Zugl.: München, Univ., Diss., 2009

Text in German / The present work deals with the historical and theological foundations of radical evangelicalism and places it within the context of theologies which influenced it and are similar to it. Radical evangelicalism integrates insights from various theological roots into a evangelical basal concept. Radical theology succeeded, through its contextual outworking, in overcoming the narrow focus of European evangelical theology and yet it remains genuinely evangelical. It is in the position of breaking through the sterility of academic theology and the dualistic worldview which is peculiar to wide parts of the evangelical movement by a world view that is turned towards the world. Thus it is proving itself to be a highly relevant theology for the needs of a divided world. The work develops in three steps. First of all the historical development of radical evangelicalism will be traced, from its beginning at the Congress for world evangelism in Lausanne in 1974 to the present day. Thus it will become clear that in the 30 years since Lausanne radical theology has entered the mainstream of evangelicalism. There follows in a detailed section a setting out of the theology of radical evangelicalism by means of several chosen themes. It will deal with radical hermeneutics, eschatology, salvation, the meaning of mission and evangelism and the relationship between Gospel and culture. Finally the social action of radical evangelicalism will be set out and it will be demonstrated that its energetic theology is at its basic level in fact a driving sprituality. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / D.Th. (Missiology)

The thesis deals with Britain's early Cold War history and the political history of the Church of England. It mainly uses primary sources, and contributes to our growing understanding of the early Cold War, especially in its cultural/religious elements. It explores how the Church of England dealt with the development of the early Cold War in Britain. It argues that in order to understand better the Church of England's role, an account of its perspective on issues of state modernisation dating back to at least the 1930s is necessary. It was then, during a decade of authoritarianism, and especially at the Oxford Conference of 1937, that the Church' standpoint towards secularisation was established, while the transnational agenda of the ecumenical movement was also adopted and internalized by Church of England. The thesis also examines the agencies which it built and worked with: in particular the British Council of Churches and the World Council of Churches. As the Church is the Established Church, its relationship with specific government agencies, especially the British Foreign Office and the Ministry of Information also became increasingly important. The thesis reveals the Church of England's lack of autonomy in time of crisis and the importance of key individuals for the institutional leadership of the Church. Its ecumenical agenda had played an important role, but this was under pressure after the War, as a Europe-wide Christian community was increasingly challenged by 'Western Union' plans for a Cold War Western, Christian community and bloc. By 1948 the Church had been enrolled in the Cold War between East and West which was apparent in its alignment with British government policies and its withdrawn role in the ecumenical community. The thesis adds to our understanding of the Church of England's relationship to the state in these years, and contributes to the cultural dimension of the early Cold War in Britain.

Nas últimas décadas, tem sido grande o trânsito religioso do catolicismo para as Igrejas evangélicas de matiz mais pentecostal que enfatiza a ação do Espírito Santo sobre os fiéis, curando-lhes as feridas do corpo e da alma. Entre as Igrejas pentecostais a que mais vem crescendo é a Assembleia de Deus, fundada pelos suecos Daniel Berg e Gunnar Vingren no século passado. A vinda dessa Igreja ao Brasil passa primeiramente por Belém-PA, espalhando-se logo depois pelo Brasil, sendo a cidade de Abreu e Lima (PE) a mais protestante do Brasil. A presente pesquisa tem como objetivo analisar a questão do ensino religioso na cidade de Abreu e Lima em uma perspectiva ecumênica, analisando sobre tudo o desenvolvimento do movimento pentecostal na cidade. Tal movimento é puxado pela denominação pentecostal Assembleia de Deus que existe na cidade deste antes de sua fundação como cidade. A partir daí iremos compreender como tal denominação influencia na formação dos cidadãos com o ensino religioso no município. A metodologia utilizada foi a bibliográfica e documental. Como resultados, hoje 41% dos habitantes de Abreu e Lima são assembleianos, tendo elegido o pastor como atual prefeito da cidade. / In recent decades, there has been great religious transit from Catholicism to evangelical Pentecostal Churches that emphasizes the action of the Holy Spirit upon the faithful, healing their wounds of body and soul. Among Pentecostal churches is growing the fastest is the Assembly of God, founded by Swedes Daniel Berg and Gunnar Vingren last century. The coming of this church to Brazil was firstly Belém (PA), spreading soon after through across Brazil, being Abreu e Lima the most Protestant city in Brazil. This research aims to analyze the issue of religious education in the city of Abreu e Lima in an ecumenical perspective, analyzing everything about the development of the Pentecostal movement in the city. This movement is driven by the Assembly of God Pentecostal denomination that exists in this city before its foundation as city. From there we will understand how such a name influences in the formation of citizens with religious education in the city. The methodology used was the literature and documents. As results , today 41 % of the inhabitants of Abreu e Lima belong to Assembly Church, having elected the pastor as the current mayor of the city.

Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-01T18:12:48Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 bruno_junior_paz_barreto.pdf: 383549 bytes, checksum: 914d57c2dba962afd13017aaa2ceb572 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-03-25 / In recent decades, there has been great religious transit from Catholicism to evangelical Pentecostal Churches that emphasizes the action of the Holy Spirit upon the faithful, healing their wounds of body and soul. Among Pentecostal churches is growing the fastest is the Assembly of God, founded by Swedes Daniel Berg and Gunnar Vingren last century. The coming of this church to Brazil was firstly Belém (PA), spreading soon after through across Brazil, being Abreu e Lima the most Protestant city in Brazil. This research aims to analyze the issue of religious education in the city of Abreu e Lima in an ecumenical perspective, analyzing everything about the development of the Pentecostal movement in the city. This movement is driven by the Assembly of God Pentecostal denomination that exists in this city before its foundation as city. From there we will understand how such a name influences in the formation of citizens with religious education in the city. The methodology used was the literature and documents. As results , today 41 % of the inhabitants of Abreu e Lima belong to Assembly Church, having elected the pastor as the current mayor of the city. / Nas últimas décadas, tem sido grande o trânsito religioso do catolicismo para as Igrejas evangélicas de matiz mais pentecostal que enfatiza a ação do Espírito Santo sobre os fiéis, curando-lhes as feridas do corpo e da alma. Entre as Igrejas pentecostais a que mais vem crescendo é a Assembleia de Deus, fundada pelos suecos Daniel Berg e Gunnar Vingren no século passado. A vinda dessa Igreja ao Brasil passa primeiramente por Belém-PA, espalhando-se logo depois pelo Brasil, sendo a cidade de Abreu e Lima (PE) a mais protestante do Brasil. A presente pesquisa tem como objetivo analisar a questão do ensino religioso na cidade de Abreu e Lima em uma perspectiva ecumênica, analisando sobre tudo o desenvolvimento do movimento pentecostal na cidade. Tal movimento é puxado pela denominação pentecostal Assembleia de Deus que existe na cidade deste antes de sua fundação como cidade. A partir daí iremos compreender como tal denominação influencia na formação dos cidadãos com o ensino religioso no município. A metodologia utilizada foi a bibliográfica e documental. Como resultados, hoje 41% dos habitantes de Abreu e Lima são assembleianos, tendo elegido o pastor como atual prefeito da cidade.

Text in English / This dissertation has examined the University Christian Movement (UCM) over its turbulent five year history from 1967 to 1972 in terms of the original hopes of the sponsoring ecumenical denominations. Contextual factors within the socio-political arena of South Africa as well as broader youth cultural influences are shown to have had a decisive influence. These factors help to explain the negative reaction from the founding churches. While this is not a thesis on Black Consciousness, nevertheless the contribution of the UCM to the rise of Black Consciousness and Black Theology is evaluated. UCM is shown to be a movement well ahead of its time as a forerunner in South Africa of Black Theology, contextual theology, feminism, modem liturgical styles, and intercommunion. As such it was held in suspicion. It suffered repressive action from the government and alienation from the churches. Constant cross referencing to other organisations such as the World Student Christian Federation, the National Union of South African Students, the South African Council of Churches, the Christian Institute, and the Sllldents Christian Association, helps to locate the UCM within the flow of contemporary history. The concluding evaluation differs markedly from the report of the Schlebusch Commission by making both critical and positive judgement from the perspective of the UCM as an ecumenical mission to students. / Christain Spirituality, Church History & Missiology / M.Th. (Missiology)

German text / Die ökumenische Bewegung weltweit steht nicht erst seit kurzem vor großen Herausforderungen, nicht nur an der Basis. Kirchenpolitische Interessen, kulturelle Barrieren und in der Tat theologische Differenzen fragen nach dem Kern christlicher Einheit. Vor dieser Aufgabe steht auch und insbesondere die evangelikale Bewegung mit ihrer spezifischen Prägung und Fragestellung im Kontext der weltweiten Christenheit. Innerhalb dieser global betrachtet expandierenden Bewegung begegnet man dem ökumenischen Anliegen mit geteilter Aufmerksamkeit, offener Kritik und völliger Abstinenz. Mithilfe der Darstellung der Unionsbemühungen des Reformators Martin Bucer, insbesondere seiner theologischen Motive, wird ein hoffentlich weiterführender Gesprächsbeitrag für die Ökumene-Debatte im modernen Evangelikalismus geliefert. / World-wide ecumenicism has to challenge big issues for a long time now. Church-political interests, cultural frontiers and, of course, theological differences search for the center of christian unity. Especially evangelicalism as a part of world-wide christianity has to face this challenge with its specific character. Within this expanding movement, a variety of viewpoints exist with regard to ecumenicism: divided attention, open criticism and neglection. Martin Bucer as ecumenical pioneer in the period of reformation elaborates a fresh approach towards the evangelical ecumenicism-debate. His theological motives build the center of this dissertation. / Philosophy & Systematic Theology / M. Th. (Systematic Theology)

The contemporary debate concerning the Christian theology of religions has been profoundly shaped by Alan Race’s three-fold typology of exclusivism, inclusivism and pluralism. Although the insufficiency of this typology’s descriptive and critical capacity has become increasingly acknowledged within the field, widespread agreement about its replacement remains elusive. This thesis argues that a replacement can be found in Hans Frei’s five-fold typology of Christian theology, which differentiates between a range of approaches to theology, from theology as philosophical discourse (Type 1) to theology as quarantined, Christian self-description (Type 5). It is suggested that the more basic question posed by Frei’s typology of how Christian theology is understood in relation to philosophy and other external discourses, provides a better means of accounting for the different positions in the Christian theology of religions within 20th century ecumenical movements. It is shown how Frei’s typology emerges from his emphasis on both the limitations and the significance of external discourses for Christian theology, an emphasis which results from his construal of the mystery of Christ’s universal presence as a function of the particular incarnation in Jesus of Nazareth. Chapter one considers the philosophical foundations upon which Race’s typology is constructed, with particular emphasis on Troeltsch’s historicism, Hick’s epistemology of religious experience and WC Smith’s phenomenological hermeneutic, concluding that they determine the typology’s apologetic approach. It is shown how these commitments lead Race’s typology to differentiate between types of Christian theology primarily in relation to the philosophical viability, as Race understands it, of their Christology. Chapter two focuses first on the theology of Hans Frei and his analysis of the relationship between Christology and historicism, epistemology, and hermeneutics. It is suggested that Frei’s focus on the ordering of the relationship between Christian theology and external discourses, while undermining Race’s approach, affirms the possibility of a theologically valuable relationship between Christian theology and external discourses. Moreover, unlike Race, Frei’s emphasis on the significance of external discourses for Christian theology is derived in light of, and not in spite of, a faith in the incarnation and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Chapter three looks at Frei’s fivefold typology as a better means of accounting for the differences Race posits between exclusivists, inclusivists and pluralists. It is argued that in following Frei’s typological logic and the historical, epistemological and hermeneutical considerations characteristic of a Christian theology between types three and four, an approach to the theology of religions emerges which addresses the question of the universality of divine revelation – the central concern of Race’s typology – while also showing the inadequacy of Race’s typology and its prioritisation of philosophy. This will be shown by applying Frei’s typology to 20th century ecumenical movements and the positions on the theological significance of non-Christian religions that have emerged therein. Though Frei did not directly take up the issue of the Christian theology of religions, chapter three will demonstrate how his typology of Christian theology is of particular importance for this discussion. For his typology highlights the central question driving the theology of religions – how the ‘internal’ discourse of Christian self-description in reference to the gospels’ history-like witness to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ relates to the historically contingent, public world outside the church. The conclusion will point toward a constructive proposal for a theology of evangelism and interfaith dialogue in pluralist societies of the 21st century, drawing on the ecumenical discussion viewed in relation to the theological and typological insights of Hans Frei.

This study explores the history of the Toba Batak community in the city of Medan from1912 to 1965. The Toba Batak have traditionally lived in the rural interior highlands ofSumatra. In this region, their specific ethno-religious identity was developed. Thecrucial factor in the process was the activities and the theological convictions of theGerman Rhenish mission on which the Toba Batak themselves had a significant impact. During the first few decades of the 20th century the Toba Batak began to migrate to the plantation region on the east coast of Sumatra and its commercial entrepôt Medan.In this region, where the Malay Muslim culture was the local dominant culture, theystrove to fulfil their cultural ideals, among which the ideal of harajaon (kingdom) iscentral. The main analytical question pursued is: How did the Toba Batak ethno-religious identity develop in Medan, within the framework of the ethnic, religious, social andpolitical currents in the city? This question is analysed in terms of their changing relations to their area of origin,the interaction with other groups in Medan and the efforts of the Toba Batak to buildup their own organisations. The main focus is on the development of Christiancongregations, but the analysis also takes voluntary, political and women's organisationsinto account. The changing conditions for local ecumenical co-operation are alsoexplored. A wide selection of sources is used, such as missionary reports and correspondence, Dutch colonial records and Toba Batak written and oral sources. Most of these sources have not or only partly been employed in previous research.

German text / Die ökumenische Bewegung weltweit steht nicht erst seit kurzem vor großen Herausforderungen, nicht nur an der Basis. Kirchenpolitische Interessen, kulturelle Barrieren und in der Tat theologische Differenzen fragen nach dem Kern christlicher Einheit. Vor dieser Aufgabe steht auch und insbesondere die evangelikale Bewegung mit ihrer spezifischen Prägung und Fragestellung im Kontext der weltweiten Christenheit. Innerhalb dieser global betrachtet expandierenden Bewegung begegnet man dem ökumenischen Anliegen mit geteilter Aufmerksamkeit, offener Kritik und völliger Abstinenz. Mithilfe der Darstellung der Unionsbemühungen des Reformators Martin Bucer, insbesondere seiner theologischen Motive, wird ein hoffentlich weiterführender Gesprächsbeitrag für die Ökumene-Debatte im modernen Evangelikalismus geliefert. / World-wide ecumenicism has to challenge big issues for a long time now. Church-political interests, cultural frontiers and, of course, theological differences search for the center of christian unity. Especially evangelicalism as a part of world-wide christianity has to face this challenge with its specific character. Within this expanding movement, a variety of viewpoints exist with regard to ecumenicism: divided attention, open criticism and neglection. Martin Bucer as ecumenical pioneer in the period of reformation elaborates a fresh approach towards the evangelical ecumenicism-debate. His theological motives build the center of this dissertation. / Philosophy and Systematic Theology / M. Th. (Systematic Theology)