scholarly journals Onherhaalbaar, onontdoenbaar: Die doop as simbool van eenheid in die kerk

2013 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. Van Oudtshoorn
Keyword(s):  
Pastoral Care ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Phenomenological Analysis ◽  
Theological Reflection ◽  
Spiritual Journey ◽  
Spiritual Experiences ◽  
The One ◽  
Expanded Concept ◽  
The Church ◽  
Significant Milestone

Irrevocably singular: Baptism as a symbol of unity in the church. In this article I conduct a phenomenological analysis of the concept ‘one baptism’ in Ephesians 4:4−6. Such an analysis seeks to reveal the essence of a particular concept by bracketing out the theological and ideological presuppositions usually associated with it. The essential concept is then expanded by linking it to the terms most closely surrounding it in the text. A critical theological reflection on the expanded concept shows that ‘one baptism’ refers to an event by which believers are inducted, once and for all, into the church as the one body of the one Lord, Jesus Christ. The church exists through the presence of the one Spirit who binds believers in an unbreakable bond of love to God and to each other. Because baptism can never be undone or repeated, any liturgical act depicted as a ‘re-baptism’ is, by definition, impossible. This means that churches that baptise the children of believing parents are able to accommodate requests from people who, having been baptised as an infant, in later life wish to celebrate and testify to some significant milestone in their spiritual journey by means of an official church ritual. Such ritualised testimonies, however, refer to the existential lifeworld of believers (their repentance, confession of faith etc.) and are distinct from baptism that refers to the singular eschatological work of Christ and thus cannot be repeated. The church should, however, take pastoral care to ensure that people do not substitute their own spiritual experiences for the reality of salvation that is founded on the singular act of God, for us once and for all in Christ, to which baptism irrevocably refers.

scholarly journals Prayer, the encounter and participation, the experience: A Pauline exhortation towards a spirituality of prayer

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dirk G. Van der Merwe
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Christian Spirituality ◽  
Spiritual Experiences ◽  
Experience Of God ◽  
Daily Events ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
The One ◽  
The Church

Numerous references to prayer occur throughout the Old Testament and New Testament. These prayers relate closely to particular circumstances and needs where the petitioner appeals to God, illustrating the importance of prayer as part of the dialogue and communication between God (in the image of a Father) and Israel and the Church (in the image of his children). This article investigates Paul’s contribution to this dialogue. In 1 Thessalonians 5:17, Paul exhorts (using the imperative) the Thessalonians to pray ‘constantly’ (ἀδιαλείπτως), an exhortation located in the last pericope of the epistle, between two other exhortations (imperatives) indicating time (‘always’) and space (‘all circumstances’). Paul thus uses two more exhortations (surrounding the exhortation, ‘pray constantly’) to define what he means by ‘constant’ (without ceasing) prayer. His conviction of this necessity leads him to offer himself as an example of ‘praying constantly’ when he writes to the community in Thessalonica. Prayers in Paul’s epistles focus on the existential needs of daily living, to stand firm against evil and the spiritual need to live pure and blameless lives (complete sanctification) until the parousia. Conclusions arising from Pauline textual references on prayer include: the experience of God is not limited to extraordinary events, but subsists essentially in ordinary daily events; the understanding of God’s participation in the lives of believers is not always obvious and comprehensible; the Holy Spirit enables believers spiritually to see, hear and understand God’s daily involvement in their lives; and, prayer for the believer facilitates spiritual experiences which provide continuous transformation for the one who ‘prays without ceasing’. The result, for Paul, of this form of dialogue and communication between God and his Church, is that regular prayer constitutes joy and thankfulness.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This research relates to the disciplines of New Testament and Christian Spirituality. The focus is how to experiencing dialogue with the divine regularly every day. A specific mindset is needed to accomplish this; a mindset to see, hear and experience the divine in everyday life in the ordinary events in life.

Thinking socially: why it matters

Theology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 122 (4) ◽  
pp. 276-284
Author(s):  
Sean Cathie
Keyword(s):  
Pastoral Care ◽  
The State ◽  
Theological Reflection ◽  
Church Membership ◽  
Effective Practice ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Church

This article argues that a failure to draw on social and contextual perspectives, in both pastoral care and theological reflection, is behind failures in effective practice and theological reflection. This is demonstrated by reference to the clergy’s experience of pastoral care and some recent examples of theological reflection on the state of the Church today. Missing in both cases is reference to the social and contextual consequences of the catastrophic decline in church membership of the ‘long 1960s’. It is suggested that ignoring these factors reflects the impact of the decline.

scholarly journals Reality of presence in virtually mediated sacramentality: Has sacramental theology sustained us?

2022 ◽  
pp. 000332862110603
Author(s):  
Lizette Larson-Miller
Keyword(s):  
The Body ◽  
Theological Reflection ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
Sacramental Theology ◽  
Eucharistic Theology ◽  
On Demand ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Real Presence ◽  
The One ◽  
The Church

The global pandemic has impacted the liturgical life of the church by forcing worshiping communities to turn to online liturgies in lieu of gathering together as the body of Christ in one place and time. But the ongoing theological reflection has been particularly concerned with sacramental liturgy online. How can incarnate matter-filled ecclesial sacraments be celebrated without being “in-person”? This article suggests that the ritual and sacramental effects of the pandemic brought an already-existing lack of catechesis on sacramental theology to the surface by exploring two connected conversations: on the one hand, eucharistic theology and the meaning of “real presence” in a time of Internet religion, and on the other hand, the effects of the insidious inculturation of consumerism and commodification highlighted in the “liturgy on demand” world of online ritual and ritual online.

How Can I Keep from Singing? Being the Church amid the Covid-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-24
Author(s):  
Michael Earl
Keyword(s):  
Pastoral Care ◽  
Second World War ◽  
Theological Reflection ◽  
World War ◽  
The Past ◽  
Second World ◽  
The Church

Abstract The disruption wrought by the Covid-19 pandemic has been the greatest global upheaval since the Second World War. All sectors have been forced to recalibrate their practices, including churches. Although practical concerns around worship, pastoral care, and missional activities have required extensive thought, considered theological reflection is also called for. In a context often resistant to change, theologically informed adaptation is critical, countering the temptation to prioritise mere functionality. In the past, the best Christian responses to pandemics have discerned them as ‘vocational moments’, kairos times where the faith’s longstanding theological commitments were brought to bear in faithful practice. This article promotes a ‘gentle witness’ as one possible way the church might construe a response. As the prevailing mood is one of fear, isolation, loneliness, separation, a witness that comes alongside in loving presence, lament, solidarity, and care for Jesus’ sake, incorporating a public face, commends itself as an appropriate ‘way’ for a public-facing church.

scholarly journals TELAAH BUKU

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 248-251
Author(s):  
Gregorius Pasi
Keyword(s):  
Social Action ◽  
Theological Reflection ◽  
The Other ◽  
Social Mission ◽  
Catholic Faith ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
The Social ◽  
The One ◽  
The Church

On the one hand, Mary is an integral part of living the Catholic faith. On the other hand, social action is an integral part of the mission of the Church. The correlation between the two is less articulated in mariological reflection. Clodovis M. Boff in his book “Marilogia sociale. Il significato della Vergine per la società” proposes “social mariology” as a theological reflection that brings together the figure of Mary and the social mission of the Church. The distinctive contribution of this book is in the formulation of the problematics, epistemological principles and references to the loci theologici of social mariology.

scholarly journals N. F. S. Grundtvigs trinitariske folkekirketeologi i nordisk kontekst

2012 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-108
Author(s):  
Hans Raun Iversen
Keyword(s):  
Theological Reflection ◽  
Trinitarian Theology ◽  
The One ◽  
Heaven And Earth ◽  
Folk Church ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Trinity

N.F.S. Grundtvigs trinitariske folkekirketeologi i nordisk kontekst[Trinitarian Folk Church Ecclesiology by N. F. S. Grundtvig in a Nordic Context]By Hans Raun IversenIn the theological writings of N. F. S. Grundtvig we find a unique balance and interaction between what Grundtvig labels the first and the second creation (creation of heaven and earth and creation of salvation) by the one and same Trinitarian God. This makes Grundtvig outstanding in terms of the significance of the theology of creation in his profoundly elaborated Trinitarian theology. On this background Grundtvig is also offering a Trinitarian balanced ecclesiological understanding of the church which is decisive but still only rarely found in the Nordic Folk Churches. In the same breath Grundtvig offers a comprehensive contribution to a Trinitarian theology of participation in the communication of the Trinity where there is a living interaction not only between the primary theology found in God’s own living words in creation and in liturgy, but also between this primary theology and the secondary theological reflection of the two forms of primary theology

Christus Virgo

2012 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 22-27
Author(s):  
Sissel Undheim
Keyword(s):  
Moral Status ◽  
The Other ◽  
Late Antique ◽  
Church Fathers ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Female Sex ◽  
The One ◽  
The Church

The description of Christ as a virgin, 'Christus virgo', does occur at rare occasions in Early Christian and late antique texts. Considering that 'virgo' was a term that most commonly described the sexual and moral status of a member of the female sex, such representations of Christ as a virgin may exemplify some of the complex negotiations over gender, salvation, sanctity and Christology that we find in the writings of the Church fathers. The article provides some suggestions as to how we can understand the notion of the virgin Christ within the context of early Christian and late antique theological debates on the one hand, and in light of the growing interest in sacred virginity on the other.

Solidaritas Sebagai Norma Dasar Dalam Etika Paulus

1970 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-100
Author(s):  
Martin Harun
Keyword(s):  
Community Building ◽  
Lord's Supper ◽  
Body Of Christ ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Central Elements ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Unity In Diversity ◽  
The One ◽  
The Church ◽  
Different Parts

Abstract: Solidarity, a modern word and concept, has old roots in the concept of koinonia (fellowship) as it is understood in the New Testament. David G. Horrell even maintains that what we now call solidarity, functions as a meta norm in Paul’s ethics, since phenomena of solidarity are clearly present in the central elements of Paul’s community building. Reference is made to the two basic rituals, Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which build unity in diversity; to the most frequently used form of address, adelphoi/brothers, which asks for familial treatment of one another; also to the special way in which Paul often tries to restore unity in the middle of conflicts; and especially to his metaphor of the Church as the one body of Christ with many different parts that need and support one another. When speaking about the collections as a sign of the Greek community’s solidarity with the poor community in Jerusalem, Paul refers to Christ’s solidarity as the source of solidarity within and among communities. Keywords: Solidarity, fellowship, David Horrell, Paul, Ethics, baptism, the Lord’s Supper, brothers, Body of Christ, Christ’s solidarity. Abstrak: Solidaritas, sebuah kata dan paham modern, memiliki akar yang lama, antara lain dalam paham koinonia (persekutuan), sebagaimana digunakan dalam Alkitab Perjanjian Baru. David G. Horrell mempertahankan bahwa apa yang sekarang kita sebut solidaritas, merupakan norma dasar (meta norm) dalam etika Paulus, sebab fenomen-fenomen solidaritas tampak dalam unsur-unsur sentral pembinaan jemaatnya, antara lain dalam kedua ritual paling dasar, baptisan dan perjamuan Tuhan, yang membina kesatuan dalam perbedaan. Solidaritas juga muncul dalam sebutan paling frekuen, saudara-saudara (adelphoi), yang menuntut suatu etos kekeluargaan. Solidaritas juga tampak dalam banyak seruan Paulus untuk memulihkan kesatuan apabila ia berhadapan dengan perpecahan, dan teristimewa dalam menggambarkan jemaat sebagai satu tubuh Kristus dengan banyak anggota yang berbeda dan saling membutuhkan serta memberi. Dalam konteks kolekte-kolekte sebagai tanda solidaritas antarjemaat, Paulus secara eksplisit menunjuk kepada solidaritas Kristus dengan kita sebagai dasar terdalam dari solidaritas antarumat. Kata-kata kunci: Solidaritas, persekutuan, David Horrell, Paulus, etika, baptisan, Perjamuan Tuhan, saudara-saudara, Tubuh Kristus, solidaritas Kristus.

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