scholarly journals The Sustainable Church: A New Way to Look at the Place of Worship

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-100
Author(s):  
Zoltán Körösvölgyi
Keyword(s):  
Social Issues ◽  
Sacred Architecture ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The Enlightenment ◽  
European Culture ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Fundamental Misunderstanding ◽  
The Church

For centuries, the notions of sacred and development were closely related in European culture, both in the field of architecture, and, more broadly, in the arts. Sustainability, in this respect, mostly appeared in non-architectural terms. (The word “sustain” appears multiple times in the Bible, but mostly in relation to humans: me, you, him, them.) Beginning with the Enlightenment, a gap has developed between the two, which is still experienced, and which results in a general distrust, misinformation, and, accordingly, a fundamental misunderstanding between artists, architects and the church. Is the gap too wide to reconnect these two notions? The changes of the 20th and 21st Centuries, having affected and continuing to affect Europe, represent a valid need for the different congregations to rethink their role, and the role of their places of worship. This paper highlights some positive examples of modern and contemporary sacred architecture, designed to reflect an awareness of today’s issues — sustainability, attention to environmental and social issues.

scholarly journals Curriculum design in theology and development: Human agency and the prophetic role of the church

2016 ◽  
Vol 72 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Beverley Haddad
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Curriculum Design ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Development Programme ◽  
Theological Reflection ◽  
The Social ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
The University ◽  
The Church

The field of theology and development is a relatively new sub-discipline within theological studies in Africa. The first formal post-graduate programme was introduced at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa during the mid-1990s. In the early years it was known as the Leadership and Development programme and since 2000, as the Theology and Development programme. Over the past twenty years, this programme has graduated over 160 BTh Honours, 100 MTh, and 15 PhD students. This article outlines the history of the programme, addresses its ideological orientation, its pedagogical commitments and preferences in curriculum design. It further argues that theological reflection on “development” must seek to understand the prophetic role of the church in responding to the complexities of the social issues facing the African continent.  Key to this discussion is the contested nature of “development” and the need for theological perspectives to engage this contestation through a social analysis of the global structures of injustice. This requires an engagement with the social sciences. It is this engagement of the social sciences with theological reflection, the essay argues, that has enabled the students who have graduated from the Theology and Development Programme at the University of KwaZulu-Natal to assist the church and faith-based organisations to become effective agents of social transformation.

The Role of Women

2000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul A. Bramadat
Keyword(s):  
Senior Pastors ◽  
Christian Reformed ◽  
Level Of Involvement ◽  
Evangelical Churches ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Evangelical Women ◽  
Role Of Women ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Church

Whenever I describe the IVCF to non-Christian academic peers, they almost invariably express their astonishment at the fact that at virtually every IVCF event I attend, approximately 70% of the participants are women. Perhaps this level of involvement is not unusual in the world of contemporary Protestantism; after all, in many of the churches IVCF members attend every Sunday, women outnumber men. However, the proportion of women to men is not as high in evangelical churches as it is in the IVCF (Bibby 1987:102; Rawlyk 1996:143). As well, women’s roles are usually much more tightly controlled in many if not most evangelical churches than they are in the IVCF. In fact, IVCF participants who attend churches in the Fellowship Baptist, Christian Reformed, and Brethren traditions may never see a woman in the pulpit, or, if women are allowed to speak at the front of the church, they are not usually permitted to become senior pastors or interpret the Bible. At the IVCF functions I have attended, however, women are in no way restricted in their abilities to lead worship, deliver sermons, organize events, or perform any of the myriad tasks involved in maintaining the group. In fact, the chapter’s paid staff worker is a woman, and she tries to ensure that the position of president alternates between a male and a female student every other year. I began to wonder how to make sense of the high level of female participation at every McMaster IVCF event I attended, especially in light of the fact that the scholarly literature on evangelicalism in North America often depicts the tradition as inimical or opposed to the egalitarian or feminist values that are so prevalent at universities. During my research, I found that many, but not all, of the evangelical women I interviewed maintain nonegalitarian views on the role of women. In other words, the common academic depiction of the place of women in evangelicalism seems to be confirmed by my experience, even though I hope to nuance this portrayal somewhat.

Rediscovering the Formative Power of Scripture Reading for the Church

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 34-42
Author(s):  
Mark A. Maddix
Keyword(s):  
Christian Faith ◽  
Modern Approach ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Biblical Scholarship ◽  
Bible Reading ◽  
The Church

Central to Christianity is the belief is that the Bible is inspired and authoritative for Christian faith and practice. Even though Christians affirm the authority of the Bible, there is a decline in Bible reading and Scripture usage in worship and discipleship. More recent biblical scholarship, built on a pre-modern approach to interpretation, moves to a reader-centered approach to biblical reading. The focus of this article is to explore a reader-centered approach to Bible reading that gives focus to the role of Scripture as means of formation. This rediscovery of the formative power of Scripture has implications for how the Bible is appropriated in worship and discipleship for the church.

Spiritual Meaning and Experimental Piety in the Exegesis of Cotton Mather and Jonathan Edwards

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Stievermann ◽  
Ryan P. Hoselton
Keyword(s):  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Jonathan Edwards ◽  
Critical Questions ◽  
Cotton Mather ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The Enlightenment ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Religious Piety ◽  
Historical Issues

Jan Stievermann and Ryan P. Hoselton consider the role of experiential piety in the exegesis of Cotton Mather and Jonathan Edwards. Both were deeply engaged in the new critical questions of their day, and both were also committed to nurturing religious piety—though they differed somewhat in how they handled these concerns. Although Mather was profoundly interested in the philological and historical issues in the Bible, he prioritized devotional and contemplative engagement with Scripture. Edwards, Stievermann and Hoselton argue, drew on the experimental language and philosophy of the Enlightenment to construct a case for the supernatural authority of the Bible against increasingly naturalistic arguments. Edwards held that one gains spiritual understanding as the Holy Spirit harmonizes the believer’s internal senses with the Word; this reconstruction affected Edwards’ approach to the emotive element in Scripture, the dynamism of typology, and the nature of the regenerate interpreter of the Bible.

Friendship and Rivalry: The Role of Amicitia in Twelfth-Century Monastic Relations

1993 ◽  
Vol 44 (3) ◽  
pp. 390-414 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Haseldine
Keyword(s):  
Twelfth Century ◽  
Christian Life ◽  
The Bible ◽  
To Come ◽  
The Church

The proliferation of new monastic orders in the twelfth century presented the Church with a dilemma which had previously challenged the theologians of Christendom: the flowering of diversity within the unity of the faith. Just as theologians had had to resolve contradictions among the writings of the Fathers – the primary authorities for the interpretation of the Bible, and hence the elucidation of God's truth as it was perceived – so, in the new climate of monastic revival, ecclesiastical leaders had to come to terms with the existence of a variety of new interpretations of the Rule of St Benedict, and indeed that of St Augustine – the primary guides to the living of a true Christian life.

CONFORMITY, NONCONFORMITY, AND CRITICAL SOLIDARITY: The Church-State Issue and the Use of the Bible

2000 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 240-261
Author(s):  
Johannes Nissen
Keyword(s):  
Civil Disobedience ◽  
Critical Perspective ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Nationalism And Identity ◽  
Just Society ◽  
Bible Reading ◽  
The Church

AbstractThe focus of this article is on the church-state issue, particularly in relation to the use of the Bible. The article has three parts. The first introductory part identifies four contemporary challenges: the attitude of Christians toward asylum-seekers and refugees, the question of civil disobedience, the role of the church in nation-building and the problem of nationalism and identity. Then follows some notes on the question of definition and methodology. The way we define the "state" influences our selection of relevant biblical texts. Any use of the Bible must face the risk of "proof texting." The second part offers some historical comments on selected texts. This includes the traditional "state" texts as well as other texts that reveal a critical perspective on the power issue. The third part points at a number of hermeneutical problems: (1) diversity and unity in the New Testament; (2) various levels of authority; (3) selective Bible reading and the method of correlation; (4) three different ways of perceiving the church-state issue: assimilation, alienation and critical solidarity. Both formation and malformation can be the result of the encounter of the churches with the public world. The article concludes with some reflections on the search for a just society in the biblical tradition.

scholarly journals Kościół katolicki i neopogaństwo niemieckie w myśli Leona Halbana

2019 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 109-125
Author(s):  
Ryszard Polak
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Public Life ◽  
Critical Assessment ◽  
Academic Achievements ◽  
European Culture ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Catholic Church

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH AND GERMAN NEOPAGANISM IN LEON HALBAN’S THOUGHTThis article presents the views of Leon Halban referring to the problems of German religiosity. In the first part of the article, the family and the character and the academic achievements of this scholar were characterized. In the next part of the article, his views on the role of the Catholic Church in European culture were analyzed and his position in which he made a critical assessment of German religiosity was presented. Halban assumed that the Christianity practiced by Germans since the Middle Ages did not result from their authentic conversion. The Germans were often religiously indifferent and tended to fall into various heresies and deviations from faith. They also sought to achieve supremacy of the state over the Church in public life and law. Halban argued that a renewal of morality can only be achieved in the Catholic Church, whose ethical principles and doctrine should be propagated and applied in everyday life.

scholarly journals The diversity of manifestations of the social service of religious communities

2008 ◽  
pp. 70-77
Author(s):  
N. Gavrilova
Keyword(s):  
Social Service ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Social Institution ◽  
Religious Communities ◽  
Spiritual Values ◽  
Relevant Today ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Church

The activities of religious organizations are aimed primarily at augmenting spiritual values, but are also relevant to the needs of a person's social life. For many centuries, social issues have been important, and they remain relevant today. Right now, they are receiving special attention, because the level of social life in Ukraine is not the best. In this case, the role of the Church as a social institution is ancillary to the healing of society.

scholarly journals Lessons from the Early Church for Today’s Evangelical Christianity

Kairos ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-90
Author(s):  
Ervin Budiselić
Keyword(s):  
Biblical Interpretation ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Evangelical Christianity ◽  
Christian Doctrine ◽  
Historical Process ◽  
Rule Of Faith ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Church

Presuming that within Evangelical Christianity there is a crisis of biblical interpretation, this article seeks to address the issue, especially since Evangelicals view the existence of the church as closely connected to the proclamation of the Truth. Starting with a position that Evangelical hermeneutics is not born in a vacuum, but is the result of a historical process, the first part of the article introduces the problem of sola and solo scriptura, pointing out some problematic issues that need to be addressed. In the second part, the article discusses patristic hermeneutics, especially: a) the relationship between Scripture and tradition embodied in regula fidei and; b) theological presuppositions which gave birth to allegorical and literal interpretations of Scripture in Alexandria and Antioch. In the last part of the article, based on lessons from the patristic era, certain revisions of the Evangelical practice of the interpretation of Scripture are suggested. Particularly, Evangelicals may continue to hold the Bible as the single infallible source for Christian doctrine, continue to develop the historical-grammatical method particularly in respect to the issue of the analogy of faith in exegetical process, but also must recognize that the Bible cannot in toto play the role of the rule of faith or the analogy of faith. Something else must also come into play, and that “something” would definitely be the recovery of the patristic period “as a kind of doctrinal canon.”

scholarly journals Repliek op Van der Watt se artikel oor ‘Intertekstualiteit en oorinterpretasie: Verwysings na Genesis 28:12 in Johannes 1:51?’

2017 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hennie F. Stander
Keyword(s):  
Church Fathers ◽  
John 1 ◽  
History Of Interpretation ◽  
The Bible ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Church

A response to Van der Watt’s article on ‘Intertextuality and over-interpretation: References to Genesis 28:12 in John 1:51?’ This article is a response to an article of Van der Watt titled ‘Intertextuality and over-interpretation: References to Genesis 28:12 in John 1:51?’ (2016). He states in this article that his aim is ‘to illustrate the dangers of over-interpretation when dealing with intertextual relations between texts, especially when allusion is assumed’. He then gives a brief survey of different interpretations of John 1:51. Van der Watt shows in his article how theologians use themes from Genesis 28:12 (like the ladder, Jacob or Bethel, which are not mentioned in John 1:51) in their expositions of John 1:51. Van der Watt regards some of these expositions as examples of over-interpretation. The aim of my article is to show how Church Fathers interpreted Genesis 28:12 and John 1:51. I show in my article that the Church Fathers saw several parallels between these two sections from the Bible. Furthermore, I suggest that the early theologians’ interpretations formed a tradition that probably influenced modern interpreters of the Bible. I also discuss the role of typology in the history of interpretation, specifically also in the case of Genesis 28:12 and John 1:51. I then argue that it is perhaps not so far-fetched to see an intertextual relation between Genesis 28:12 and John 1:51.

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