This study is the product of research in the field of systematic theology, particularly the subject of women in ministry. The goal was to provide, given the scope and limits of the study, the most persuasive case for women elders (or “pastors”) from a Reformed-Evangelical approach to date. The primary means of accomplishing this goal is by making an analytically constructed argument that is both exegetically and theologically sound. The introduction outlines the study’s basic objectives, structure, research methods, assumptions, and overall direction. Two gives a detailed literature review of major publications on the subject of women ministry in order to track the movement of the debate. Three explores theological methods that addresses theological loci, the role of hermeneutics, and the theological-analytical structure and content of Reformed-Evangelical arguments for women elders. Chapter Four explores conceptual framework, which frames the specific, contemporary debate over women elders in Reformed-Evangelical circles, and then addresses the insights and challenges of feminist theology and Roman Catholic theology. The heart of the study is captured in three main chapters that present a case for women elders in the church. The first argument provides a detailed examination of the “prohibition passages” in the New Testament and concludes that they do not prohibit women from being elders. The second argument provides a sweeping account of the proclamation of the gospel in New Testament theology, and affirms that anti-women-elder readings and attitudes simply do not conform to the actions, attitudes, and teachings of the early church regarding gender and gospel-proclamation. Finally, the third section provides three additional arguments in favor of women elders. The first argument addresses the nature of hermeneutics and application of specific interpretations, the second addresses the nature of marriage and its relationship to church leadership, and the third deals with functions of women in NT ministry. The research concludes with Chapter Eight, which summarizes the argument and introduces practical ramifications if the study’s premises and conclusions are true. / Philosophy and Systematic Theology / D. Th. (Systematic Theology)

The final chapter of Luke 24 exhibits a peculiar interest in the body of Jesus, which has historically led to theologians interpreting the passage as mainly concerned with christological matters. The phrase “body of Christ” can be understood in regard to the Eucharist meal, but also as employed by Paul to speak of the community of believers. Could the focus on the body in Luke 24, and its climactic recognition scene with Jesus breaking the bread, invoke symbolism related to the corporate community? If so, it could serve as an elegant narratological transition onto Acts. This paper presents a narrative–rhetorical analysis of Luke24:1–53 and a semantic–rhetorical analysis of Did 9:3–4, investigating the use of the symbolism and the ideas associated with the bread of the Eucharist as the body of Jesus. Both analyses are concerned with the historically situated author–reader and utilizes Relevance theory from the field of linguistics to help determine whether the suggested symbolism maybe at play in Luke 24. The study concludes that the bread of the Eucharist carries symbolism that communicates how God’s Wisdom is shared among, and existing within, the community of believers, and that this understanding underlies the entire narrative of Luke 24—adding an ecclesiological layer to the passage.

Den här studiens syfte att är analysera den implicita ecklesiologi som kommer till uttryck i Engelbrektskyrkans kyrkobyggnad, kyrkorum och materialitet, sådan den var när den byggdes. Utgångspunkten är att kyrkobyggnaden, -rummet och kyrkans materialitet bär på ecklesiologisk information, som genom att synliggöras ger en bild av den syn på vad kyrkan är och bör vara som var rådande vid tiden för kyrkans byggande. Genom en begränsad fältstudie, litteraturstudie och en semi-strukturerad intervju avtäcks och analyseras den implicita ecklesiologi som kyrkan bär på. Studiens slutsats är ett synliggörande av en ecklesiologi där kyrkan är den plats som möjliggör mötet mellan Gud och människa. I Engelbrektskyrkan möter människan bilden av en undervisande, segrande och kärleksfull Kristus som har famnen öppen för sina barn. Både den bild av Kristus och den bild av kyrkan som framträder är bilden av det starka, vackra som inte är sårbart. Genom analysen av de konkreta uttrycken för kyrkan framträder också en ecklesiologi där ett statskyrkoideal bryter mot ett folkkyrkoideal.

The thesis "Ecumenism in the work of Josef Kubalík" provides an overview of several works of professor Josef Kubalík. His works influenced generations of students of Catholic theology. Author was a professor of Fundamental Theology at Cyrilometodějská bohoslovecká faculty in Litoměřice in the second half of the 20th century. He wrote a lot of books, university textbooks and ariticles in specialized press. Theologia Fundamentalis has been his most known work. Which is partly still under the influence of manualistic, apologetic-polemical theology. In his later reissues are added council documents Dei Verbum and Lumen Gentium. He translated documents of Second Vatican Ecumenical Council for professional public. We compare his work to these documents and to Ut Unum Sint. At the end it is said, that professor Kubalík grew in the openness and friendliness towards non - Catholics. But he was unable to change given schemes of his thinking.

CHARLES UNIVERSITY PRAGUE Catholic Theological Faculty Department of Theological Ethics and Spiritual Theology ThLic.Mgr. Ing. David Seifert THE POST-CONCILIAR RENEWAL OF THE PERMANENT DIACONATE HISTORY - THEOLOGY - SPIRITUALITY Doctoral thesis Resume Thesis adviser: ThLic. Vojtěch Kohut Th.D. PRAHA 2011 2 CONTENT CONTENT ................................................................................................................................. 2 RESUME.................................................................................................................................... 3 List of sources and literature ...................................................................................................... 4 3 RESUME The trends of the contemporary theology of diaconate are based on the old-christian practice of diaconate mainly in sense of the variety of the services in church and plurality within the frame of the church office, which is justified richly theologically, namely trinitarily. In the light of relationship between the service and the community is just the variety of services in the local church understood as the fullness of the mission, which just the local Church is called to accomplish and live. The question therefore is to answer the question of identity of diaconate through...

[pt] O tema do testemunho cristão e toda a sacramentalidade nele implicada é o foco principal deste trabalho. Evidencia-se, inicialmente, o tema do testemunho cristão como martírio em breve percurso histórico, além do foco sobre o testemunho nas óticas profana e religiosa, bem como, nos recentes Concílios Ecumênicos e no magistério pós-conciliar dos últimos papas. Verifica-se que o testemunho cristão possui peso considerável para o fator de credibilidade da Igreja, sendo mesmo uma condição primeira necessária à credibilidade da fé, pois muitos não mais creem na instituição, porém não negam a realidade de um testemunho cristão evidente. Tomando-se por base a obra sobre Eclesiologia de Salvador Pié-Ninot, busca-se evidenciar a questão da sacramentalidade da Igreja como novo lugar sociocultural. Percorre-se a noção da Igreja-sacramento em seu sinal interior, como comunidade; e em seu sinal exterior que evidencia a Igreja como sociedade e todos os aspectos daí derivados. Para Pié-Ninot, o testemunho é tido como elemento-chave de credibilidade na Igreja e passa a ser conhecido como via testimonii, por ser o caminho mais enfático, notório e coerente para a evangelização. Unem-se, portanto, as duas noções anteriores, buscando realizar uma mescla do testemunho cristão como questão de sacramentalidade da Igreja, na qual as heresias que o mundo reapresenta na atualidade, o neognosticismo e o neopelagianismo, são contrapostas com a ortodoxia do Papa Francisco. Conclui-se este trabalho, evidenciando-se o testemunho cristão como um sacramental da Igreja, o qual remete ao Sacramento primordial, que é a Igreja, numa perspectiva eclesial e teológica. / [en] The theme of Christian witness and all the sacramentality involved in it is the main focus of this work. Initially, the theme of Christian witness as a martyrdom is highlighted in a brief historical way, in addition to the focus on witness in the profane and religious perspectives, as well as in recent Ecumenical Councils and in the post-conciliar magisterium of the last popes. It is verified that the Christian witness has considerable weight for the Church s credibility factor, being even a necessary first condition for the credibility of the faith, since many people no longer believe in the institution, but they do not deny the reality of an evident Christian witness. Based on Salvador Pié-Ninot s Ecclesiology, we seek to highlight the issue of the sacramentality of the Church as a new sociocultural issue. The notion of the Church-sacrament is explored in its indoor sign, as a community; and in its outdoor sign that evidences the Church as a society and all the aspects derived from it. For Pié-Ninot, witness is seen as a key element of credibility in the Church and becomes known as via testimonii, as it is the most emphatic, notorious and coherent way of evangelization. Therefore, the two previous notions are united, seeking to achieve a mixture of Christian witness as a matter of sacramentality of the Church, in which the heresies that the world represents today, neognosticism and neopelagianism, are opposed through the orthodoxy of Pope Francis. This work is concluded, highlighting the Christian witness as a sacramental of the Church, which refers to the primordial Sacrament, which is the Church, in an ecclesial and theological perspective.

[pt] Na última ceia, com seus apóstolos, Jesus lega para toda a humanidade a celebração memorial da salvação de sua páscoa redentora. A Igreja, desde seus primórdios, sente-se como herdeira deste legado mantendo vivo, de forma ininterrupta, o cumprimento da ordem de iteração do Senhor: fazei isto em memória de mim. A celebração da Eucaristia constitui o núcleo central da liturgia da Igreja, em torno do qual orbitam todos os seus momentos de oração. Além disso, pela ação do Espírito Santo, na liturgia, a Igreja é constituída e se manifesta. Em tudo isso, o Espírito Santo ocupa papel central, que não pode, de forma nenhuma, ser relativizado ou esquecido. Tais fatos ressaltam com que gravidade a Igreja é chamada a crescer sempre mais na compreensão do mistério de Cristo, e na sua missão de conduzir os fiéis a uma participação mais ativa e consciente. Este trabalho intenta realizar um estudo das fórmulas oracionais utilizadas para celebrar a Eucaristia, ressaltando a ação do Espírito Santo e a sua dinâmica eclesiogenética no gesto litúrgico. A metodologia da pesquisa é predominantemente mistagógica. Os textos da liturgia serão cortejados com destaque, como voz de autoridade para ensinar. Na realização de uma mistagogia da Eucaristia, a dinâmica do Espírito Santo e a geração da Igreja serão ressaltados, a fim de que se faça um autêntico estudo pneumático-mistagógico, isto é, uma pneumatologia que se manifeste como uma epicletologia eclesiogenética. / [en] At the last supper, with his apostles, Jesus bequeaths to all humanity the memorial celebration of his Redeeming Passover. The Church, from its beginnings, feels a truly heir to this legacy, keeping alive, uninterruptedly, the fulfillment of the Lord s iteration order: do this in memory of me. The celebration of the Eucharist constitutes the central nucleus of the Church s Liturgy, around which all her moments of prayer revolve. Furthermore, through the action of the Holy Spirit, in the Liturgy, the Church is constituted and manifests itself. In all of this, the Holy Spirit occupies a central role, which cannot, in any way, be relativized or forgotten. These facts emphasize how seriously the Church is called to grow ever more in the understanding of the Mystery of Christ, and in his mission to lead the christians to a participation more active and conscious. This work intends to carry out a study of the prayer formulas used to celebrate the Eucharist, highlighting the action of the Holy Spirit and its ecclesiogenetic dynamics in the liturgical action. The methodology of the research is predominantly mystagogical. The liturgy texts will be courted prominently, as an authoritative voice to teach. When performing a mystagogy of the Eucharist, the dynamics of the Divine Pneuma and the generation of the Church will be highlighted, in order to make an authentic pneumatological-mystagogic study, in other terms, a pneumatology that manifests itself as an ecclesiogenetic epicletology.

No description available.

<p>One's conception of human personhood deeply impacts one's understanding and practice of community. Contemporary culture lacks precision and agreement in defining the human person. Such ·anthropological agnosticism· also affects the church. leading to devastating consequences concerning its inner sociality. cultural engagement, and pursuit of justice. This dissertation argues that a significant step forward is to gain a better understanding of theological anthropology and apply it consistently to ecclesiology. Specifically. a theological understanding of the human person as a relational. rational. and eschatological creature leads to a conception of the church as relational. rational, and eschatological communities of the new humanity. This approach overcomes problematic dualisms and false dichotomies presently plaguing the church's inner life and outward mission, in part by accentuating the ethical dimension that pervades its whole existence. Primary conversation partners include Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Miroslav Volf. and Stanley Grenz. Alasdair Macintyre and Wolthart Pannenberg are also influential.</p> <p>Part I consists of two chapters. Chapter one explores the difficulties of defining the human person in contemporary culture and the resulting consequences for community and ethics. Chapter two analyzes six typological ways of construing community based IV upon conflicting views of the human person. It evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of each, concluding that none is fully satisfying theologically. Part II (chapters 3-5) constructs a theological anthropology in trinitarian perspective. It presents a threedimensional view of the human person as: a relational creature whose telos is to love God and fellow human beings; a rational creature whose telos is to know God and understand God"s world; and an eschatological creature whose telos is to serve God as a stewardpriest of (new) creation. Part III (chapters 6-8) constructs an ecclesiology corresponding to the themes developed in Part II. depicting the church as relational, rational, and eschatological communities of the new humanity defined and oriented by love. faith. and hope. The concluding chapter summarizes the arguments developed and their implications for Christian community and ethics. It then explores some preliminary implications of viewing the church as God"s new humanity. called to promote and embody the welfare and flourishing of all human beings.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This thesis addresses the division that exists between theory and praxis. Theology in general and practical theology as a specific discipline has allowed this division to arise and indeed grow. The problem facing us is that faith communities now operate out of blind theory and/or blind praxis. To address this situation a reintegration of the theory and practice of the entire ecclesial praxis is needed. This thesis proposes “Practical Theological Ecclesiology” as the way forward. Practical theological ecclesiology is defined as: The dynamic critical purposeful engagement with the human-divine interactive life of the ecclesial praxis to: ground, integrate, align and improve its essence and expression dimensions as the revelational incarnational sign of God and his purposes in and for the world and directed toward his eschatological kingdom goal. Practical theological ecclesiology addresses both the abstractness of pure ecclesiology and the pragmatics of the praxis through the development of an operational ecclesiology model that integrates the essence, expression and goal dimensions of the ecclesial praxis. By applying the operational ecclesiology model to praxis, practical theological ecclesiology, through the tasks of grounding, integrating, aligning and improving, uncover the gaps that exist in and between the theory and praxis of a faith community. The resulting analysis provides ecclesial pictures of what is, compared to what should be, according to the operational ecclesiology model. The areas of ecclesial life which need to be grounded, integrated, aligned and improved are therefore exposed for ongoing work. Historical and contemporary research of the Christian Community Churches of Australia, provide the data for a case study which illustrates the potential and the analysis process of practical theological ecclesiology. The research underlines the importance of having an integrated operational ecclesiology, of grounding and integrating the theory, of aligning of theory and praxis, and of providing improvement direction for the praxis, thus removing theory and praxis division, avoiding both blind theory and blind praxis, and giving a clear pathway for the future . / Practical Theology / D. Th. (Practical Theology)