Kompetensi Interpersonal Paulus Sebagai Pemimpin Pastoral

Gereja sebagai salah satu bentuk organisasi organik (hidup) membutuhkan pemimpin pastoral yang mampu menjalankan tugas dan tanggung jawab secara profesional. Kemampuan dalam menjalankan tugas dan tanggung jawab tersebut menyangkut kompetensi interpersonal yang dimiliki oleh seorang pemimpin pastoral.Apabila memperhatikan dinamika kepemimpinan gereja pada saat ini, maka gereja tidak lepas dari krisis kepemimpinan, secara khusus berkaitan dengan kompetensi interpersonal pemimpin gereja. Pada akhirnya, hal ini berdampak negatif dalam pelayanan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menjelaskan bahwa kompetensi interpersonal seorang pemimpin sangat dibutuhkan dalam pelayanan pastoral. Adapun metode yang digunakan dalam penelitian adalah metodedeskriptif dengan teknik pengumpulan data menggunakan metode studi literatur dan hermeneutik alkitabiah. Akhirnya, melalui penelitian ini ditemukan bahwa merujuk dari pelayanan Rasul Paulus, denganmenyoroti pelayanannya dari segala penjuru; dalam segala hal Paulus menunjukkan diri sebagai pelayan Allah yang memiliki kompetensi interpersonal. Teladan yang baik dalam pelayanan menunjukkan identitas kompetensi interpersonal Paulus sebagai pemimpin pastoral yang kuat dan berakar di dalam Kristus. Hal ini menjadikan Paulus seorang rasul yang dipakai Allah secara luar biasa serta berdampak, baik itu kepada pribadi-pribadi maupun kelompok-kelompok besar jemaat yang dilayaninya.The church as a form of organic (living) organization requires pastoral leaders who can carry out their duties and responsibilities professionally. The ability to carry out these duties and responsibilities concerns the interpersonal competence possessed by a pastoral leader. If you pay attention to the dynamics of church leadership at this time, the church cannot be separated from a leadership crisis, especially when it comes to the interpersonal competence of church leaders. In the end, this has a negative impact on service. The church, which should produce leaders who have interpersonal competence, is instead contaminated with various leadership problems; thus, impacting on service. This study aims to explain that the interpersonal competence of a leader is needed in pastoral care. The method used in this research is the descriptive method with data collection techniques using literature study methods and biblical hermeneutics. Finally, through this research, it was found that referring to the ministry of the Apostle Paul, who was highlighted by his ministry from all directions, showed himself to be a servant of God who had interpersonal competence. A good example in ministry shows the identity of Paul's interpersonal skills competence as a pastoral leader, who is strong and rooted in Christ. This makes Paul was greatly used by God and had an impact, both on individuals and on the large groups of churches he served.

Examining the Translation and the Interpretation of Ᾱμπɛλος (Ampelos) and κλῆμᾱ(Klema) as Bobe and Ban/Mman in John 15:1-5 of the Asante-Twi Bible

Jesus used the vine in the last of his “I AM” predictions in the gospel of John. In this discourse, Jesus used the vine which was familiar to his audience for better understanding and appreciation of God’s word. Great work has been done on the analogy of the vine by scholars and theologians however, little work has been done on the translation of the Greek words, ᾱμπɛλος (ampelos) and κλῆμᾱ (klema) as used in the Asante-Twi Bible. Using the mother-tongue biblical hermeneutics methodology, this article examines the translation and interpretation of ᾱμπɛλος and κλῆμᾱ in the Asante-Twi Bible in comparison with five Ghanaian mother-tongue Bibles namely, the Akuapem-Twi Bible, the Fante Bible, and the Ga, Ewe and the Frafra Bibles. The findings show that translators used varied approaches to render ᾱμπɛλος and κλῆμᾱ to suit the understanding of the indigenes. Some translators used transliteration or literal approach, others coined their own words having consulted the indigenes about better terminologies that will suit their understanding of some difficult texts. This article makes a contribution to the need to re-translate and re-interpret the words bobe and ban particularly in the Asante-Twi Bible to avoid speculation. KEYWORDS: Mother-tongue, translation, interpretation, Asante-Twi

Contribution and Reduction of Narrative Theology to Biblical Hermeneutics in the Postmodern Era

This research examines narrative theology, which began to develop in the 1970s in the United States, and is now widely practiced in theological discourses, including in Indonesia. This theology, sometimes called postliberal theology, uses the postmodern interpretation paradigm, which seeks the meaning “in front of” the text (readers-oriented). The intended readers are the community, who have the same language, culture, and traditions. It turns out that narrative theology, which initially served as a theological reflection on Christianity’s claims to the biblical texts, has shifted into a hermeneutical lens in reading the biblical texts. Using analytical studies of library research and systematic review, the author discusses the contours of narrative theology starting from the thoughts of its pioneers (such as Hans W. Frei, George A. Lindbeck, Stanley Hauerwas, and Sally McFague), describing its characteristics, and evaluating them. The analysis results are presented in two points. The first is an appreciation of the contributions of narrative theology, i.e., simple-practical, confessional-dogmatic, relational, and inductive. The second is an evaluation of some reductive aspects of narrative theology, i.e., postmodern hermeneutics; a disregard of historicity and genre diversity; traditional-dogmatic fideism; sectarianism; and pragmatism.

African biblical hermeneutics and the Book of Ruth: Some observations

This article investigates interpretations of the Book of Ruth from the point of view of some African scholars. Firstly, an attempt is made to understand what is meant by African biblical hermeneutics (ABH). An overview of the emergence of ABH is given, and the question why reading the Bible from an African perspective was necessary, is addressed. It appears that African biblical scholars and an African Christian community could not relate to Western European interpretations of the Bible that reflect western experiences and concerns that were vastly different from their own postcolonial experiences and concerns since the latter part of the 20th century.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The engagement between Western and ABH is discussed, and ABH as a necessary and viable means of biblical interpretation is recognised, but a point of critique is also raised at the end of this section. Thereafter an overview of ABH as appropriated to the Book of Ruth is given, and finally, some evaluative conclusions are drawn.

Hagar and Epistemic Injustice: An Intercultural and Post-colonial Analysis of Genesis 16

Having one's voice heard and being known by one's name are foundational aspects of respect and human dignity. Likewise, being able to contribute to shared understanding is at the core of epistemic justice. This intercultural and post-colonial inquiry of Gen 16 considers the Egyptian Hagar-known by her foreign Semitic name meaning "Fleeing One"-as an example of epistemic injustice. Integrating Miranda Fricker 's work on epistemic injustice, this study espouses the justice of hearing and seeing the marginalised and oppressed, as exemplified by Yhwh. As the Egyptian woman's voice- once ignored-gives testimony within the text to a fuller understanding of God, so also listening to/seeing other contemporary African scholars' voices/writings opens one's ears/eyes to fuller understandings of God today. These voices include the seminal work of David Tuesday Adamo, a vanguard in African biblical hermeneutics, in whose honour this examination is written.

The Case of 'Suspected Adulteress': Reading Numbers 5:11-31 from the Perspective of a Married African Woman

As studies have shown, marital sexual infidelity is attested in every society of the world.1 In African societies, adultery is not only strictly prohibited on social, moral and religious grounds but is also regarded, in some African cultures, as an abomination. This is rooted, among others, in the sacredness of marriage in Africa and the inseparable link between the use of human sexuality in marriage and the generation of new life for the perpetuation of the family-lineage and the community. In theory, the ban on adultery applies equally to all married men and women but in praxis, there are some hints of gender injustice against women in observing the ban on adultery. The patriarchal context in some African cultures provides the background for such gender inequality and sexual injustice against women. By using bosadi biblical hermeneutics to interpret the Sotah ritual (Num 5:11-31) - a ritual that is gender-specific, meant only for women accused of adultery - this article condemns the sexual injustice endured by married women in some (African) patriarchal societies and advocates the reading of Num 5:11-31 and other biblical texts containing 'oppressive elements' in a way that is liberating and empowering to the oppressed and marginalised.

African Women in the Hebrew Bible: A Socioeconomic and African Hermeneutical Reading

In conversation with David Adamo's Africa in the Bible approach, which investigates the presence of Africa and Africans in Scriptures, this article conducts a synoptic search of the named and unnamed "African" women of the Torah and Nebiim with the aim of probing their socio-economic status. We ask, to what extent does a socioeconomic reading of the portraits of these women - from Hagar to the Queen of Sheba - afford us a glance into the lives of women in antiquity in the geographical location called Africa today, many of whom seemed to enjoy a great degree of social and economic independence? The social identity and status of these women may help to counteract some of the modern images of African women as victims of patriarchy under male power. The implications of the findings for African biblical hermeneutics of which Adamo is one of the foremost proponents cannot be over-emphasised.

"I Am Black and Beautiful": A Black African Reading of Song of Songs 1:5-7 as a Protest Song

Adamo's article on Ebed-Melech's protest brings fresh insight into my earlier article on Song of Songs 1:5-7, prompting me to reread the text as a protest song (essay) against the racial stigmata that continue to bedevil black people in the world. The current article, using hermeneutics of appropriation, maintains the meaning of שְׁחוֹרָה as a black person, who in the Song of Songs protests against the racism, which transformed her status to that of a socioeconomic other. The study is informed by the contemporary and historical contexts of racial injustices and stigma suffered by Blacks for 'being' while Black. The essay investigates this question: In which ways does Adamo's reading of Jer 38:1-17 influence an African reading of Song 1:5-7 as a protest against racism? The article employs African Biblical Hermeneutics, as part of a creative and literary art in the protests against racism, to read the biblical text as our story-a divine story, which in the language of Adamo, has inherent divine power that can empower oppressed black people.