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El tango y la rumba: un analisis de la identidad nacional en Argentina y Cuba
Get PDFDr. Manuel Chinchill
The Church-Idea for an Episcopal Moment
No full textProject under the direction of Professor Ben King
This dissertation argues that two figures, William Reed Huntington at the turn of the twentieth century and Brian McLaren at the turn of the twenty-first, correctly asserted that The Episcopal Church was uniquely poised to meet the religious and spiritual needs of a changing world. In 1870, The Rev. Dr. William Reed Huntington published his vision for the unity of the Church in America entitled The Church-Idea. That text began with these words, “Dissatisfaction is the one word that best expresses the state of mind in which Christendom finds itself to-day. There is a wide-spread misgiving that we are on the eve of a momentous change.” It does not require a great deal of understanding about the state of the Church today (2016) to realize that Huntington’s word continue to echo loudly through the decaying buildings of American Christianity. Huntington saw the possibility of momentous change as an opportunity and spent his life and ministry attempting to change the future of Protestantism in America. Nearly 140 years later, non-denominational pastor, leading voice of the Great Emergence, theologian, and author, Brian McLaren, stood before the 76th General Convention and declared the opening of The Episcopal Moment saying, “I believe this moment of Episcopal crisis is also a moment of Episcopal opportunity.”
This dissertation looks at the specific moments in history in which McLaren and Huntington found themselves. While it may seem that Post-Civil War and post-modern America have very little in common, we will examine the claim of Phyllis Tickle that they are bookends of a larger historical epoch. The words of hope for church unity from Huntington’s era have much in common with the words of hope for an Episcopal Moment in our own. Chapter one lays out the historical setting of the church in America after the Civil War, followed by a chapter dealing with Huntington’s Church-Idea and his subsequent work to bring forth a pan-Protestant American Catholic Church under the umbrella of what would become the Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral, including a look at Huntington’s work to revise the Constitution of the Episcopal Church to achieve his goals. Chapter three focuses on McLaren’s speeches beginning with his presentation to the Lambeth Conference in 2008, through his General Convention sermon in 2009 and the subsequent tour of Diocesan Conventions as well as other presentations and addresses, and culminating with his reflections in an interview with me on July 13, 2015. The final chapter looks at the response to each of these scholar-pastors in their era, as well as proposing a quadrilateral utilizing the work of both thinkers to suggest a way in which the Episcopal Church might seize this Episcopal Moment and become a church for the 21st century, ready to meet the needs of a changing America. Through spelling out each of these four points: 1) Come to know who we are and what we are about; 2) Raise up disciples; 3) Boldly go and tell our story; and 4) Not be afraid to fail: this dissertation suggests that if embraced by the Episcopal Church, it can situate itself perfectly to meet the needs of postmodern American religion.Dr. Ben Kin
The Narrative Theology of Stanley Hauerwas
Get PDFStanley Hauerwas, noted theologian and Christian ethicist, argues throughout his writings for the importance of narrative theology in the Christian life and discourse. Exploring his understanding and use of narrative theology in conversation with other religious scholars, this thesis explores the function of his work in regards to preaching, Christian formation, and pastoral care.
Human communities are formed through narrative. The story of faith provides a history in which an individual discovers who they are. A connection to this history and community help to shape an individual’s character and thus their moral identity. Narrative theology is a method for engaging the study of God and talking about God that helps to form and shape Christians in the pattern of Jesus’ life. One major critique of narrative theology is that it is too sectarian in nature.
Hauerwas’s sermons and understanding of scripture show a deep concern for how the Church is presented in the narrative of faith. The goal of narrative preaching is to take an expectant, imaginative stance before the biblical text in the hopes that the sermon will be a transformative event for the hearers and the preacher. While not known as a narrative preacher per se, Hauerwas often employs the use of narrative preaching with effectiveness. Hauerwas resists what he calls “translation” of scriptural texts and the use of the historical critical method in his preaching to the limitation and effectiveness of his message. Good narrative preaching has close ties to the Eucharist where we encounter a generous and loving God and are fed and transformed.
Narrative theology helps to reframe the questions about theodicy and suffering into a community effort to be present with those who suffer. Meaning can be found in the midst of suffering through participation in the narrative of faith. Hauerwas contends that we can only ask the questions of theodicy in relationship to the context in which we find ourselves: our friends, our community, and our story. He argues for a sense of shared story when contemplating ethical decisions in medicine and in pastoral care. Narrative theology, the story of God’s relationship with creation and especially in the Incarnation, places individuals within the larger story of salvation history and helps people to endure the suffering they experience. Those pastors who employ the use of narrative theology do well to connect an individual’s narrative and the narrative of the community of faith.
Hauerwas locates himself within the narrative of the Christian faith; this is how he makes sense of his life. His life is about relationships; the different but connected communities of family, friends, academia, and church provide the structure needed for growth and development, to survive pain and suffering, and to celebrate joys and successes. Hauerwas also believes that our lives are not fully under our control, we cannot always anticipate and ensure the results we want. A robust understanding and incorporation of narrative theology into the pews can have a profound influence on Christianity. The narrative places us in the proper context of being part of God’s eternal, unfolding story, of which we know the end.Dr. Robert MacSwai
El corrido mexicano, recolectando acontecimientos y memorias, y destapando las verdades del pais desde la Revolucion Mexicana
No full textProf. David Colbert-Goico
Politics and the Preaching Dilemma: Preaching the Gospel in an Age of Materialism
Get PDFThis thesis wrestles with one of the greatest tensions of our time: proclaiming the message of Jesus Christ regarding money and materialism in an age where the accumulation of wealth and possessions is glorified and coveted. When reading the gospels, it becomes clear that Jesus had more to say about wealth, money, and possessions than almost any other subject during his life and ministry. He knew it was a stumbling block then and still is today. Preachers who find themselves in affluent pulpits preaching to wealthy and powerful church members will certainly feel the tension when it comes to the topic of money. Many of the scripture passages are difficult to hear and “afflict the comfortable.” Preachers who find themselves in poorer churches must find a way to give hope and comfort to those who feel inadequate as they struggle to pay bills and make ends meet. Simply avoiding the subject of money and materialism is not an option if we seek to be faithful to the gospel. In some churches, money talk is taboo, but why? We live in a culture that is obsessed with money, driven by money, and focused on money. Money means power and influence, accomplishment and prestige. Money is often the way we judge the value of a person and whether or not they have been successful in life. Money drives political passions, perspectives, and elections.
Money and possessions should be talked about and Jesus knew that. This thesis will identify what it means to faithfully preach the gospel in an age of consumerism and growing materialism. The Introduction will talk about the challenges of preaching and teaching in a politically diverse context and will draw on recent work in the areas of partisanship within churches, sociology of religion, and American cultural history. The chapters of the thesis will focus specifically on the issue of money and materialism and what various scholars have to say about the subject. Chapter one will incorporate some of Jesus’ specific teachings about money and materialism from Luke and Matthew to indicate how these teachings challenge the prevailing mindset of capitalistic North American culture. This chapter will also focus on some of Jesus’ parables while incorporating commentary from William Barclay, Richard Lischer, William Brosend, and Amy Jill Levine. The second chapter will analyze the work of theological ethicist Stanley Hauerwas who has spent his career critiquing Christian America and the dangers of capitalism. The third chapter will look at the sermons and writings of United Methodist pastor Adam Hamilton who does an excellent job of addressing this issue in a mainline context with his congregation, The Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas. Lastly, there is a series of conclusions based on the research of Hauerwas and Hamilton that should prove helpful for those called to preach and teach in a materialistic culture.Professor Robert MacSwai
Critical Fail: The Effects of Error Management Training on Critical Thinking
Get PDFThis research project looks at the effectiveness of error management training (EMT) on critical thinking skills. EMT is a technique that explicitly encourages learners to make errors under the assumption that students learn better from their mistakes. Students were placed in one of four different training conditions and their mean scores on an argument evaluation test were compared. Students were in one of four groups depending on whether they read or wrote about logical arguments and whether they were exposed to successes or mistakes beforehand. We used argument evaluation as a narrow measurement of critical thinking and we hypothesized that students in the active error condition would learn the most. We also surveyed individual differences of conscientiousness and stress reactivity to determine what types of people were most affected by the different training procedures. Implications for critical thinking training in the college student population are investigated
Anti-tumorigenic properties of HDAC inhibition on mammary tumorigenesis
No full textHistone deacetylases (HDACs) are enzymes that epigenetically modify nucleosomes repressing the transcription of certain genes. HDACs can also modify non-histone target proteins altering their function. Understanding the diverse functions of HDACs has lead to an in depth study of the relationship between HDACs and cancer. Since the increased deacetylation of histones leads to increased cell proliferation, angiogenesis and invasion, the use of HDAC inhibitors (HDACi) may be a new therapeutic strategy. HDACi promotes cell cycle arrest, apoptosis and cell differentiation, while preventing angiogenesis. Previous studies have shown a decrease in cell viability, proliferation, and motility with the use of HDACi. Recent investigations are directed towards elucidating the mechanism through which misregulation of HDACs promotes invasion. Currently, we are investigating the role of HDACi on non-histone target Hsp90 and its subsequent effect on the Her2 s ignaling pathway in mammary tumorigenesis.Dr. Alyssa Summer
