John Wesley created an independent Methodist Church in 1784 in order to provide the sacraments to its members in America. The system created, however, did not seem to have the same understanding of the Lord's Supper that Wesley had, and it did not allow for the frequency to receive Communion that Wesley desired. Steven Bruns analyzes the writings of Wesley and those early Methodists involved in this process to discover what actually happene ...
Out of Galilee: The History of Christian Thought as a Great Conversation is an ambitious exploration of Christian thought over two millennia. It discloses the remarkable unity in diversity of the thought of women, monks, mystics, men, philosophers, and theologians who are seeking to unfold the meaning and mystery of divine intention in Jesus Christ. From the first century in Galilee to the early apologists such as Irenaeus, from Augustine's ...
The ministry is difficult. So much is asked of you, and expectations are high. It's hard to please everyone, and hurt can fester and grow, especially when matters stay unresolved. In The Learner, young pastor Christopher Ek confronts the challenges of leading his church, while trying to become a better golfer. Golf–when taken seriously–is hard. Some say it's a metaphor for life: just when players think they have discovered its ...
Biblical and progressive. Mainline and charismatic. Faithful and questioning. This book is not what you think it is. The story of the Exodus is told in parallel with testimonies, sermons, and personal reflections from a congregation in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, challenging the reader to a journey of faith. Along the way, it becomes clear that open and affirming ministry transcends LGBTQIA+ inclusion. It is also about race relations, pove ...
Our sacred texts have the potential to become texts of torture or texts of liberation. History through Trauma explores the symbolic function of religious, political, and national symbols that aid in the construction of historical narratives, and the psychological effects of trauma on their creation and dissolution. The Deuteronomic Covenant, paramount in the construction of a biblical history of Israel, is analyzed with regard to Israel's h ...
DeepLight: A Memoir of the Soul is a rich narrative of a contemporary woman's spiritual quest. Within the context of her extensive study of religious and mystical traditions, and her experiences as a woman, a monastic, and an Episcopal priest, Susan Creighton weaves a spiral tapestry of memories, journal entries, and poetry. Her search for an authentic practice of contemplative prayer led across cultural, historical, and religious boundarie ...
This work is dedicated to David Alan Black, a New Testament scholar who has contributed to the love of the Koine Greek language as it pertains to New Testament studies in numerous ways–as a professor, author, missionary, and editor. The goal of this book is to demonstrate for students the value of continued research in the Greek New Testament. The essays demonstrate how research is currently being done, utilizing such tools as grammatical studie ...
Rev. Vigo Auguste Demant (1893-1983) was a significant theologian and social commentator of the first half of the twentieth century. This book contains his up-until-now unpublished Gifford Lectures, in which Demant provides cultural analysis as he attempts to address why humanity struggles so much with modernity and living in the contemporary world. The lectures have additional notes and commentary to make them comprehensible, since not all of t ...
Many refer to 1 Peter as an exegetical stepchild within the New Testament; that is, it does not receive the same attention as the Pauline writings, the Gospels, or the Johannine literature. Yet Martin Luther held the First Letter of Peter to be essential to one's own salvation. In keeping with the tradition of Reformation-inspired New Testament theology, and building on the work of John H. Elliott, Elritia Le Roux highlights an affinity bet ...
