Sandra Gripper

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This project will develop a hands-on practical Train- the-Trainer Resource Guide to implement caring HIV/AIDS ministries for the local churches in the Carolina Region of the Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) Church. It will become an evangelistic tool to reach and empower the most marginalized in society that will provide resources leading to transformative ministries. Many lack understanding regarding those who suffer with HIV/AIDS, and winning over those who possess judgmental attitudes and fears keeps the church at odds with those living with this disease. Nonetheless, appropriate exposure to caring HIV/AIDS ministries can empower the disenfranchised and strengthen the faith community …

An Outreach Model For Melville Mission Church: Evangelizing The Mandarin Community In Markham North, Ontario, Canada, Benjamin Li

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

MMC is a conservative, traditional Cantonese-speaking immigrant church that has had stagnant growth since its relocation to the rural area of Markham North, Ontario, Canada in 2009. The purpose of this project was to propose a new outreach model to enable MMC to more effective in evangelizing the Mandarin-speaking community in Markham. The proposed new outreach model is a refined version of Alan Hirsch’s Missional-Incarnational Model which mobilized the church membership to engage with the unchurched community for the Gospel. The research for this project was accomplished through studying the Chinese demographics in Markham, and through surveys of 158 mainland …

Spiritual Innovation: A Faith-Based Model To Equip Men To Become The Spiritual Leaders For The American Family In Crisis, Leonard Kitchens

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The American culture is experiencing the degradation of the family. James Dobson describes this as “America in peril.” This is not solely because of lack of spiritual leadership in the household, but the lack of which is a prominent factor for the American family in crisis. Through qualitative and quantitative analyses of 203 Christian men, this doctoral project identifies shortfalls, provides evidence of biblical responsibility, and develops a model to assist Christian men to lead their families spiritually, which is the mandate of God. Proposing a faith-based approach to preserving the Christian family, this thesis underlines the importance of the …

The Legacy Of God's Leadership

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

...the notion of shared leadership is seriously explored by secular businesses. With this in mind, it may be beneficial to look at this topic from the perspective of the Triune godhead in the light of Scripture. Although there are numerous texts in the Bible relating the trinity and leadership, we will limit our focus particularly to two of the most vivid places dealing with god in his three persons: the first letter of John and Matthew 28:18–20.

The Creativity Behind Creation: The Trinity In Genesis 1:1-2:3 And Group Creativity, Justin R. Bowers

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

The need for organizations to rely on individual members and their collective creativity to thrive in the 21st century has greatly increased. Today, the words of Bennis and Biederman (1997) ring true: the organizations of the future will increasingly depend on their members to survive. Great groups offer a new model in which the leader is an equal among titans. In a truly creative collaboration, work is pleasure, and the only rules and procedures are those that advance the common cause. (p. 8) The growing literature surrounding group creativity reveals a thriving area of interest among group theory scholars. Questions …

A Theological Heritage For New Evangelicalism And Its Social Justice Focus, Kenley Hall

Andrews University Seminary Studies (AUSS)

Based on a review of relevant literature, this article will look at this emerging submovement within evangelicalism that researchers are referring to as “New Evangelicals” and its expanding social consciousness. Then the article will address an issue I believe is of critical importance: a likely theological and historical heritage for New Evangelicalism that can serve as a theological resource and even connection between them and the larger evangelical narrative.

“What Does Philosophy Of Religion Offer To The Modern University?”, Michael Jones

Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Tantric Alchemy Of The Soul: A Philosophical Analysis And Synthesis Of Jung And Kashmir Shaivism, Derek C. Wolter

Oglethorpe Journal of Undergraduate Research

One of the most fascinating parts of intellectual globalization is the dialogue that occurs between two vastly removed systems of thought. One particular area of interdisciplinary dialogue that has emerged in the last century is between Western psychology and traditional Eastern religious and philosophical thought. Two particular disciplines that bear a striking resemblance ripe for comparative study are Jung’s psychology and Indian Tantrism. Some of this dialogue has already taken place, to a limited extent by Jung himself, but more so by modern pundits of Tantrism, particular Buddhist Tantrism. While some truly important work has been done in the comparative …

Amazon Book Review Of David Ray Griffin's God Exists But Gawd Does Not (2016), Theodore Walker

Perkins Faculty Research and Special Events

David Ray Griffin employs the term “anatheism” (ana-theism) for describing a natural scientific return to theism, by moving logically from traditional theism to atheism to panentheism. Griffin shows how natural scientific reasoning leads from commitment to traditional theism (“Gawd” exists) to modern atheism (“Gawd” does not exist), then from modern atheism to [constructive postmodern] Whiteheadian panentheism (“God” does exist).

The Lord’S Supper In The Early Church: Covenant Extension Or Eucharistic Presence?, Silvia Bacchiocchi

Andrews University Seminary Student Journal

This study seeks to show how the Lord’s Supper lost its relational and historical (past-present-future) covenant focus and instead became fixed on the Platonic now of mystical contemplation, displacing the eschatological hope of Christ’s physical return with the real presence of Christ in the eucharist. This resulted from the Hellenistic interpretation of reality in general and of Christian rituals in particular. The first section explores the nature of God and the Old Testament covenant, followed by the covenant’s continuity in the New Testament through the Lord’s Supper. The second portion analyzes the Didache’s Jewish-Christian perspective of the Lord’s Supper and …

Teaching The Common Good In Business Ethics: A Case Study Approach, Mark Ryan

Theology and Religious Studies Faculty Publications

This paper addresses the instructional challenges of teaching business ethics in a way shaped by Catholic Social Teaching (CST). Focusing on the concept of the Common Good in CST, I describe my use of a case narrative in classroom instruction to help students understand the concept of the Common Good and to perceive the variety of ways businesses can serve or undermine the Common Good in a small city. Through these pedagogical explorations, I illustrate the distinctive vision of business ethics that flows from CST.

The Shema Through The Ages: A Pre-Modern History Of Its Interpretation, Esteban J. Hidalgo

Andrews University Seminary Student Journal

This article traces the history of the interpretation of Deuteronomy 6:4 from its original context, through the dawning of early Christianity in the Second Temple period up to the twilight of the late medieval period. The reader will appreciate the persistent centrality of an unchanging doctrine and simultaneously discern fluidity in its meaning and application in both Jewish and Christian perspectives. Proportionally, the focus is placed on how early Christian writers hermeneutically accommodated the doctrine of the Trinity in the oneness of God as stated in the Shema.

Formulating An Intentional Curriculum For Spiritual Leadership Development At The West University Church Of Christ, Daniel A. Mcgraw

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This project addresses the lack of a formal curriculum for spiritual leadership formation in the West University Church of Christ in Houston, Texas. While the West University Church of Christ has been blessed by strong congregational leaders in both the past and present, recent conversations revealed the need for a deeper connection to God and a better understanding of spiritual leadership on the part of the congregation’s leaders. The problem I identified was a lack of understanding about spiritual leadership in contrast to secular understandings of leadership and the lack of a formal curriculum to help address this problem.

This …

A Call To Excellence: Leadership Training And Mentoring Manual For Women In Ministry In The Twenty-First Century, Verna Mazak

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The growth of women in leadership within the local church is at an all-time high. These women face tremendous obstacles as they seek to lead the twenty-first century church. This thesis investigates the role of African American women in the Black Baptist church to identify skills necessary for successful leadership within the denomination. Going beyond analysis and exploration, it answers the question of how to develop a training and mentorship program specifically designed to prepare African-American women for excellence in leadership. A survey of fifty church staff and members of various Black Baptist churches was conducted to determine the perspective …

Tithing: A Biblical Principle For The Sustenance Of Pastor Of The Evangelical Lutheran Church Of Liberia, Simon Dapaye

Master of Art Theology Thesis

Tithing: A Biblical Principle for the Sustenance of Pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Liberia Dapaye, Simon Tenyen, “Tithing: A Biblical Principle for the Sustenance of Pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Liberia.” Master of Arts Thesis. Concordia Seminary, 2016. 115pp.

This thesis discusses the implication of Numbers 18:22–32 and Malachi 3:6–12 regarding the sustenance of the priesthood and its bearing on New Testament stewardship and giving with an emphasis on a pastor's sustenance. These Old Testament texts set the basis for the Levite tithe, instituted for the sustenance of the priests and Levites, whose function was to …