This book identifies how church cultural components are created, developed, and used to educate and empower adherents, and whether and how these tools are associated with the historic Black Church. The book is particularly interested in how large Black congregations - megachurches - use rituals found in worship, theology, racial beliefs, programmatic efforts, and other tools from their cultural repertoire to instruct congregants to model success in word and deed. The book's findings illustrate that Black megachurches strive to model success on various fronts by tapping into effective historic Black Church tools and creating cultural kits that foster excitement, expectation, and entitlement.

The first basic thesis of Anti-Roman Cryptograms in the New Testament: Hidden Transcripts of Hope and Liberation is that the Jesus of history and his earliest and closest followers during his lifetime and during the decades after he had been crucified by the Romans had not only a deep longing for eternal life with God beyond the limits of this world, but also a strong desire for liberation from Roman political, economic, and social oppression. The second basic thesis of Anti-Roman Cryptograms in the New Testament is that within the Christian Scriptures there are more hidden transcripts, coded messages (anti-Roman cryptograms) of hope and liberation, for « freedom now within this life, than we have realized throughout most of the history of interpretation. Hidden transcripts of hope and liberation are coded so that oppressed people are able to communicate to their fellow oppressed people in ways in which their message and their intent are shielded from the perceptions of their oppressors. These messages by the Jesus of history and by the writers of New Testament and related literature use the language of faith, of salvation, of Deity, and of adversaries of Deity, giving words that are commonly used by the oppressed people new and double meanings. Within interaction with other scholars who are publishing studies of hidden transcripts, this book is an analysis of hidden transcripts within each of the New Testament documents. The book is designed to be used in New Testament Studies courses at undergraduate and/or graduate levels, by study groups, and by all persons who desire a more adequate understanding of the Jesus of history, his closest followers, and their oral and written communications during the first three centuries C.E.

Den Ausgangspunkt dieser Studie bilden Wesen und Wirkung der Synagoga-Typologie im Kontext neuzeitlicher Antijudaismusforschung. Benannt und gedeutet werden auf psychologisch fundierter Basis judenfeindliche Selbstdefinitionen des Christentums, fächerübergreifend ihre Wege ins christlich-abendländische Kulturgut. Mit Einbezug dieser zumeist über ein diachrones Methodenverfahren gewonnenen Ergebnisse untersucht die Arbeit solidarisches Gedenken in religionspädagogischem und -didaktischem Blickfeld und entfaltet Ziele und Objektivationen erinnerungsgeleiteter Lernprozesse unter kritischer Würdigung bestehender Lehr-Lern-Sequenzen. Es zeigen sich u. a. Gründe hinterfragbarer religiös motivierter Nachrede als Folge einer theologisch unbewältigten Stellung zum Judentum und rezeptionsorientierte Maßnahmen als Akt gegen kulturell vermittelte Feindschaft.

The Christian Gospel and Its Jewish Roots goes against the tendency to interpret Scripture in ways that separate Christianity and Judaism. Through a redaction-critical analysis of the two sayings on the "new" and the "old" (Mark 2:21-22), the author argues that Mark does not leave his readers with a complete break between Jesus and his Jewish heritage. Rather, the Evangelist opens a ray of hope that the gospel and its Jewish soil are ultimately reconcilable, not fatally antagonistic. With thorough and incisive study, this work reaches the conclusion that standing at the literary center of the controversy series (Mark 2:1-3:6), the location of the two sayings on "new" and "old" (Mark 2:21-22) corresponds to their function of making a condensed statement for Mark, the Evangelist, of the meaning and impact of the whole conflict section.

In a recent work Richard Dawkins posed an immense challenge to theology by arguing on scientific grounds that the existence of God is so improbable that it can be safely dismissed as a delusion. This work responds to the challenge by examining the arguments put forward by Dawkins and subjecting them to critique in the light of Christian faith. The critique probes some of the assumptions underlying scientific endeavours about the nature of reality and it brings to the surface the question of how meaning, truth and freedom are properly to be understood. The work goes on to present a theological understanding of these realities in the light of Christian beliefs in God, in Jesus Christ, in creation and in redemption. Far from denying the importance of scientific endeavours and discoveries, this approach seeks to provide a framework in which they can be meaningfully situated, for the betterment of humanity as a whole.

This book examines the historical antecedents of the concept of general chapter, the supreme authority in an institute of consecrated life. This provides the basis for an examination of the contemporary understanding of the nature of its power and authority, as portrayed in the 1983 Code of Canon Law. The general chapter is analysed in terms of its juridic status, collegial nature, participative character and representative function as well as its dynamic aspects and faith dimension. The author applies the findings to one institute of consecrated life, Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary Loreto Branch. This application provides an example of the challenges inherent in working participatively and collaboratively within a hierarchical structure. Because consecrated life has an inalienable ecclesial dimension, understanding authority and power and their exercise in institutes of consecrated life has relevance for understanding authority and its exercise in other organs of authority at all levels in the church.

Revitalizing Practice is designed to help theological faculties engage a common set of challenges, particularly in the areas of diversity, formation, and institutional identity. These are not technical problems but are instead the very stuff out of which teaching and learning are practiced. Yet addressing such issues requires intentional strategies and collaborative work. Revitalizing Practice offers four such intentional strategies: "A New Ecology Model", "An Improvisational Model", "An Appreciative Inquiry Model", and "A World Cafe Model". Each of these models provides a thorough and practical framework (based on sound theoretical concepts) designed to help faculties revitalize their practices of theological teaching and learning.

A Case for Mixed-Audience with Reference to the Warning Passages in the Book of Hebrews discusses the nature of the warnings in Hebrews and how these warnings relate to the theological question of the eternal security of believers. The main argument is that these warnings are intended to target a particular segment of the author's community, about whose appropriation of and subsequent attitude toward the Christian message he was deeply concerned. That is to say, while the book of Hebrews is addressed as a message of encouragement to the community as a whole, its warnings are aimed at a certain element in the community whose salvation is threatened by a possible dangerous course of action. The book implies that while the author is persuaded that the majority in the community are genuine believers, there are some about whose salvation he doubts; hence the «case for a mixed-audience. What is threatened, therefore, is not a salvation already possessed, but the salvation of those in danger of coming up short. Theologically, the work falls within the sphere of the Calvinistic-Arminian debate regarding the assurance of salvation and the perseverance of the saints. It argues strongly for the Calvinistic position, but does so within the confines of the discipline of biblical studies, and lends extensive exegetical support to the Calvinistic position on the warning passages. The book is highly recommended for Bible College and seminary students and professors, as well as pastors and lay leaders who must give answers to their parishoners on those tough warning passages in Hebrews.

With a particular emphasis on the soul, this book explores Edith Stein's holistic conception of the human being's body-soul-spirit unity, which forms the foundation of her Christian anthropology and her view of human formation. Characterized by an unremitting attention to interconnections, Stein emerges as a forerunner of contemporary holistic approaches. Edith Stein and the Body-Soul-Spirit at the Center of Holistic Formation demonstrates the breadth and relevance of Stein's work by engaging her thought with the anthropological views of fellow phenomenologist John Paul II, Wilkie Au's perspectives on holistic spirituality and formation, and several nonreductionist, neuroscientific viewpoints of the human being. This book also makes available to the English reader a significant amount of material from Stein's untranslated works. Anyone interested in theological anthropology, holistic spirituality, human formation, the body-mind question, or Edith Stein studies will benefit from the wealth of material presented in this single book.

Transformation is a desired outcome of Christian spirituality. Christians pray, trust, and hope that their responsive embrace of God will transform them. Interdisciplinary study of this process, as journey and as significant movements, hits upon key philosophical, theological, and psychological debates. Are all spiritualities the same core with an overlay of traditional practices and beliefs? How is the Holy Spirit involved in human life as the potential for this transformation process unfolds from birth? Can psychological theories of transformation that do not affirm divine reality have explanatory and descriptive power for Christian understandings of transformation? These areas of focus and related questions encompass broad landscapes. This book places a magnifying glass on one piece of the terrain by engaging the work of philosopher, theologian, and psychologist James Loder, mystical spirituality scholars Andrew Louth, Bernard McGinn, Denys Turner, and Mark McIntosh, and archetypal movement founder James Hillman. Without denying differences, this work is the first analysis to identify connections among these thinkers. The significance of the connections is both substantive and methodological for intra- and inter-faith (broadly understood) spirituality discussion, as well as for the engagement of the Christian church with the culture of the twenty-first century.

This volume provides a key text for debates on spiritual education in the 21st . It presents spiritual education as a distinctive field of academic enquiry in its own right.The strengths of the book lie in its international appeal, research based orientation, and interdisciplinary character, and is divided into three main sections: religious and theological approaches; psychological and anthropological approaches; and pedagogical approaches. Issues of cultural, religious, gender and social difference are addressed in research and pedagogical terms, and the ways in which faith traditions and secular stancescontribute to values and understanding of human purpose are explored.

Four centuries of African American preaching has provided hope, healing, and heaven for people from every walk of life. Many notable men and women of African American lineage have contributed, through the art of preaching, to the biblical emancipation and spiritual liberation of their parishioners. In African American Preaching: The Contribution of Dr. Gardner C. Taylor, Gerald Lamont Thomas offers a historical overview of African American preaching and its effect on the cultural legacy of black people, nothing the various styles and genius of pulpit orators. The book's focus is on the life, ministry, and preaching methodology of one of this era's most prolific voices, Dr. Gardner C. Taylor, and should be read by everyone who takes the task of preaching seriously.

At a time when the popularity of Buddhism is at a peak in the west, both inside and outside the university setting, scholars and students alike are searching for guidance: How should Buddhism, a religion which is ultimately 'foreign' to western experience, be taught? How should one teach central Buddhist doctrines and ideas? Should one teach Buddhist practise; if so how? Until now, those interested in these and other related matters have been left with little guidance. Despite the wealth of scholarly publications on Buddhist traditions and the plethora of books about meditation and enlightenment, a serious lacuna exists in the sphere of teaching Buddhism.
This book fills this lacuna, by providing a series of thematically arranged articles written by contemporary scholars of Buddhism throughout North America. Some of the major themes covered are the history of teaching Buddhism in Europe and North America (Reynolds, Prebish), the problem of representations of Buddhism in undergraduate teaching (Lewis), the problem of crossing cultural and historical divides (Jenkins), the place of the body and mind in the Buddhist classroom (Waterhouse), alternative pedagogical methods in teaching Buddhism (Wotypka, Jarow, Hori, Grimes) and the use of the Internet as a resource, and metaphor for teaching Buddhism (Fenn, Grieder).

This volume provides a key text for debates on spiritual education in the 21st . It presents spiritual education as a distinctive field of academic enquiry in its own right.The strengths of the book lie in its international appeal, research based orientation, and interdisciplinary character, and is divided into three main sections: religious and theological approaches; psychological and anthropological approaches; and pedagogical approaches. Issues of cultural, religious, gender and social difference are addressed in research and pedagogical terms, and the ways in which faith traditions and secular stancescontribute to values and understanding of human purpose are explored.

How and what to teach about religion is controversial in every country. The Routledge International Handbook of Religious Education is the first book to comprehensively address the range of ways that major countries around the world teach religion in public and private educational institutions. It discusses how three models in particular seem to dominate the landscape. Countries with strong cultural traditions focused on a majority religion tend to adopt an "identification model," where instruction is provided only in the tenets of the majority religion, often to the detriment of other religions and their adherents. Countries with traditions that differentiate church and state tend to adopt a "separation model," thus either offering instruction in a wide range of religions, or in some cases teaching very little about religion, intentionally leaving it to religious institutions and the home setting to provide religious instruction. Still other countries attempt "managed pluralism," in which neither one, nor many, but rather a limited handful of major religious traditions are taught. Inevitably, there are countries which do not fit any of these dominant models and the range of methods touched upon in this book will surprise even the most enlightened reader. Religious instruction by educational institutions in 53 countries and regions of the world are explored by experts native to each country. These chapters discuss: Legal parameters in terms of subjective versus objective instruction in religion Constitutional, statutory, social and political contexts to religious approaches Distinctions between the kinds of instruction permitted in elementary and secondary schools versus what is allowed in institutions of higher learning. Regional assessments which provide a welcome overview and comparison. This comprehensive and authoritative volume will appeal to educators, scholars, religious leaders, politicians, and others interested in how religion and education interface around the world.

The majority of books on religious education are written by those who are themselves adherents of particular religious beliefs and such books almost invariably reflect their authors' religious inclinations. Therefore a critical look at certain key aspects in religious education from a secular point of view was long overview when this title was f

One of the most basic questions for any legal system is that of methodology: how one interprets, analyzes, weighs, and applies a mass of often competing legal rules, precedents, practices, customs, and traditions to reach final determinations and practical guidance about the correct legal-prescribed course of action in any given situation. Questions of legal methodology raise not only practical concerns, but theoretical and philosophical ones as well. We expect law to be more than the arbitrary result of a given decision maker's personal preferences, and so we demand that legal methodologies be principled as well as practical. These issues are especially acute in religious legal systems, where the stakes are raised by concerns for respecting not just human, but divine law. Despite this, the major scholars and codifiers of halakhah, or Jewish law, have only rarely explicated their own methods for reaching principled legal decisions. This book explains the major jurisprudential factors driving the halakhic jurisprudence of Rabbi Yehiel Mikhel Epstein, twentieth-century author of the Arukh Hashulchan-the most comprehensive, seminal, and original modern restatement of Jewish law since Maimonides. Reasoning inductively from a broad review of hundreds of rulings from the Orach Chaim section of the Arukh Hashulchan, the book teases out and explicates ten core halakhic principles that animate Rabbi Epstein's halakhic decision-making. Along the way, it compares the Arukh Hashulchan methodology to that of the Mishna Berura. This book will help any reader understand important methodological issues in both Jewish and general jurisprudence.

Islamic religious education (IRE) in Europe has become a subject of intense debate during the past decade. There is concern that states are doing too little or too much to shape the spiritual beliefs of private citizens. State response to the concern ranges from sponsoring religious education in public schools to forgoing it entirely and policies vary according to national political culture. In some countries public schools teach Islam to Muslims as a subject within a broader religious curriculum that gives parents the right to choose their children's religious education. In the other countries public schools teach Islam to all pupils as a subject with a close relation to the academic study of religions. There are also countries where public schools do not teach religion at all, although there is an opportunity to teach about Islam in school subjects such as art, history, or literature. IRE taught outside publicly funded institutions, is of course also taught as a confessional subject in private Muslim schools, mosques and by Muslim organisations. Often students who attend these classes also attend a publicly funded "main stream school". This volume brings together a number of researchers for the first time to explore the interconnections between Islamic educations and public schooling in Europe. The relation between Islamic education and public schooling is analysed within the publicly and privately funded sectors. How is publicly funded education organised, why is it organised in this way, what is the history and what are the controversial issues? What are the similarities and differences between privately run Islamic education and "main stream" schooling? What are the experiences of teachers, parents and pupils? The volume will be of interest to scholars of Islam in Europe, policy makers of education and integration and teachers of religious education.

Julian of Norwich was a fourteenth-century woman who at the age of thirty had a series of vivid visions centred around the crucified Christ. Twenty years later, while living as an anchoress in a church, she is believed to have set out these visions in a text called the Showing of Love. Going against the current trend to place Julian in the category of mystic - a classification which defines her visions as deeply private, psychological events - this book sets Julian's thinking in the context of a visionary project used to instruct the Christian community. Drawing on recent developments in philosophy that debate the objectivity and rationality of vision and perception, Kevin J. Magill gives full attention to the depth and richness of the visual language and modes of perception in the Showing of Love. In particular, the book focuses on the ways in which Julian presented her vision to the Christian society around her, demonstrating the educative potential of interaction between the 'isolated' anchoress and the wider community. Challenging Julian's identification as a mystic and solitary female writer, this book argues that Julian engaged in a variety of educative methods - oral, visual, conversational, mnemonic, alliterative - that extend the usefulness of her text.

How Jesuit education can help students create meaningful connections in an age of secularism In A Secular Age, the philosopher Charles Taylor challenges us to appreciate the significance of genuine spiritual experience in human life, an occurrence he refers to as "fullness." Western societies, however, are increasingly becoming more secular, and personal occasions of fullness are becoming less possible. In Jesuit Higher Education in a Secular Age, Daniel S. Hendrickson, SJ, shows how Jesuit education can respond to the crisis of modernity by offering three pedagogies of fullness: study, solidarity, and grace. A pedagogy of study encourages students to explore their full range of thoughts and emotions to help amplify their self-awareness, while a pedagogy of solidarity helps them relate to the lives of others, including disparate cultural and socioeconomic realities. Together, these two pedagogies cultivate an openness in students that can help them achieve a pedagogy of grace, which validates their awareness of and receptivity to the extraordinary spiritual Other that impacts our lives. Hendrickson demonstrates how this Jesuit imaginary-inspired by the Renaissance humanistic origins of Jesuit pedagogy-educates students toward a better self-awareness, a stronger sense of global solidarity, and a greater aptitude for inspiration, awe, and gratitude.

Paul's letter to the people at Philippi serves as a reminder that if we search for joy in possessions, places, or people, we will always come up short. True, lasting joy comes only through faith in Jesus Christ, living in harmony with His followers, and serving others in the name of Christ. The life lived by the Philippians is still attainable today. In her comprehensive approach, Joyce Meyer takes a deep dive into well-known and beloved verses, identifying key truths and incorporating room for personal reflection.

Joyce's Philippians provides a key study tool that will help you develop a stronger relationship with God. If you take time to examine His word, you'll see how much He loves you and how much He desires that you live a joyful, content life on earth!

"Little" Thoughts for the Day is a Christian source of encouraging thoughts for pre-school - 5th grade students relating to issues that they often deal with on a daily basis throughout the school year. It can be used by elementary administrators/teachers to help students start their day with uplifting thoughts before beginning their school day or by parents who wish to share the thoughts with their children before they leave for school each day. Formatted according to the school year calendar, "Little" Thoughts for the Day includes thoughts relating to various holidays and school activities that make a "big" difference for "little" people.