This Practical Theological thesis examines the uses, understandings, and attitudes toward the rite of Christian Initiation (variously known as 'baptism' or 'christening') in the Church of England, contrasting the experiences of churchgoers and clergy with non-regular churchgoers and demonstrating its pivotal role in ecclesiastical boundary drawing. It develops a critical conversation between ecclesiology, theology, and the assumptions of ordinary people, revealed in their language when discussing the rite. Corpus based methods are used to explore naturally-occurring language in various corpora from a variety of genres, from 1500 to the present day. It concludes that there are significant linguistic differences between clergy/regular churchgoers and non-regular churchgoers and that the roots of this split go back to before Reformation times. Non-regular churchgoers’ use of language to describe this rite is more varied than that of churchgoers, who rarely used the word 'christening' nor figurative uses of these words. Non-regular churchgoers attached great social importance to the rite, but this was little understood by clergy and regular churchgoers. The Church would benefit from understanding and appreciating these different perspectives, both to enrich their own experience of Christian Initiation, and to allow more sympathetic pastoral care for those requesting the rite for their children.

This research is praxiological in nature, arising out of committed action and leading to more informed urban ecclesiological practice in Scotland. It acknowledges the current haemorrhaging of membership and influence facing the Church of Scotland - felt most acutely in the poorest parts of the country - and seeks to plot a practical urban ecclesiology which takes seriously both the urban context and also the gospel priority towards the poorest and most marginalised. Chapter One provides an autobiographical backcloth to the research and highlights the three core principles underlying it: a preferential option for the poor; an understanding of knowledge as situated; and a commitment to an abductive research process. Chapter Two outlines the research methodology and, in particular, justifies the use of Case Studies, with Focus Groups and semi-structured Interviews, as an appropriate research model. Chapter Three focuses on the nature of the post-industrial city. It highlights globalisation, environmentalism and the collapse of western-style democracy as three of the key issues in the current urban context. It considers post-war urban regeneration, highlighting the failings of a model substantially dominated by buildings and a top-down strategy. Chapter Four is concerned with the nature of poverty in Scotland today, including how such poverty can be defined and measured. The causes of poverty are understood structurally and a particular critique of New Labour's social inclusion policies is offered, based on an analysis of their underlying political philosophy of communitarianism and the Third Way. Chapter Five draws on the different theological and ecclesiological responses to the urban and to poverty and, in particular, upon Latin American Liberation Theology and Urban Theology in Britain since 1985. Through an exploration of Pentecostalism, it highlights the need to develop appropriate ecclesiological models which take the nature of rooted hybrid spirituality more seriously. In Chapter Six the focus of the research narrows down to look at Glasgow, giving consideration to both the effectiveness of the city's place-marketing strategy and also some of the patterns of church life in the city. Chapter Seven focuses upon four Case Studies. These affirm and inform the conclusions reached in previous chapters, highlighting the failure of urban policy to adequately address poverty and the need of the Church to move beyond a 'project-based' response. The research also highlights the importance of church buildings as places of sanctuary and of the 'cultural sectarianism' which continues to pervade the culture of west central Scotland. Chapter Eight represents an attempt to return to informed practice, highlighting how some of the key concepts and findings within the research are informing the developing strategy and practice of the Church of Scotland's Priority Areas Committee.

What are the relational dynamics between Taiwanese Christian daughters-in-law (D-Ls) and their non-Christian mothers-in-law (M-Ls)? How does Christian faith influence their intergenerational relations? How best can a caregiver offer appropriate pastoral support and assist Christian women in dealing with their non-Christian M-Ls? These issues and problems have been largely ignored in the relative literature and have arisen from of my pastoral work and personal experience. As a female pastor and D-L, set out this study seeking to integrate professional and academic knowledge in order to answer these questions. This study focuses on women’s experiences, attempting to reveal those relationship issues, and determine any problems underscoring the daily interactions of D-L—M-L in Taiwanese society. In order to meet these aims, the thesis engages with feminist pastoral theology, social science methodology, psychological analysis, and cultural studies. The first part of this study explores literature relevant to the topic, and the living context of Taiwanese D-Ls, as well as feminist pastoral theology. It is concerned with how traditional Chinese and Western cultures define roles and construct intergenerational relationships. Social transition, tension between tradition and modernity, and the struggles and challenges in relation to these intergenerational relationships are examined. The traditional male-centred theological paradigms, in which gender is interpreted and which must be reinterpreted and reconstructed for developing feminist theology, is also discussed. The second part of this study describes its feminist research methodology. It sets out a framework for collecting data to aid in developing an understanding of Taiwanese Christian women’s experience. Focus group discussions were used to explore the collective voice of the D-Ls. The last part of this study involves the presentation of research findings, discussions, and suggestions for further thought and action. It illustrates key findings from analysis of the focus group discussions, and describes the daily interaction and cultural ideology they present, along with the roles husbands, fathers-in-law (F-L), children, and other family members play in the web of relationships. The findings reveal that D-Ls face the challenges of an androcentric and hierarchical family culture, a close-knit family web, and unequal power relations. Different religious practices impact upon the D-L－M-L relationship and this can be a source of tension or conflict. Christian teachings also convey potentially androcentric messages for women that can affect their self-image and cause other harmful consequences. However, many participating women indicated that Christian beliefs provide them with a spiritual strength which has transformed their lives, and led to relational restoration. The Bible, teachings and church groups provide religious resources that support them in the face of relational challenges. I end with self-reflection, noting the need for further theological construction, and propose an alternative model of Triune love, based upon feminist interpretation, as a foundation for family renewal and women’s emancipation. This theological model has implications for new forms of pastoral care which can promote gender equality and non-hierarchical, intergenerational relationships.

This thesis poses the research question of whether curacy in the Church of England, in its current majority model of one curate in one benefice under the supervision of one training incumbent, continues to offer the most productive space for the post-ordination ongoing formation of the newly ordained. It uses an interdisciplinary methodology, in which theology and ecclesiology are brought into dialogue with the sociological thought of Casanova and Bourdieu, with Stanislavski’s theory of method acting, and with performance practice in art music and popular music. It additionally asks questions of how the increasingly complex external and internal contexts for ministry might be productively conceptualized, and of what kinds of ordained ministers might be needed by the twenty-first century Church of England. Consideration of these questions contributes to the conclusion that whilst aspects of good practice can usefully be retained from the current model of curacy, contextual demands and the changing nature of the role of the ordained, coupled with a significant shift in the demographic profile of those coming forward for ordination, call for a reframing of its structures.

An examination of the spiritual and temporal roles of Catholic chaplains in WW1 in France and Belgium. All the formative influences at home are assessed from religious, political, social, and geographic perspectives. The roles of the bishops in England and Ireland are reviewed and how their post war ambitions were interpreted at the Front are explained. Lancashire's traditional Catholic strength makes it a significant contributor, not least as the fulcrum between Irish and English catholics.

This thesis uses a practical theological approach to explore concerns regarding black young men (BYM) labelled ‘problematic’, involved in crime and gang-associated activities. Their over-representation in the criminal justice system, also their deaths at each other’s hands, has been the subject of studies and debates in the USA and the UK. Responses and interventions to these concerns have been numerous and varied. This work is rooted in the author’s role as a black Pentecostal pastor in Birmingham and offers a framework from which Black Majority Churches (BMCs) might be able to develop more effective responses to these concerns also exploring the interests and needs of BYM. It addresses the key question: how might the narratives of BYM influence BMCs in shaping more effective theological and pastoral responses to the situation of these men? The research question is explored using a version of the Pastoral Cycle (PC), allowing for the use of interdisciplinary approaches to understand the situation of BYM in Birmingham. Through literature review and empirical investigation of fourteen BYM regarding how they understand their situation and what would help them, conclusions were drawn. The study then explores possible responses of BMCs, using New Testament Church of God (NTCG) as a case study for discussion. It is from these sources that some theoretical, theological and practical prescriptions and conclusions emerge, suggesting that BYM and BMC leaders are prepared to engage in some initial dialogue about the situations facing BYM in Birmingham. This thesis provides new empirically based knowledge about BYM’s perceptions about themselves and their involvement in criminality, and also BMC’s response to their situation. It offers insights into practical theology, sociology and criminology regarding BYM within an urban context.