Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons^™

The Stromata Vol. 58, No. 2, Calvin Theological Seminary

Stromata (1956-2020)

Inside This Issue

3- Green, Joel B., and Lee M. McDonald, The World of the New Testament: Cultural, Social, and Historical Contexts by Yun Suk Kang

7- Hulst, Mary S., A Little Handbook for Preachers: Ten Practical Ways to a Better Sermon by Sunday by Chadd M. Huizenga

10- Kim, Koowo, Incubation as a Type-Scene in the ʾAqhatu, Kirta, and Hannah Stories: A Form-Critical and Narratological Study of KTU 1.14 I–1.15 III, 1.17 I–II, and 1 Samuel 1:1 2:11 by Caris Kim

13- The Gospel of Luke and the Calling of the Intellectual by David Tassell

19- Christian Unity from …

Biblical Metaphors For Servant Leadership: A Strong Foundation For Leadership Development, Gary A. Runn

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project addresses the lack of a biblically grounded model for servant leadership. Research explored three biblical metaphors as the foundation for a leadership development framework: servant, shepherd, and steward. First, the servant metaphor, through a posture of worship and submission to Jesus, gives expression to servant leadership through representative authority and genuine humility. Second, the shepherd metaphor, through a posture of selfless sacrifice to followers, gives expression to servant leadership through compassion and care. Third, the steward metaphor, through a posture of extreme faithfulness to the Master, gives expression to servant leadership through courage and risk-taking in the mission. …

Deconstructing Theodicy: A Fresher Reading Of The Book Of Job, Anthony Maynard

Masters Theses

The Book of Job displays well the reality of the human predicament. However, does the Book of Job provide an answer to the problem it so vividly displays: the existence of God and the reality of suffering? This paper is a quest for an answer, which, if correct, is no. The purpose of the book has less to do with an answer for why good people suffer and more to do with exactly what God has done, and continues to do, to rectify suffering, culminating in the Christ event. Stated simply, the Book of Job exists as a harbinger, to …

Benedictine Communio: A Gift For The Church?, Michael Leonard Hahn

School of Theology and Seminary Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Cultivating Emerging Leaders: Understanding A Pastor's Role, Spencer A. Click

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to understand the influence and impact a local church pastor can have in the development of emerging leaders. The researcher sought to understand a biblical model of the leader/follower relationship through examining the examples of Moses/Joshua, Elijah/Elisha, and Jesus/the disciples. These examples provided insight into the behaviors of established and emerging leaders and what roles each play in the developmental process. To further the study, a review of relevant literature pertaining to transformational leadership and follower-focused leadership models was completed. Servant leadership, situation leadership, and redemptive leadership were examined to understand the part an …

Lost & Found: Order In The Court -- The Party Game, Owen Gottlieb, Ian Schreiber

Presentations and other scholarship

Lost & Found is a strategy card-to-mobile game series that teaches medieval religious legal systems with attention to period accuracy and cultural and historical context.

The Lost & Found games project seeks to expand the discourse around religious legal systems, to enrich public conversations in a variety of communities, and to promote greater understanding of the religious traditions that build the fabric of the United States. Comparative religious literacy can build bridges between and within communities and prepare learners to be responsible citizens in our pluralist democracy.

The second game in the series, Lost & Found: Order in the Court …

Lost & Found, Owen Gottlieb, Ian Schreiber, Kelly Murdoch-Kitt

Presentations and other scholarship

Lost & Found is a strategy card-to-mobile game series that teaches medieval religious legal systems with attention to period accuracy and cultural and historical context.

The Lost & Found games project seeks to expand the discourse around religious legal systems, to enrich public conversations in a variety of communities, and to promote greater understanding of the religious traditions that build the fabric of the United States. Comparative religious literacy can build bridges between and within communities and prepare learners to be responsible citizens in our pluralist democracy.

The first game in the series is a strategy game called Lost & …

Advent Devotional Guide 2017, Belmont University

Advent Devotional Guides

No abstract provided.

The Meaning Of The Intercessory Ministry Of Jesus Christ On Our Behalf In The Heavenly Sanctuary, Jiri Moskala Thd, Phd

Journal of the Adventist Theological Society

"Christ’s intercessory ministry is twofold: He reveals God’s character and His values to humanity, and presents our needs, struggles, and issues to God. The Triune God closely collaborates in this double mission. A decision for Jesus Christ means complete salvation—eternal life (Heb 7:25), and He is always ready to help (1 John 2:1; 1:8-9)."

The Faithful And True Witness Of Revelation 1:5 And 3:14, S. Joseph Kidder

Journal of the Adventist Theological Society

"Since the concept of witnessing is very broad in the Bible, I have limited this article to six: in ed and martys, in Psalm 89, in Isaiah 40-55, in the Johannine writing, in faithfulness, and in the character of God. The main emphasis throughout this article is on how each category enhances our understanding of the meaning and use of the phrase the “faithful and true witness” in Revelation."

Misinterpreted End-Time Issues: Five Myths In Adventism, Jiri Moskala Thd, Phd

Journal of the Adventist Theological Society

"realize that my unpleasant Christian experience was built on five misunderstandings which assumed that the Bible and/or the Spirit of Prophecy: (1) teach that believers will only receive the seal of God at the end of time; (2) stand against the assurance of salvation; (3) affirm that living believers can be called and examined in the pre-advent judgment at any time; (4) proclaim that after the close of probation the Holy Spirit will be removed from the earth meaning that even believers will be without any supernatural help; and (5) declare that believers in Jesus Christ will be on their …

An Ecclesiological Understanding Of The Remnant: The Concept Of Visible/Invisible Church And The Remnant, Adriani Milli Rodrigues

Papers

No abstract provided.

I’D Rather Teach Peace: An Autoethnographic Account Of The Nonviolent Communication And Peace Course, E. James Baesler

Communication & Theatre Arts Faculty Publications

This autoethnography narrates the story of how I taught the Nonviolent Communication and Peace course to undergraduate students at an urban university in the midst of a densely populated military region in the U.S. I describe what it feels like to be in the peace class from the student and professor’s points of view. I invite readers to consider creative options for teaching and learning about peace, including: insight meditation, cultivating peace attitudes/behavior from readings about inspirational peace people, developing nonviolent communication skills, and connecting students with their local world through a personal and creative peace project. Finally, I include …

Cognitive And Emotional Processes Involved In The Experience Of Objects As Holy Or Transcendent, Lotte J. Pummerer

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

In recent years, attitudes about religion/spirituality have become more pluralistic (Pew Research Center, 2015a). At the same time, the number of individuals who identify themselves as nonreligious, atheist or agnostic are growing (Pew Research Center, 2015b), yet we are lacking words and research to describe their attributions of transcendence in language not bound to religious concepts. This study aims at examining both concepts – holiness and transcendence – in their similarities and differences through assessing cognitive and emotional processes involved in experiences of objects.

The study consisted of two parts with a total of 206 Christian and 52 nonreligious/atheistic/agnostic participants. …

Homophobia In The African American Church In Dmv, Nurney Kasem Mason

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A look at some causes of homophobia in the African American(AA) church in the Washington DC metropolitan area. Using mixed methods and interviews, the researcher uncovered some reasons why homophobia exists in the AA church. Based on the data the researcher constructed a rubric scale AA leaders can use as a reference. The researcher offered fourteen recommendations AA church leaders can use as a tool to assist them in ministering to the LGBT members in the AA church.

The Impact Of Hurts On Effective Ministry In Local African American Church, Imogene Lowery

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The project sought to understand the impact of hurts on effective ministry in a local African American church. The research tried to understand hurts, what hurts were and how hurts or past hurts impacted others. The research revealed that hurts had occurred within this local church and that some members reverted to passive aggressive means to handle their hurts. The research also showed that the underlying cause of hurts in this congregation was due to members of this local assembly as well as the way in which they responded to their hurts. The research utilized two surveys one taken by …

The Salvation Of The Cosmos: Benedict Xvi's Eschatology And Its Relevance For The Current Ecological Crisis, Jeremiah Vallery

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI has elements of a cosmic eschatology embedded in his theological oeuvre that have not heretofore been extensively systematized. This dissertation fills this gap by contextualizing Benedict’s cosmic eschatology in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, examining his Logos theology and his view on the fate of the cosmos, exploring his cosmic liturgy, and evaluating his concept of human ecology and pneumatology. Benedict insufficiently links his cosmic eschatology to his papal teachings on the environment; however, his cosmic eschatology can be developed in fruitful ways. After providing a thorough articulation of Benedict’s cosmic eschatology, I offer my own …

The Church In Dialogue With Other Religions In The Postmodern World: Reflecting Beyond Nostra Aetate., Daniel Aboagye Adjei

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The church has accomplished tremendous strides in interfaith dialogue within the past fifty-two years after the promulgation of Nostra Aetate, the declaration which opened a positive and revolutionary avenue for the church in her dialogical encounter with the non-Christian religions. This project praises Nostra Aetate for the bold step in entering the unfamiliar terrain in the church’s dialogue with non-Christian religions, by affirming in these religions “ray of truth,” “seed of the gospel,” element of “truth and holy” and reproving as foreign to the Christian faith any discrimination and harassment against people based on culture, race, condition in life and …

Learning While Teaching: Disability And Religion In The Classroom, Meghan Henning, Kirk Vangilder

Theology and Religious Studies Faculty Publications

This article serves as an introduction to themes explored in the special issue of the Journal of Disability and Religion on disability and religion in the classroom. Dr. Kirk VanGilder (Gallaudet University) and Dr. Meghan Henning (University of Dayton) share their reflections from two academic workshops focusing on pedagogical strategies for teaching at the intersection of disability studies, religion, and theology. Rather than limiting the concept of classrooms only to higher education environments, the authors explore the variety of sites where teaching and learning about disability and religion occur. Challenges, resources, and future directions are mapped out for transdisciplinary teaching …

I Am A Brook, Mike Nartker S.M.

Musical Compositions about the Marianist Charism

Chaminade is persistent like a brook; it never gives up

From Apathy To Mission: A Critical Transition For Pastors And Leaders Of Faithful, Yet Changing Congregations, Dale R. Stiles

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Throughout the researcher’s 20 years of ordained ministry in the Lutheran Church he has continually been interested in the critical role effective biblical discipleship practices have on the 21st century church as well as the Church of the future. It is also of interest to many clergy and leaders of communities of faith, and with good reason. Many feel the discouragement when observing high levels of apathy within their churches and among the people they are called to serve. It is evident in many communities of faith and among individual believers that there is a problematic lack of passion, urgency, …

How Crisis And Relationship Lead To Faith Ownership, Jason D. Steffenhagen

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

College is often the time when students are asking questions about their identity and worldview. These questions are brought on by conflicting authority figures and institutions while experiencing a location change and significant transition. The painful circumstances within someone’s life can also play a significant role in a student attempting to resolve tension and make sense of previously unchallenged belief systems. The question this project engaged is how college students take ownership of their faith. The methodology for the project was mixed methods with a qualitative emphasis. The research instruments utilized were the Faith Development Scale, an online open-ended questionnaire, …

Illustrating The Way: The Life And Times Of Bhiksuni Shig Hiu Wan, Karma Lekshe Tsomo Phd

Theology and Religious Studies: Faculty Scholarship

Bhikṣuṇī Shig Hiu Wan was a Buddhist master in more than one sense of the word. She was not only a highly accomplished practitioner, teacher, artist, and poet, but she was also a feminist pioneer in higher education. When she arrived in Taiwan in 1966 and began teaching at the Chinese Cultural University, she was the first Buddhist nun to teach at the university level in Taiwan. At that time, it was highly unusual for a nun to take a visible role in the public sphere, so when Shihfu allowed her paintings to be exhibited in Taipei, this was an …

The Need For Interchurch Unity Among Northern New England Evangelical Churches, Philip Andrew Wood

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project addresses the lack of and need for unity between evangelical churches in northern New England. It is not an area known for cooperation, being open to change, or orthodox Christianity. It is a region with typically small churches that should unify under the Gospel message, yet many of these churches have lacked the desire to cooperate in the past. This project provides a route to a more cooperative, Christ-like, and unified evangelical interchurch community. Biblical and theological sources were used to gather data for this project. This data focused on passages pertaining to church unity and disunity from …

Obadiah 1:21 Context, Text, Interpretation, And Application, Dana M. Pike

Faculty Publications

Latter-day Saints have frequently used the phrase “saviors on mount Zion” in relation to proxy temple work for the dead. This phrase comes from the twenty-first, and last, verse of Obadiah, a prophetic book in the Old Testament. But many people have little awareness of or experience with the previous twenty verses in the book, nor with the intriguing contextual questions those verses raise for understanding verse 21, with its phrase “saviours shall come up on mount Zion” (KJV1; note the British spelling with a u; used herein only in quotations). Furthermore, there has been little Latter-day Saint discussion of …

The Ancient Doctrine Of The Two Ways In The Book Of Mormon, Noel B. Reynolds

Faculty Publications

Consistent with their preexilic Hebrew Bible predecessors, the Book of Mormon prophets taught a version of the Two Ways doctrine that featured (1) invitations to repentance defined as turning or returning to God’s way, (2) the context of the Abrahamic covenant, (3) the blessings and cursings that would come from obedience or disobedience, and (4) the contrast of the path of righteousness that leads to life with the path of evil that leads to death. But this analysis has also produced a number of expansions or refinements of the Two Ways doctrine that are not reflected in biblical treatments of …

God Of Sense And Traditions Of Non-Sense, Denis Fortin

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

La Doctrina De La Justificación Por La Fe—Parte I: ¿En Las Huellas De Los Reformadores, Richard M. Davidson

Faculty Publications

"This is the first part of a series of three articles where the author examines the issue of justification by faith with emphasis on the Old Testament perspective. In this first part, the debate on justification in the context of the different Christian theological perspectives from the time of the Reformation to the present is reviewed in a panoramic way. In the second part, in the following article, the study focuses on the Old Testament perspective. Finally, the study concludes establishing a series of implications that the discussion of this topic in the Old Testament has for the understanding of …

Deus Em Questão, John C. Peckham

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Sola Scriptura Statuat Lex Orandi: Toward A Transcultural Theology Of Liturgy, David A. Williams

Faculty Publications

The Seventh-day Adventist church is one of the most diverse religious groups. With this diversity comes a preponderance in worship practices. Calling upon the Reformation principle, sola scriptura, the Bible alone should establish the rule for liturgy. How do we apply the Bible as the rule for liturgy, with so many worship preferences and diversity of cultures within the Adventist church? In this paper, I seek to articulate a way forward, developing a transcultural theology of liturgy to be applied in every Adventist culture, allowing room for a rich variety of local cultural contextualizations.