scholarly journals ‘Be fruitful and multiply’: Examining Genesis 1:28 as a basis for the adoption of polygamy as a solution to childlessness amongst Nigerian Christians

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Solomon O. Ademiluka
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Target Population ◽  
Christian Ethics ◽  
Divine Command ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Genesis 1 ◽  
Western Civilisation ◽  
Christian Men ◽  
The Church

In spite of Christianity and western civilisation, polygamy remains a major issue in Christian marriage in Africa. In Nigeria, most of the mainline churches officially adopt monogamy, whilst many of the African Initiated Churches (AICs) practise polygamy. Because Africans consider procreation as the primary purpose of marriage, some childless Nigerian Christians engage in polygamy in order to have children. But apart from the factor of traditional passion for children, some engage in polygamy to have children because they take the phrase ‘Be fruitful and multiply’ in Genesis 1:28 as a divine command to everyone to produce children. Therefore, this article examines the text with a view to ascertain whether it is appropriate to exploit the passage as a basis for the adoption of polygamy as a solution to infertility. The target population is those Nigerian Christian men and women who engage in this practice. The article employs descriptive and exegetical methods. It found that, although couched as an imperative, the phrase ‘Be fruitful and multiply’, rather than being a command to procreate, should be simply understood as a saying that God blessed the humankind with offspring, just as he did the fish that are not expected to obey or disobey (Gn 1:22). It therefore does not provide a basis for adoption of polygamy as a solution to infertility. The article recommends that apart from assisting childless Nigerian Christians to realise their dream of childbearing, the church should make them understand the biblical position that every individual and couple need not have children.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This research involves the disciplines of the Old Testament and Christian Ethics. It examines Genesis 1:28 with regard to the adoption of polygamy as a solution to infertility amongst Nigerian Christians. The article postulates that the passage is not a command for procreation but is simply a saying that God blessed the humankind with offspring; hence, it does not provide a basis for the adoption of polygamy to solve the problem of infertility.

Interpreting the Hannah narrative (1 Sm 1:1–20) in light of the attitude of the church in Nigeria towards childlessness

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Solomon O. Ademiluka
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Christian Ethics ◽  
Contextual Analysis ◽  
African Women ◽  
Samuel 1 ◽  
Child Adoption ◽  
African Context ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Church

The Hannah narrative bears close affinities to the African context with respect to the problem of barrenness. Hence, employing the exegetical approach and contextual analysis, this article examines the narrative in relation to the attitude of the church in Nigeria towards the problem of barrenness among its members. The suffering of Hannah resonates with the travails of childless African women; yet, beyond the weekly or monthly prayer services for them, the church has not exploited these similarities enough to assist its barren members. This article states that the church can organise regular programmes to address issues such as causes of barrenness as well as the role of male and female cells in the conception process. It also needs to teach the right attitude of friends and relatives towards childless couples so as to reduce the psychological effects of childlessness particularly on the women. The church can also identify with childless couples by introducing them to the practices of child adoption and surrogacy when all efforts to have children by the natural process fail. As there will always be childless persons in spite of all efforts to have children, the church has the responsibility to make its members accept the fact that children are a gift from God, and that matrimony must not necessarily end in parenthood. Finally, the church in Nigeria needs to assure childless members that they can live happy and fulfilled lives despite their situation of childlessness.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This research involves the disciplines of the Old Testament and Christian Ethics. It examines 1 Samuel 1:1–20 in relation to the attitude of the church in Nigeria towards its childless members, stressing that the church can do more in identifying with them.

Justice and peace - a survey of issues

1994 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-64
Author(s):  
Klaus Nürnberger
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Christian Ethics ◽  
Contemporary Debate ◽  
The Enlightenment ◽  
Biblical History ◽  
The Reformation ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
History Of ◽  
Social Critical ◽  
The Church

AbstractThis article offers a condensed survey of justice and peace issues in Christian ethics. It was originally written for an evangelical encyclopedia but was not accepted by the editors, possibly because of its historical critical and social critical stance. It begins with the historical origins of the concepts of law in the Old Testament, namely covenant law and cosmic order, their profound transformations in biblical history and their final form in the New Testament. Then we mention a few important developments in the history of the church from the Constantinian reversal, over the Reformation and the Enlightenment to the modern revolutionary spirit. Then we highlight a few aspects of the modern discussion, such as the accelerating development of science and technology, the emergence of a global, highly imbalanced economy, the rise and fall of Marxist socialism, a renewed upsurge of ethnic sentiments, and so on. Finally we offer a few directives for the contemporary debate, focusing on the relation between justice and peace.

scholarly journals Teologi Ekologi: Suatu Isu Etika Menuju Eskatologi Kristen

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-85
Author(s):  
Jefri Hina Remikatu
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Ethical Behavior ◽  
Christian Ethics ◽  
Ecological Crisis ◽  
Great Commission ◽  
Mission Of God ◽  
God's Mission ◽  
Book Of Genesis ◽  
The Church

Abstract. The issues of Christian ethics and eschatology are two important parts that being discussed in this paper regarding the ecological crisis that is happening recently.  These two issues invite the the church to rethink the missiological and soteriogical concept so that it can influence the activity of the church in carrying out the mission of God.  The church become the agen of God in voicing out the renewal of the broken relationship become harmony.  Therefore, the mission mandate that carried out by the church should be understood as participation of the church in the dynamic fellowship harmony with God and with all creations. The church as a community of the believers that has a dynamic fellowship with God will actively participate in God’s mission.  As the agen of God, the church must carry out her role in manifesting the divine mission through the proclamation of the salvation from God, trying to create and bring peace and harmony through the ethical behavior and bring the message of hope that everything must be turned to the glory of God as the soteriological hope for all creations in union with Him.  So, this paper challenges the church to reevaluate the Great Commission that contained in the Old Testament especially in the book of Genesis and New Testamen in the book of Matthew.Abstrak. Isu etika dan eskatologi Kristen merupakan dua bagian penting yang dipercakapkan makalah ini terkait krisis ekologi yang sedang terjadi. Kedua isu tersebut mengajak gereja untuk memikirkan ulang konsep misi dan konsep keselamatan sehingga dapat mempengaruhi aktivitas gereja dalam menjalankan misi Allah. Gereja menjadi agen Allah dalam menyuarakan pembaharuan relasi yang rusak menjadi harmonis.  Karena itu mandat misi yang dijalankan oleh gereja dipahami sebagai partisipasi gereja dalam persekutuan harmonis yang dinamis dengan Allah. Gereja sebagai komunitas orang-orang percaya yang memiliki hubungan yang dinamis dengan Allah akan secara aktif berpartisip dalam misi Allah.  Sebagai Agen Allah, gereja harus menjalankan perannya dalam mengejawantahkan misi ilahi melalui proklamasi keselamatan dari Allah, berusaha membawa damai maupun keharmonisan melalui prilaku etis, serta menyampaikan berita pengharapan bahwa segala sesuatu harus dikembalikan kepada kemuliaan Allah sebagai pengharapan soteriologis dalam penyatuan dengan Dia. Makalah ini memberikan tantangan kepada gereja untuk mengevaluasi Amanat Agung yang terdapat dalam Perjanjian Lama terkhusus dalam kitab Kejadian dan Perjanjian Baru dalam Injil Matius.  

scholarly journals PERAN LAKI-LAKI DAN PEREMPUAN DALAM KEJADIAN 1-3 DAN IMPLIKASI TERHADAP PASTORAL DI GEREJA MASEHI INJILI DI MINAHASA JEMAAT YERUSALEM PAAL DUA MANADO

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-49
Author(s):  
Melissa M.F. Waturandang ◽  
Leonardo Caesar Dendeng
Keyword(s):  
Pastoral Ministry ◽  
Word Of God ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Agrarian Society ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The Family ◽  
Genesis 1 ◽  
The Church ◽  
Role Of Men

ABSTRACT   The purpose of this study is (1) analyzing the roles of men and women in Genesis 1-3, (2) identifying and analyzing the roles of men and women in the family in the Church (3) analyzing and describing the pastoral church about the role of men and women in the family of the Church. This research is a qualitative study, with a socio-historical analysis to analyze the text of Genesis 1-3, at the Evangelical Christian Church in Minahasa (GMIM) of the Jerusalem Paal Dua Church in Manado in 2018. Data is collected through interpretation, observation, interview and documentation study. From the results of the analysis and interpretation of the data obtained an indication that: (1) the roles of men and women in Genesis 1-3 are not equal, where men are still higher, according to the context in the agrarian society at that time (2) the role of men men and women in the family even though it is in the context of a networked society but still unequal, where men are still higher as in an agrarian society because the congregation still reads the Bible without knowing the context of writing (3) the Church still has not seen the role of men and women who equivalent as something important in pastoral care because it indirectly still preserves patriarchal views as in agrarian societies. From these findings it is recommended that (1) the congregation read the Bible according to the context because even though the message of the Word of God remains the same but the context and readers change (2) the church in pastoral ministry is advised to teach the congregation to read the Bible according to context, not to be constrained by the context at the time of writing The Bible but teaches the liberating Word of God and dynamic faith.

The fundamental shape of Old Testament ethics

1971 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Verne H. Fletcher
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Difficult Problem ◽  
Christian Ethics ◽  
Biblical Studies ◽  
Concrete Situation ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Ethical Thinking ◽  
Biblical Perspective ◽  
The Church

One of the more promising recent developments in Christian ethics is the attempt to re-think its starting point and its basis in the light of the advances in biblical studies which are recovering for the church the specificity of the biblical perspective. It is true that this concern to take the biblical perspective seriously must go hand in hand with another of the central themes of current ethical thinking, namely, the concern to pay close attention to the data of the concrete situation. Unfortunately, ‘situation ethics’, while commendable in its refusal of legalism and its openness to the givenness of the situation, is frequently lacking in any specifically Christian content, that is, content to which the biblical perspective has made at least some formative contribution. In this regard, the difficult problem is this: how do we appropriate the biblical perspective in such a way that it may illumine the present concrete situation and give shape to ethical decision? Not much progress has been made on the solution of this problem. Although in this article we are only working at one end of the spectrum, namely, one aspect of the biblical basis of Christian ethics, nevertheless we see this as part of the total problem of bridging the gap, for in fact this cannot be accomplished without the re-conceptualisation of ‘biblical ethics’ now taking place.

scholarly journals Can a major religion change? Reading Genesis 1–3 in the twenty-first century1

2007 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 259-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
IJJ Spangenberg
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Fourth Century ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Biblical Studies ◽  
Historical Account ◽  
Adam And Eve ◽  
Protestant Churches ◽  
Genesis 1 ◽  
The Church

Ever since the fourth century Christian theologians read Genesis 1–3 as a historical account about creation and fall. Augustine (354–430), one of the Latin fathers of the Church, introduced the idea of “original sin” on account of his reading of these chapters. According to him God created a perfect world which collapsed because of the sin of  Adam and Eve. This idea became a fixed doctrine in the Roman Catholic and Protestant Churches.  The doctrine holds that every human being, by the very fact of birth, inherits a “tainted” nature in need of regeneration. Since the paradigm shift in Biblical Studies which occurred towards the end of the nineteenth century, the doctrine has come under severe criticism by Old  Testament scholars. In recent years even systematic theologians are questioning the interpretation of  Augustine and proclaim: “There is no fall in Scripture.” This issue is discussed in detail and an answer is given to the question whether Christians can accept other readings and whether Christianity can change.

scholarly journals implementasi peranan wanita dalam konteks gereja di toraja pada masa kini

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evriyani Lambang Mandi'
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Creation Story ◽  
Women In The Bible ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Genesis 1 ◽  
Role Of Women ◽  
The Church

Seeing from the creation story, it can be said that gender equality has been determined according to God's own standards "Genesis 1:26 God said: "Let us make humans..." This passage refers to the understanding that men and women have the same equality, even though they have fallen. into sin but humans are required to be in their place and role even though in today's practice there are still gender differences that occur. This paper focuses on the implementation of the role of women in the church and the role of women in the Bible by referring to the two women in the OT and NT.

Priesthood Ordination

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan A. Stapley
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Black Men ◽  
Church Leaders ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Joseph Smith ◽  
Book Of Mormon ◽  
The Temple ◽  
The Church ◽  
Power And Authority

Early Mormons used the Book of Mormon as the basis for their ecclesiology and understanding of the open heaven. Church leaders edited, harmonized, and published Joseph Smith’s revelation texts, expanding understandings of ecclesiastical priesthood office. Joseph Smith then revealed the Nauvoo Temple liturgy, with its cosmology that equated heaven, kinship, and priesthood. This cosmological priesthood was materialized through sealings at the temple altar and was the context for expansive teachings incorporating women into priesthood. This cosmology was also the basis for polygamy, temple adoption, and restrictions on the participation of black men and women in the church. This framework gave way at the end of the nineteenth century to a new priesthood cosmology introduced by Joseph F. Smith based on male ecclesiastical office. As church leaders expanded the meaning of priesthood to comprise the entire power and authority of God, they struggled to integrate women into church cosmology.

Mechanisms for Unity

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel K. Cohn, Jr.
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Sixteenth Century ◽  
Black Death ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Works Of Art ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Church

This chapter investigates changes in mentalities after the Black Death, comparing practices never before analysed in this context—funerary and labour laws and processions to calm God’s anger. While processions were rare or conflictual as in Catania and Messina in 1348, these rituals during later plagues bound communities together in the face of disaster. The chapter then turns to another trend yet to be noticed by historians. Among the multitude of saints and blessed ones canonized from 1348 to the eighteenth century, the Church was deeply reluctant to honour, even name, any of the thousands who sacrificed their lives to succour plague victims, physically or spiritually, especially in 1348: the Church recognized no Black Death martyrs. By the sixteenth century, however, city-wide processions and other communal rituals bound communities together with charity for the poor, works of art, and charitable displays of thanksgiving to long-dead holy men and women.

Christ Existing as Community

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Mawson
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Social Theory ◽  
Christian Ethics ◽  
Dietrich Bonhoeffer ◽  
Human Community ◽  
The Social ◽  
Theological Study ◽  
Sanctorum Communio ◽  
The Church

How can theologians recognize the church as a historical and human community, while still holding that it has been established by Christ and is a work of the Spirit? How can a theological account of the church draw insights and concepts from the social sciences, without Christian commitments and claims about the church being undermined or displaced? In 1927, the 21-year-old Dietrich Bonhoeffer defended his licentiate dissertation, Sanctorum Communio: A Theological Study of the Sociology of the Church. This remains his most neglected and misunderstood work. Christ Existing as Community thus retrieves and analyses Bonhoeffer’s engagement with social theory and attempt at ecclesiology. Against standard readings and criticisms of this work, Mawson demonstrates that it contains a rich and nuanced approach to the church, one which displays many of Bonhoeffer’s key influences—especially Luther, Hegel, Troeltsch, and Barth—while being distinctive in its own right. In particular, Mawson argues that Sanctorum Communio’s theology is built around a complex dialectic of creation, sin, and reconciliation. On this basis, he contends that Bonhoeffer’s dissertation has ongoing significance for work in theology and Christian ethics.

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