Thesis (Ph. D.)--Miami University, Dept. of Political Science, 2006. / Title from second page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 141-160).

That conversion is a central concept for Baptists and narrative an important part of their culture is made clear by Betlehem kristlig kalender, a yearbook published from 1886 to 1980.The aim of this thesis is to survey and analyse conversion narratives within the Baptist movement as reflected in Betlehem, by investigating what narrative expressions form the body of the stories, what is given precedence, emotional or cognitive expressions, their soul, and finally what theological themes are developed around the concept of conversion.The method employed is, following a reading of all the issues of Betlehem, to distinguish and extract the stories that are narrative in character according to Hindmarsh’s criteria. That is to say, stories that point beyond the individual to a larger principle of meaningfulness and that are powerfully thought-provoking, with a sense that their beginning, middle and end form a unified whole. The texts extracted are further analysed to find the distinguishing characteri-stics of the material in the light of the dissertation’s aim.The results of the study show that the narratives in Betlehem contain a good deal of drama. They have a clear direction from something to something, with the actual conversion forming a climax. The darkest situations are transformed, following a struggle, to the most ethereal light when morning comes, bringing peace and assurance that conversion has taken place. Women often serve as models, having already experienced conversion. It is their husbands and sons who are the object of their attention and are led towards conversion by their entreaties, arguments and also tears. Salvation, as the experience was often called, clearly changes people’s personalities. Following conversion, individuals take greater responsibility for their own and their family’s situation and it is not unusual that, in their new lives, they start to tell others of their experience.The narratives in Betlehem show a marked preponderance of the emotional over the cognitive for the first 60 years, up to the 1950s, when feelings make way for reason and good examples. One reason for this change could be that the instantaneous conversion of revivalism is replaced with an emphasis on a rational, planned decision and commitment. Another reason could be the ecumenical realities of the time, with church membership based on baptism rather than a confession of faith. The cognitive aspects, as well as postmodernism’s loss of belief in metanarratives, may be mentioned as further possible explanations.The Baptist process of conversion, its “golden chain”, interpreted through the constitution of the first Baptist church in Borekulla and the Betlehem narratives, can be defined as anthropocentric and summed up as comprising the following stages: (1) The individual is awakened from their indifference and realises their sinfulness. (2) The individual senses a danger in their sinful state and turns to God. (3) The individual accepts Jesus Christ in faith and receives forgiveness and assurance. (4) Faith is brought to life in transformative discipleship. The theology of conversion broadly follows those of other revivalist groups.

Spiritual mapping is an emerging trend within Evangelicalism which is affecting Christian mission globally. Spiritual mapping maintains that Satan has assigned territorial demons to every geo-political unit in the world. Territorial demons hold the people in their locality in spiritual bondage to sin, false religion or other evils.Spiritual mapping is the practice of identifying these territorial demons in order to loosen the influence of these demons by means of strategic level spiritual warfare (SLSW). SLSW refers to the practice of 'territorial exorcism' through identificational repentance, prayer walks, proclamation and other means. Spiritual mapping can be appreciated for its focus on liberating people and societies from evil. However, spiritual mapping and its underlying theology is defective from a biblical, historical and contextual perspective and is potentially harmful for church and mission in Africa. Further missiological reflection on a spiritual warfare dimension in mission is necessary within the global hermeneutical community. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / M.Th. (Missiology)

L’étude de cas qui mobilise la majeure partie de ma thèse se penche sur une mission de la Church Missionary Society, société missionnaire anglicane, au Buganda, royaume situé au nord du lac Victoria. La thèse revient d’abord sur les raisons qui ont poussé la CMS à s’établir dans cette région vierge de tout occupant européen, et sur les conditions de cette installation, débutée en 1876. Entre 1876 et 1900, la mission connut de nombreux chamboulements, qui seront traités à la lumière de la correspondance des missionnaires de la CMS sur le terrain, de leurs journaux personnels et productions visuelles : les interactions plus ou moins fructueuses des missionnaires avec les autochtones ; le succès de la mission en termes d’influence religieuse ; le déploiement de nouvelles stations au sein du royaume et dans les royaumes voisins ; l’installation de missionnaires catholiques français dans le royaume à partir de 1879 ; l’arrivée des Britanniques dans la région par le biais de l’Imperial British East Africa Company, et la mise sous protectorat de la région à partir de 1894. Tous ces éléments seront passés au crible, ainsi que la façon dont, en métropole, ils furent l’objet de différentes publications, circulations, et donc réceptions. Les ramifications tant politiques que linguistiques et scientifiques de l’entreprise missionnaire anglicane au Buganda sont au cœur de cette étude. Cette thèse met également au jour les liens tissés entre la mission du Buganda et sa direction en métropole (la maison mère à Londres, les soutiens de la mission en amont, les lecteurs et adhérents de la société, et le lectorat britannique de la presse périodique de façon plus générale). D’autre part, il s’agit également de montrer par le biais de cette étude de cas que l’entreprise missionnaire britannique était intégrée dans un projet plus vaste de réforme et de salut global (et non seulement local) de la Grande-Bretagne et de son empire : pour ce faire, je fais appel aux archives d’une société missionnaire œuvrant en métropole, dans la capitale, la London City Mission. La mise en perspective de ces deux types de sociétés missionnaires pourra alors nous éclairer sur les liens que les Britanniques créaient et imaginaient entre la Grande-Bretagne et son empire, à la lumière des pratiques religieuses et culturelles de ses habitants. / This thesis focuses on the Church Missionary Society’s mission to Buganda between 1875 and 1900. Buganda was the most powerful kingdom of the Great Lakes region during the last quarter of the 19th century. This study retraces what motivated an Anglican missionary society to send agents to this particular area, which had not been claimed or colonized by any European power at the time of their arrival. Between 1875 and 1900, the mission underwent several changes, which this thesis examines in the light of the missionaries’ letters, journals, drawings and photographs : the interactions between the missionaries and the natives they wished to convert (the kings of Buganda for instance) ; the success of the mission itself and its expansion, mainly through the dissemination of a Bible in luganda by Ganda catechists ; the arrival of rival Catholic missionaries in the capital of Buganda from 1879 onwards ; the arrival of the Imperial British East Africa Company and the creation of the Uganda Protectorate in 1894. This thesis analyses how those changes were dealt with by the missionaries in the field, but also how they were perceived and received by the CMS’s executive committees, the supporters of the mission and the general public in Britain. Studying the political, linguistic and scientific ramifications of the mission in the metropole helps us to understand the manifold impacts that missions had in the late-Victorian era. The way the missionary narrative of the Buganda mission was shaped by the editorial committee of the CMS is also analysed so as to shed light on the strategies at work in London to promote the missionary cause throughout Britain.The aim of this thesis is to take into account what happened in the field and in the metropole in the same frame of analysis, in order to reveal the connected and networked nature of the British missionary enterprise. The example of the Buganda mission will help us to understand how Victorian Evangelicals perceived the salvation and reform of society as a global project. Confronting the CMS sources with archives from a different type of missionary organization – in that case the London City Mission – enables the historian to reveal the ties that linked the home missionary project to the overseas missionary enterprise. This thesis shows that the perceived rivalries between both mission fields were in fact complemented by a strong belief in the connected nature of the missionary enterprise, in terms of staff and support, reprensentations, evangelizing strategies and promotion tools.

Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2017-05-12T11:24:18Z No. of bitstreams: 1 andreasilveiradesouza.pdf: 751111 bytes, checksum: d9de133bfa6803c3ccba0742f02c7de6 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2017-05-17T15:28:18Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 andreasilveiradesouza.pdf: 751111 bytes, checksum: d9de133bfa6803c3ccba0742f02c7de6 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-05-17T15:28:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 andreasilveiradesouza.pdf: 751111 bytes, checksum: d9de133bfa6803c3ccba0742f02c7de6 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-02-22 / CAPES - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / O objetivo geral da presente tese consiste na análise dos elementos teológicos e políticos que animam e que marcam o antagonismo entre as correntes fundamentalistas reformista e reconstrucionista no espaço público americano. Neste sentido, buscamos verificar como estas duas perspectivas, que se alimentam da mesma fonte teológico-filosófica, o pensamento do teólogo presbiteriano Cornelius Van Til, interpretam este pensamento de maneira tão distinta e concebem duas formas opostas de abordagem e inserção religiosa, sociopolítica e cultural. O intuito de nossa pesquisa é verificar, por meio da análise do discurso de Cornelius Van Til e de dois dos mais proeminentes representantes das correntes reformista e reconstrucionista, o teólogo Francis Schaeffer e o economista e teólogo Gary North, de que forma essas duas correntes fundamentalistas interpretam, porque assim interpretam, e também como e porque estabelecem suas ações sociais e políticas de maneiras opostas, tendo como base uma mesma perspectiva teológica. / The general goal of this dissertation is to analyze the theological and political elements that inspire and define the antagonism between the reformist and reconstructionist fundamentalist currents in the American public sphere. In this way, we seek to verify how these two perspectives, which feed themselves on the same theological-philosophical source, the thought of the Presbyterian theologian Cornelius Van Til, interpret this thinking in such a different way and conceive of two opposing forms of religious, sociopolitical and cultural approach and insertion. The purpose of our research is to verify, through the analysis of the discourse of Cornelius Van Til and two of the most prominent representatives of the reformist and reconstructionist currents, theologian Francis Schaeffer and the economist and theologian Gary North, how these two fundamentalists currents interpret, why they do it, and also how and why they establish their social and political actions in opposite ways, based on the same theological perspective.

This dissertation argues that Samuel Davies' theology of and vision for the Christian life were inseparable. Although his contribution to American Evangelicalism was not as original nor as widely remembered as that of his contemporaries, Samuel Davies' insistence on vital Christian piety was far more central to his ministry than was religious toleration or patriotic duty, which are more commonly remembered emphases of his legacy. Chapter 2 recounts the contours of Davies' life and world. Chapter 3 argues that Samuel Davies' vision of the Christian life was grounded in the divine revelation of Scripture. The Bible was essential to a life of godliness. Samuel Davies believed that Jesus Christ communicated and sustained divine life in people and that this life marked the beginning of genuine piety. Chapter 4 shows that Davies' emphasis on conversion is grounded in the Puritan tradition yet evinces an emerging Evangelical theology. Chapter 5 argues that Davies saw gospel holiness as the animating principle of spiritual life, that which separated it from worldly, even religious counterfeits. Chapter 6 demonstrates that Davies believed that spiritual life was maintained through the conscientious practice of various religious duties, especially through private prayer and public communion.

This thesis expands upon the concept of the global culture wars in sub-Saharan Africa from a Canadian perspective, focusing on the growing division within Canada between conservative, religious values and liberal, progressive ones (Caplan, 2012). This division led to a political and cultural realignment alongside the increased visibility and leadership of religious and faith communities in Canadian public and political life. Amidst this polarization, Conservative Party leader Stephen Harper was elected Prime Minister in February 2006. Under his leadership, a conservative, pro-family agenda was established. This agenda, which advocates a traditional understanding of family life and structure, in particular refers to a legally married, heterosexual couple with children. It was supported by the evangelical Christian population in Canada, which grew from a united religious community in Canada into a significant constituency of the Conservative Party. Harper’s tenure, coupled with the increased visibility and leadership of faith and religious communities significantly affected domestic and international policies during his tenure as Prime Minister, from 2006 to 2015. This thesis examines the Muskoka Initiative on Maternal, Child, and Newborn Health (Muskoka-MNCH) and shows how this initiative, which fostered anti-abortion rhetoric abroad, was utilized to appease the evangelical community’s anti-abortion position in Canada.

The work focuses on the specification of the specificities of the thinking of some smaller evangelical churches in the territory of Bohemia in the period 1890-1940. Specifically, this is the Brethren Unity of Chelčický (Baptist), the Unity of Czech Brethren (formerly Reformed Free Church) and the Evangelical Methodist Church. The focus of the interpretation is to introduce the construction of confessional identity based on the relationship to the past and the specific interpretation of the personalities and events that shaped the tradition from which these churches were based. Another element forming the identity of the members of these churches was their attitude to the modern secularization tendencies against which they stood in opposition. Last but not least, their confessional consciousness determined their definition of other forms of piety. The aim of the work was to provide, based on the study of the published written sources left by the members of these three churches, a comparison and characterization of their way of viewing certain subjects through their religious beliefs.

[pt] A partir de 1810 teve início a entrada de protestantes no Brasil, o que ocasionou considerável presença desse grupo no país. Contudo, somente na segunda metade do século foi estabelecido o primeiro trabalho protestante voltado para o público nacional a subsistir. Tal fato ocorreu em 1858, com a organização da Igreja Evangélica, na cidade do Rio de Janeiro, pelo Reverendo Robert Reid Kalley. Em 1917, já com uma presença protestante consolidada no país, Carlos de Laet ao criticar a forma da propaganda religiosa deste grupo registra a utilização do termo evangélico empregada por eles. Nesse contexto, o presente trabalho analisa alguns documentos produzidos nas disputas pelo campo religioso brasileiro entre a segunda metade do século XIX e o início do XX com o objetivo de averiguar o processo que deu origem ao conceito de Evangélico tal como é compreendido hoje. A investigação do conceito parte das apropriações e dos sentidos atribuídos ao termo evangélico e a outros nas disputas pelo campo religioso brasileiro. Este trabalho se identifica como uma história social do conceito, que busca enfatizar justamente as inter-relações entre a abordagem da história social e a da história dos conceitos. Nesse sentido, tomando o conceito evangélico como ponto central da pesquisa, por ser compreendido como índice e fator social, procuro identificar e analisar quando e como, em um país predominantemente católico romano, um termo típico da teologia foi apropriado por grupos protestantes. E por fim, tomando de empréstimo expressão de Reinhart Koselleck, como substantivou-se. / [en] From 1810 began the entrance of Protestants in Brazil, which caused considerable presence of this group in the country. However, it was only in the second half of the century that the first Protestant work was set up for the national public to subsist. This happened in 1858, with the organization of the Igreja Evangélica, in the city of Rio de Janeiro, by Reverend Robert Reid Kalley. In 1917, already with a consolidated Protestant presence in the country, Carlos de Laet in criticizing the form of the religious propaganda of this group registers the use of the evangelical term used by them. In this context, the present work analyzes some documents produced in the disputes over the Brazilian religious field between the second half of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth, in order to ascertain the process that gave rise to the concept of the Gospel as it is understood today. The investigation of the concept stems from the appropriations and meanings attributed to the term evangelical and to others in disputes over the Brazilian religious field. This work identifies itself as a social history of the concept, which seeks to emphasize precisely the interrelations between the approach of social history and that of the history of concepts. In this sense, taking the gospel concept as the central point of the research, because it is understood as an index and a social factor, I try to identify and analyze when and how, in a predominantly Roman Catholic country, a typical term of theology was appropriated by Protestant groups. And finally, borrowing expression from Reinhart Koselleck, as he became nouns.

In this thesis the researcher has investigated which of the two concepts: believing before belonging or belonging before believing, is a more accountable perspective in regards to ministry in post-Christendom society. With the final stages of the modern period the power of hegemonic ideologies is coming to an end as people identify less with grand ideologies and more with subcultures related to technology and social and economic networks of different kinds. The post-Christendom phase has begun and is radically challenging Christendom notions of ministry. We have to assume that among post-Christians the familiarity with Christian concepts will fade as the decline of Christendom has meant that Christianity has been losing its status as a lingua franca, only to be understood in the long run, by those who are professing Christians. It is therefore important that the church will anticipate longer journeys towards faith and not move on to disciple new converts too quickly. Post- Christendom evangelization will consequently take longer, start further back and move more slowly. In the context of post-Christendom, knowledge of Christianity is rather limited and people need to come to an understanding of what Christianity entails. For those seekers, exploratory participation at first is safer than making a definite commitment. Postmodern society is also suspicious of institutions and eager to find whether Christian beliefs also work in practice and not only in theory. Therefore is belonging before believing very much necessary for seekers to test whether Christians live out in their communities what they claim to be true? / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / D. Th. (Missiology)