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Attachment Theory, Intersubjective Systems Theory & Divine Passibility: Grounding Psychological Theory & Practice in a Theology of Divine Affectivity
No full textI begin this study with an assessment of influential Western philosophical understandings of emotions, and the impact of these perceptions on the western Church’s conceptions of the role of emotions in the relationship between humans and God. Thereafter, I unpack the way that “negative” emotions, such as anger, jealousy, and sadness, have been perceived in the Church, and the dual implications of these perceptions for the Church’s emotional health as well as Christian understandings of God’s capacity for, or experience of, emotion. Although much has been written in the theological literature on the intersection between emotions, human beings and God, a dearth of literature exists on the subject from a distinctly psychological point of view. Ultimately, my aim is to bridge the theoretical gap that exists between the disciplines of psychology and theology. I propose that taking a closer look at the tenets of traditional Christian theology and unpacking the implications of early Church doctrines, particularly the doctrine of Divine impassibility, offers the opportunity for a theologically sound and theoretically coherent foundation for the integration of clinical psychology and theology. In order to accomplish this goal, I draw upon attachment theory and intersubjective systems theory (a contemporary psychoanalytic perspective) and discuss the ways that these theories dovetail with contemporary theological understandings of Divine passibility to offer one theoretically cogent and theologically grounded model of the integration of clinical psychology and theology. I conclude by demonstrating the ways in which this model might be used in a clinical context
The Highest Art: Martin Luther’s Visual Theology in Oratio, Meditatio, Tentatio
No full textMartin Luther had a vivid way of speaking that becomes clear to anyone familiar with his writing. Yet, most scholarship to date has not thoroughly connected this observation with his position on images. Rather, his visual way of speaking and his position on images are often portrayed as irreconcilably at odds with one another. In this dissertation, I suggest that Luther’s theology itself is visually oriented and that this orientation is well suited for the connection with the artwork of Lucas Cranach the Elder.
My method for this claim is the use of Luther’s approach to theology and Scripture: Oratio, Meditatio, Tentatio (prayer, meditation, temptation [Anfechtung]). Interaction with the text, hermeneutically speaking, is inherently phenomenological in such a way that lends itself to the formation of images. I contend that these “three rules” shape the practice of Luther’s visual theology by continually leading him to the text of Scripture as the foundation from which images are to be drawn, gazed upon, and tested. My chosen area of investigating this claim is Luther’s Lectures on Galatians of 1531/35. In these lectures, both Luther’s threefold practice and his visual imagination converge in the image of Christ derived from the text. It has been noted by John Dillenberger that many of the verbal images contained in the lectures correspond directly to Lucas Cranach the Elder’s Law and Gospel paintings. However, no further reason is offered, nor is it noted that the first paintings were completed two years before Luther’s lectures. I argue that an important link in making this connection is that Cranach’s painting of the Law and Gospel theme is a visual practice of Luther’s theology, wherein Oratio, Meditatio, Tentatio plays a prominent role. Moreover, the three rules might also be a helpful way of describing Cranach’s artistic practice itself, in which the theme was continually reworked in several renditions in the attempt to arrive at a satisfying composition. Resonances between Cranach’s artwork and Luther’s theology can even suggest how seeing these images may have affected Luther. That is, Luther may be pulling from his mental reservoir of these images in his expositions of texts and preaching.
The significance of this work is a weaving together of the disciplines of reformation theology and art history in order to shed light on the resonance between theological and artistic practices. Impoortant to Luther’s study of Scripture and theology is not merely deal with abstract propositions but with naturally connected to an embodiment of the text—that is, a personal and spiritual engagement that expects the teaching of the Holy Spirit—that necessarily challenges, shapes, and creates images. Because of this nature, Oratio, Meditatio, Tentatio may provide helpful insights for a modern-day Protestant visual exegesis
Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Ethics of Formation
No full textDietrich Bonhoeffer has been claimed as an ethicist of responsibility, peace, divine command, and more. In this dissertation I argue that Bonhoeffer should be understood as an ethicist of formation. I argue that formation lies at the heart of Bonhoeffer’s ethical project, as articulated in his writings and as lived out in his concrete historical context and personal story, and that Bonhoefferian ethics of formation can provide a third way between Thomistic virtue ethics and character ethics in the landscape of contemporary Christian ethical thought.
To this end, I utilize a combination of textual, biographical-historical-contextual, and comparative analysis to provide a thick description of Bonhoeffer’s ethics of formation and an articulation of a foundation for Bonhoefferian ethics of formation for contemporary Christian ethics. I attempt to demonstrate that formation is a central motif in Bonhoeffer’s Ethics through a chronological engagement of significant interpretations of that work. I examine the roots of formation in Discipleship and Life Together as a demonstration of the role of formation in the continuity of Bonhoeffer’s evolving thought over the course of the 1930s. I explore the central importance of formation for the structure and organization of Ethics, arguing that the work, though unfinished, is more structurally unified than previously thought. Because Bonhoeffer’s life and his written work are so closely intertwined, I engage his personal story of formation as a guide for understanding how important aspects of the process of formation were realized in his own context. I also examine Bonhoeffer’s vocation as an educator, in which he helped to form others through teaching and building relationships in Christian community.
Finally, I endeavor to move toward the construction of a foundation for Bonhoefferian ethics of formation through comparative analysis with three major voices in the contemporary Christian ethical landscape concerned with ethics as a project of the moral growth of agents in community, namely Thomistic virtue ethics and Protestant character ethics. By comparing the ethical positions of Jean Porter, Stanley Hauerwas, Glen H. Stassen, and my interpretation of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, I argue that Bonhoeffer’s ethics of formation is a third way between virtue and character ethics, as his ethics of formation shares certain similarities with each position, yet entails a distinct, unified, Christological, and personal account of Christian moral growth in community
Developing a Gospel Centered Vision
Get PDFOver time, Tower Hill Church has become less and less capable of communicating effectively to younger generations, as its institutional life fossilized around the preferences of the Builders[1]. This has led to a growing language barrier between new and existing members. This project will seek to find a shared ministry language and direction through the development of a theological vision.
This paper explores the relationship between the church and the Greater Red Bank Community. Part of this analysis is descriptive in nature (e.g. the community’s cultural identity and its connecting points with the church, as well as the church’s journey of institutional success, decline, and resurgence). Part of this analysis is also prescriptive in nature (e.g. the opportunities and challenges between the community and the church, the spiritual deficiencies of the church’s witness, and the need for a gospel-centered vision).
The vision process is theologically grounded through the relationship between Reformed ecclesiology and missional vocation. The gospel-centered vision process is the necessary bridge between faithful gospel contextualization and ministry implementation. Those who are elect in Jesus Christ are called to join His Missio Dei vocation by translating the gospel into the language of culture.
This gospel contextualization begins by equipping and empowering current elders and staff to develop a gospel-centered vision statement through a 12-week program of sermon and small group learning modules. The statement will provide a shared theological language for the purpose of greater unity, faithfulness, and effectiveness in witness across generations. The elders, pastors, and staff will then use this vision statement as a lens through which to strategically respond to a key obstacle facing the church in this new season of growth.
[1] Builder Generation: sociological shorthand for the generation born between 1927-194
Can Processing Speed Moderate the Relationship Between Working Memory Improvement on Reading Skills?
No full textChildren with attention deficits often display an underlying weakness in both working memory and processing speed. Those with slow processing speed typically experience reading comprehension and oral reading fluency difficulties. Researchers utilizing Cogmed™ working memory training as an intervention to improve academic performance have inconsistently found enhanced reading performance alongside improvement in working memory. In the current study, 17 children between the ages of 7.5 and 15 who were identified as having learning difficulties and met the study criteria of not having deficits in phonological awareness completed 25 half-hour sessions of Cogmed over 5 weeks. Results revealed the subset of children who improved on Reading Comprehension had stronger Working Memory Indexes posttraining than they did prior to Cogmed, even while controlling for General Ability Index. Additionally, there was a mild interaction between the Working Memory Index improvement and processing speed or rapid automatized naming on Oral Reading Fluency improvement, but not Reading Comprehension. However, the interaction was not in the anticipated direction. Thus, it seems that the relationship between children’s processing speed and their capacity to benefit from Cogmed™ is complex. Although further research is needed to tease out these relationships, this study nevertheless lends credence to the premise of a potential near-transfer effect of Cogmed that contributes to improvement in other abilities for some children with learning difficulties
14 - President Mouw\u27s Inauguration 1993
No full textDr. Richard J. Mouw made religious dialogue and international cooperation major foci of his presidency by establishing official partnerships with theological schools in 10 foreign countries and leading evangelical dialogue with Catholic, Jewish, Mormon, and Islamic scholars.https://digitalcommons.fuller.edu/exhibit_70thanniversary/1013/thumbnail.jp
28 - Old Fashioned Revival Hour Microphone
No full textCharles Fuller’s radio program, Old Fashioned Revival Hour, reached listeners around the world from 1937-1968. Thousands of supporters sent letters from China, the Philippines, North America, New Zealand, Australia, Africa, and South America. By 1957, almost 1 million listeners were in Great Britain alone.https://digitalcommons.fuller.edu/exhibit_70thanniversary/1027/thumbnail.jp
35 - Mukaba, “Woman’s belt,” Used in dances, Batwa Tribe, Zaire
No full textFrom the Charles Kraft Collection
Charles Kraft taught at Fuller from 1969-2011, and left many artifacts from his travels in Africa. In Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo), Kraft acquired pieces such as the Appui-Tete, Mukaba, and Nsen Gu. As a missionary anthropologist, Kraft believed the analysis of such objects help increase cross-cultural understanding and encourage the spread of a culture-affirming, rather than colonizing, Gospel.
Kraft’s combination of practical mission experience and academic research equipped generations of Fuller students to labor at the intersection of culture and theology.https://digitalcommons.fuller.edu/exhibit_70thanniversary/1034/thumbnail.jp
Spiritual Design Thinking: A Culturally and Technologically Informed Model of Spiritual Formation for the Silicon Valley
No full textIn this research, I present the argument for a new culturally relevant, technologically informed, and spiritually attuned model of spiritual formation based on how church-going technology end-users in Silicon Valley utilized technology to express their spiritual formation practices. The Triple Revolutions of the Internet, social media networks, and mobile technologies created disruptive changes across the global cultural context. The Internet altered how people accessed news and information, while social media networks changed how people connected with one another, and mobile technologies became an integral and vital extension of people’s lives. These changes also introduced unintended consequences to one’s personal, communal, and spiritual sense of identity.
This research sought to wrestle with the spiritual implications of the “high tech and high touch” tension that existed between technology and spiritual formation within the cultural context of Silicon Valley and its church-going technology end-users. Interviews with select end-users sought to identify common spiritual practices as well as technology utilization in spiritual formation. Five positive themes of convenience, overcoming constraints, connectivity (to people and ideas), curiosity that comes from personal passions, and convictions that flow from a deep sense of personal calling emerged from the data while four negative themes of distractions, increase to the pace of life, boredom/dissatisfaction, and over-dependence on technology also emerged. Most notably, there was an absence of any mention from the field research of church programs and leaders who encouraged the use of technology in their spiritual formation practices.
Design thinking was ultimately chosen as a theoretical framework because of how it was cultural, technologically, and spiritual informed. It addressed the cultural issues identified in the literature review of a global cultural context that was highly connected and highly participatory in nature. It also addressed the technological trends identified in the field research that revealed how church-going technology end-users increasingly utilized the Internet, social media networks, and mobile technologies into their spiritual formation practices. It also addressed the unique spiritual context of Silicon Valley in which end-users utilized technology to express their spiritual formation practices without guidance or direction from churches or pastors.
Mentor: Ryan Bolger, Ph
Creating Safe Space for the Other: A Study of Foursquare Pastors, Leadership, and Missiological Engagement with the LGBTQ Community
No full textThis study concerns itself with how selected Foursquare churches are missionally engaging people in their respective communities who identify as lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender, or questioning. As debate about inclusion of the LGBTQ community into the Foursquare church continues, this research looks at how pastors of selected churches are practically leading their congregations through this difficult topic as well as how the congregations themselves have been impacted by this displayed leadership. Through a theoretical lens of Transformational Leadership, the findings of the data reveal how pastors are utilizing adaptive change theory to bring about space within their congregations for conversation that leads to missional engagement.
This research, comprised of three case studies done on selected Foursquare churches across the United States, reveals how leadership, church culture, scriptural understanding, and discipleship process are vital factors in helping a congregation process through how to reach those who belong to the LGBTQ community. The findings suggest that pastors continued to live in tension surrounding this issue. While each had pursued answers, they wrestled with how to include people who identified as gay within their congregations. Also, pastors related the importance of relationship development and focusing on identity issues during the discipleship processes. In addition, this research helps those, who may have family or friends who identify with the LGBTQ community, to process through the tension that is often associated with this issue.
Finally, a change process is proposed. Because adaptive change is paramount in the life of the leader, this change process focuses on a small group of pastors in the northeast who would like to begin to explore their own ideas and attitudes regarding missional engagement with the LGBTQ community.
Mentor: Elizabeth L. Glanville, Ph