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This article explores the Puritans' perspective on the divine call to pastoral ministry. The Puritans believed that only those who were truly called by God should enter this sacred office. They emphasized the importance of a holy life and Spirit-bestowed gifts as qualifications for ministry. The article also discusses the qualities and characteristics that a minister should possess, including love, care, tenderness, prayerfulness, and compassion. The Puritans believed that the call to ministry should be motivated by love for God and a desire to serve others, rather than selfish motives. They also emphasized the importance of prayer and discernment in identifying and affirming potential ministers. [Extracted from the article]

This article reports the findings and analysis of data collected in a 2010 research study by comparing them with data collected in a replicated study conducted in 2023. Both surveys produced descriptive data from a membership sampling of churches affiliated with the Baptist Missionary Association of America (BMAA) regarding members' attitudes and practices of discipleship. Leadership of the BMAA responded to findings of the 2010 study by introducing a formal discipleship strategy (DiscipleWay) in hopes that it would increase members' practice of discipleship. The replicated study in 2023 was conducted to determine if members' attitudes and practices changed between 2010 and 2023. Analysis of the 2023 data revealed two negative conclusions of the 2010 survey was less true based on the 2023 responses. Two other conclusions of the 2010 survey were not challenged. Implications for practitioners and educators are discussed in the article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to evaluate the ecclesiology of St. Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons, particularly as it relates to his defense of orthodoxy against false teaching in his five-volume work, Against Heresies. Irenaeus employs sound reason and biblical theology in his battle against Valentinus, Marcion, and other heretics. But Irenaeus also shows himself to be not only a theologian but also a devoted churchman. In all five books, his teaching on the church plays a significant role in exposing and refuting the false Gnostic teaching of his day. This paper will argue that Irenaeus employed his ecclesiology to distinguish between Gnosticism and the apostolic teaching in Against Heresies. He did this in two ways. First, he argued for the doctrinal identity of the church. The true church is built on apostolic teaching, and any deviation from that teaching results in a false church. Second, he argued that the church’s “ecclesiastical constitution,” both in her presbyters and her members, embodied the apostles’ teaching. In all this, the church preserved the truth entrusted to her by Christ and his apostles.

In this argument, Westerkamp enters a broader scholarly conversation - also addressed in Fitzgerald's study - as to the power balance between laity and clergy in early New England. Through the lens of cultural and feminist theory, Westerkamp reconstructs Hutchinson's world by exploring both the source of Hutchinson's knowledge and piety as well as the power of her charismatic authority. Westerkamp writes of her subject with historical compassion and nuance, asserting Hutchinson's spiritual influence and leadership while also showing her importance to the overall history of early colonial New England. Fitzgerald, Romeo, and Westerkamp thus engage with both longstanding and recent debates about Puritanism and gender. [Extracted from the article]

This article proposes that the vision of moral growth offered in Proverbs serves as an alternative and antidote to the contemporary phenomenon of cancel culture. After briefly surveying cancel culture, it begins by considering the chiasmus structure of Proverbs 9. This chapter indicates that reception to correction is a key characteristic of the wise person who seeks to dine at Wisdom's table. Altogether, the proverbial theme of reproof indicates that the moral community that Proverbs envisions displays a willingness to give and receive corrective dialogue. This is a direct opposite to the phenomenon of cancel culture, which refuses to invest in others' moral growth and instead wields a view of self-achieved moral mastery. Proverbs, by contrast, insists that a wise person's receptivity to correction, and their correlative willingness to invest in others' moral growth by rebuking them in love, is related to the wise person's understanding of their place as a guest in a world hosted by Wisdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The story of the Reformation in the Commonwealth of Poland and Lithuania has been told primarily through the actions of men who purged churches, settled ministers, expelled Catholic priests, and defended the freedom of worship at the local and national level. This article challenges that androcentric perspective, drawing on synodical acts and surviving church visitations to reexamine the religious praxis of Reformed Churches (Calvinist and Church Brethren) in Lesser Poland, Greater Poland, and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It finds that, despite the absence of women in historiography, women were involved in shaping the piety and practices of the Reformed Churches from the beginning. From Katarzyna Ostroróg to Ludwika Karolina Radziwiłł women not only participated in the foundation of Protestant churches but also actively challenged patriarchal assumptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The position and composition of judicial authorities in Protestant church disciplinary law. This article discusses the relationship of the position and composition of judicial authorities in the church (disciplinary) law of the Nederlandse Gereformeerde Kerken to the position and composition of judicial authorities in: (1) the church law of the Protestantse Kerk in Nederland and the Gereformeerde Gemeenten and (2) the disciplinary law of lawyers, medics and bankers. The issue of who is authorised to take disciplinary action has been the subject of debate in secular disciplinary law. This article shows that these themes are also relevant to church disciplinary law. There are significant differences between the arrangements in the compared forms of disciplinary law. This article provides an analysis of the similarities and differences. It concludes that the differences can be partly explained, but that from a theological point of view there are also reasons to introduce additional safeguards for a prudent and careful disciplinary procedure in church law. To this end, the article contains a number of recommendations. Contribution: This article clarifies the position and composition of judicial authorities in Protestant church disciplinary law and its theological backgrounds, and also provides recommendations from a (disciplinary) comparative law perspective with other groups. These recommendations are relevant to church law practice.

This article is a study on the miniature clay Buddha tablets and stupas collected by the Ōtani Expedition presently at the National Museum of Korea. Similar examples were found in the Dunhuang cave temples, Buddhist stupas of Xi Xia, and through English and American expeditions of the early twentieth century. A comparative study establishes the functions and characteristics unique to the Ōtani clay tablets and stupas. Such artifacts were once believed to absolve the transgressions of the dead or commissioner, while also allowing one to accumulate merits for an improved afterlife. Well-suited for Buddhist missionary work, these tablets and stupas were produced in all regions where Buddhism was prevalent. Though small and made from a modest material, the miniature clay tablets and stupas represent an important genre of Buddhist art that expresses the universal role of religious art. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This study investigated the influence of the Church Doctrine on romantic relationships formation among young Christian adults in Masvingo grounded on three distinctive pillars which are; ecumenism, church doctrine and interpersonal attraction. A phenomenological research design encompassing twelve (12) semi-structured in-depth interviews was employed to explore the influence of Church doctrine on romantic relationships formation. The thematic analysis of interview transcripts was utilized and six broad themes were laid bare: 1. Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers, 2. Adventists believe in marriage and courtship, 3. Getting involved with potential suitors outside the fold is tantamount to church discipline. 4. A man's body is a temple of the Lord; therefore, romantic relationships are a gift from God. 5. Marriage is a vehicle of evangelism 6. Young Christians adults' affections are set outside the teachings of the faith. The study concluded that young Christian adults are, in part, compelled by a sense of duty to consult key informants so that they get proper counsel for choosing life partners during the course of marriage and courtship. Moreover, it is imperative for a dating couple to mutually agree on the possibility of a matrimonial settlement in accordance with the teachings of fundamental beliefs. Romantic partnering must always be grounded on rudiments of interpersonal attraction hence, the need to harmonize forces that draw people together and teachings of the church doctrine. The study recommended that young Christian adults must strive to strike a balance between the forces that draw people together and the dictates of the church doctrine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Church discipline without content in a plural church? The Dutch theologian Leo Koffeman comes to the conclusion that church discipline is irrelevant and without content in a plural church. Such a church is the Protestant Church in the Netherlands (PKN). In its view on church life, a plural church is of the opinion that it should rather cater for people of different religious and ethical viewpoints. This approach is applied to a variety in beliefs and behaviour among members. According to this conviction, a difference in viewpoint enriches the members involved spiritually. The need for church discipline in order to keep the church obedient to its Head, Jesus Christ and His commands and to prevent members from opposing the beliefs in the church, is neither accepted nor advocated in a plural church. Against this line of thought, reformed churches like the Dutch Reformed Church in Southern Africa keep to reformed confessions like the Confessio Belgica and the Heidelberg Catechism. Through their General Synod they opt for these confessions as a biblically based norm for the church. By making these two documents part of their confessions, the Dutch Reformed Church confesses church discipline as a core issue in a truly reformed church. The difference between truly plural and truly reformed churches on discipline boils down to the difference between a humanistic and a Biblical point of departure. The author associates with the latter. Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: In this article, the ecclesiological implications of a reformed, modernistic and post-modernistic approach of life meet. The topic is church discipline: an ecclesiastical, ethical and church political issue reflected in the reformed confessions of faith referred to. A philosophical and ethical approach of church discipline is thus reflected.

The passage of Scripture under consideration in this study, James 5:13–20, is important for several reasons. First, this pericope occurs at the very end of the letter, which is normally a position of topical prominence in the epistles— providing some information that the writer, in closing, did not want his readers to forget. Second, both the form and the content of this text draw attention to its significance, that is, being composed in a very dynamic rhetorical style and dealing with personal sin and forgiveness. Finally, this section includes a selection of words, phrases, and even some complete statements that may have been misunderstood, mistranslated, and hence also misapplied in the history of biblical interpretation, namely, with reference to the nature of the apparent “weakness” (ἀσθενέω) that James’s readers are encouraged to “pray” (προσεύχομαι) about (vv. 14–15). In order to lay the necessary foundation for the present examination of this concluding portion of the letter, an initial survey of some of the main contours of its inductive, oratorical organization is provided. This discourse overview provides intratextual support for the hypothesis that the passage concluding chapter five may be viewed as the climax of James’s powerful epistolary exhortation, not simply an afterthought or an apostolic “PS.” Individual spiritual sickness is indeed a serious issue and needs to be dealt with proactively by fellow faith-motivated members of the Body of Christ (5:19–20).

Deep divisions in theological perspective have been a persistent theme in American Catholicism. One lesser known, yet significant example of this reality played out in mid-twentieth century Boston. Father Leonard Feeney, a prominent Jesuit who had gained notoriety as a writer and speaker, became embroiled in a controversy which was both theological and disciplinary, leading to his eventual censure, dismissal from the Society of Jesus, and excommunication. The details of Father Feeney's theological stance and discipline by both local and Roman officials have been well documented, but unbeknownst to many before he died in 1978, he was fully reconciled with the church. This latter story, which has only been described in passing or in brief detail in published sources, requires a much fuller description and analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The work of the eighteenth-century English ecclesiastical courts has received very little scholarly attention when compared with their seventeenth- or nineteenth century counterparts or the eighteenth-century temporal courts. And yet there was significant overlap between the two systems, particularly between the 'disciplinary' work of the ecclesiastical courts and the 'criminal' work of the temporal courts. Using a heuristic of 'weak' legal pluralism, this article examines the work of the ecclesiastical courts and shows that neither system can be understood adequately without reference to the other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The centuries-old documents in the possession of the Reformed Christian congregations in southern Slovakia, within them in the settlements of the Gemer region, are still an untapped resource for historians and ethnographers. Most parishes in this region keep such documents, such as registers, minutes of presbyteries and assemblies, treasurer's books, records of the history of the congregation, etc. In this study we are looking at one of the documents (a specific record of a presbytery and assembly) of the Reformed Christian congregation of our place of residence, Feled, which covers a relatively narrow period of time, not quite 13 years. However, both in the larger history and in the life of the local community, these were some of the most eventful years of the 20th century, as the minutes begin on 11 October 1914 and end on 30 January 1927. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the large volume of archival materials on church discipline in Russia of the XIX – early XX centuries, this topic has been studied rather poorly. This article analyzes the source base on the church discipline in the Pskov diocese based on the materials of the State Archive of the Pskov region. During the study of these sources, a count of specific violations of the church discipline among the laity, church officers and the clergy was made, and the main categories of offenses were identified. The main types of punishments for violating church discipline are shown. The gender composition of laypeople in the structure of offenses is considered. The structure of the titles of archival cases concerning violations of the church discipline is also addressed. The author came to the conclusion that clerics were punished mainly for drunkenness and official misconduct. In relation to the laity, the Pskov Spiritual Consistory most often considered cases related to the violations of sexual morality and illegal marriages, as well as murders and suicide attempts. This work is relevant because at present the Russian Orthodox Church is continuing to create unified documentation regulating the issues of the church court. This study, in turn, allows us to update the historical experience of regulating the church discipline and assigning punishments for its violation. The uniqueness of this work lies in the fact that the materials on the church discipline of the Pskov diocese of the XIX – early XX centuries have been analyzed for the first time, and the data obtained were introduced into scientific circulation.

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A patriarchal culture, reinforced by church discipline, has been ascribed to Wesleyan Methodism in the first half of the nineteenth century. This article returns to the same archives, Hinde Street Church in London, to present a more nuanced view of Methodist discipline. There were women who held influential positions in Methodist chapels, and they resisted ministerial authority with the support of male as well as female members. During this period, the Church was increasingly focused on maintaining a supportive community, with signifiers of status other than gender, such as perceived 'usefulness' in the church community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Estonian Society of Church History was established only in 1997. Unlike the Estonian societies of history and theology, it was not a matter of restoring the society, but of creating a new one. The founders of the society were mainly researchers related to theology; later, however, people from a wider range of disciplines joined the society. As an association uniting enthusiasts, the resources for activity have been limited. The Faculty of Theology of the University of Tartu has been amongst the closest partners and has given the society the biggest support. Through this connection, in turn, the society has contributed to the development of church history as a scientific discipline in the Faculty of Theology (currently School of Theology and Religious Studies) and in Estonia in general. The Estonian Society of Church History has offered a welcome opportunity to bring together people from history and theology as two institutionally separate fields of research, over the years also involving many students. In the article we analyse the history of the society, diving it into different periods, and argue that the biggest achievement of the society has been the ability to bring together and involve specialists from various disciplines, finding new ways in the changing circumstances to fulfill the goals of the society to contribute to the promotion of church history as a discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Daß der Verfasser der ‚Kirchengeschichte' von seinem nordhumbrischen Standpunkt aus ganz gewiß nicht I sine ira et studio i über die britischen Nachbarn schrieb und seine Darstellung des britisch-‚englischen' Verhältnisses insofern einen ideologischen Charakter aufweist, liegt auf der Hand: Zweifellos suchte Beda in der Geschichte nach Gründen, die Briten nicht zu mögen. Ganz im Gegenteil versieht er die Landnahme - die im Gegensatz zu Gildas gerade bei Beda durch den ethnographischen Diskurs in HE I, 15 sehr deutlich als eine solche faßbar wird - mit einer religiösen Begründung, die zwar durch die Autorität der Vorlage gedeckt ist, sich in ihren Schwerpunktsetzungen indes deutlich von dieser unterscheidet. Beda, die Briten und die ‚Theologisierung' der Angelsachsen Die Analyse des gewandelten Britenbildes und der damit verbundenen unterschiedlichen Darstellung des britisch-angelsächsischen Verhältnisses eröffnet damit auch Perspektiven auf die übergeordnete Problematik, in die sich der vorliegende Beitrag einordnet: Wie geht Beda mit der Spannung zwischen den beiden identifikatorischen Polen seiner ‚Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum' um - mit der Spannung zwischen ethnischer und ethischer, anglisch-angelsächsischer und christlich-kirchlicher Tendenz? Beda konstatiert nicht nur den ‚Rollenwechsel' von Briten und Angelsachsen - aus dem Gottesvolk von einst werden Ungläubige und I vice versa i -, sondern er illustriert die einzelnen Schritte dieses Wandlungsprozesses und ihre weltlichen Konsequenzen anhand zweier Konfliktepisoden, die gerade auf die gebildeteren Mitglieder der bernicischen Kriegergesellschaft, für die Beda vermutlich auch schrieb, großen Eindruck machen mußten. [Extracted from the article]

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People are initiated into the church by baptism. But what does it mean when baptism is administered to an infant? What does it mean that a baptised child is a member of the church? What privileges and responsibilities accompany that membership? This article explores discussions of and decisions about the admission of baptised members to the Lord's Supper and the discipline of baptised member in the Christian Reformed Church in North America. Marked by a lack of consensus about the status and spiritual standing of baptised children, these discussions and decisions reveal ambiguity about infant baptism and church membership. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article deals with church life in Sardinia in the 6th century and is based on material from the letters of Gregory the Great. Metropolitan of Sardinia, Januarius, was not able to keep the island in order and to control his subordinate clerics; moreover, he himself was involved in crimes several times. The article studies various examples of violation of church discipline by clerics of Sardinia and their negligence of ordinances of church councils. Thus, priests often behaved in an improper and corrupt manner, did not obey the metropolitan, baptised incorrectly. The provincial council was rarely convened; several sees remained without a bishop due to Januarius’ negligence. All this much upset St. Gregory the Great, who did his best at trying to strengthen church discipline in the island. In his letters addressed to Januarius, the Pope scrutinised mistakes and faults of the latter appealing to the Bible and ordinances of conciliar canons. Typically, St. Gregory always provides arguments for his position. At the same time, he tried to raise Januarius’ authority in the eyes of the clergy, which he regarded as the base for order and stability. The letters of St. Gregory the Great demonstrate that church life in the region directly depended on metropolitan’s personality and character. This conclusion accords with the Cura pastoralis by St. Gregory which describes the epitome of a bishop: the bishop is able to manage his community and set his fl ock and clergy on the right path only on condition that he possesses certain moral standards.

This article traces the origins and progress toward publication of John Smith's edition of Bede's Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum. Particular focus is centred on an annotated copy of Abraham Wheloc's edition of 1643/1644, now held in the British Library, containing manuscript collations of the Latin and Old English Bede texts, made by Smith himself and others. These collations and other surviving documents provide fresh insights into Smith's skill as an editor, and furnish new evidence about the state of the Old English manuscript Otho B XI, largely destroyed in the 1731 Cottonian Library fire. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Musicologists have already examined the relationships between Carlo Borromeo and music. However, the archbishop of Milan has been for a long time associated with a standard set of themes: actuation of musical decrees of the Council of Trent, intelligibility of the sung texts, discipline of church musicians and so on. In its first part, the present paper shows how this topic requires further investigation. The following part of the research takes into consideration printed materials produced during Borromeo's episcopacy to examine his personal musical theology and to confirm that music was important and meaningful for him. In the last three parts of the work, attention is focused on Borromeo's epistolary housed in the Biblioteca Ambrosiana of Milan: starting from these documents, it is possible to discover, for example, new musical connections between Borromeo and -Nicc,16 Sfondrati, bishop of Cremona, or between Borromeo and Wilhelm V, duke of Bavaria; furthermore, these letters contain new details about Luca Marenzio and Giovanni Giacomo Gastoldi, as well as new elements regarding Borromeo's activity as music patron. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over time, church members became increasingly dissatisfied with the results of church-led arbitration hearings, asserting that decisions lacked impartiality or failed to consider matters from a jurisprudential viewpoint. Perry's use of civil court records alongside church records is novel in examining ecclesiastical disciplinary matters. As the economic landscape of the United States changed rapidly during the market revolution of the 1820 s, church members found it necessary "to look beyond church walls for effective arbitration within an economy shaped by impersonal market forces" (p. 83). [Extracted from the article]

The Church was a powerful institution in early modern times with courts to enforce its laws on the people at large. Most historians, however, consider its disciplinary machinery to be in decline by the 1690s, while Evan Davies claims there was a new vitality in the enforcement of religious conformity in the Diocese of Worcester after the Restoration. What were the nature and extent of the Church's controls over society? Charge sheets in surviving consistory court books show the nature of church concerns and how these changed over time, while analyses of numbers summoned, their attendance at court and completion of business reveal the extent of its controls over society. The article traces trajectories over the seventeenth century to bring a broader perspective than Evan Davies to these questions. It sets Worcester within trends in other dioceses to confirm that the Church was a diminishing force in society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an increasingly individualistic culture, we have somewhat lost sight of the important community aspect of Christianity, particularly when it comes to church discipline. One of the more challenging aspects of modern church ministry is what to do when a person's behaviour threatens the unity and wellbeing of the community. In the NT, we see harsh measures applied to such people, but how do we translate these examples into today's church? This article looks at the practice of exile or expulsion in the world of the NT generally and the Pauline communities specifically. It will then consider the implications of the practice, as revealed in scripture, and the challenges presented to its implementation in the modern church. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The article argues that developments in introspection and a more personalized approach to confessional practices in late medieval-early modern times resulted in a tension between privacy and safety, which is highly relevant today. It mentions apprehensions concerning privacy of confession as articulated by clergy and historical anthropology's view of privacy as a precondition to personhood. It also mentions public acknowledgement of guilt and its public expiation and Christian community.

This article examines the historic discourse on public discipline around sexuality in the African context and its ascendancy, through missionary emphasis on Christian marriage, across multiple denominations and cultural locations in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Foreign missionaries and African leaders struggled with abuses of discipline and were aware of the inequity of discipline globally. Public discipline was extremely uncommon at this time in North Atlantic contexts, but became a foundational aspect of African Christian life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Studi e Materiali di Storia delle Religioni is the property of Editrice Morcelliana S.p.A. 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.)