Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Theology of ministries'

One of the most significant outcomes of Vatican II was a revival of the role of the laity in the life of the Catholic Church. Council documents offered a new ecclesial vision comprised of people of God united in baptism, with the mission of the Church becoming outward focused and the shared responsibility of all members. Fifty years later, there still exists a great pastoral need to encourage, recruit, and offer proper training and guidance to lay volunteers. This Pastoral Synthesis Project proposes that all parishes designate a Director of Stewardship to facilitate the process of all baptized members responding to the universal call to holiness and service.

Thesis (MTh)--Stellenbosch University, 2004
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The worldwide phenomenal growth of Pentecostalism is a well-acknowledged fact, which no one can deny. Research shows that much of the growth is in the neo- Pentecostal or charismatic wing of the movement. Ghana is not left out of this. One phenomenon that has become so pronounced in the charismatic movement in Ghana is the practice of the so-called "deliverance". This phenomenon purports to let Christians attain to the abundance of life that Christ offers as part of God's salvation package to humankind. Most of the deliverance ministries, to a large extent, attribute situations such as sicknesses, poverty, late marriage, denial of visa to travel abroad and even some natural disasters among others to supernatural causes. These supernatural causes, which are said to hinder Christians from achieving the abundance of life, are mainly identified as demonic contamination, demonic influence, demon-possession, witchcraft or ancestral curses. The prescribed antidote to these is to be taken through deliverance by a special person of God. Due mainly to a very bad economic situation which has made many Ghanaians live below the poverty line; it makes it very difficult for many people to afford the cost of western medical care. Many Ghanaians are also daily looking for avenues to go and better their lot in other countries. The traditional Ghanaian like many Africans has a worldview, which believes in a supernatural dimension to every physical occurrence including difficulties in the acquisition of visa to travel abroad. The emergence of the deliverance ministries has therefore provided a legitimate haven to which people who would otherwise have gone to the traditional shrines to seek solutions to their problems can now go. The challenge that this phenomenon poses to evangelical Christianity is highlighted in this research. A critical assessment of the phenomenon as it pertains in Ghanaian Christianity has been done from the perspective of a specific definition of evangelicalism. Much as the fact cannot be denied that some of the deliverance ministries are meeting real felt needs of people in biblically unquestionable ways, there are obviously, some who are for various reasons employing anti-Christian and superstitious principles. The purpose of this research therefore, is to inform evangelical Christians on what the whole phenomenon is about in the light of Scripture so that practices that are not in line with the whole truth of the word of God can be avoided. On the other hand, evangelical Christian ministers can find ways of inculcating some of the useful practices of the phenomenon into their ministry for the benefit of their congregations and all people who might need such assistance. This is very necessary because the people from these congregations are patronizing the services of the deliverance ministries anyway.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die wereldwye fenomeniese groei van die pinksterbeweging is 'n welbekende feit wat niemand kan ontken nie. Navorsing toon dat die meerderheid van die groei binne die "neopinkster" of charismatiese deel van die beweging plaasvind. In Ghana is dit geen uitsondering nie. Een verskynsel wat so prominent geword het in die charismatiese beweging in Ghana is die beoefening van die sogenaamde "bevryding". Hierdie verskynsel beweer dat die Christene lewe in oorvloed sal he wanneer hulle Christus aanbid, as deel van God se verlossingsplan vir die mens. Meeste van hierdie bevrydingsbewegings, in 'n groot mate, skryf situasies soos siekte, armoede, die weiering van 'n visum vir ander lande en selfs sommige natuurlike rampe, onder andere toe aan bonatuurlike oorsake. Hierdie bonatuurlike oorsake waarvan gepraat word wat die Christene daarvan weerhou om die lewe in oorvloed te geniet, word hoofsaaklik geidentifiseer as demoniese kontaminasie, demoniese invloed, demoniese heksery of bloedlynvloeke. Die voorgeskrewe teenmiddel hiervoor is om deur bevryding te gaan deur mid del van 'n spesiale persoon in God. Hoofsaaklik as gevolg van 'n haglike ekonomiese situasie, leef baie Ghanese onder die broodlyn en is dit werklik moeilik vir baie mense om Westerse medisyne te bekostig. Ghanese soek ook daagliks 'n ander heenkome en probeer hulle lot verander in ander lande. Die tradisionele Ghanees, soos meeste Afrika inwoners, het 'n werelduitkyk wat glo in die bonatuurlike dimensie vir elke fisiese verskynsel, insluitend die probleem om 'n visum te kry. Die verskyning van die bevrydingsbedienings, het gevolglik 'n legitieme toevlugsoord gebied aan mense wat andersins na tradisionele heiligdomme sou gaan, om antwoorde op hulle probleme en vrae te soek. Die uitdaging wat hierdie verskynsel aan die Evangeliese Christendom bied, is onderstreep in hierdie navorsing. 'n Kritiese evaluering van die fenomeen, soos dit voorkom in Ghanese Christendom, is vanuit die perspektief van 'n spesifieke definisie van evangelisasieleer gedoen. Net soos die feit dat sommige bevrydingsbedienings werklik die mens se egte behoeftes op 'n onbetwisbare, bybelse manier aanspreek, net so is dit duidelik dat sommige mense om verskeie redes anti-Christelike en bygelowige beginsels implementeer. Die doel van hierdie navorsing is dus om Evangeliese Christene in te lig waaroor hierdie verskynsel handel, in die lig van die Woord. Sodoende kan praktyke wat nie ooreenstemend met die waarheid van God se Woord is, me vermyword. Aan die anderkant, kan Evangeliese Christen predikers maniere vind om die nuttige praktyke van hierdie verskynsel in hul eie bedienings te integreer tot voordeel en opbou van die gemeente en aIle mense wat sulke bystand mag benodig. Dit is noodsaaklik omdat die mense van hierdie gemeentes in elk geval die bevrydingsbedienings ondersteun.

This thesis proposes that the narrative engagement of ethical leadership is foundational for contemporary Lay Ecclesial Leadership of ministries of the Catholic Church in Australia. It is argued that in the appointment of women and men as board directors it is essential to develop a clear articulation of the key competencies, character strengths and public values for lay ecclesial leadership of ministries of the Australian Catholic Church. The formation process proposed for such appointees has its foundations in the sacrament of Baptism, the Vatican II “universal call to holiness”, the vocation of the laity and Ignatian spirituality. Its manifestation is lived out in the ethical leadership of Walter Earl Fluker and the notion and practice of pilgrimage.

This thesis examines the theological and practical functioning of American Baptist Women’s Ministries, American Baptist Churches USA, as it has engaged in a “Becoming Beloved Community” initiative. It argues that theological grounding in a vision of Beloved Community is a necessary missing element in transforming the way the organization pursues its mission. Since 2014, the organization has conducted a cultural audit, assessing attitudes and readiness, and it has developed some strategies and tactics as a result. However, without a solid theological grounding and a deeper understanding of what adhering to a vision of beloved community may mean in terms of structure and decision-making processes, these strategies and tactics are less effective than they could be. This thesis draws upon the writings of Howard Thurman and Martin Luther King, Jr., on process theology, and on woman’s liberation theologies to assess current practices in AB Women’s Ministries and provide a more robust theological grounding for the concept of “Becoming Beloved Community.” In constructing the theological grounding, a list of marks of beloved community is developed and used as an evaluative tool for current practices in the organization. Using adaptive leadership theory and complexity leadership theory, the thesis also develops recommendations for the future.

South Africa is in a state of flux-everything is changing from the steady collapse of the Rand over the last few years, to major changes in society. In just on ten years the country has changed from a minority White based government to one elected by the nation as a whole. This has rapidly become a one party secular state, in which the church, from being a national institution is in many respects fighting for survival in a society where anything goes. Even though the vast majority of the country subscribe to Christianity, other groups are more vocal in what they believe . With this in mind the topic of this dissertation was decided on. Here is a group of Christians who over the last few years have grown in number and are still adding to their number. They started in 1983 when a few ministers were relating and spending a morning a week together, while still belonging to various other Church denominations. This then became the basis for this new group, which registered a constitution but continues to this day to maintain a non-denominational viewpoint. They called themselves the New Covenant Ministries International. To date they have grown to over seven thousand churches. [Stated by Dudley Daniel, Bloemfontein 2001.] Obviously they are doing some things right or have a dynamic leadership leading them. At the conference held in Bloemfontein [2001], their leader Dudley Daniel reminded them of their roots in Pentecostalism. Many of their original leaders came out of the traditional Pentecostal churches i.e. Full Gospel Church of God, Assemblies of God, Pentecostal Holiness Church, United Apostolic Faith Church etc. The aim of this work is to look back and see where the NCMI came from, how the structure is working today and finally to critically evaluate the changes that have occurred since conception.
Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2001.

Violent traumatic events impact communities and demand ministerial responses that are not only pastoral in nature but also prophetic, challenging institutional and sociocultural roots of violence through vision and analysis. There is a noticeable gap in qualitative studies of the prophetic pastoral practices of organized trauma response ministries in addressing violence. This dissertation addresses this gap through qualitative case studies of two trauma response ministries operating in diverse cultural contexts. The dissertation forges a beginning constructive practical theology of trauma from the voices, experiences, and practices of survivors and their trauma response ministry providers, lifting up the need for an intercultural approach and examining the results for untapped theological resources for constructive practical theologies of trauma. By integrating trauma studies into lived religion approaches, this dissertation conceptualizes survivors' use of material objects, rituals, and surroundings to enact a 'theopoetics of material religion.' This theopoetics captures the constructive theological significance of survivors' use of material objects, rituals, and surroundings for prophetic and performative testimony and witness. The introduction and chapter one make the case that addressing the problem of violent trauma in the American context calls for an approach rooted in prophetic pastoral care practices, one that is attentive to the particular contextual realities and resources of communities living in the aftermath of trauma. Using a lived religion methodological approach enhanced by trauma studies and a theopoetics of material religion, chapter two presents a case study of an inner-city lay-led trauma response ministry that serves family survivors of homicide. Chapter three presents a case study of a denominational-based trauma response ministry's services to a suburban congregation following a gun assault. Chapter four illustrates the theological themes witnessed in each case study and places these in intercultural dialogue. The final chapter engages current constructive theologies of trauma and brings the insights of the case studies to bear on interpretations of theology in the aftermath of trauma. The dissertation begins to forge of a constructive practical theology of trauma and concludes with strategic recommendations for constructive practical theologians, pastoral care providers, and social and ecclesial structures.

This dissertation looks into the ministries of Isaiah Shembe and Emmanuel Milingo to examine their contributions to African Christianity. It also seeks to investigate their endeavours at 'affirming African identity in the process of inculturating Christianity into the African culture. Their contexts are, respectively, South Africa and Zambia. The dissertation also seeks to find a model that could help the mainline churches refer to in the quest of assuming a true African church that addresses the questions of Africans within their world view. The first chapter serves as an introduction to the study. The second and third chapters look into the profile of both Shembe and Milingo and also examine the context that influences their ministries. They also bring to the fore the neglect that has set in due to missionary teaching eventually leading to the current problems besetting the mainline churches owing to ignoring the African world view. The chapters four and five discuss the healing ministries of the two leaders and the patterns of inculturation emerging from their ministries. These chapters show how healing forms an integral part of the African society and cannot be ignored, and the essence of inculturation in the African church as demonstrated by Shembe and Milingo. The final chapter discusses a model of the church that emerges from Shembe and Milingo' s ministries which can serve as something the main line churches can learn from in order to affirm their ministries.
Thesis (M.Th.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 1999.

This research paper is designed to introduce a sexual education programme that can be adapted for Mountain of Fire Global Ministries (MFGM), to guide the youth in their safer sexual practices in the era of HIV and AIDS. In view of this, the research paper will build upon other sexual education programmes such as S- safer practices, A- available medication, V- voluntary counseling and testing, E- empowerment through education (“SAVE”), A- abstain, B- be faithful, C- condomize (ABC) and others (INERELA+ 2008:1). Setting the stage to understand the challenge in South Africa for safer sexual practices among youth, the researcher saw it fit to conduct research in his local community of Wentworth. The intention of the research was to get a basic understanding of the HIV and AIDS prevalence among youth and the type of education they were receiving from the local organizations. The interviews conducted in the research demonstrated that there was more of an authoritarian or top-down rather than a grass roots bottom-up approach used by the organizations, which gave the impression that the type of curriculum used was obsolete. The researcher felt that addressing the need for safer sexual practices among youth would have been more effective if the approach was through dialogue. Youth may have felt insecure, believing that some of their needs, inputs or experiences could not be discussed in a top-down approach. Organizations that appeared to be condescending, as well as more superior and intellectually equipped, may have made youth feel inferior and inadequate. The outcome of this approach may have created mixed feelings between the organizations and the youth. A lack of understanding, on behalf of the educating organizations, as to what the youth really required in education on safer sexual practices and what they were experiencing personally, eventually could have led to the youth treating the education lightly. On the other hand, from a Christian education perspective, this research paper ascertained that the youth were being squeezed into a mould where safer sexual practices were not considered. Christian education strongly discourages the practice of sex outside of marriage and teaches that abstaining from sex until marriage is the only commendable way. This type of education creates a distancing and has a great impact on the lives of youth, especially those who are sexually active. Somehow if they do engage in sexual activity, they feel isolated, inferior, unaccepted and inadequate to grow spiritually. The change in their attitude and behavior results from continuous pulpit caution, instead of precaution, on how to manage safe or safer sexual practices. Christian education continues to place fear on the youth about premarital sex and the youth often feel that they are responsible for the consequences that derive from negligence. This research uncovered that Christian education adopted a top-down instead of a bottom-up approach, thus denying the youth the opportunity to express themselves with their experiences and needs when it came to safe or safer sexual practices. In view of the hierarchical approaches of some organizations and Christian education, the youth find themselves under difficult circumstances, whereby they are not given the opportunity to relieve themselves of some of the pressures they face when it comes to safe and safer sexual practices. In light of this struggle to find common ground, Paulo Freire in his book Pedagogy of the oppressed (2003:71-83) introduces some positive methods, such as dialogue, that can broker a relationship between the facilitator and the participants. In addition to this, the International Network of Religious persons with and affected by AIDS (INERELA+) has compiled a “SAVE” Toolkit (2012) that the researcher has included in the research paper, as a guide to walk alongside Freire‟s philosophy of dialogue. This will help to bridge the gap between the facilitators and the participants, and assist them in finding a common ground as they search for social transformation in the context of safer sexual practices. The interviewees mentioned in the research showed a great deal of experience and knowledge, but they were limited in the ABC method they used to educate youth on HIV and AIDS. This method did not cater for those who were beyond this stage, such as those who had contracted the virus. Since the “SAVE” Toolkit is more user friendly, incorporating both the ABC method and reproductive health for those who have contracted the virus to live a positive lifestyle, to blend it with dialogue improves its effectiveness. This proved to be an important finding in the research in terms of the hypothesis which promotes a sexual education programme for safer sexual practices among youth. This will eventually assist youth to develop mindsets that enable them to be more responsible in their sexual behavior.
Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2013.

This thesis is a missiological study of the francophone churches in the cities of Johannesburg and Pretoria. Francophone churches may be classified as African Initiated Churches (AIC) that have been planted by migrants from the French speaking countries of central Africa. They are characterised by the use of French and English as languages of worship and communication. The planting and the presence of these churches have become a more visible and remarkable mission phenomenon drawing scientific attention and is worthy of studying. The main issue of this study is the missionality of the Francophone churches. The investigation concerns the ways in which Francophone churches understand the mission of God, known as missio Dei, and the ways in which they express it in the community. In practice the exploration of the missionality of the Francophone churches discloses their nature, raison d’être, and their purpose, as well as their ministries, and allows us to determine the relevancy of these churches in the community. For this reason, in the study I explore and describe also the concept of the missional church in order to apply it to the Francophone churches. To that end, “Patterns of missional church” are used to measure the extent to which Francophone churches are missional. The study suggests the parameters of the development of a missional culture in a Francophone congregation and highlights the importance of the missional leadership in this respect. Finally the study proposes some missional ministries or contextual ministries that may express practically the missionality and consequently the relevancy of Francophone churches in their context.
Christian Spirituality, Church History & Missiology
D. Th. (Missiology)

L’Église est encore désignée « corps du Christ », surtout dans les épîtres pauliniennes. Elle est pour ainsi dire analogue à un organisme vivant. Par conséquent, sa croissance devrait résulter naturellement de sa santé. Mais l’Église en Occident est confrontée à une stagnation numérique et même à une érosion démographique. Ce qui est fondamentalement en cause, c’est la vitalité ecclésiale et la capacité non seulement de garder les fidèles, mais aussi d’attirer de nouveaux membres. La question du ministère ecclésial, fort populaire en exégèse et en histoire du christianisme dans les décennies 1970 et 1980, est délaissée depuis 20 ans. Elle mérite d’être reprise pour des raisons qui ne sont pas uniquement conjoncturelles, mais bien d’ordre théologique et ecclésiologique. De nos jours, la pluralité ministérielle largement présente dans l’Église primitive est réduite à un monolithisme pastoral. La présente thèse entend remettre à l’avant-plan la question du ministère ecclésial par un angle nouveau inspiré à la fois de l’approche herméneutique et de la méthode d’analyse rhétorique. Dans le but d’offrir des pistes pour l’identification et la mise en valeur des mécanismes de la croissance intégrale de l’Église, nous avons repéré, à la lumière d’une analyse rhétorique de deux textes majeurs du corpus paulinien (1 Co 12–14 et Ép 4,1-16), les besoins fonctionnels vitaux du corps ecclésial et les principes fondamentaux qui s’incarnent dans l’édification des églises du Nouveau Testament et que les apôtres ont cautionnés eux-mêmes. Il ressort globalement de notre étude que : (1) l’Église est dotée d’une structure organique et que sa croissance résulte de la mise en œuvre efficace et efficiente des divers dons spirituels ; (2) l’Église est dotée d’un mécanisme d’édification fonctionnel par lequel les ministres de la Parole forment tous les croyants pour les mettre en état d’accomplir le ministère ecclésial et de contribuer à l’édification de l’ensemble de la communauté ecclésiale ; (3) l’édification ecclésiale se fait en professant continûment la vérité évangélique, en s’efforçant dans l’amour de garder l’unité et en faisant toutes choses pour l’édification de la communauté et pour la seule gloire du Christ Seigneur ; (4) l’édification ecclésiale passe par quatre objectifs de croissance : l’unité de la foi, l’unité de la connaissance du Fils de Dieu, l’état d’homme accompli, la mesure de la stature parfaite du Christ. Nous avons construit, à partir des intuitions repérées, un modèle paulinien de l’édification ecclésiale.
The Church is also referred to as “body of Christ”, especially in Pauline epistles. It is almost analogous to a living organism. Therefore, its growth should naturally result from its health. But the Church in the West is facing a numerical stagnation and even a demographic decrease. What is fundamentally at issue is the ecclesial vitality and the ability to keep followers, but also to attract new members. The question of ecclesial ministry, which was very popular in the domains of exegesis and history of the Christianity in the 1970s and 1980s, was abandoned for 20 years. This question deserves to be retaken for reasons that are not only cyclical, but theological and ecclesiological. Nowadays the widely present ministerial plurality in the early Church is reduced to a pastoral monolithic. This thesis intends to put the question of ecclesial ministry foreground with a new perspective inspired from the hermeneutic approach and the method of rhetorical analysis. In order to provide avenues for the identification and development of mechanisms for the integral growth of the Church, we spotted in the light of a rhetorical analysis of two major texts of the Pauline corpus (1 Cor 12-14 and Ep 4:1-16), the vital functional needs of the ecclesial body and the fundamental principles that are embodied in the edification of the New Testament churches and that the apostles endorsed themselves. The general conclusions from this study are: (1) the Church has an organic structure and its growth is due to the effective and efficient implementation of various spiritual gifts; (2) the Church has a functional edification mechanism by which the ministers of the Word equippe all believers to make them able to accomplish ecclesial ministry and to edify the entire ecclesial community; (3) the edification of the Church is doing by continuously professing the evangelical truth in love, endeavoring to keep the unity and doing all things for the edification of the community and for the sole glory of Christ the Lord; (4) the edification of the Church goes through four growth targets: the unity of the faith, the unity of the knowledge of the Son of God, the accomplished statesman, the measure of the fullness of Christ. We build, from the intuitions spotted, a Pauline model for Church edification.

The subject of migrants’ social integration in receiving countries is a growing debate in the 21st century amongst the international community and the nations of the world. It is a serious concern for many organizations advocating for social justice. The Church worldwide and the migrant church in Durban South Africa in particular, is called to be among the defenders and promoters of migrants’ social integration; integration which will bring forth migrants’ social and economic contribution to the development of Durban’s social and economic life. This view of this study is that in the post-apartheid period sufficient attention has not been paid by the South African government, policy-makers and the church in the welcoming and protection of migrants who have “flooded” the country. The lack of preparedness has resulted in migrants being used as scapegoat by some South Africans on the pretext that they lower the country’s social life, steal national citizens’ jobs and commit crime. This growing social and economic discomfort in South Africa resulted in xenophobic violence in May 2008. The dissertation surveys migrants’ challenges in South Africa and Durban in particular. It explores the response of a migrant Pentecostal church called Faith Ministries Durban (FMD) to these challenges, as well as its contribution to the promotion of Congolese migrants’ social integration. The study further explores, among other aspects, the theology of migration. This exploration is a call to theologians to advocate for migrants’ care and rights so that they may not endure discrimination, abuse and struggle because of them being outsiders. Migrants have to benefit equal rights as fellow South Africans. From the life narratives of ten FMD’s members, the study explores FMD’s role in the lives of its migrant members.
Christian Spirituality, Church History & Missiology
M. Th. (Missiology)