Biblical Perspective Research Articles

Biblical Perspective and Educational Domains in Sex Education: Addressing Gaps in Indonesian Sex Education

In Indonesia, sex education is delivered in public high schools as part of the biology curriculum and under the topic of reproductive health. According to the government’s view, when schools teach students properly about reproductive health, they will have a good understanding of their sexuality. Therefore, there is no need to have any further sexual education outside of the school curriculum. However, about half of the teenagers living in major cities are involved in premarital sex, and the rate of teen abortion and HIV infections is high. This article examined the implementation of sexual education in public high schools in Indonesia using a combination of qualitative and quantitative research. The survey was done on a sample of 416 students from 30 provinces and 66 cities in Indonesia. The finding support a particular approach to sex education that incorporates cognitive, affective, and psychomotor learning aspects of educational taxonomy. We find that it is essential to develop a separate sex education module in addition to the current reproductive health topic taught in biology to encourage students to practice abstinence, rather than just teaching reproductive health.

Women in Ministry: Re-Reading 1 Corinthians 14:33-35 in the 21st Century Context

<p class="abstracttextDILIGENTIA">First Corinthians 14:33-35 reveals one of the many controversies about the roles of women in ministry in the church today. Many scholars have given diverse interpretations of the verses. The verses have led many people, including many Christian denominations, to have some positions on women in ministry. The thrust of this article is to explore the correct interpretation of the verses based on some historical and biblical perspectives. The work adopted the historical and biblical exegesis method. Feminism theory was also considered in the work. The work concluded that 1 Corinthians 14:33-35 should not be interpreted literally. It must be interpreted within its context. It also concluded that women have their roles to play in the world and in the propagation of the gospel of Christ, regardless of attempts by men to relegate them to the background.</p>

Poverty as a Hindrance to Accessing Quality Healthcare in Ghana: A Theological and Pastoral Reflection

Access to quality healthcare is a key requirement in every modern society. In developed countries, majority of the populace has access to quality and affordable healthcare. However, in developing countries such as Ghana, hospitals with quality infrastructure, healthcare equipment, drugs, and well-trained health practitioners are limited and expensive to access. Given the significant number of people living in extreme poverty in Ghana, it is not surprising that many people experience deterioration in their health and eventually die due to the inability to access and/or afford quality healthcare. In the current situation, where economic hardship keeps increasing in the country, there is a need to engage in a discussion on how healthcare can be made available and affordable to people of all economic classes. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to assess the limitations that poverty places on people in their quest to access healthcare and offer solutions from theological and pastoral perspectives. This paper employed qualitative and historical descriptive research designs to describe the current state of affairs of the impact that poverty has on access to health care in Ghana. The paper used data collected from secondary sources such as books, journal articles and dissertations. After a careful analysis of the subject matter from the Ghanaian and biblical perspectives, the paper made recommendations for the nation (Ghana), the church, and all stakeholders to contribute to the provision of quality, accessible, and affordable healthcare for all irrespective of one’s financial background or economic status. Keywords: Poverty, Hindrance, Quality Health, Ghana

Patient-Centered Nursing for the Christ-Centered Nurse.

Patient-centered care (PCC), a term coined decades ago, is a key but challenging focus of nursing practice. The history, development, and current dialogue about PCC along with biblical perspectives on caregiving, wisdom, and discernment help nurses who follow Christ to offer compassionate PCC. Strategies are proposed for meaningfully engaging patients and families as active participants in healthcare. The Christian nurse can best provide consistent, effective PCC by remaining Christ-centered.

Re-reading the Story of Hagar From a Nias Bride’s Perspective

Nias women are an essential part of the social life of the Nias people, a tribe that occupies the outer islands of western Sumatra. As patriarchal customs and culture strongly govern women in communities, there are crucial issues regarding the position, function, and existence of Nias women who, on the one hand, are honored but, on the other hand, are treated as servants in the household. This article will re-read the story of Hagar in the Old Testament from the perspective of the marital life of Nias women. This reading is critical not only in identifying the root of the problem but also in providing lessons from a biblical perspective on how to survive in the oppressive patriarchal environment of a society. Using narrative analysis of the Old Testament text of Hagar, it is concluded that the Nias bride is a modern portrait of Hagar’s story in a patriarchal circle. In an unchangeable situation, Nias women must have resilience like Hagar to survive and continue to fight for their fundamental rights.

Menghadapi Stres Akademik: Solusi dari Perspektif Teologi Kristen untuk Mahasiswa

The academic world is an important focus in doing assignments, which is a process that is full of obstacles because there are many challenges that students must go through while working on it. In Indonesia, there has been a threat to the well-being of students in the form of academic stress and there are various cases of the consequences of this pressure. This article aims to outline the importance of overcoming student stress in the academic field, as well as efforts to overcome the problem based on a biblical perspective on stress. Qualitative method with analytic descriptive approach, which explains the situation under study in detail through descriptive presentation. Qualitative research methods through literature studies related to "Theological Review of Academic Stress" can be accessed by reviewing journal articles and studying theories from the literature that support this research. This research can produce relevant data through analyzing various sources of information found by the researcher through explanations based on the researcher's observations of existing data. In the next stage, the research will explore the biblical or theological perspective on stress, relating it to academic stress. The research shows the results of the complexity of academic stress with implications for mental, emotional, and physical well-being as well as the quality of academic achievement. The theological perspective highlights how important it is to manage everyone's worries and stress based on a correct understanding of theology.

Heart Preparation for Short-Term Missions.

Involvement in short-term missions experiences can be most beneficial when intentional personal and group preparation takes place. Learning about the people and history of the destination, identifying one's purpose in making the trip, asking God for direction and affirmation, meditation on Scripture, and prayer for oneself and for those who will be on the receiving end of care or ministry are wise. Willingness to take a servant's mindset and to give time and goods from a biblical perspective shows respect for those to be served.

The Gospels and Educational Leadership: Still Fascinating?

This exploration was inspired by the fact of the various studies both on the gospels and educational leadership, as well as the researcher’s interest in educational leadership. The study did not explore these concepts from a theological or biblical perspectives of leadership in the gospels, but rather takes an explanatory stance on how the researcher interprets different leadership events in the gospels when compared with contemporary educational leadership theories. In particular, taking into consideration the models of educational leadership as suggested by Bush and Glover (2003, 2014) as valuable contemporary typologies. The study delves in the role of Jesus as a leader and the role of leadership in the New Testament, leadership in general with further emphasis on educational leadership. The study was explored using desk research by gathering information and insights from various scholars and analysing them to interpret the correlation between leadership, in particular leadership in the gospels with contemporary educational leadership concepts. The study suggests that there is much more to be explored but there is much in common with leadership theories dating back around 2000 years with today’s typologies.

Divine power, justice, and reconciliation

This contribution seeks to provide a plausible answer to the question as to whether the biblical concepts of justice and reconciliation are compatible with the notion of an omnipotent God. Justice presupposes conditions of injustice, while reconciliation presupposes situations of enmity. This give rise to questions about theodicy: If God is an omnipotent and good being, why would he in the first place have allowed a dysfunctional situation where injustice and enmity could enter creation? The question is dealt with in three sections. The first evaluates answers provided by divine self-limitation theory and the opposing secundae causae theory. I point out that these theories show serious shortcomings. Section 2 reflects on divine power from a philosophical, theological, and biblical perspective. I argue that omnipotence does not mean that God possesses a capacity to act in logically impossible ways. Moreover, omnipotence is a non-necessary attribute of God. God is not a prisoner of his power but can limit and retake his power whenever he wants to. Section 3 deals with the relation between divine power, justice, and reconciliation. I argue that the topic of divine power must be approached through a trinitarian lens that understands God’s attributes in terms of his ad intra perichoretic communion which is revealed ad extra through the concrete ways in which God deals with us. Seen in this light, the exercise of divine power is intricately related to God’s nature as a faithful, loving, and free being who allows for creaturely freedom and who decides to redeem and renew rather than to coerce and obliterate.

Man as the Perfect Image of God in Biblical Perspective

Man as the Perfect Image of God in Biblical Perspective

The Role of Human Suffering in Christian Life: A Theological Reflection on Biblical Teaching

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of human suffering in Christian life: a theological reflection on biblical teaching. The researcher used secondary data collection that is theological books, articles, and the Bible. The research was carried out in the library of Africa International University. The study adopted the Biblical perspective and Theological reflection of human suffering. The main methodology was a pastoral circle of sharing the experience of different people going through suffering while providing social analysis, theological reflection, and pastoral action. Suffering in the Old Testament was linked to the disobedience of the first human beings who were Adam and Eve. This proved that Christians suffer due to their sins and disobedience to God. In some cases, however, suffering is neither a punishment from God nor due to disobedience but is sometimes experienced so that God’s name may continue to be glorified. The study concluded that suffering is a core part of a Christian’s life and it always has a purpose. God uses suffering to manifest Himself to His people, teach His people a lesson, and glorify His name among nations. Suffering happens to connect Christians with God. Prayer helps Christians to experience suffering with courage and hope. The role of suffering in a Christian’s life was to reveal God’s presence, power and glory. The study recommended the Church focus more on teaching Christians about suffering so that they should understand the meaning of suffering with perseverance in their Christian walk. The thesis recommended future studies to focus on the role of the church in Christian suffering. This would help to unravel how the Church responds to the suffering of its followers and how it helps in building its followers’ faith and development through challenges and suffering. This will help to place the Church in a good position to be partaker of its followers’ suffering thus building a strong and permanent relationship with its members.

Three perspectives on the notion of ‘the best interests of the child’

The research reported in this article was centred on three research questions about the issue of ensuring that, in education and schooling, the principle of the best interests of the child is respected. The inauspicious treatment of children through the ages led the international community in the form of the United Nations to adopt its Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in 1989. The series of developments culminating in the adoption of the CRC led to the formulation of the following three research questions: (1) What motivated the United Nations to adopt its CRC, in particular its formulation of the notion of ‘the best interests of the child’? (2) How did the notion of ‘the best interests of the child’ subsequently find expression in the 1996 Constitution of the Republic of South Africa and the South African jurisprudence following thereafter? (3) What perspectives does the Bible, as the Word of God, provide on the notion of ‘the best interests of the child’? Interpretivism-constructivism was used in putting together the thesis developed in this article. Interpretivism was applied to the results of an initial literature study on the status of the child, followed by constructivism in construing the line of argumentation that follows. The second part of the article emerged after a critical analysis of the post-1994 legislation and jurisprudence in South Africa. The norm set by the CRC has been respected since the advent of the new political dispensation in South African legislation and subsequent jurisprudence. The Bible, as the Word of God, also provides perspectives regarding the notion of ‘the best interests of the child’, although it does not employ this phrase as such. It teaches that since children are human beings and created in the image of God, and also because they are vulnerable, they have to be treated with loving care, respect, sympathy, and empathy.Contribution: The article sheds light on the way the concept ‘best interests of the child’ attained international acceptance and subsequently obtained application in the South African constitutional arena since 1994. It also creates a link between legal stipulations and biblical perspectives regarding the notion of ‘the best interests of the child’.

Kedalaman Jiwa: Perspektif Alkitab Tentang Hakekat Manusia

In a Biblical perspective, human nature is understood as a creature created by God that is unique and different from other creations of God. Humans are unique in intellectual, social, physical and spiritual terms, which contain responsibilities towards themselves, others, nature andto God.Humans consist of body, soul and spirit, each of which has an important role in human life. .the body reveals the human person in its entirety from an outward aspect, while the soul or life reveals the whole person from an inner aspect, as a creature that breathes, wills, thinks, and so on. The spirit is the aspect of human life with an inner mind too, which can receive andexpress spiritual observations.

A Duty to Remain Connected: a Biblical Perspective of the Wisdom of the Shabbàt.

Our labour is intricately woven into our identity, extending beyond mere livelihood. It ought to facilitate personal growth, define our societal roles, and contribute to a common good within the confines of social and environmental sustainability. However, the contemporary work landscape is undergoing profound and global changes, disrupting traditional and conventional notions of work dynamics and its associated relationships. Amidst the diverse and country-specific alterations, a universal paradigm shift is reshaping nearly every sector of the economy. The pressing question emerges: How can we prevent the shift toward more flexible employment from translating into a life of perpetual instability? As job structures become more malleable and the boundaries between professional and personal life blur, the risks of self-exploitation and work-induced stress loom. In navigating these transformations, we must discern the evolving paradigms of work and consider their social and economic repercussions. What lessons are we being prompted to internalize as the European work landscape undergoes unprecedented changes? It becomes imperative to explore these shifts and their implications for a sustainable and equitable future. Exploring the existential insights of the Shabbàt and extracting valuable lessons from biblical wisdom prompts us to ponder the significance of rest in fostering healthy relationships and connectivity—with ourselves, others, our work, and our shared environment. The prevalent culture of constant availability and the obligation to stay connected could benefit from a biblical perspective, particularly in grasping the essence of Shabbàts wisdom.

The Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church: A Fresh Biblical Perspective by Archibald L. H. M. Van Wieringen (review)

The Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church: A Fresh Biblical Perspective by Archibald L. H. M. Van Wieringen (review)

Moral Values, Sanctity of Life for Nation Building: A Biblical Perspective

Nigerians from the onset, have a peculiar culture which is known in their ways of life. Their values and norms as elements of this their ways of life are embedded in moral education. However, in Nigerian society today, there is a high rate of negligence of societal moral values while many vices such as: dishonesty, disrespect of elders, insecurity, kidnapping, banditry, raping, corruption, bribery, and many others prevail. In light of the above, this paper examines the role of moral values and the sanctity of life in nation-building. Moral education is a means through which individuals are formed and reformed through qualitative training and retraining of human beings who are agents of development in society. The paper also considers moral education as a means of regenerating these norms and moral values. Again, the paper discovers among other things that moral values which are seen as behavioural conduct and attitude, should be displayed and encouraged by members of the society to build and revitalized the nation. Several recommendations were made and emphasis was laid on the need for moral values taught in moral education, with the collaboration of parents and government by imparting good moral values on the Nigerian Citizens. Keywords: Moral Values, Education, Sanctity of life, Nation Building.

Studi Komparatif Terhadap Narasi Eksorsisme Roh Jahat Dalam Film The Nun I Sampai II dan Eksorsisme Yesus Dalam Markus 1:21-28

Films featuring scenes of the expulsion of evil powers have been widely published to provide entertainment to the public, while also showcasing certain values within the narrative they visualize. One horror genre film that has garnered considerable interest is "The Nun I and II." These films depict the struggle of several priests attempting to expel the evil spirit named Valak. There are several scenes showing how the characters in the film beseech God for strength to defeat the dark power of Valak. The exorcism narrative depicted in these films offers several points of interest to be examined from a biblical perspective. Speaking of exorcism, the Gospel of Mark also presents several stories of exorcism performed by Jesus against evil spirits. This paper compares the exorcism narrative portrayed in "The Nun I and II" with the exorcism narrative performed by Jesus in the Gospel of Mark, as recounted in Mark 1:21-28. The purpose of the comparison presented in this paper is to demonstrate the relevance (similarities) and irrelevance (differences) of the concept of exorcism as portrayed in both "The Nun I and II" and Mark 1:21-28, enabling one to identify which points align and which do not align with the latter as one of the texts describing exorcism performed by Jesus.

Whom Should a Christian Vote? Facing Identity Politics from Biblical Perspective on Presidential Election

Indonesia stands firm in its democratic values and respects its presidential election in 2024. However, the scent of the history of identity politics still lingers and threatens the harmony of voting. Even though identity politics seem to be a common and acceptable method, it bears danger, especially to Christians as a minority. This can happen through the burdens and biases of Christians to vote. Through descriptive literature methods of biblical perspective with contextual interpretation alongside political reviews and literature, this paper tries to answer the question of how a Christian should vote for their future leader amidst the pressure of identity politics. The Bible can be a clear guideline to show that such political events and methods had already occurred in the Old Testament and New Testament eras. The wisdom contained in the Proverbs that was intended for future young leaders, as well as the wisdom of Jesus Christ, can help shape the answer on how a Christian should vote for their future leaders. This paper finds that Christians as minorities should try to be objective following biblical standards and the quality of a leader, such as righteousness, multiple councils, servanthood, and accountability, rather than drowning in misconceptions of defensive and subjective votes based on religion-ethnicity sameness or popular opinion.

Ecofeminist Perspectives and Familial Dynamics: Exploring Women’s Roles in Environmental Sustainability and the Filipino Concept of “Ate”

This essay explores women’s role in environmental sustainability drawing from the Filipino concept of “Ate.” Through a contrapuntal analysis, it unveils the convergence and divergence between women’s roles in formal environmental advocacy and as caregivers within the family, emphasizing the interconnectedness of these roles. Examining birth order in Filipino culture reveals the early-age responsibilities, particularly for first-born females, highlighting their leadership, teaching, and caregiving roles. The study underscores women’s significant role as environmental stewards, both locally and globally, aligning with the biblical concept of overseeing and caring for the Earth. The exploration of women as promoters of welfare, within Filipino culture and through environmental protection efforts, demonstrates diverse contributions to community and planetary well-being. The study intertwines biblical perspectives with cultural insights, emphasizing shared responsibility for Earth stewardship. In conclusion, it calls for a comprehensive understanding of women’s contributions in environmental and familial spheres, recognizing their pivotal and interconnected roles. As the world faces urgent environmental challenges, leveraging the diverse perspectives and actions of women emerges as crucial for sustainable and equitable solutions. The study contributes valuable insights to discussions on gender roles, environmentalism, and cultural contexts, advocating for the recognition and promotion of women’s roles in shaping a sustainable future. Keywords: ecofeminism, environmental sustainability, gender roles, caregiving, “ate” concept, formal advocacy

Foregrounding African Ontology/Epistemology: A Reading of Deuteronomy 23:3 and Ruth 4:18–22 Considering the Nature of God

Deuteronomy 23:3, says: “No … Moabite may enter the assembly of the Lord”. This verse is motivated by a discriminatory tendency embedded in the ontology of the Deuteronomist. Interestingly, Deuteronomy 23:3 was used by Ezra-Nehemiah to discriminate against the “Moabites” during the Second Temple. Such ontology is countered by the author of Ruth in the narrative of Ruth during the Second Temple. This demonstrates an ontological “war” within the Bible itself. The primary contestation lies in whether God is exclusive or inclusive. This development necessitates a hermeneutics of suspicion. In the course of history, the “theology” of Deuteronomy has been used to grossly violate the human dignity of many God-fearing African people and many other people of the South for colonial purposes. To exacerbate the situation, there were persistent attempts from some quarters to universalise such a discriminatory biblical perspective. This would feed into the centre–periphery arrangement, with the centre feeding the periphery with such hermeneutics. For this reason, African scholars are implored to be very vigilant against ardent pressures put on the biblical texts by ontological, epistemological, and contextual biases of interpretations. Accordingly, Andrew Mbuvi identifies African Biblical Hermeneutics perfectly when he says it seeks to undo “the very construct of the ‘centre-periphery’ binary by allowing the possibility of multiple centres”). Kenneth Ngwa, thus, rightly asserts that African Biblical Hermeneutics considers African epistemologies and conditions “to be invaluable and legitimate contexts and resources in biblical interpretation”), drinking from our own wells). In consequence, this paper intends to set a dialogue between Deuteronomy 23:3 and Ruth 4:18–22. This paper aims to examine the understanding of God behind these verses. This paper will then compare the two theologies with the African philosophical concept of God. Harnessing the African concept of Ubuntu, this paper will de-ideologise the two texts and thus will provide a recommendation concerning the two texts.