Ecclesiology

2019 ◽  
pp. 224-240
Author(s):  
Tom Greggs
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
The Body ◽  
The Other ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
Corporate Body ◽  
The World ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
The Church

This chapter examines Bonhoeffer’s account of the church and advocates that throughout Bonhoeffer’s corpus there remains a desire to explicate the reality of the church in terms of its structural being with and for the other. This structure exists both internally in terms of its members’ relation to each other, and externally as the church relates as a corporate body to the world. The chapter considers Bonhoeffer’s ecclesiological method; the visibility of the church; vicarious representation; the church as the body of Christ; the agency of the Holy Spirit; preaching, the sacraments, and the offices of the church; and the question of the church in a religionless age.

Encountering the Gospel through Confirmation

2019 ◽  
Vol 76 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-25
Author(s):  
Terri Martinson Elton ◽  
Richard Osmer
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Holy Spirit ◽  
The Body ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
Christian Community ◽  
The World ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
God's Mission ◽  
Bear Witness ◽  
The Church

Confirmation is a ministry aimed at strengthening young people's understanding of faith, deepening their experience in Christian community, and equipping them to discern their calling to join in God's mission in the world. As the church engages in confirmation, young people encounter the gospel anew and congregations bear witness to the redemptive love of God and the covenant of grace into which all Christians are baptized. Learning from and with each other, within and across denominations, enhances confirmation as a discipleship ministry for young people. But it does more than that. As the body of Christ comes together to help young people encounter the gospel anew, lives are changed and become open to the Holy Spirit. Embracing our call to share the gospel and cultivate faith within young people not only serves the church today, it invests in the future.

scholarly journals Sisi Gelap Kepemimpinan Pentakostal-Karismatik

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 175
Author(s):  
Minggus M. Pranoto
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Practical Theology ◽  
Charismatic Leadership ◽  
The Body ◽  
Dark Side ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
Critical Question ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
The Church ◽  
Theological Concept

Abstract This article highlights a critical question: why is Pentecostal-Charismatic leadership vulnerable to various scandals? This model of leadership often exposes the dark side of leadership characterized by the issues of money, sex, and power. This study suggests that Pentecostal-Charismatic leaders are often trapped in the model of personalized charismatic leadership that is based on misinterpretation of the doctrine of being Spirit-filled. The method used in this article is that of practical theology relating the framework of socialized charismatic leadership to the theological concept of the church (ekklesia) as the body of Christ and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.   Abstrak Tulisan ini menyoroti pertanyaan kritis: mengapa kepemimpinan Pentakostal-Karismatik rentan terkena berbagai skandal? Model kepemimpinan ini acap kali memunculkan sisi gelap kepemimpinan yang ditandai oleh masalah-masalah keuangan, seksual, dan kekuasaan. Kajian ini mengungkapkan bahwa para pemimpin Pentakostal-Karismatik seringkali terjebak dalam model personalized charismatic leadership yang didasari oleh penafsiran yang keliru atas doktrin being Spirit-filled. Metode tulisan ini termasuk dalam ranah teologi praktis yang mengaitkan kerangka berpikir socialized charismatic leadership dengan konsep teologis tentang gereja (ekklesia) sebagai tubuh Kristus dan persekutuan Roh Kudus.

scholarly journals Communio und Eucharistie. Ekklesiologische Parallelen bei Dumitru Stăniloae und Joseph Ratzinger

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-101
Author(s):  
Constantin Prihoancă
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
The Body ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
Christian Life ◽  
Christian Community ◽  
Critical Engagement ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Communion Ecclesiology ◽  
Catholic Churches ◽  
The Church

Abstract This article is a critical engagement with D. Stăniloae’s and J. Ratzinger’s ecclesiological thought as shaped by the description of church as the body of Christ and the Trinitarian roots of this ecclesiology. Starting from practical problems of prayer and living a Christian life, the authors argue that God’s relationship to the Christian community has primacy over God’s relationship to individual believers. When one conceives of the Christian community as being the body of Christ, one can uphold the elevated Christian ideal of Eucharist Communio without making it unattainable. The authors show that the being of the church is given to the Christian community not as a possession or property, but as a task to be fulfilled through the power of Christ and of the Holy Spirit. One can discover that in becoming the church, the Christian community is elevated to the Trinitarian life in communion. Communion ecclesiology has the potential to bridge the divide between the Orthodox and Catholic churches.

scholarly journals Spiritual gifts for biblical church growth

2016 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian A. DeVries
Keyword(s):  
Church Growth ◽  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Spiritual Gifts ◽  
Church Leaders ◽  
The Body ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Church

This article examines the use of spiritual gifts for church growth, particularly in relation to the sovereign work of the Holy Spirit. The article begins with a definition of spiritual gifts and by highlighting their purpose for growing the church. This is followed by two practical considerations: How should Christian believers use spiritual gifts for church growth, and how should church leaders motivate gift use for this purpose? Since the Holy Spirit works though believers to build up the body of Christ, advocates of biblical church growth should seek to employ his means to motivate spiritual giftedness in the church.

scholarly journals PROPHETESSES MAXIMILLA AND PRISCILLA WOMEN’S HERESIES IN THE PATRISTIC PERIOD

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-26
Author(s):  
Edison R.L Tinambunan
Keyword(s):  
Jesus Christ ◽  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Great Influence ◽  
The Other ◽  
Absolute Truth ◽  
The World ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
The Absolute ◽  
The Church

On his journey, the Church faces many heresies which try to deviate the orthodoxy teaching. One of these heresies was founded by Montanus and his teaching is known as Montanism. Montanus together with Maximilla and Priscilla claimed that they were filled by Holy Spirit and called themselves as a prophet and prophetesses who had to be followed and heard. The main teaching of this heresy is the promise of the second coming of Jesus Christ, and the promise of the end of the world. This theme is always interested by many people. The reason people attracted to the teaching of this heresy is the establishment of the coming of Jesus Christ which was promised by himself. Many of their followers became disappointed, because though the promised date had passed, Jesus Christ did not come yet. The other teaching of Montanism is about prophecy of the future which actually blinded the followers. If the prophecy failed to happen, it was because of the fault of the followers who lived less ascetic life and did many sins. The Prophets of Montanism had enthusiasm given by the Holy Spirit. It made them have to be obeyed and heard. They even claimed that the absolute truth was on their hand. Therefore, the hierarchy of the Church had to submit themselves to their teaching. Maximilla and Priscilla are two false prophetesses who had great influence in the Montanism period. In this heresy time, the Church had to work hard to fight Montanism teaching and prophecy, especially to defend its orthodoxy teaching of the Church from the false prophetesses.   Sepanjang perjalanan, Gereja menghadapi banyak eresi yang berusaha mendefiasikan ajaran resmi. Salah satu di antara eresi yang banyak itu dikembangkan oleh Montanus yang alirannya dikenal dengan Montanisme. Ia bersama dengan Maximilla dan Priscilla mengaku kepenuhan Roh Kudus dan menyebut diri mereka sebagai Nabi yang harus diikuti dan didengarkan. Ajaran pokok mereka adalah menjanjikan kedatangan Kristus yang mau tidak mau juga menjanjikan akhir dunia yang biasanya diminati oleh banyak orang. Salah satu alasan ketertarikan orang lebih akan ajaran eresi ini adalah penetapan kedatangan Kristus yang dijanjika-Nya, walau akhirnya banyak orang menjadi kecewa, karena waktu yang ditetapkan tidak kunjung datang. Ajaran mereka lainnya adalah ramalan masa yang akan datang yang berusaha mengelabui pengikutnya. Jika ramalan tidak terpenuhi atau tidak kunjung datang, maka kesalahan berdada di tangan para pemohon karena kurang askese dan disposisi diri tidak baik. Para nabi ini memiliki sikap antusiasme berlebihan yang menekankan peran Roh Kudus yang mereka terima. Dengan alasan ini, mereka harus ditaati dan didengarkan. Bahkan kebenaran absolut berada di tangan mereka, bahkan pemimpin Gereja sendiri harus tunduk pada pengajaran mereka ini. Maximilla dan Priscilla adalah dua nabi perempuan yang sesat. Mereka sangat berpengarauh pada periode Montanisme. Gereja harus berjuang keras pada periode mereka untuk meluruskan ajaran dan ramalan Montanisme, terlebih membela ortodox Gereja dari nabi perempuan yang palsu tersebut.

scholarly journals RELIGIOUS PLURALISM AND DISABILITY IN ZAMBIA: APPROACHES AND HEALING IN SELECTED PENTECOSTAL CHURCHES

2016 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 54-72
Author(s):  
Nelly Mwale ◽  
Joseph Chono Chita
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Religious Pluralism ◽  
People With Disabilities ◽  
The Body ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
Video Recordings ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Pentecostal Churches ◽  
The Devil ◽  
The Church

Zambia has recently witnessed the growth of Pentecostal churches that publicly claim to be healing disabilities. This paper explored how some Pentecostal churches in Zambia’s pluralist society claimed to be healing disability. Interviews, documents and video recordings from three different Pentecostal ministries depicting healing and disability were analysed. The paper observes that some Pentecostal ministries exemplified disability as that which could be healed through the work of the Holy Spirit, and disability was attributed to the work of the devil. The paper argues that the disability healing messages and miracles indirectly victimised people with disabilities, despite its potential to offer social capital. This created a need for deconstructing views on disability. Disability issues in the church also had to go beyond healing and miracles to appreciating the contributions of people with disabilities to the body of Christ. 

scholarly journals Investigating the Holy Eucharist and the term ‘people of God’ according to the Eastern Orthodox Church

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angelo Nicolaides
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
The Body ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
Literature Study ◽  
People Of God ◽  
The People ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
God's Grace ◽  
The Church

This article unpacks aspects of the Eucharist and how it is understood in various churches using a literature study methodology. It also looks at the notion of the “people of God’. The Greek word εὐχαριστία (eucharistia), means "thanksgiving", appears fifteen times in the New Testament and is a critical aspect of the Christian faith. The weekly celebration of the Eucharist on Sunday’s is an requisite activity of the Church because the Eucharist establishes the Church as the Body of Christ. The Eucharistic celebration is also known as the Divine Liturgy and is believed to impart the actual Body and Blood of Christ to the faithful. In the act of communion, the entire Church, those past, present, and even forthcoming are unified in eternity. It is the source of her life, the superlative act of her thanksgiving and of her sacrifice of praise to the creator God. The Holy Eucharist is the very core of Christian life, and the means by which each believer is nourished by God's grace and tender mercy. At the Divine Liturgy, the Church is continuously changed from a human community into the Body of Christ, the temple of the Holy Spirit, and the holy People of God.

The Anabaptist Tradition: Mennonites

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
John D. Rempel
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Lord's Supper ◽  
The Body ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
1 Corinthians ◽  
Late 19Th Century ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
The Church ◽  
Great Stress

Anabaptism and its descendant movement, Mennonitism, came into being through the illegal baptism of believers upon confession of faith. Anabaptist worship was characterized by form and freedom. It included reading and interpreting the Bible by preachers and other worshipers, practicing baptism, the Lord’s Supper, anointing, and other acts while allowing for immediate promptings by the Holy Spirit, as in 1 Corinthians 14. Routinized worship developed gradually by means of leaders internalizing important turns of phrase as well as writing prayers and publishing prayer books. Some streams of Mennonitism, like the Amish, have laid great stress on following the tradition that emerged. At the same time there arose renewal and missionary movements for whom Spirit-led improvisation was essential for true worship that was accessible to seekers. Beginning in the late 19th century, Mennonite churches arose in the Global South. For them the movement between form and freedom was essential to authentic worship. Singing is the central act of the congregation in all types of Mennonite worship. There is a lean sacramentalism in which the visible church is the body of Christ in history. In the practice of ordinances or sacraments, there has been great concern from the beginning that God’s acts of grace be received by the faith of the believer in order for such acts to be true to their intention. The Lord’s Supper emphasizes encountering both Christ and one’s sisters and brothers in a transformative way. Baptism is entering a covenant with Christ and the church. In addition, anointing, discipline, funerals, marriage and celibacy, parent and child dedication, and ordination are practiced.

Pentecostal Ecclesiologies

2018 ◽  
pp. 334-358
Author(s):  
Amos Yong
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
The Body ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
People Of God ◽  
Pentecostal Movement ◽  
The People ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
The Temple ◽  
Charismatic Christianity ◽  
The Church

What can be said about ‘pentecostal ecclesiology’ when there are arguably many ‘pentecostalisms’ and just as many ecclesial forms across the world of pentecostal-charismatic Christianity? This chapter provides a basic sketch of such phenomenological diversity and then moves to present as a viable candidate for pentecostal ecclesiological reflection a pneumatological framework of the church as renewed by the Spirit and always renewing. The first section provides some historical perspective on the classical pentecostal movement The second and third sections argue that pentecostal ecclesiological dynamism is inspired largely by its pneumatic spirituality; they map emerging ecclesiological tendencies under the rubrics ‘the church as the charismatic fellowship of the Spirit’ and ‘the church as the people of God, the body of Christ, and the temple of the Holy Spirit’. While the former reflects some of the renewal distinctives about pentecostal ecclesiological self-understanding, the latter situates the pentecostal understanding of the church within the mainstream of ecclesiological developments.

scholarly journals For We All Share in One Spirit

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-87
Author(s):  
Joanna Leidenhag
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Local Church ◽  
Group Actions ◽  
The Body ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
1 Corinthians ◽  
People Of God ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Christian Worship ◽  
The Church

Charismatic gifts are an understudied and divisive aspect of Christian worship. Yet, in 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, and Ephesians 4, Paul links these phenomena with his famous metaphor for the unity of the church as the Body of Christ. This paper argues that one can better understand how the Holy Spirit unifies both the universal and local church by viewing charismatic gifts as liturgical group actions. After briefly introducing the category of charismatic gifts, I argue that charismatic gifts are a semi–scripted improvisational activity which immerse participants into the core Christian narrative of the universal and invisible church. I then argue that charismatic gifts are given to and enacted by communities, rather than individuals, and so are an example of group action actualising the corporate agency of the local church. When charismatic gifts are seen as liturgical group actions it becomes clear how the Spirit uses charismatic gifts to transform the gathered people of God into the unified Body of Christ.

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