Theology and Ministry 8 (2022)

The latest issue of Theology and Ministry, an open-access journal from Cranmer Hall, St John’s College, Durham – and containing the below articles – is available from here.

Samuel Tranter and Nicholas J. Moore

Editorial

Sebastian Rab

Christ and Church as Temple in John 14.2–3: And Implications for Eschatology and Funeral Ministry

Temple is a key biblical-theological theme, especially in the Fourth Gospel. A case is made that the farewell discourse employs this theme at its outset to introduce its key priorities. If the ‘Father’s house’ is the body of Jesus and its ‘many dwelling-places’ are the disciples, then John 14.2–3 uses the theme of temple to speak to the relational nature of both being a disciple of Jesus and the reconciliation of all things to God in Christ. This has implications for our eschatology, which are related particularly to funerals, where this scriptural reading is enduringly popular.

Paul J. Wilson

Rethinking Refujesus: Biblical Perspectives on a Popular Icon

The claim that ‘Jesus was a refugee’ or that Christians follow a ‘migrant messiah’ has become a shibboleth among those who advocate a more benevolent response to migrants. This manner of identifying Jesus has gained traction in the past decade, even being promoted by politicians and pop stars. In response, ‘Refujesus’ has been criticized by those who view migration as a threat. Proponents on all sides of this debate refer to the ‘escape to Egypt’ (Matt. 2.13–23), but are often more concerned with reading contemporary questions about migration into the text, rather than the text itself. This paper will argue that while describing Jesus as a refugee does have exegetical merit, the New Testament has more to offer ethical responses to migration by offering a fundamental shift in perspective though a migration-informed exegesis.

Anthony Bash

Remorse, Emotions, and Moral Transformation

Despite popular thought, repentance and remorse are not synonyms. Repentance is both affect and action, whereas remorse is always only ever affect, though remorse can lead to repentance. Surprisingly, there is no word that obviously means ‘remorse’ in the Bible, though people were evidently remorseful, especially towards God for sin. Remorse is different from regret, though it includes elements of regret in its meaning. In 2 Corinthians 7, Paul lays the linguistic and theological foundation for what later became known as ‘remorse’. Remorse is an affective disposition, and we consider how the New Testament approaches the way dispositions can be transformed from being sinful to godly.

Robert Russell

From Enmity to Reconciliation: Reflections on the Theology of Vernon White and Forgiveness Research of Marina Cantacuzino

The journey leading from enmity to reconciliation is beset with complex challenges for parishioners en route and for pastors offering guidance. Concepts and principles are selected from the theology of Vernon White, the forgiveness research of Marina Cantacuzino, and theologies of other authors, which may prove helpful. Two major issues are considered here: 1) reconciling with each other, involving offering and receiving forgiveness, and 2) reconciling with God. These are examined theologically and practically to include differences and connections between forgiveness and reconciliation, theodicy (particularly instrumentalism), freewill, strategies for counseling, and common parishioner concerns with possible pastoral responses to them.

Oliver Blease

This is My Body: A Qualitative Study into Sociological and Theological Experiences in Local Parish Eucharistic Worship

The theology and praxis of the Eucharist is often discussed by academics and theologians, yet most people engaged in the act of celebrating the sacrament rarely have a published or widely heard ‘voice’ with which to share their experience of these Holy Mysteries. This article investigates the direct experience of communicant members of the Church of England across a wide range of theological traditions. Idiographic qualitative data yielded from semi-structured interviews is analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). These results are reflected upon using the Theological Action Research model to generate relevant and practical outcomes from the data. Three key themes emerge from the participants’ experiences: the significance of the gathered community; a pre-existing and dynamic reflective praxis amongst communicants; and a diverse but prevalent focus on ‘mission’ particularly relating to the unique nature of the rite.

Reviews

Evangelical Review of Theology 46, 3 (August 2022)

The latest Evangelical Review of Theology, published by The World Evangelical Alliance, is now online and available in its entirety as a pdf here.

Editor’s Introduction

Rupen Das

What the Majority World Is Saying about Mission Today

With the centre of global Christianity shifting to the Majority World, what do church and mission leaders in the Global South think mission should be about today? This article describes the situation through the eyes of some prominent mission leaders from across the globe.

Emmanuel Oumarou

A Strategy for Christian Missions in Primary Oral Cultures

Nearly one-quarter of all people on earth today are illiterate or rely primarily on oral communication. Standard, text-dependent outreach and discipling methods do not work with these communities. This article, based on considerable first-hand experience as well as academic study, describes the distinctive thinking modes of oral cultures and how to reach them effectively.

Daniel Wiley

Moving Beyond the Bounds: A Response to the Segregationist Interpretation of Acts 17:26

Conflicts over Bible interpretation frequently threaten to undermine the evangelical worldview, as sceptics claim, ‘You can make the Bible say anything you want.’ This article resolves a classic conflict that arose when people holding opposite views on racial segregation used the same Bible verse to defend their positions. It provides an excellent illustration of what can happen when we let cultural convictions guide our biblical studies rather than the reverse.

Ron Lindo, Jr.

From Blackpain to Much Gain: A Biblical Reflection on Dealing with Racial Injustice

We are all called to oppose racism, but reconciliation requires both change by the oppressors and victims’ ability to move beyond bitter focus on their victimization. This article finds, in the exodus story and in Deuteronomy, a pattern by which God uses remembrances of past injustices to spur us towards providing justice for all.

Anna Droll

Toward Healing the Cataract of Racial Segregation: Spaces and Places for Spiritual Formation

Notions of race which promote segregation constitute a present-day cataract that distorts the vision for true spiritual formation in the church. The remedy, as presented in this article, is a theology of belonging which contradicts racial segregation by promoting spaces and places where biblical intimacy can be enacted.

Dennis P. Petri

Political Advice from Three Great Christian Political Philosophers

In this essay, one of the world’s leading advocates for religious freedom shares what he has learned from three of modern history’s greatest Christian political philosophers: 17th-century French mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal, Dutch lawyer and statesman Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer, and British apologist C.S. Lewis. The article offers practical principles with plenty of application.

Leah Farish

By the Same Token: How Communion Can Heal Communities

Every Christian practice, even those that have been long forgotten, had a purpose. This article looks at the historical practice of requiring tokens for admission to communion, encouraging us to recapture the individual and communal benefits of taking communion seriously.

Geoffrey Butler

Building Bridges: Luther, the Lord’s Supper and the Ethiopian Church

Luther and other Reformers, especially Zwingli, had passionate disagreements over the theology of the Lord’s Supper. Surprisingly, Luther seemed to have more in common on this topic with an Ethiopian Christian who visited him in 1534. This article places that interaction in its historical context, suggesting that Ethiopian Christianity in that time period had significant theological similarities with and may even have influenced the European Reformation.

Bruce Barron

Itching Ears and Willing Learners: Balancing the Clarity and Complexity of Scripture

The popularity of the ‘prosperity gospel’, despite its tendencies toward simplistic and unbalanced theology, epitomizes one of the biggest problems in contemporary Christianity: how to provide adequately trained leaders for the global Christian movement, especially in the Majority World. This essay explores reasons why the problem exists, summarizes the contours of what all Christian leaders need to know, and identifies the Re-Forma organization cofounded by Manfred Kohl as a strategic solution.

High-Level Religion Forum Planned Alongside G20’s 2022 Meeting

Book Reviews