<p> Theology is often assumed to be outmoded as a mode of thought, unworthy of the respect due an academic discipline, especially in matters of public import. Recent penetrating interdisciplinary work by theologians in the orbit of Radical Orthodoxy, however, calls into question such a pat assessment of the value of theology to shape academic and public discourse. Sifting through the centuries for insight, these scholars wrestle to faithfully apply the history of ideas at crucial intersections&mdash;of the past, the present and the future; of the transcendent and the mundane; of faith and reason; of belief and doubt. No longer satisfied to be sequestered by the strictures of secularism, a theology that is both informed by and committed to furthering liturgical and doctrinal development in all its historical complexity now deigns&mdash;in the hope of shedding fresh light on recalcitrant debates to intervene in realms ranging from academia to public policy.</p>

<p> For a variety of reasons, many churches in our cultural moment do not include creeds in their corporate worship. Some associate creeds with the disastrous hubris and overreach of the Modernist church as it attempted to nail down, and be the arbiter of, what is true. Others see them as simply boring and irrelevant relics of a bygone era and style.Yet in their right place, creeds have an important role to play today, framing the story of faith, and declaring the central core of what the local worshipping community holds in common with the church across the ages. Just as the lyrics of a song can seem lifeless without the music, so too, creeds can seem lifeless when extracted out of the life of faith.</p><p> In 2005 I led a team to design a new emerging church worship service for the First Presbyterian Church of Ambler which was called <i>SouthRidge. </i> As the service flourished and the liturgy began to settle into a familiar pattern, I noticed that the service was consistently devoid of creeds. There was a sense that something was missing, yet many in our new, young congregation had a distaste and distrust of prescribed corporate readings said by rote. We wondered if there were new ways of experiencing the Apostles Creed that might make it more accessible to a new generation.</p><p> In 2013 I led a team from our church to explore new ways of experiencing the Apostles' Creed. We developed eight different encounters with the Creed for both corporate worship and on-line resources. In particular, we found the encounter we called a "Creedal Testimony" to be a highly helpful way to experience the Apostles' Creed. This paper examines the history of the Apostles' Creed, the development and use of the eight encounters we created, and evaluates the impact these encounters had on our local community. The paper concludes with some tentative suggestions as to which of these encounters may be most helpful to other faith communities.</p>

<p> Worldwide the Church continues to grow and flourish in the most hostile environments. Today's church provides living proof that Jesus actively, intentionally, and powerfully builds His church. Around the world wherever the Church grows, it is growing through a church planting movement of unprecedented proportions. </p><p> This project proposes to show that church planting in America, as in the rest of the world, is a crucial, strategic, and biblical method for increasing the missional effectiveness of the Assemblies of God (AG). Historically, the AG in the United States has committed to fulfilling the Great Commission through a two-fold emphasis of planting new churches and sending out missionaries to foreign fields. The missional importance of church planting will be demonstrated through research data from over 8,000 AG churches, comparing the spiritual metrics of church plants to existing churches over thirteen years of age. Additionally, research will compare the missional metrics of churches that plant churches with churches that do not engage in planting other churches. </p><p> Today, the AG shows encouraging signs of growth. However, two realities must temper these signs. AG numerical growth as a whole is not keeping up with population trends. Nationwide the number of AG churches per one thousand people continues to decline, and the AG continues to be underrepresented in the growing urban areas. Although the AG should rejoice in God's continued blessings, it must intentionally prioritize proven ways to increase missional effectiveness. God strategically uses the planting of new churches to break new ground for the gospel and increase the harvest.</p>

Thesis (Th. M.)--Dallas Theological Seminary, 1986. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [114]-128).

No description available.

No description available.

Thèse (M.A.)--Université de Sherbrooke (Canada), 2008. / Titre de l'écran-titre (visionné le 1 février 2007). In ProQuest dissertations and theses. Publié aussi en version papier.

No description available.

Thesis (Th. M.)--Westminster Theological Seminary (Philadelphia, Pa.), 2008. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 182-213).

Thesis (D.Miss.)--Asbury Theological Seminary, 2006. / (UMI)AAI3228610. Adviser: Michael A. Rynkiewich. Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-08, Section: A, page: 3018.