Sociology of Religion Commons^™

“Just About Right”: Contrasting Views Of Local Church Efforts In South Korea, China, And The Ukraine, Petr Cincala, Rene Drumm

Adventist Human-Subject Researchers Association

This presentation highlights data from the 2017 Church Member Survey in South Korea, China, and Ukraine. The analysis of over 3,300 members reveals statistically significant differences in the levels of satisfaction concerning the local church’s efforts in evangelism, community involvement, and nurturing its members. In addition, differences surfaced regarding policy-setting on the local level.

“Adventist Millennials: Measuring Emerging Adults Connection To Church”, Douglas Jacobs, Chelsy Tyler

Adventist Human-Subject Researchers Association

How do graduates of Adventist universities connect with or disconnect from the church in the context of identity, community, orthodoxy, and orthopraxy? Findings include the influence personal religiosity has on acceptance of Adventist teachings and faith practice, and the negative impact media usage and transitory lifestyles have on connection to local churches.

A Case Study Of Congregational And Search Committee Desired Leadership Qualities In A Senior Pastor, David Fowler

Human Resource Development Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this case study that utilized an inductive qualitative research approach was to uncover desired leadership qualities in a senior pastor. Membership numbers are dwindling for religious organizations as the landscape of the United States becomes more secular. Studies reveal that negative issues with ineffective leadership within these organizations impact congregational health and membership decline. Within the context of leadership’s futility, studies need to be conducted to identify qualifiers of effective leadership in religious organizations, as a lack of research has been conducted concerning religious organizational leaders. Specifically, churches in the Southern Baptist Convention, a conservative conglomerate of …

Non-Traditional Transitional Justice Mechanisms And Perceptions And Symptoms Of Victimization Among Diasporic Individuals: Members Of The Coptic Christian Diaspora In The United States As A Case Study, Samy S. A. Gerges

Doctor of International Conflict Management Dissertations

Transitional justice measures are state-centered measures articulating atrocities committed by officials and occurring within the borders of a specific state. Questioning members of a Diaspora about the impact of transitional justice on their self-classification as victims and their experienced symptoms of victimization may therefore support attempts to expand the field of transitional justice. This study contributes to a body of work promoting understanding of the possibilities and constraints of transitional justice mechanisms, in the context of hate crime against Copts by Muslims in Egypt. To analyze the impact of restored relationships on self-classified victimhood and experienced symptoms of victimization, the …

From Busy Bags To Building Bridges: An Investigation In How The Intentional Engagement Of Children In Worship Can Assist Cultural Inclusivity, Billie Jo Wicks

Children, Youth, and Family (CYF) Papers

No abstract provided.

Out Of The Shadows: Women Of The Fmln Guerrilla Army In El Salvador’S Civil War, 1979–1992, Erica Gonzalez

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Over the course of a century, revolutionary movements have emerged every few years across the region of Central America, movements that fought for overturning dictatorships and confronting socio-economic inequalities. Women experience higher levels of poverty, human rights violations and discrimination due to gender inequalities. Representing 30% of the FMLN guerrilla army, women in El Salvador took a quantum leap into one of the most horrific and violent armed conflicts in the history of the country (Montgomery 123). Theorists have sought to explain why women became involved in the war. Experts of insurgent collective action agree that women's participation played a …

Interethnic Marriages In The United States: An In-Depth Look At Marital Challenges, Spring C. Miles

Senior Theses

As ethnic diversity increases in the United States, interethnic marriages are becoming increasingly prevalent. Despite their increasing rates, interethnic unions experience lower levels of relationship quality and are at a higher risk of divorce than same-ethnic unions. Other factors that influence marital outcomes include age at marriage, education, religion, and parental divorce. However, factors that influence specifically interethnic marriages include internal stressors, such as conflicting values and relationship expectations, and external stressors, such as a lack of social support and/or legal barriers. The best theoretical framework for studying interethnic unions is interdependence theory because it analyzes these factors and their …

Stark's "Why God?: Explaining Religious Phenomena" (Book Review), Scott Lloyd

The Christian Librarian

No abstract provided.

Many Faiths, One Beginning: Universality In Norse, Maya, Greek And Celtic Faiths

Symposium of Student Scholars

Numerous religious faiths have pervaded the world for much of known human history, but these belief systems often have significant variation in their core tenets, especially with those that have no contact. Religions which are in close proximity to one another tend to have some degree of syncretism, such as having comparable deities, due to having some transmission of their cultures. One group of similar base beliefs is the Indo-Europeans, with its members having been studied for parallels before. To contend with these previous studies, this project will look at the beliefs of the Norse, Greek, and Celtic cultures, all …

Dreaming Qontigo: Imagining Possibilities, David Alejandrx Cervantes

M.A. in Leadership Studies: Capstone Project Papers

This paper, through an applied project explores the challenges and opportunities of identity and leadership development of a Queer Chicanx/Latinx graduate student at a faith-based institution. Dreaming Qontigo: Imagining Possibilities weaves together the complexity of mind, body, and spirit with personal, historical, and political glimpses offering a portal for new understandings and reconciliation.

The Influence Of Religion On The Criminal Behavior Of Emerging Adults, Christopher Salvatore, Gabriel Rubin

Department of Justice Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Recent generations of young adults are experiencing a new life course stage: emerging adulthood. During this ‘new’ stage of the life course, traditional social bonds and turning points may not be present, may be delayed, or may not operate in the same manner as they have for prior generations. One such bond, religion, is examined here. Focusing on the United States, emerging adulthood is investigated as a distinct stage of the life course. The criminality of emerging adults is presented, a theoretical examination of the relationship between religion and crime is provided, the role of religion in emerging adults’ lives …

Seeking Justice And Defending The Oppressed: The Protestant Church’S Role In Racial Reconciliation, Lindsey L. Coleman

Steeplechase: An ORCA Student Journal

Systemic racial injustice affects every area of life, including religion. The history of the Protestant church is fraught with a habit to hurt more than help in this regard. The demographics, rhetoric, and culture of a church can contribute to racial superiority among white members and lead to an incorrect reading of scripture that supports racial injustice. This paper analyzes the ways in which Sojourn Midtown Community Church in Louisville, Kentucky, has used relationships, leadership, and worship to reflect attitudes of racial reconciliation.

The Predictors Of Juvenile Recidivism: Testimonies Of Adult Students 18 Years And Older Exiting From Alternative Education, La Toshia Palmer

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this descriptive, qualitative study was to identify and describe the importance of the predictors of juvenile recidivism and the effectiveness of efforts to prevent/avoid juvenile recidivism as perceived by previously detained, arrested, convicted, and/or incarcerated adult students 18 years of age and older exiting from alternative education in Northern California. A second purpose was to explore the types of support provided by alternative schools and the perceived importance of the support to avoid recidivism according to adult students 18 years of age and older exiting from alternative education.

Methodology: This qualitative, descriptive research design identified …

Feminism And The Black Church: A Qualitative Analysis Of Feminism Among Black Women In A Southern Baptist Church, Brianne Alexandra Painia

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Black women’s religious faith has been found to be integral to their survival (Harris-Perry 2011) in a world that many times chooses to marginalize them due to a host of factors, including their race, gender, and expressions of sexuality (Collins 1996; Morgan 2000) meaning that for black women religion is more than a simple denominational label (such as Lutheran, Catholic, or Baptist). Black women’s involvement in the Black Church has been covered from a variety of angles with researchers noting the importance of African American women to the success of many black churches (Evans 2001), the benefits such faith practice …

Perichoretic Worship: Cultivating Relationships With The Triune God, With One Another, And With The World, Greg G. Busboom

Doctor of Ministry Theses

A Participatory Action Research (PAR) study focusing on perichoretic worship as a way of cultivating holy relationship with the Triune God, with others, and with the world. Theoretical lenses include ritual studies, Faith Development Theory, and personhood in social relationships. Theological lenses include perichoresis, Lutheran worship, and faith practices. Using both quantitative and qualitative research, the study explores the practice of Christian worship in a large Lutheran congregation and seeks to grow active participation in the missional work of the Triune God through worship grounded in Word and Sacrament. Presents the Triune God as the active subject of Christian worship.

Church And State In Rwanda: Catholic Missiology And The 1994 Genocide Against The Tutsi, Marcus Timothy Haworth

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

During the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, over one million Tutsis were killed by the government of Rwanda and Hutu extremists. In this study, I address two questions: (1) did the Church, as an institution, offer a convincing counter-narrative to the dominant ideology of racialized ethnic identities of twentieth century European colonialism in the present-day nation-state of Rwanda? If it did not, why not? And, (2) what role, if any, did the Church, as an institution, play, in promoting a “social imagination” that valued religious identity, or truths, over the dominant European colonial ideology, and later the nationalistic narrative of …

“Gracias A Dios, Gracias Al Comandante”: El Uso De La Religión Como Una Herramienta Política En Nicaragua Desde 2006 / "Thank God, Thanks To The Commander": The Use Of Religion As A Political Tool In Nicaragua Since 2006, Azani Creeks

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Este estudio cualitativo examina la relación centenaria entre la religión y el poder político en Nicaragua, centrándose específicamente en su desarrollo y función desde la reelección de Daniel Ortega en 2006. A través de entrevistas, observaciones y análisis de contenido realizados en la ciudad capital de Managua, el estudio halla que el gobierno nicaragüense invierte mucho tiempo y dinero en la creación de alianzas públicas con líderes católicos y evangélicos, ya que el estado se declara inconstitucionalmente cristiano. Aunque los temas religiosos son un gran foco de atención del gobierno, este estudio muestra que no está claro si el pueblo …

Nuclear Alarmism And Climate Change Fatalism As A Secular Apocalyptic Religion, Sarah Ertelt 18

Honor Scholar Theses

No abstract provided.

The Mountain Stands: An Autoethnographic Inquiry Into Zulu Christians' Approaches To Spiritual Health, Makayla Lagerman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Spiritual health is a vital component of individual wellness that can be described in many ways; most commonly, it is thought of as the connectivity of the inner spirit to others, the world, transcendental beings, and more. From personal experience, I know that the state of my spiritual wellbeing can greatly impact my physical and mental health. For this reason, actively considered how to think about spiritual health for one of the first times in my life.

This project sought to explore Zulu Christians’ approaches to spiritual health in concurrence with my own. This was done by interviewing one Swazi …

Getting Sick Where Karma Is Gravity: Disease In The Tibetan Perspective, Moreau Hadley

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Karma is the Buddhist idea that our actions from current and previous lives affect our fortune in this life. In particular, if we suffer in the current life, it is due to negative action in the past. Likewise, if we prosper, it is due to past positive acts, such as compassion. The idea of karma extends to illness; in simplification, sickness is attributed to negative past action.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the belief of karmic disease in the Tibetan Buddhist community of Shangri-La. Although disease is often used as an example of karmic suffering, and there …