Practical Theology

What happens when religious leaders are forced to face war? How do they understand their role and cope with situations of threat and displacement? In a qualitative interview study the aim was to gain an understanding of what it meant to serve as a pastor in a war situation in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The study had a phenomenological lifeworld approach. Semi structured interviews were conducted with five head pastors of Pentecostal churches in the province of South Kivu, eastern DR Congo. The pastors were encouraged to describe the daily life and experiences. Phenomenological and narrative analysis was done on the word-to-word transcribed interviews. The findings were also related to Victor Frankl's existential perspective on the meaning of suffering. The results show that being a pastor at war means to be: i) in extreme difficulty, ii) still be faithful to their mission, iii) dealing with people in extreme difficulty, and iiii) still be able to give them hope. Two of the most common Biblical metaphors for leadership emerge as a motive for the conduct of the pastor; shepherd and servant. The pastor is a faithful servant who is completing the mission God has given; being a shepherd who watches over the church in all circumstances. In these dual obligations the pastor finds a deep meaning that give the ability to endure suffering and the courage to be among the first to return to their societies after times of displacement. The need to return to the church as quickly as possible in order to pastoring was emphasized. This action was through the narrative analysis understood as the turning point in the story of the pastor in armed conflicts. Central is to give hope and encouragement for other displaced civilians to return. This small qualitative study shows how a religious lifeworld perspective can give deep meaning to endure suffering and the courage to rebuild societies. The findings open up for further research on the role of religious leaders at war and conflicts.

Both the emotion of gratitude and the expression of gratitude produce benefits for the person who is thankful and the person being thanked. This study explores the degree to which various forms of gratitude expression are appreciated by those being thanked. In a survey-based study (N = 361), costly, private expressions of gratitude were more appreciated by people being thanked than less costly, public expressions. Higher levels of the HEXACO personality traits of Conscientiousness and Emotionality increased the degree to which people appreciated being thanked. Lower Honesty-Humility (e.g., narcissism) predicted a greater appreciation of receiving public expressions of gratitude while higher Honesty-Humility predicted a greater appreciation of receiving private expressions of gratitude. This information can be used by Christian leaders to help equip others for ministry.

John Dury (1596-1680) grew up in England with connections to the heads of state, and was advised by an eminent chaplain that to reconcile the divisions of the protestant churches would be the greatest work of peacemaking (Matt 5:9) that one could do.  Dury subsequently devoted his entire adult life’s work to this end, with indefatigable journeys, letter writing and conferencing among the leading church figures of the day.  The titles of his many writings also bear out this purpose.

This particular work is the first part of a brief summary outline of practical scriptural living and ethics, intended as an ecumenical effort to unite churches abroad.  Previous to this work, a letter was written by William Gouge, Obadiah Sedgwick and others to James Ussher asking him to lead a joint project to write such a body of divinity.  Ussher was favorable to the project but it was interrupted by the English Civil War.  Other signers to this effort included: John Downame, George Walker, Adoniram Byfield, Sidrach Simpson, Richard Culverwell, George Hughes and Joseph Symonds.  Dury ended up writing the desired outline of practical divinity.

The aim of this article is to develop a liturgical theory for praxis that will enable the EPCSA to recognise and accommodate non-Tsonga speaking worshippers found within the church. There are young Africans in South Africa that cannot read nor write in their mother tongue, for example Xitsonga, also in the EPCSA. The findings of this research will help these Africans that are members of the EPCSA to participate in the Sunday liturgy in a more meaningful way. The Sunday liturgy of the EPCSA, known as Magandzelelo Ekerekeni is exclusively in Tsonga. It consists of five (5) Sunday orders of service for each Sunday of the month and was also the focus of this research. Research of this liturgy and those participating and leading in this liturgy was done in the seven (7) presbyteries found within the EPCSA, and the focus of this research was the people and their language within the context of the liturgy. The principle aim was to promote the Biblical notion of hospitality in the communiti...

The relationship between theory and practice refracts
differently in my journey in practical theology, during which
I moved from deductive to inductive approaches, and
from New Testament studies to practical ecclesiology and
religious leadership. This article offers a conceptual analysis
of the theory/practice relationship through the lens of three
major concepts that have marked my academic journey.
Embodiment focuses on our bodies as the empirical
and spiritual locus of human experience and knowledge.
Practices and theories emerge in our bodily engagements
with the world and one another. Identity formation is the
focus of learning processes that shape selves to create
personal, social and religious identities that enable us
to engage our social and religious worlds. Missional leadership is intent on discerning divine involvement in embodied faith practices in neighbourhoods, communities and contexts. The argument culminates in an agenda for theological education for the next decade.

This article explores pentecostal spirituality and its formative influence upon the therapeutic praxis of pentecostal therapists. Central to pentecostal spiri- tuality is a posture of openness and receptivity to the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in creation. For the pentecostal therapist, this posture informs the therapeutic encounter. In dialogue with selected pentecostal interlocutors, the author explores the phenomenological accounts of a number of self-ident- ified Pentecostal and charismatic licensed mental health professionals con- cerning their experiences of the Holy Spirit in their provision of therapy. These accounts speak to the ways in which the clinicians’ pentecostal spiritual- ity has formed in them a particular manner of interpreting and being-in-the- world; a pneumatological hermeneutic that becomes outworked in their clini- cal praxis. In reflection upon these accounts, practical and theological impli- cations are offered for pentecostal counsellors, and others concerned with practical theologies of care and counselling.

The stage, text, plot, and characters of Together in God’s Theatre are rooted in (South) Africa and globally connected. As such it enculturates Practical Theology as a discipline in (South) Africa and a global network culture. We have been waiting for a Practical Theology that takes the important contribution of African Independent churches regarding faith practices seriously, whilst simultaneously not neglecting the practices of mainline churches. This book is a timely gift that will help with the understanding and appreciation of practices across denominational borders.
Cas Wepener, Professor in Homile􀆟 cs and Liturgy, Faculty of Theology, Stellenbosch
University.

„Helge Stadelmann und Stefan Schweyer präsentieren ein Lehrbuch der Praktischen Theologe, das sich von anderen abhebt: Es ist aus freikirchlicher Perspektive geschrieben und ergänzt so die Lehrbücher für Praktische Theologie aus volkskirchlichem Kontext. Und die Autoren sind überzeugt: jede gute Praxis braucht eine gute Theorie, und in der Gemeinde wird gute Praxis immer auch theologisch reflektierte Praxis sein. Bloße Pragmatik genügt nicht. In das Zentrum ihres Entwurfs haben die Autoren den Gemeindeaufbau gestellt, und sie gehen dabei der Frage nach: Wie können Gemeinden qualitativ und quantitativ wachsen?“

Die zweite Auflage umfasst 35 Seiten mehr als die erste Auflage. Alle Kapitel und die Register durchgesehen, aktualisiert und gelegentlich ergänzt. Das Kapitel über Spiritualität (Kap. 15) sowie die gemeinde- und religionspädagogischen Kapitel (Kap. 17; 18; 21) wurden neu konzipiert und grundlegend überarbeitet.

This paper by Public Health England

Prepared by: PHE Older adults team, Health and Wellbeing Directorate
Supported by: Rev Meg Burton and colleagues at the College of Health Care Chaplains
Contibuted to by: Sonia Douek, Manvir Kaur Hayer, Hannah Jacobs, Robin Jacobs, David Jones, Rashid Ali Laher, Zuliekha Laher, Brendan McCarthy, Jim McManus, Keith Munnings, Aziz Sheikh, Heema Shukla, Diviash Thakrar, Gaby Wills

In the context of the interconnected world of the information age, and demarcated by a virtual existence through the use of the Internet, decision-making has become even more dynamic. In an evolving era of virtuality, with special emphasis on the increasing role of mobile communication technology, it is indicated that decision-making has become fluid. As part of the phenomenon of fluid decision-making, not only is the evolutionary character of virtual connectivity acknowledged, but the ever-increasing and important role of mobile platforms is also emphasised. In a hermeneutical practical theology of lived spirituality, focusing on the praxis of everyday living, the possible role of spirituality in informing the fluid decision-making processes in a mobile virtual world was traced. A qualitatively inspired analysis, using data collected from various virtual forums, was proposed. In the description of these contours, special emphasis was placed on narrative-inspired biographical accents. The research made a contribution in terms of possible new articulations of the language of faith as embodied in fluid decision-making in a mobile virtual reality.

Lelkipásztorként sokszor kellett megállnom magányos emberek, kórházi ágyakon fekvő betegek vagy gyászolók mellett temetéseken. Gyakran tapasztaltam, hogy saját szavaim elégtelennek bizonyultak, ami a bátorítást illeti, de egy jól megválasztott alapige vagy elbeszélt-elolvasott történet érezhetően oldotta a magányos, a beteg vagy a gyászoló ember szomorúságát, szorongását. E tapasztalatok sora vetette fel bennem a lehetőségét annak, hogy talán célzatosan lehet használni a bibliai történeteket szorongásoldásra.

In (South) Africa preaching should also be studied as an enacted performance and thus beyond only the recorded and transcribed sermon text. This article develops an argument regarding the need for Homiletics in Africa to augment its research methodology to study preaching as a liturgical ritual and as such as an enacted performance as such a methodology is more adequate for the continent on which the sermons are preached. Such a methodology will take African epistemologies and ontologies more serious than traditional methodologies that only study transcribed texts. Recent methodological developments in Liturgical Studies can be helpful in this regard and a discussion between the two disciplines are encouraged. The article ends with some possible implications regarding research methods in homiletical research in Africa.

Toujours d’actualité dans notre monde occidental déchristianisé, la pastorale des recommençants peine à exister dans la vie des communautés chrétiennes, plutôt indifférentes à ces baptisés éloignés de l’Église. Il s’agit là d’un vrai problème ecclésiologique à éclairer. La pastorale des recommençants ne contiendrait-elle pas justement un ferment de conversion missionnaire des communautés chrétiennes ?

Well-known or much-loved texts can be every bit as daunting for the preacher as the 'hard sayings of Jesus' or long and obscure genealogies. The 'Sermon on the Mount' (Matthew 5-7, 'the Sermon') - particularly the Beatitudes - is well known and much loved. Diligent preparation on Matthew 5 to 7 might induce 'analysis-paralysis' due to either the volume of commentary or the variety of conclusions drawn. Discouraged preachers might (erroneously) conclude there is nothing left to be said! Matthew's account of Jesus' teaching on the Mount, however, provides a glimpse of the earliest Christian interpretation of Jesus Christ. From the Apostle Paul to the bishop-theologian Augustine; from the reformer Luther to the pacifist John Howard Yoder; and from the German martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer to the contemporary Baptist peacemaker Glenn Stassen; each generation has found Jesus' imaginative vision of God's kingdom utterly compelling. Each interpre...

From back cover:

This excellent book provides new impetus to the academic debate around the assessment criteria of the impact of the broad religious sphere on social development in contemporary South Africa. The
volume is exemplary in its interdisciplinary approach and for advancing a new theoretical framework that combines hermeneutical and empirical methods. Indeed, the book sets new standards in the fields of practical theology and sociology of religion.
Prof Wilhelm Gräb, Professor of Practical Theology & Director of the Institute of Sociology of Religion and Community Development, Humboldt University, Berlin

This book may easily stand out in future as seminal in the way that it promoted the social development debate of the church and its organisational structures from an interdisciplinary focus. The book will not only impact on how the church and religious structures should reach out to address social development themes such as poverty. It will, in turn, facilitate understanding by other disciplines of the role of the
church and FBOs, which will encourage them to engage the church and religious structures more meaningfully in pursuing the social development agenda.
Prof Antoinette Lombard, Professor of Social Work & Head of the Department of Social Work and Criminology, University of Pretoria

This publication makes a significant contribution to the debate about the role of the faith-based sector in social development in post-apartheid South Africa. Its initial positive hypothesis is supported by original interdisciplinary research that paints a realistic picture of organised religion in contemporary South Africa; it also sets new standards for empirical and socially based religious and theological research. As such, it presents an appropriate intellectual response to the social agenda of the “New South Africa”.
Dr Ian Nell, Senior Lecturer in Practical Theology, Department of Practical Theology and Missiology & Director of the Unit for Religion and Development Research, Stellenbosch University

This book provides valuable theoretical and practical perspectives for critical engagement in the field of development in post-apartheid South Africa. It provides much-needed insight into the contribution of the religious sector while, at the same time, challenging this sector to embrace a more holistic view of development. With its combination of experienced and novice “voices”, the text is a vigorous and commendable example of interdisciplinary collaboration.
Prof Jaco Dreyer, Professor of Practical Theology, Department of Practical Theology, University of South Africa

L’anthropologie biblique tripartite atteste un esprit de l’homme, insufflé par Dieu, source de sa vie et invitation à un accomplissement. Envisagé en termes chrétiens, le seuil de la vie spirituelle (croyante ou large) semble bien être la relation à une altérité fondatrice, à une transcendance minimale. En hôpital, c’est souvent un homme altéré qui dialogue, non sans combat, avec une altérité tour à tour désaltérante, révoltante, résistante, consistante, infiniment présente en Jésus Crucifié et Ressuscité.

Chaque année en France, de nombreux adultes demandent le baptême. Ils souhaitent faire partie de la famille de Dieu. Ce qu’ils expriment de leur quête révèle des attentes contemporaines envers l’Eglise catholique. Grâce à un dialogue, dans une culture donnée, entre paroles de catéchumènes, Ecriture et tradition, émergent peu à peu la richesse du catéchuménat tel qu’il est mis en œuvre en France, et quelques aspects qui pourraient être approfondis. Ces catéchumènes, qui sont la joie de l’Eglise, sont aussi le signe de son être génétique, de sa vie qui, à travers les âges, va de commencements en commencements.

Provides an overview of the history of practical theology from Friedrich Schleirmacher in Germany in the 1700s, to Paul Tillich in the U.S. in the 1900s, to to the revival of the field from the 1980s until now. Comparisons are made between Protestant Christianity and Eastern traditions of Buddhism and Hinduism.

From a practical theological perspective, this article reflects
on the socially constructed nature of attention deficit, hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Although ADHD as diagnostic label is relatively recent, children and young people so described have been written about in medical and
psychological literature since the beginning of the 20th century. Drawing attention to current medical criteria used to diagnose ADHD as a disability, the article points to the normative influence and practice of powerful professional groups in determining whose behavior is considered acceptable or
otherwise. To illustrate that ADHD is not incompatible with faithful discipleship, the article compares the medical and psychological criteria with descriptions of Apostle Peter’s behavior as recorded in Scripture. Heuristically understood, Peter’s behavior highlights that what is considered disruptive
in one context may not necessarily be considered disruptive in another. Indeed, such disruption can be re-interpreted as a hopeful sign of God’s grace. From a Christian perspective, existing practices that build on assumptions that ADHD is a problem to be solved are examined. Demonstrating that
such practices tend to exclude children, young people, and their families from schools and from churches with significant adverse consequences, the article considers how Christians might build more hospitable communities capable of welcoming people whose behavior may at first sight, challenge
accepted norms within and beyond the Christian community.

This paper attempts to derive godly leadership principles from the life of King Solomon as a Head’s Successor of Davidic Covenant. The interest for this paper sprang from my History of Christianity course learning on early church rapid growth amid persecution without falling into the pit of pragmatism to attract new followers. It is common for Christian leaders to desire quantifiable church growth that is accompanied by fervent devotion to the Lord. This paper hopes to be able to help Christian leaders to pursue this goal in God’s gracious providence.
I will attempt to answer this question, “Was Israel’s wellbeing directly proportional to the obedience of King Solomon?” by the end of this paper. In order to reach that end, several concepts related to covenant will be introduced, Davidic Covenant defined and leadership principles derived from it, events contributing to Israel kingship reviewed, and survey of earlier claims discussed. I will also attempt to relate how these principles from the Old Testament period can be implied for the church in the New Testament period. Some implications for Christian leaders from this learning will also be offered.

What is the relationship between friendship and human flourishing? This is a central topic in Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics and one to which Maimonides also returned throughout his career. Despite the relative neglect of this topic in recent scholarship, I argue that friendship (philia) was an important link between moral and intellectual perfection for Maimonides. He identified Aristotle’s virtue friendship with the love between students and teachers and also interpreted many of the divine commandments as efforts to promote both family and virtue friendship among the Jewish people. Friendship was aligned thematically in Maimonides’ writings with topics like kinship and sexuality, circumcision, and the ethics of speech, all of which point in different ways to the unresolved tension between rational and sensual aspects of our human condition. This article therefore contributes to the investigation of the relationship between Maimonides’ legal and philosophical writing on social themes. While Aristotle clearly influenced his reading of biblical and rabbinic texts for example, I will also argue that Maimonides’ religious and communal commitments helped to push his reading of Aristotle in a broadly inclusive direction— both with respect to the range of different goods that are appropriate to an ideal human life as well as the potential accessibility of those goods to different classes of persons. I offer this article as a corrective to the exaggerated focus on seclusion and solitary contemplation that has characterized academic scholarship on Maimonides.

Sylvia Ipoté a entrepris une investigation auprès des acteurs catéchétiques ivoiriens afin de présenter la manière dont s’est comprise et réfléchie l’articulation catéchèse et liturgie durant la réforme catéchétique en Côte d’Ivoire de 1970 à 2020. Tout l’intérêt de ce corpus historique est de montrer l’importance du lien catéchèse et liturgie dans la réflexion catéchétique ivoirienne. Cela fut un souci constant pour les pionniers des années 1970, dans l’esprit du Concile Vatican II.

Leaders play an important role in clergy’s response to their call. Toxic leadership, also known as the dark side of leadership, negatively influences their decision to remain in full-time pastoral ministry. There is a shortage of clergy in the Roman Catholic Church and a distribution or displacement challenge facing the Protestant church. This shortage adversely affects the future of the church as clergy play an integral part in the preparation of congregants for their works of service (Eph 4:11–12). The purpose of this study was to discover what factors were
involved in clergy’s response to the call to full-time pastoral ministry. A practical theological grounded theory approach was used to discover the properties of the category ‘leadership’. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and data were coded using Glaser and Strauss’s grounded theory methodology. The category of ‘leadership’ includes properties such as favouritism, leaders abdicating responsibilities, leaders taking no action/being inactive, leaders ‘labeling’ subordinates, leaders’ ‘unethical’ behaviour, nepotism, poor conflict handling, poor handling of multi-racial issues, being placed on a pedestal, affirming subordinates and autocratic leadership style. Osmer’s descriptive-empirical task was used as a practical theological lens through which to view the category ‘leadership’. The results indicated three responses by clergy to the call to full-time pastoral ministry: not being called in the first place, a dual call (being bi-vocational or ‘seasonal’) and being called but leaving anyway because of, among other factors, toxic leadership. A steward leadership approach is recommended in response to the dark side of leadership (Article available at http://hts.org.za/index.php/HTS/article/view/4625).

Resumo: A partir do século XIX, igrejas oriundas da Reforma ganham espaço no contexto latino-americano. A refl exão e o desenvolvimento da pastoral e, posteriormente, de uma Teologia Prática contextualizada tornam-se uma realidade. O objetivo deste texto é estudar como se confi gura do ponto de vista prático e teórico a Teologia Prática num dos centros acadêmicos teológicos desse contexto, a Faculdade de Teologia, da Faculdades EST, no sul do Brasil. Num primeiro momento, mostramos como a Teologia Prática passou, no início da escola, de numa ênfase na formação de pastores para a construção de comunidades lute-ranas, numa igreja marcada pela imigração alemã. Mais tarde, esse enfoque, motivado pela teologia da libertação da América Latina, numa igreja em busca de sua identidade latino-americana, muda para uma práxis teológica pela paz e pela justiça social. Com a implanta-ção da pós-graduação em Teologia, a Teologia Prática, com suas subdisciplinas, procura se afi rmar como disciplina com uma identidade própria, em diálogo crítico com as demandas do contexto sociocultural e político, a diversidade religiosa, as questões de gênero e corpo-reidade e a pesquisa em parceria com outras áreas de conhecimento. A publicação de um manual de Teologia Prática, no fi nal da década de 1990, marca esse novo estágio. Quais os novos rumos e desafi os da Teologia Prática no contexto atual e qual o papel da Teologia Prática diante das mudanças e dos desafi os globais são questões em aberto para a refl exão. Palavras-chave: Teologia Prática. Teologia da libertação. América Latina. Reforma.

Violence in any form, including rape, has a corrosive effect on the psychological, moral, spiritual and social lives of people. The high incidence of rape in South Africa has led to its being dubbed the 'Rape Capital' of the world, and violence against women has become the new 'normal'. To help understand, explain and prevent this phenomenon, this paper presents a biblical analysis of the narrative of the rape of Tamar in 2 Samuel 13, and identifies the contributing factors that led to rape. It then offers a biblical analysis of human passions, with special reference to sexual lust, to help us to understand a person's character. A contemporary psychological and moral profile of Amnon, the rapist, is then presented. Finally, a six-fold pastoral response to a contemporary rape situation is proposed, based on the biblical, psychological and moral analysis of the rape of Tamar by Amnon.

This research report is less a survey of the literature than a reflection on the emergence, aims and predominant themes to emerge from theological engagements with issues of
disability. It advances a rather bold claim: the theology of disability is central to our understanding of what it means to know who God is and to know what it means to be a human being living fully under God. While such a statement will need justification, the emphasis within this essay is that the theology of disability is not a specialist enterprise or those who are “interested in such things.” Theological reflection on human disability leads us into the very heart of the theological enterprise in both its practical and theoretical aspects. As such it has particular significance for practical theology.