Thesis (M. Div.)--Emmanuel School of Religion, Johnson City, Tennessee, 2001. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 85-87).

Thesis (M.R.E.)--Cincinnati Christian Seminary, 1987. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 116-118).

Thesis (M. Div.)--Emmanuel School of Religion, Johnson City, Tennessee, 1997. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 83-85).

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1962 J64 / Master of Arts

Master of Arts / Department of History / Robert D. Linder / As the United States descended into war in 1861, the religious leaders of the nation were among the foremost advocates and recruiters for both the Confederate and Union forces. They exercised enormous influence over the laity, and used their sermons and periodicals to justify, promote, and condone the brutal fratricide. Although many historians have focused on the promoters of war, they have almost completely ignored the Disciples of Christ, a loosely organized religious movement based on anti-sectarianism and primitive Christianity, who used their pulpits and periodicals as a platform for peace. This study attempts to merge the remarkable story of the Disciples peace message into a narrative of the Civil War. Their plea for nonviolence was not an isolated event, but a component of a committed, biblically-based response to the outbreak of war from many of the most prominent leaders of the movement. Immersed in the patriotic calls for war, their stance was extremely unpopular and even viewed as traitorous in their communities and congregations. This study adds to the current Disciples historiography, which states that the issue of slavery and the Civil War divided the movement North and South, by arguing that the peace message professed by its major leaders divided the movement also within the sections. In fact, by the outbreak of war, the visceral debates that occurred among the Disciples leadership did not center on the issue of slavery, constitutionality of secession, or even which belligerent was in the right. The chief point of contention was whether a Christian, based on New Testament precepts, could participate in war. The nonviolent leaders thought that their peace message derived from the New Testament would be the one thing that would preserve unity in the brethren. In reality, it became the primary source of division.

It is not the purpose of this study to find the answer to the question which has often been asked, "Why have so many churches closed?" Finding the answer to this question is possibly an ultimate or underlying purpose, but it is not anticipated that the study will answer the question. Very little study is given to the processes which operate to cause the demise of particular congregations. Attention is rather focused on statistical data which are easily obtainable and the attempt is made to determine which of these are significantly related to the fact of closing.

The purpose of this paper is to attempt to remove some of the vagueness associated with the ministry of the Disciples and to add some depth to their theory of the ministry through some proposals for renewal and reformation. First, I propose to accomplish this purpose through an historical survey of the development of the ministry among Disciples. Then, some recommendations will be offered in the light of the Biblical ministry, the historical ministry of the Church, and the contemporary situation. It is my opinion that the Church and its ministry must be renewed constantly through continuing reformations. In order to be valid, these reformations must not neglect Biblical, historical, and existential factors. Upon these criteria, I have based my propositions for the doctrine of the ministry among Disciples of Christ.

The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) has prioritized the ministry of "congregational transformation" for the revitalization of its congregations in decline, subtly framing the aim of this effort as one of becoming "a faithful and growing church." However, research is lacking as to what has actually changed from the past to the present in Disciples congregations purported to have made progress in this priority, particularly in terms of their lived ecclesiologies. The literature on this type of church change also reveals a need for a more robust ecclesiological understanding of congregational transformation. Accordingly, this dissertation follows a practical theological method that foregrounds ecclesiology - both theoretical and as it is practiced in congregations - in order to uncover what can be learned about the intentional ministry of congregational transformation, its definition, motivation and aims, and its faithful practice. The ethnographic research within three congregations revealed a change of ecclesial identity from one of "Church for Us" to "Church for Witness" across the processes of transformation in these congregations. When these findings were put in dialogue with select theological sources within Disciples tradition, the ecclesial identity of witness was found to be compatible with that tradition, and the reality to which the church ought to bear witness articulated as the good news of Jesus Christ - the reign of God happening. The dissertation relies on feminist commitments in reflecting on the reign of God and makes use of the process-relational theology of Marjorie Hewitt Suchocki, especially its model of becoming, in order to provide a coherent account of how transformation transpires in relationship to God. The transformation into a faithful witness-bearing church, then, occurs as the congregation practices or "dances" the reign of God, a dance that corporately and continually turns toward the lead of God, following a process that thereby integrates the means of congregational transformation with the desired end of becoming a faithful church.

Thesis (M.A.)--Cincinnati Bible College & Seminary, 1999. / Includes abstract and vita. Later published as: Torn asunder : the Civil War and the 1906 division of the Disciples; Joplin, Mo.: College Press Pub. Co., 2006. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 111-114).

Thesis (M. Div.)--Emmanuel School of Religion, Johnson City, Tennessee, 1996. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 86-89).