Search

The article examines that shining of the eternal Light, the Word of God became incarnate of the Virgin Mary when she responded "here I am" to the angel's announcement. Topics include reports that the day on which the liturgy celebrates this ineffable mystery is also significant in the historical and literary vicissitudes of the great poet Dante Alighieri, prophet of hope and witness to the thirst for infinity that is in the heart of man.

One inescapable reality of our connected and globalized world is the diversity and plurality of the human situation into which the Word of God speaks. This diversity arises from the living matrix within which each individual is nurtured and is evidenced in the learning and cognitive structures used to build understanding. This article investigates ways to deal with these realities and create cognitively contextualized theological education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper posits that the Bible reveals the secret of what it takes for a country (or individual) to prosper. In fact, Moses mentioned the secret several times in the Book of Deuteronomy a few weeks before he died - shortly before the Israelites entered the Promised Land. He even included it in the Ten Commandments which are repeated a second time in Deuteronomy (Moses paraphrased what God had said). He emphasized the importance of "And you shall remember that you were slaves in Egypt." The United States has to wake up and recognize that it is in trouble. It is falling behind the rest of the world in health, education, and many other measures of well-being. America is only number 1 in incarcerating its citizens and military expenditures. Throughout history, many great empires collapsed. Indeed, the major reason the Soviet Union collapsed was because it became a thoroughly corrupt and immoral country that did not care about its people. A country that thrives is one where the people remember the hardships that their own families had to endure in the past, and then does everything possible for others to succeed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article the author makes a case for a Sola Scriptura point of departure as an adequate instrument for shining the light of the Word of God not only on the surface level of a practical theological research field, but also on its depth level. It is argued that a Sola Scriptura point of departure does not only involve the biblical text on its own, but also a living relationship with The God who reveals Himself in Scripture. This point of departure entails that the researcher will not only deploy Scripture on the surface level as a mere formal prescriptive source for what ought to happen in the research field. Scripture will also be utilized at the depth level of the research field as a means by means of which the underlying motifs that may be present in the tension field of a particular practical-theological research area are unlocked. This method of using Scripture works with the following faith-expectations: That motifs and actions in a particular tension field will - under the guidance of the Spirit - be brought into living contact with the One in whom the fullness of the Word of God is revealed, namely Jesus Christ; that disintegrative forces at work in the tension field will be brought into contact with the integrative presence of Jesus Christ, unlocking the reformational power of the Word of God in the process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conversio ad docelitam: John Calvin on conversion and being a Christian. This contribution describes John Calvin's understanding of what it means to be a Christian. When Calvin 'converted' to the Reformation in the early 1530s, the term 'Protestant' did not exist. There was no systematic body of doctrine or a confession you could put your signature under. So Calvin became a 'lover of Christ'. The unity with Christ was a central part of his theology but also his personal spirituality. Calvin also understood his own conversion as a 'conversio subita ad docelitam', a conversion to a 'teachable frame of mind'. Calvin's love for Christ, his love for the Word of God and a teachable frame of mind not only defined his theology, but also his piety and spirituality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Music and spirituality in a Christian view start with faith in the Word of God in response to the initiative of God who, as personal being through the Word revealed in Christ, seeks out persons even when they do not seek God. This mystery finds its goal in what is beyond expression in music from a variety of musical styles and syntaxes, from various times and places, in praise and prayer, and in relation to all of life. Matters like memory, health, emotion, time, silence, and community are involved. Paradoxes and a dark side are noted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay undertakes a comparative analysis of the Song of Moses and Paul's speech to the Athenians. One incentive for doing so is the opportunity to address the issue of whether Paul overly diluted his proclamation of the gospel to accommodate the proclivities of his pagan (gentile) audience. A second motivation for considering the relationship between these two portions of scripture is that this topic has received only a cursory consideration in the secondary academic literature. This study concludes that at a literary, conceptual, and linguistic level, Paul connected his message to the Athenians with the theological perspective of the Song of Moses (and more broadly with that of the Tanakh). Another determination is that the apostle did not weaken his declaration of the good news to oblige the tendencies of his listeners. Rather, Paul examined the most exemplary archetypes of secular philosophical thought in his day, compared their dogmas to the truths of scripture, and declared how God's Word is infinitely superior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses proposed practices for evangelical theological exegesis (TE). They include TE approaching the Scriptures with faith seeking understanding, TE being faithful to the original contexts and TE reading the Scriptures within the community of faith. It is asserted that TE will best serve the global church rather than grammatical historical exegesis (GHE) alone, since GHE is only one of the needed practices that enable pastors and church leaders to interpret the Word of God.

The article discusses the first benefit of the Word of God which is sound doctrine which aims to base correction and training on the solid foundation of biblical teaching. It says that theology assumed a rule in the growth and development of the early church. It mentions that the letters of the Apostle Paul stressed the value of doctrine in every aspect of his personal life and ministry as believer and pastor.

The article discusses the various issues on text usage and function during the human sacrifice trial in 1475. It says that the texts presented during the investigation were figurative and theological frameworks in which Christian and Jewish characters will come out. It mentions that the records of the trial must be understood as literary narratives than historical artifacts. It suggests that the reconceptualizing the historical identity of Jews as Hebrews can develop a language of teleology.

An essay is presented which examines the role of scripture as God's words and the function of language as the mediation between the scriptures and the people. It states that listening or reading the scriptures has influenced on the emotions of those who are engaged in the liturgy. It mentions that liturgy is a movement of organized actions which includes absolution, confession, and praising. It suggests that the heart, body, and soul must be dealt during the liturgy rather than intellect.

In Acts 1:8, Christ told his disciples that they will be his witness 'to the ends of the earth'. The article argued that Philip's encounter with the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8:26-40 was the beginning of a witness among people who were considered to live at the end of the world. In this article, the biblical account was read from a missional exegetical perspective, and. it discussed the sharing of Christ in a personal encounter and the Christ-centred message based on a translation of the Word of God. This event opened the door for an African to join the worldwide church, the body of Christ. The article concludes with the identification of five general principles that are significant for the church today in light of this passage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the determination of the Bible as the word of God. It examines various criticisms about the Bible such as the novel "The Da Vinci Code," by Dan Brown and presents evidence that the Bible was written by prophets based on the words and instructions of God. It also analyzes the New Testament as revelations from God.

The current philosophy of sciences acknowledges the existence of an objective conscience of the universe, which corresponds to the Christian theological significance of the Holy Spirit. This is expressed through two types of divine words: the Word of Life, which is at the basis of the divine auto-organization of matter, and the Word of Scripture, which is at the basis of the Christian moral fact. The objective reality of the Christian moral fact consists of four structural elements of social organization: 1. the individual human subject; 2. his concrete manifestation as a concrete fact; 3. the moral norms of the Scripture and 4. the Holy Spirit, which is the informational energy of the Divinity; that unites the first three structural elements into a unitary whole through the individual human conscience. From the metaphysical point of view, the implementation of the moral social fact in the religious experience is possible by adopting a paradigmatic model in which attempts are made at an empirical harmonization between the social moral aspects of morality and the objective existence of a real social system of mankind, integrated into the overall structure of the universe through the power of the uncreated informational energy of the Holy Spirit. Consequently, the religious moral truth is identical with the epistemological truth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article seeks to analyze the doctrine of calling, mainly from the perspectives of John Calvin and Richard Baxter. It starts from the presupposition that, in some aspects, the pastoral calling can be studied as analogous to the calling of the prophets in the Old Testament and the apostles in the New Testament. The main points of contact are the use of God's Word, the impulse of the Holy Spirit as the one who applies the Word, both in the past and in the present, and the dealings with the people of God as the recipients of God's Word as it is taught and proclaimed. The author looks for connections between the pastoral ministry and the fulfillment of the Great Commission, ascribing to ministers the direct responsibility of evangelizing the unconverted as an external evidence of their pastoral calling. Finally, he points to some dangers and traps in pastoral ministry in the present time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article Costa continues to address Calvin's piety by developing the biblical and theological concept that theology, as a true servant of God's Word, has to be committed to the edification of God's people, being, in this way, a servant of the Church. Within this perspective, he appeals to theologians with distinct backgrounds, all of whom display the same understanding that theological reflection does not end in an intellectual exercise, but is fulfilled in obedience to the Word of God. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With an aim to develop a public theology for an age of information media (or media theology), this article proposes a new God-concept: God is a communicative system sui generis that autopoietically processes meaning/information in the supratemporal realm via perfect divine media ad intra (Word/Spirit). For this task, Niklas Luhmann's systems theory is critically appropriated in dialogue with theology. First, my working postmetaphysical/epistemological stance is articulated as realistic operational constructivism and functionalism. Second, a series of arguments are advanced to substantiate the thesis: (1) God is an observing system sui generis; (2) self-referential communication is divine operation; (3) unsurpassable complexity is divine mystery; (4) supratemporal autopoiesis of meaning is divine processing; (5) agape is the symbolic medium of divine communication. Third, this communicative model of God is developed into a trinitarian theology, with a claim that this model offers a viable alternative beyond the standard (psychic, social, process) models. Finally, some implications of this model are explored for constructive theology (conceiving creation as divine mediatization) and for science-and-religion in terms of derivative models: (1) God as a living system sui generis and (2) God as a meaning system sui generis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aimed to examine the Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk van Afrika's (NHKA) understanding of church office, and measure it against 'office' or ministries in the New Testament, and more specifically against Jesus' calling to discipleship in Mark 8:34. The relevance of the historical Jesus for contemporary church theology is indicated by the 'essential' (Sache) continuity that exists between the historical Jesus and the church today. The article concludes that Jesus' calling to discipleship in Mark 8:34 implies a certain understanding of office. The essence of this calling is servitude based on self-denial, the taking up of one's cross, and the following of Jesus. Subsequently, a few remarks are made on the NHKA's understanding of church office, as described in the NHKA church ordinance. The aim is for these remarks to serve as a guideline for the NHKA to form a contemporary understanding of church office. The concluding remarks have been derived from the results of the study on Jesus' calling to discipleship, with the aim of ensuring that the NHKA serves and works in correspondence with the Word of God. This service occurs in a world very different from the one in which Jesus lived and served. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Paul's Epistle to the Romans, the expression refers to speech of God that was entrusted to the Jews as a people. This includes everything He spoke through Moses and the prophets. The apostle presents this as a matter of the greatest privilege to his readers, both for its authoritative contents and the personal involvement of the God of the Covenant it represents. Paul uses these 'oracles' or 'very words of God' as a collective reference (indicated by ) to all divine speech that was entrusted to the Jews before the revelation of God's righteousness in Christ, to which these bore witness in advance. This article consequently argues that refers to the Bible as phenomenon, the revealed Word of God that was entrusted to the Jewish people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses how the Gospels, especially the Gospel of Mark, became included in the Bible by the ecclesial authorities of established Christianity during the fourth and fifth centuries. It cites the oral and written aspects for the emergence of the Gospel of Mark as scriptural including the Gospel's relation to Scripture, its features that made it memorable and its resonance with hearers. It suggests that the authoritative, scriptural texts of Mark led to their inclusion in the canon.

The author presents a postmodern constructive reading of Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari's ancient Christian Logos, particularly on the role of the Logos in the thought of Origen of Alexandria. He looks at how the Origen's Logos function in ancient Christian cosmological systems and analyzes it through Deleuze and Guattari's concept of the Body without Organs (BwO) and Plane of Consistency. He shows that like the BwO, the Origen's Logos functions as a kind of intensive plane making transformations between various images of creation possible.

Clement of Alexandria presents the Logos of God as a physician able to heal by means of his word the passions of the new believer while he is guided and instructed in the duties of Christian life. The principles developed by the Pedagogus, though they instantiate the ideology of a philosophy that struggles to set up its power in a definitive way, also attest the influence from earlier authors, among which Hippocrates, Plato, Philo of Alexandria and the New Testament documents represent the textual pamassus with indisputable predominance in the Alexandrian theologian' thought. In spite of the chronological distance that separates Clement from these authors, it is remarkable how the medical criterion stopped from being a simple element of the sophists' rhetorical discourse to give way to Hippocrates' professional practice and acquire a philosophical status in the works of Plato, Philo and, later, in the New Testaments speech. In this sense, a review of these writers will allow us to confirm their influence on Clement as well as their functionality inside the Christian discourse of 2nd century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses how the 1974 Lausanne Covenant and the Grand Rapids summit in 1982 offered an enlightened resolution to the dilemma that has hounded Christian evangelists regarding evangelism and social responsibility. It says that the two summits forwarded a fundamental message where evangelists agreed that spreading the word of God and involvement in social action is a holistic way of helping their flock attain salvation.

In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with a national sample of 74 racially and religiously diverse highly religious families. We present a research-based conceptual model of the processes at work in these families as they strive together to fulfill the sacred purposes suggested by their respective faiths. Identified processes were: (a) relying on God or God's word for support, guidance, and strength; (b) sanctifying the family by living religion at home; (c) resolving conflict with prayer, repentance, and forgiveness; (d) loving and serving others in the family, faith community, and wider community; (e) overcoming challenges and trials through shared faith; (f) abstaining from proscribed activities and substances; (g) sacrificing time, money, comfort, and convenience; (h) nurturing spiritual observance and growth through teaching, example, and discussion; (i) obeying God, prophets, parents, or commandments; and (j) putting faith or family ahead of personal or secular interests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on Biblical issues taken from the Book of Jonah. The author provides some reasons why prophet Jonah ben Amitai has refused the mandate of God the Father to spread his commandments and to deliver his great mercy to the people in Nineveh. The book is considered unique among others because the attitude of the prophet showed a conscientious objector and anti-hero.

This review article presents an analysis of the expression "Word of God" in the Gospels and Acts of the Apostles. The references were chosen using the Greek text, searching for the terms logos and theos. This study seeks to reveal the use and purpose that Jesus and the apostles had in mind when remitting to or presenting the Word of God; it also intends to be useful in defining how the contemporary Christian church should use and apply the Word of God: the Bible. The context and message of every passage bestows light on the role, reach, goals and characteristics that the Bible should have in individual and corporate Christian life. The Bible confronts man in his way of seeing and doing things, opening its way as the only authoritative rule of faith. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To recover our moral sanity, there is an urgent need to retrieve and restore some positive moral foundations and beliefs which were the moral fibre of the society. These moral foundations and beliefs, transformed through serious interaction with the Word of God and inculturated into African Christianity, will save and strengthen the moral stance of the church. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents excerpts from addresses by participants in the Synod on the Word of God, including one on criteria for reading the Bible, another on the importance of conveying the Word of God through art, and another on reading the Bible with devotion.

After thirty years of teaching activity the author questions himself on the meaning of theological reflection. After admitting the importance of the three basic considerations -the fundamental theology as fides quaerens intellectum, the theology-wisdom as reflection (that provides an interpretive code for the discernment of being Christian in the world) and theology as praxis for a liberating transformation toward God's reign in a world of oppression and sin-, he accords a special interest to the two last mentioned in the present situation of atheism and dehumanization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In view of the present intellectualistic and dualistic approach to revelation-tradition and the abstract notion of its universality and also the closed tripartition of Scripture-tradition-defined dogmas, the old realistic, mysteric and unitarian sense of paradosis or tradition is recovered with Casel, and at the same time the permanent actualization of Christ in the Church. From this vantage point the non-relativistic conceptions of Schillebeeckx and of Zubiri on the historic-concrete universality of revelation transmitted in the tradition, in particular, in the defined dogma, as actualization and identity, is exposed. Finally, it is suggested that Zubiris's aspectualism has a wider reach than Schillebeeckx's perspectivism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article elaborates on the role and responsibilities of the church regarding natural law and reason, as outlined in the religious document "Profesión de Fe." The attention required of Christians individually to this domain is discussed, as well as the possibility of raising conscientious objections regarding the decisions of church authorities. The author explains that the Catholic Church receives the word of god both in sacred scripture and tradition, which is in contrast to Lutheran Christianity.

Evangelical hermeneutics and the notion of inerrancy are marked by concordism. An examination of the structure and origin of the heavens in Scripture offers an opportunity to reconsider the popular assumption that statements in the Bible align with the facts of nature. The ancient Near Eastern notion of a solid firmament upholding a heavenly sea appears in the Word of God. An approach to inerrancy without concordism is proposed that is rooted in the very words of the Bible and modeled upon the Incarnation. The implications of ancient science in Scripture for the evangelical debate on origins are considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on Thomas More's polemics on the religious movement attempting to reform the Roman Catholic Church. It says that the Reformation contributes on the conflict in communication not only on the issue of which church had the authority to transmit the doctrine, but also on how God communicates with people. Reformers insists that a return to the Bible could be of help to return Christendom to its original path since the scripture contains the saving message of Christianity. They also contend that the Catholic Church had substituted the Word of God with human traditions and rituals. More argues that God reveals himself to humanity through the Catholic Church and that revelation is a temporal phenomenon.

Copyright of Anthropologica is the property of CASCA and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Presents an illustrative example of an anonymous treatise with scriptural testimonies used against the Jews. Scriptural testimonies against the Jews; Affirmation about the word of God and the Holy Spirit; Religious beliefs of Jews.

The main point of this article is that the historical critical method of biblical interpretation experiences a dilemma today. The principles it has adopted, as a legitimate son of the Enlightenment, have matured and caused this quandary. In spite of the high regard it received in its inception and even today, there is nothing neutral and scientific about it. This method appeared, first of all, in response to J. Solomo Semler's call for a distinction between Word of God and Scripture. To make this distinction -- which is a theological one -- is the primary objective of the historical critical method and has determined its operation. Several critical methods arose from this starting point, the main ones being source criticism, form criticism and redaction criticism. The dilemma this article speaks of has been voiced by several German scholars like Gerhard Maier, Eta Linneman, and Peter Stuhlmacher. The historical critical method assumed, from the start, dogmatic presuppositions about God and revelation, which reflect a rejection of Scripture's authority and infallibility. It has also established an impossible goal: to separate the normative canon from the formal canon and to make an exegetical distinction between the Word of God and Scripture. Such goals are methodologically impossible without apriori theological presuppositions. Also, the historical critical method has opened a deep chasm between the academy and the Church, not only due to the lack of practical results, but also because it has prevented the Church to get access to the Scriptures. The method has forgotten that human reason alone cannot respond adequately to divine revelation. The article pleads, as conclusion, for a method of interpretation historically associated to the grammatical-historical method, which has as its basic assumptions the inspiration, authority, and veracity of Scriptures, and the unity of the formal canon. Also, a method that is sensitive to the findings of other modern sciences, especially those in the area of language and communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From the Christian perspective, creation exists through the Word of God. The Word of God does not create God again but brings forth the absolute "otherness" of God: creation. The nature of God is to exist. God is existence as unity in the diversity of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The gift of created existence reflects the triune nature of the Word of God. It is synthesis of diversity into unity that creates. Nature brings forth new existence by unifying what it already brought forth previously. Therefore, the creative process of nature is self-similar and nonlinear: self-similar because at all levels it is synthesis that brings forth novelty; nonlinear because the properties of the new unities are not present in their (isolated) elements. The new properties of the wholes, however, do not destroy the properties of the parts. Rather, the elements integrated into new wholes become creatively transformed. This is because the parts become carriers of the whole, which transforms the parts through its presence. The parts become and express the qualities of the whole, qualities that the parts do not possess in isolation. Synthesis, therefore, transforms the parts creatively, because synthesis is creative. The qualities of the parts become "elevated" because the whole becomes present in and through the parts. The understanding of creation as the result of sequential, creative transformations offers a glance into the mystery of the Word of God present in the Eucharist. Here, too, the elements of bread and wine are not destroyed but elevated, creatively transformed into the Word of God. The elements (bread and wine) become the carrier of a transcendent "quality," the Word of God. From this perspective, creation and the sacrament of the Eucharist illuminate each other. This is because the Word of God that creates the otherness of creation and the Word of God present in the Eucharist is the same. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a lectionary on engaging the texts for the 12th Sunday after Pentecost on August 16, 2015. Topics discussed include the readings from the book of Ephesians and John about the role of the Word played in the key of wisdom, the fruit of reflection experienced in the light of God's living Word, and the figure of wisdom as portrayed in scripture.

This article is a historical research on some aspects of the Reformed theology of preaching. After calling attention to the decline of contemporary preaching and suggesting some reasons behind it, the author attempts to demonstrate that, as far as its nature is concerned, the preaching of the Word of God is vox Dei. Through the solemn proclamation of God's Word by ministers commissioned by God himself, Christ is spiritually present (as he is in the sacraments), he speaks and governs his church. Due to its higher view concerning its nature, Reformed theology ascribes great importance top reaching. It is the main means of grace, the primary task of the church and of the minister, the central element of worship in this dispensation of grace, the essential mark of the church, and the instrument by which God's kingdom is opened or closed to sinners. Concerning its efficacy, it does not depend so much on the personal abilities of the preacher or of the hearers, as it depends on the action of the Holy Spirit in the preparation, delivery and hearing of the message. Preachers must work hard to interpret the Word and deliver it faithfully. The hearers should receive the preached word with attention, reverence, faith and obedience. But the Holy Spirit alone can make it efficacious, assisting and enabling the preacher and illuminating and convincing the hearers. Nevertheless, genuine preaching is never in vain, for the kingdom of God is also promoted in the condemnation of the reprobates. The purpose of Reformed preaching consists in being faithful to the sense, significance and purpose of the biblical text; in the conversion of sinners and restoration of God's image in the hearers; and in the promotion of the kingdom and glory of God in the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article on "Pietism: A Challenge to Piety and Theology" in a certain way continues the previous "Protestant Orthodoxy: A Challenge to Theology and Piety" (Fides Reformata 3/1 [Jan-Jun 1998] 50-71). Costa starts with the work of Spener, Pia Desideria (1675), showing its emphasis on a deeper fellowship with God and its strong emotional character founded on the Word of God. The article also highlights the importance of Pietism for missions, especially through Francke and Zinzendorf, and its influence on Wesley. Costa argues that Pietism was more in harmony with the spirit of modern empiricism that with Protestant orthodoxy and shows that some of the main exponents of the Enlightenment and theological liberalism studied in Pietist and Moravian schools. The article also argues that the Theology of Princeton was formed under two strong emphases: Protestant Orthodoxy and Pietism, bringing together two fundamental elements: scholarship and piety. In his conclusion, Costa points out, along Calvinistic lines, the need for a "theology of the heart," that is to say, a theology that has decisive repercussions for all the areas of human existence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the use of the Greek term "logos" in the opening words of the Gospel of John, suggesting that its origin and usage is explained clearly within the Gospel's own literary content. Topics addressed include central themes of the fourth gospel, the contents of the the Epistle of 1 John and the Gospel's prologue, and a review of other contemporary explanations for the word's etymological significance.

In his essay Portela shows how modern references to the Reformation have distorted its main thrust -- the reformers have been presented with characteristics that vary from narrow-minded men, seekers of their own interests, to socio-political revolutionaries. Also, the Reformation has lately been celebrated as an ecumenical event rather than are affirmation of cardinal doctrines buried by Roman Catholic tradition. The result has been the loss, for today's evangelical church, of the distinctiveness that prompted the Reformation. Commenting about the document "Evangelical and Catholics Together," Portela points out that the historical revisionism of the Reformation has diluted the doctrine of salvation, even in reformed circles. Recognizing that the Reformers were fallible men, and that even the 95 Theses have theological flaws, Portela states that the Reformation was essentially a spiritual movement in which the Bible and its teachings were rediscovered in purity and uniqueness. It is not precise, therefore, to say that new doctrines were formulated by that movement. Portela finds the modern church lacking, among other things, in its emphasis on the concept of sin, of justification by faith alone, of the vital authority of the Word of God, of the priesthood of the believer, and of the sovereignty of God. One of the examples given to substantiate his claims is the gradual departure from biblical inerrancy shown at mainline evangelical seminaries, such as Fuller. In his conclusion, Portela calls the church to have courage to continue proclaiming the eternal message of the God of the Reformation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article on reformed theology Anglada deals with the reformed doctrine of the supreme authority of Scripture. Assuming a theological, ecclesiastical and liturgical crisis in modern evangelicalism, particularly in Brazil, he summarizes the biblical basis of the doctrine, and alerts against the old and new tendencies of usurping or limiting the authority of God's Word. Among the usurping tendencies against the authority of Scripture, he includes the ecclesiastical traditions degenerated into traditionalism, emotions degenerated into emotionalism, and reason degenerated into rationalism. Among the limiting tendencies he mentions the liberal negation of the very foundation of Biblical authority, the neo-orthodox confusion concerning the certainty of the authority of Scripture, and the neo-evangelical limitation of the scope of its authority. He concludes the article by calling attention to the importance of the doctrine in the sixteenth-century Reformation and by suggesting that if the modern evangelical faith and ecclesiastical practices were subjected to the scrutiny of this doctrine, a considerable number of doctrines and ecclesiastical practices would have to be rejected, and a new reformation would take place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the illuminated "Great Bible" by King Henry VIII of England. The "Great Bible" is the authorized edition of the Bible in English. It contains an illustrated title page that is a key instrument in bringing a fundamental political message. The bible has a three-volume presentation copy on vellum in which merchant Anthony Marler has one version. However, his version is different from the printed editions. The printed and illuminated versions of the bible indicate that Henry VII is the disseminator of the word of God to the English people.

This article examines the homiletic theory applied in the book Arte of Rhetorique, by Thomas Wilson. The book is a successful effort to demonstrate to Wilson's contemporaries that Latin rhetoric represents the best option for preaching God's Word. Protestantism had a more profound influence on him than merely preparing him for a career in politics because at that time, Protestant would have been concerned about the theological and ethical issues connected with homiletic theory in the minds of reformed Christians. On the other hand, for Martin Luther, the way one uses language is reflective of one's spiritual state and one's understanding of God's sacred Word. What Luther says has important implications for homiletic theory and practice. A devout Protestant like Wilson would necessarily take Luther's theology seriously, but he seems to turn to christian humanist Erasmus as an authority on classical literature and rhetoric and how it can be applied to all forms of discourse, including the art of preaching. To compile a rhetoric, one had to decide on how to handle both the theological implications of what one was doing and yet consider the practical aspects of the art as well. Wilson's rhetoric likewise demonstrates rhetorical effectiveness of definition.

The article discusses the importance of communication in preaching the good news of God. It is stated that communicating with God's Word is a basic part of sharing faith stories. It offers guidelines which assist in effective writing, preaching and communication with God. It is also stated that the Christ is always forgiving despite one's miscommunication with him. The one's errors in writing and speaking is considered as a sign that human are always in need for forgiveness. The forgiveness of God only comes through Christ's life, suffering, death and resurrection.