This dissertation delineates an interlocking set of hermeneutic challenges that have historically beset Protestant biblical interpretation, particularly in Protestant communities that have maintained close allegiance to the tenets of Martin Lutherâs âsola Scripturaâ teaching. These believers are consistently at a loss in view of the subjectivity of interpretation and the Protestant communionâs tendency to fracture along lines of interpretive disagreement. This project seeks to chart the complex theological and philosophical commitments undergirding prominent episodes in the unfolding of this âProtestant interpretation problem,â examining its historical instantiations from Reformation-era to contemporary theological options. The dissertation then explores alternative hermeneutic paradigms tied to two modern contemplative approaches to revelation, proposing that these paradigms offer promising resources, though not ready solutions, for moving beyond the Protestant interpretation problem. In overview of the various options surveyed, the project closes by endorsing a view of Christoform revelation as a Spirit-guided process that incorporates human interpretersâ improvisational responses to divine self-communication (rather than working towards purging them away from some âobjective coreâ of revelation) in sacramental fashion. The practical implication is that of placing a higher premium onâand, thus, giving more careful attention to cultivatingâthe multiple intelligences at play in the discursive communityâs improvisational formulations of Scriptureâs Christoform content and implications, understanding the ongoing struggle towards meaning as itself a graced bodily site of transfiguration into Sonship.

This thesis analyzes the use of the term gÄr, meaning âresident alienâ in the Hebrew Bible, and more specifically in the legal and prophetic materials. Through an examination of the biblical text within the context of similar ancient Near Eastern documents, this paper suggests that linguistically the term âresident alienâ was distinguished from other generic words meaning âforeignerâ in different ancient Semitic languages. The legal material from the ancient Near East generally shows a concern for the treatment of the âresident alienâ within their ideal vision of justice. This is also evident in the biblical tradition, where this theme is also found in the prophetic material, in particular in Jeremiah, Zechariah, and Malachi, where we find references to the Deuteronomic Code in order to charge Israel to care for the âresident alien.â Ezekiel embraces this tradition, furthering the understanding by also incorporating the Holiness Code, and ultimately granting all âresident aliensâ citizenship and a place within Israelâs idealized borders.

This thesis seeks to interrogate theological embodiment through a liturgical lens. We seek to understand how the logic of the State â the logic of capitalism, precarity, and use â has insinuated itself into notions of liturgical embodiment. Through a close engagement with Michel Foucaultâs work Discipline & Punish, as well as the work of Judith Butler, this thesis explores the ways that liturgical theology has been co-opted by the logic of the state in order to render bodies as docile, incapable of resisting realities of oppression and precarity. Rather than articulating docile bodies, this thesis attempts to lay the foundations for a liturgical theology that shapes bodies of resistance to de-forming forces of culture such as colonialism, white supremacy, and heteropatriarchy. By engaging with Judith Butlerâs understanding of performativity, this thesis attempts to sketch a broad understanding of how liturgy can function in a performative mode. The goal is to develop a liturgical theological anthropology that is non-hegemonic and that does not render bodies as homogenous. Rather, performative liturgical theology seeks to allow bodies to perform themselves in creative ways, resisting compulsory systems of obedience and imagining communal utopic futures.

<p> This report documents the process undertaken by an urban church in Hartford, CT to develop a trained, theologically grounded and empowered group of lay leaders to discern possible alternative visions for the future of the congregation. One goal of the project was to develop the leadership skills of the participants in order to participate in the long-term process of leading the congregation from its present building- and clergy-centered, institutional paradigm to a more outward-looking, lay-driven and mission-centered church grounded in the principles of our baptismal covenant. The operating belief was that to be sustainable in the 21st century, the church must rely less on professional and salaried staff and more on committed, well-trained and non-stipended lay missioners. From a theological perspective, it is the belief of the author that such a future direction encourages the church to follow Jesus' call for all of the baptized to move from discipleship to apostleship in living the Good News. </p><p> A significant element of this project was the intentional acknowledgement of the role that diversity &ndash; racial, ethnic, socio-economic, educational level, gender identity, age, etc. &ndash; traditionally has played in the identity of the congregation and the pivotal role it might play as the congregations envisions its future. Taking the image of "The Body of Christ" from 1 Corinthians 12, the operative belief is that "The Gospel" is understood and lived out depending upon one's personal experience of the Gospel. By facilitating opportunities for members of the congregation to share and appreciate each member's lived experience of the Gospel, it was anticipated that members would experience the richness of the Gospel as Jesus implies in The Great Commission of Matthew 28:19.</p><p>

<p> The question concerning polytheism among some ancient Israelites and a later mono- theistic YHWH is seen by some to be an evolutionary development. The present writer will present an interpretation of the Tanakh that challenges this concept. Monotheism is not as strict as is often assumed. </p><p> The writers of the Tanakh did not present YHWH as amidst gods early and as a sole deity later. Interpretation of &ldquo;monotheistic&rdquo; texts do not militate against the notion of other gods. Rather than denying the existence of these gods, these texts show the incomparability of YHWH. A theistic realm vacuous of any other deity was never intended by the writers of the Tanakh. It is the contention of the present writer that a re-evaluation is in order concerning YHWH&rsquo;s relationship to other gods as a qualified monotheism.</p><p>

Most readers classify the widow in the âParable of the Widow and the Judge (Luke 18.2-5)â as a righteous victim of a corrupt legal system; they similarly regard the judge as unrighteous and immoral. The message of the parable then becomes, as Lukeâs contextualization (18.1, 6-8) insists, one of encouraging constant prayer. Such readings ignore the morally ambivalent characterizations of both the widow and judge as well as suppress the parableâs challenges to stereotypes of widows and powerful men. The widowâs demand may be for vengeance rather than justice; the line between the two desires is often indeterminable. Likewise, the judge may be wise in his resistance to the widowâs demand rather than her subjugator; his decision in her favor may exacerbate a wish for revenge rather than heal an unjust situation. Combining historical-critical research with both a womanist hermeneutic and cultural criticism, I interrogate the parable for its unsettled content concerning gender roles, morality, and public protest. Analyzing how the parable challenges conventional images of widows and judges in Jesusâ context (as best as that setting can be reconstructed), I, then, place those challenges into conversation with stereotypes of African American women (Mammy, Jezebel, Sapphire) and African American men (âCool Black Male,â the Master-Pastor, Foolish Judge). This exercise allows me to recover the parable both as an ancient text of provocation and as a resource for readers today concerned with stereotype, sexism, racism, and the way our legal system functions.

The context for this project is Mt. Olive Baptist Church located in the suburb of Stockbridge, Georgia. It is a predominately African American, mid-sized (seven hundred plus members) historic church, established in 1870 and boasting over 144 years of history. The researcher is concerned that Mt. Olive appears to be a church that is preoccupied With financial fears that are preventing it from engaging in Outreach ministry. Furthermore, the researcher contends that by reshaping the attitudes of the members and leadership in Mt. Olive about entrepreneurial ministry, the church will become more willing to use its resources for ministries of outreach. In this project, the researcher seeks to develop an entrepreneurial ministry model for African American churches. This model can assist African American pastors and congregations in overcoming financial fears preventing African American congregations from engaging in substantial outreach ministries. Finally, the research process will utilize interviews, surveys and questionnaires to evaluate the effectiveness and test the hypothesis to determine whether the conjecture is true or false.

The purpose of this project was to introduce servant leadership within the Fruitland /Allen Charge to encourage healthy leadership skills within the church. We worked on developing a leadership style, which included more people in making decisions, improving listening skills, working together as a better unit and empowering others to see their potential for being leaders. We started the process with ten members of the Bible study class. These ten people also took the Trinity Western University Servant Leadership Self-Assessment tool. Only three persons demonstrated the qualities of a servant leader, however, the others scored high on leadership, but just not servant leaders. The session began with reading and studying of Mark 8-10. We learned servant leadership is a mandate from God given to Jesus and taught to the disciples that they are first servants of God. We also did a Bible study on the book Spiritual Leadership Principles of Excellence for Every Believer by J. Oswald Sanders. We also learned to change the leadership style of pastor and membership will take time because servant leadership is a style of leadership developed over time and persons must make a conscious effort to change their leadership style. This pastor received a new outlook on ministry and found new techniques were not the answer. This pastor needed more of an understanding of how small churches in rural areas work and the importance history of a church and members. Change is possible but it takes a lot of prayer and time. Our prayer warriors have become a significant importance within the church. When this pastor heard the call into ministry, there were doubts about being a leader. God placed upon this pastor heart the spirit to be the best servant for God and everything else will work out. As this pastor labored for an idea for a dissertation once again God placed a desire to be the best servant you can be, so this pastor decided to Write on servant leadership.

The membership of St. Paul AME Church needs an increase in spiritual formation. Christian spiritual formation is the process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others. Faith practices such as meditation, worship, prayer, solitude, and service aid Christians in collaborating with God's transformative work to develop spiritual formation. The project consisted of a twenty-person group of committed teachers, class leaders and clergy participating in five preparing sessions, taught every other week, then facilitating classes. There were three resources used to evaluate the qualitative effectiveness of the project: 1) a participant observer, 2) a pre-project survey and post-project Survey, and 3) an independent expert. The sessions included video and audio media, group discussion and interaction, role-play, prayer, devotional periods, and group assignments. There were handouts issued for guidance, clarification, and reference. The overall hypothesis was by preparing teachers, class leaders, and clergy to instruct faith practices, will result in increased spiritual formation. The overall goal is for the procedure to encourage and allow spiritual formation in their lives, throughout the community life of the church, and in the personal lives of the members. While attaining the goal of increased spiritual formation in the lives of the participants, the scope of this project did not cover the spiritual formation of those outside the participant group.

Across the Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) connectional church, there appears to be a widening gap between an ageing population of members and the youth and young adult population. This widening gap manifests itself in millennials insignificant participation in church worship and church activities. As this gap continues to grow, the denomination does not appear to have significant strategies to address it. At the inception of this study, the millennial attendance at Sunday morning worship services and at other church related activities at Linden-Shorts CME church, in Atlanta, Georgia, was very inconsistent and at times almost non-existent. This study is important in that it adds to the body of research which addresses attendance patterns of millennials in mainline denominations, with an emphasis on African American church attendance and participation in church related activities. This task was accomplished by using the ethnography research method. During the course of this study I met with millennials and participated in open discussions with them to gather data about which offers their perception of church (worship, involvement etc.); and other pertinent data that is relevant to this study. In addition to the documenting information related to the group conversations with the CME millennials, a summary of the findings from thirty interview questionnaires that millennials completed is a part of the research findings. Additionally, I reviewed some of the most recent scholarly research which addressed religious attendance patterns of the millennial generation. This information was very important because it explained the impact of culture, Society and competing Worldviews which also influence how millennials perceive religious institutions. The findings for this study were based on the ethnography research method. Interview questionnaires were completed by thirty millennials. Out of the thirty millennials, nineteen of the millennials belonged to the Christian Methodist Episcopal denomination, nine of the millennials belonged to other denominations and two did not specify a denomination. Based on the results of the interview questionnaires, the millennials attend Worship services and other church related activities. However, they do not attend every Sunday. Various reasons were given for the inconsistent attendance such as, resting, spending time with friends and family, and preparing for the work week ahead. Millennials are serious about spirituality, but church is not necessary for them to honor traditional practices. Millennials are seeking meaningful worship with relevant sermons and contemporary aspects of worship. The review of literature also points to intergenerational Worship and congregational life as a way to re-engage the millennial generation to the church.