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This study examines an indigenous phenomenon of the Hindu devotees of Jesus Christ and their response to the gospel through an empirical case study conducted in Varanasi, India. It analyzes their religious beliefs and social belonging and addresses the ensuing questions from a historical, theological, and missiological perspective. The data reveals that the respondents profess faith in Jesus Christ; however, most remain unbaptized and insist on their Hindu identity. Hence, a heuristic model for a contextualized baptism as Guru-diksha is proposed. The emergent church among Hindu devotees should be considered, from the perspective of world Christianity, as a disparate form of belonging while remaining within one''s community of birth. The insistence on a visible church and a distinct community of Christ''s followers is contested because the devotees should construct their contextual ecclesiology, since it is an indigenous discovery of the Christian faith. Thus, the "Christian" label for the adherents is dispensable while retaining their socio-ethnic Hindu identity. Christian mission should discontinue extraction and assimilation; instead, missional praxis should be within the given sociocultural structures, recognizing their idiosyncrasies as legitimate in God''s eyes and in need of transformation, like any human culture.

Dennis Horton highlights the shape and function of the death-and-resurrection motif by applying William Freedman''s criteria of a literary motif to the Acts narrative. By analyzing the statements about death and resurrection together with the examples of this messianic pattern among the experiences of major and minor characters, the motif becomes clear. This central theme then becomes intensified through contrast with a secondary motif, that of death and decay. Death and Resurrection provides a clear example of a biblical motif and how it develops and functions within the narrative, serving as a valuable guide for future studies of biblical motifs. The work also supplies a needed balance between the extremes of past and present Lukan scholarship by considering the combined effect of suffering and renewed life within a single motif. Both the statements and actions of the characters reveal the importance of the two elements for Lukan theology and soteriology. The function of the motif derives from its usage within the narrative and proves insightful for gaining a better understanding of the aesthetic quality of the story while simultaneously showing how the narrator skillfully wields the motif to provide encouragement to the followers of "The Way," to issue a warning to would-be persecutors, and to deliver an evangelistic message to potential converts such as the "God-fearers." The messianic pattern of death and resurrection becomes a heuristic tool that the narrator carefully applies to create a potent motif with a multifaceted message for a growing and often suffering Christian community.

Written in preparation for the 2010 centennial of the national organization Catholic Charities USA, Faith. Works. Wonders. introduces the mission, scope, and impact of Catholic Charities agencies in communities across the nation. This book also describes the work, motivation, and spirituality of the three hundred thousand staff, board members, and volunteers in local Charities agencies; this network composes the largest voluntary social service network in the country. In addition, the author draws on the broad experience of Catholic Charities and his long association with Charities to explain the sometimes-surprising positions of the organization and its leaders in our continuing national discussions on social welfare, faith-inspired organizations, and the appropriate roles of the private and public sectors in promoting the common good and caring for the least fortunate.Within the framework of the registered slogan of Catholic Charities of the archdiocese of Washington DC, the nine chapters in turn lay outFaith-the mission, identity, and power of Catholic Charities rooted in the Scriptures, experience, history, and Catholic thought.Works-the focus of agencies and people on service to people in need, advocacy and empowerment for justice and compassion, and ""convening"" religious and civic partners to create a better society.Wonders-the who, what, and why of volunteers; the quest for quality and innovation; the stance of determined pluralism in the Church community and public square; and the miracle of virtue and spirituality born in the service of others.Appendices provide 1) an outline of the history of Catholic Charities in the USA dating back to 1727 in the author''s hometown of New Orleans, and 2) the principles developed by Catholic Charities and other voluntary-sector leaders for the protection of the sector in this country.

CONTENTS:IntroductionKlyne SnodgrassFear in the Garden: The State of Emergency and the Politics of BlessingScott Bader-SayeResponse to Bader-SayeAmy E. Black""In God We Trust""? The Challenge of the ProphetsR. W. L. MoberlyResponse to MoberlyRobert L. Hubbard, Jr.Imagining the Unthinkable: Exposing the Idolatry of National Security in AmosM. Daniel Carroll R.Response to CarrollRobert D. HaakSecurity and Self-Sufficiency: A Comparison of Paul and EpictetusJohn M. G. BarclayResponse to BarclayJoel WillittsMartin Luther''s Teachings on Security in the Psalms and Their Significance for the Art of Reading ScriptureG. Sujin PakResponse to PakJo Ann Deasy""One Who Trusts Will Not Panic"": Providence and the Prophet of DesecuritizationJill Carson ColwellResponse to ColwellDarrell CosdenThe Radical Insecurity of Idolatry? Or of Faith?Randall C. ZachmanResponse to ZachmannKyle J. A. SmallHomeland Insecurity: The Spiritual Lust for an Escape ClauseBen Witherington IIIResponse to WitheringtonAndy JohnsonHoofbeats Full of Grace?Andy JohnsonSecurityWilliam H. WillimonProtecting God: Psalm 91, Luke 4:1-14Brent Laytham

To be a follower of Jesus means to bear witness to the truth of God. In an age when so many contemporary voices portray faith as a form of personal therapy, Gene L. Davenport, Professor Emeritus of Religion at Lambuth University, has consistently reminded us in his own witness that the truth of the Gospel entails confrontation with the world that dwells in darkness. These essays in honor of Davenport address the meaning of witness in the face of racism, sexism, and religious bigotry, to name but some of the forms this darkness takes. The topics range from emerging forms of prayer to religious themes in cowboy music, from the work of white pastors in Mississippi during the growing Civil Rights Movement to the meaning of the Righteous Gentile in Jewish-Christian friendship.Contributors:D. Brent LaythamRandy CooperStanley HauerwasBilly VaughanJames T. LaneyKenneth L. CarderM. Douglas Meeks Phyllis TickleL. Edward PhillipsTex SampleCindy WesleyJoseph T. ReiffMargaret J. MeyerCharles Mayo

Despite a plurality of doctrinal statements on war, peace, and nonviolence, some United Methodists sustain a commitment to nonviolence. Through qualitative research, Practicing Discipleship draws out lived theologies of nonviolence in order to understand how nonviolent United Methodists define, ground, and practice nonviolence, and to give that voice opportunity to challenge church doctrine and thereby the wider church. An analysis of statements from the Book of Disciplines and the Book of Resolutions reveals the plurality of Methodist teachings on moral issues related to war and peace. While such plurality is indicative of the inclusive tradition of United Methodism, Johnson shows that it also causes confusion, thus hindering the vitality and authority of the church''s witness. This study''s qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews with twelve nonviolent United Methodists reveals a lived theology rooted in Scripture and theological reflection: it points particularly to a christocentrism that posits nonviolence as central to Christ''s teachings and example. While study participants affirm the tradition of openness in the United Methodist Church, they also call for more tangible and extensive support for and education about nonviolence as a faithful option for Christians. Through amicable and constructive practical-theological dialogue, doctrinal plurality, and ecclesial openness are affirmed as appropriate and possible only within the context of the church''s profound commitment to serious discipleship, which includes transformation toward nonviolence. Implications of this interaction include developing and adopting a more truthful conception of a nonviolent ethics, moving toward broadly conceived Christian formation in nonviolence, and fostering ongoing ecclesial dialogue about difficult moral issues of war, peace, and nonviolence.

Wesleyans and Wesleyan theology have long been interested in the sciences. John Wesley kept abreast of scientific developments in his own day, and he engaged science in his theological construction. Divine Grace and Emerging Creation offers explorations by contemporary scholars into the themes and issues pertinent to contemporary science and Wesleyan Theology. In addition to groundbreaking research by leading Wesleyan theologians, Jurgen Moltmann contributes an essay. Moltmann''s work derives from his keynote address at the joint Wesleyan Theological Society and Society for Pentecostal Studies meeting on science and theology at Duke University. Other contributions address key contemporary themes in theology and science, including evolution, ecology, neurology, emergence theory, intelligent design, scientific and theological method, and biblical cosmology. John Wesley''s own approach to science, explored by many contributors, offers insights for how two of humanity''s central concerns--science and theology--can now be understood in fruitful and complementary ways.

Indwelling the Forsaken Other is a critical reading of Jurgen Moltmann''s ethics of discipleship. While Moltmann''s notable turn to the inner life of the Trinity as a source for his reflections on the life of the church is influential, it is not without problems. The call emerging from Moltmann''s reflection upon Trinitarian life--to copy God in our relationships--may offer some general direction for our actions; however, it also raises several questions. Two important questions for this work are, In what way are we to copy God? and What conditions make it possible to copy God? Moltmann''s answers to these questions are insufficient, and consequently he fails to protect the difference between Creator and creation in his analogia relationis. As a result, the ethical direction of Moltmann''s work seems to be increasingly muddied and, at best, paradoxical.

In his fifty-three years, Michael W. Casey made an indelible impact upon all his academic friends in the United States, Great Britain, and elsewhere in the world. His thirty some years of research and publications were multinational. Mike was especially adept at looking into archival details on the numerous subjects that interested him in communication, Scripture, and history, especially as they focused upon Churches of Christ and the Stone-Campbell Movement. If a scholar ever believed that the grandest project depends on the accuracy of the smallest component, it was Mike Casey. He believed that words were enfleshed in concrete persons. All his studies recognized the persuasive powers of committed humans. The title for this volume, therefore, is And the Word Became Flesh. The essays in this volume are divided into three sections. Those in the first section are on Restoration History. The second section is on communication studies. And the final section contains essays on a specialty of Casey''s, conscientious objection, just war, and Christian peacemaking.

Sexual revolution, terrorism, student riots, civil rights, Stonewall Riots, feminism, and the publication of Humane vitae. The year 1968 is a milestone in twentieth-century history. The papers presented in this volume mark an interdisciplinary and wide-ranging approach to a year, and indeed a decade, whose movements and events are still very much alive in contemporary society. The fruits of the conference are published in this volume to invite ongoing reflection and a critical discourse to a watershed moment in our history and culture.