This study explores the Christian leadership paradigm based on the 13th-century philosophy of Thomas Aquinas, focusing on its relevance to contemporary leadership practices, especially in addressing social transformation. Amid growing challenges such as moral crises and social inequality, the need for ethical, spiritually grounded leadership has become urgent. The purpose of this study is to examine how Thomistic principles caritas (charity), prudentia (wisdom), justitia (justice), and bonum commune (common good) can guide modern Christian leadership. Using a qualitative descriptive methodology, this research conducted a theological hermeneutic analysis of Aquinas's writings, comparing them with real-world social transformation examples, such as the La Red community's impact on Bellavista Prison. The results reveal that Thomistic leadership principles provide a moral and ethical framework that not only fosters organizational effectiveness but also drives social change. By focusing on service, justice, and moral integrity, the study highlights how these principles can address the pressing issues of public integrity, structural poverty, and social solidarity in today's context. The conclusion suggests that the Thomistic model of leadership is not merely a theoretical construct but a practical tool for transforming societal structures through moral virtue and a commitment to the common good. Future research could expand on these findings in diverse organizational contexts.

Millenarianism originated from apocalyptic literature in Judaism, emphasizing that the “Messiah” would establish a “millennial kingdom” on earth ruled by the Jews. This ideology became a theoretical weapon for Jews to resist imperial tyranny during classical antiquity and was later embraced by early Christian theology. By the early modern period, with the intense unfolding of the Reformation and social upheavals, the theory of the “millennial kingdom” re-emerged as a mainstream topic in Christian theology. Regarding the nature of the “millennial kingdom” and how it would be realized, early modern Christian factions split into two interpretive camps. One emphasized the spiritual attributes of the “millennial kingdom”, while the other stressed its material aspects, advocating the violent establishment of a political entity on earth ruled by Christians. These two distinct interpretive models ultimately converged on the issue of colonial expansion, transforming millenarianism into a theoretical tool to justify overseas expansion.

This article examines Gondar during the Classical Gondarine period (1636–1769) as a political-theological center within early modern global Christianity. Drawing on royal chronicles, Jesuit missionary writings especially those of Manuel de Almeida and Pedro Páez and Ethiopian ecclesiastical sources, it analyzes how doctrinal debate and imperial authority were mutually constitutive. Rather than interpreting Jesuit involvement solely as political intrusion or theological conflict, the study argues that the encounter compelled Ethiopian rulers and clerics to redefine the relationship between orthodoxy and sovereignty. Christological controversies, missionary interventions, and synodal deliberations functioned not merely as religious disputes but as instruments of state formation and imperial consolidation. Methodologically, the study employs historical research design based on textual and archival analysis of Ethiopian and European sources. By situating Gondar within both Ethiopian and European historical memory, the article repositions the city as a central arena in which theology, political authority, and global Christian exchange intersected. Gondar thus emerges not as a peripheral site of missionary rupture, but as a formative locus in the negotiation of religious legitimacy and imperial power in early modern Christianity.

This study examines the relationship between biblical culture (Old Testament) and African traditional customs to identify similarities, differences, and contextual integration in modern Christian expression. The biblical culture depicted the marriage ceremonies, rituals, community frameworks, and theological concepts that serve as a basis for comprehending divine-human relationships, collective identity, and spiritual expression. Conversely, African traditional customs marked by communal values, honour for ancestors, oral traditions, and Indigenous rituals, portray a rich spirituality shaped by historical and sociocultural contexts. This study employs a contextual method to evaluate how African traditional customs correspond with or contradict biblical standards. The research investigates how biblical principles have been adapted to African contexts without losing their scriptural integrity. Findings indicate that while some African customs align with biblical values, others pose theological challenges. Thus, the study, therefore, advocates for a thoughtful engagement that transforms cultural expressions while maintaining biblical truths.

In modern Christianity, the phenomenon of speaking in tongues (glossolalia) is a subject of debate: some regard it as a restoration of the early church’s spiritual gifts, while others dismiss it as false spiritual enthusiasm. This study aims to provide theological discernment regarding this controversy. To that end, it examines biblical accounts—including the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11), the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2), and the Apostle Paul’s teachings on tongues in 1 Corinthians 12-14—in order to explore the nature and purpose of tongues as presented in Scripture. This analysis confirms that in the Bible, the gift of tongues functioned as real human languages employed to proclaim God’s message and build up the faith community. On the other hand, the modern Pentecostal and Charismatic movements are critically examined, particularly their tendency to absolutize speaking in tongues as the definitive evidence of Spirit baptism, which has led to a spiritual hierarchy among believers. The study points out, for instance, that some churches today effectively divide believers’ spiritual status based on whether they possess the gift of tongues, illustrating the potential misuse of this gift. In cautioning against such extremes, the study draws on the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s “Latter Rain” theology of the Holy Spirit to seek principles for a balanced acceptance and proper discernment of the gift of tongues. The Adventist Latter Rain theology anticipates an end-time outpouring of the Holy Spirit’s gifts, yet emphasizes that these gifts—including tongues—must be tested and used harmoniously in accordance with biblical principles. Furthermore, the study proposes three criteria for evaluating modern manifestations of tongues: linguistic authenticity, revelatory content, and communal benefit. In conclusion, the gift of tongues can be acknowledged as an authentic manifestation of the Holy Spirit—consistent with the early church—only when it is confirmed as a real language that conveys divine revelation and edifies the community. This study also emphasizes that contemporary churches must guard against indiscriminate fanaticism and apply spiritual discernment based on these criteria. Through these findings, the study presents biblical standards and theological discernment regarding the modern tongues movement, thereby contributing to the church’s spiritual maturity and a balanced understanding of the Holy Spirit.

The article presents the results of studying the Orthodox ecological concept. Methodology and research methods: the theological method, the Orthodox approach to education, the analysis of the Holy Scripture and hagiographic literature. When considering environmental issues, the authors rely on the Orthodox doctrine of man and the Orthodox doctrine of morality. The ecological situation of our time is considered in the context of Sacred History as a natural result of the spiritual degradation of mankind, being in its turn a result of falling away from God. The relevance of the research is determined by the need to overcome crisis trends in the environmental sphere, the origins of which lie in the sinful damage to the human mind. The problem of the research is to identify ways to harmonize the attitude of man to nature. The subject of the research is the Orthodox view of ecology. The research materials were the texts of the Holy Scripture, Hagiography of Saints and patristic writings. The article consistently solves the problems of analyzing views on nature expressed in the Holy Scripture of the Old Testament, the Holy Scripture of the New Testament, patristic teachings and hagiographic literature, as well as in modern Christianity. The research results lie in summarizing the views on the relationship between man and the natural environment expressed in the Orthodox system of beliefs.

This article examines the theology of education in Augustine’s De Civitate Dei and its implications for the modern Christian family. The study highlights the role of Christian education as a foundation for shaping children’s character and faith amidst contemporary challenges such as secularization, globalization, and shifting social values. The purpose of this research is to analyze Augustine’s educational principles, explore their application within modern families, and formulate contextual and effective faith formation strategies. The method employed is library research with a qualitativedescriptive approach, combining historical-theological analysis and practical reflection. The findings indicate that Christian education, according to Augustine, emphasizes a balance between spiritual and moral formation, parental exemplarity, and the integration of divine values in daily life. Practical implications include establishing routines of prayer and worship together, strengthening family communication based on biblical values, and instilling spiritual discipline from an early age. Augustine’s principles in De Civitate Dei provide a strategic foundation for modern Christian families to navigate contemporary challenges while maintaining authentic faith identity.

Although the study of Christian hagiography still primarily targets ancient and medieval texts, the early modern hagiography has recently been established as a distinctive research topic. Its focus is not only on the transformations of the post-Tridentine hagiography of the Roman Catholic Church, which effectively appropriated the cult of the saints as its important identifier. In this respect, the early modern texts seem to have dissolved the conventional association of hagiography with Catholicism: the analyses of surviving early modern texts demonstrate that the Protestant churches—while still critical towards the cult of saints as they knew it from late medieval devotional practices— did not reject the concept of sanctity or hagiography as such. Martyrology in particular seems to have been very frequent in all early modern Christian denominations, especially in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries; indeed, research on Czech early modern hagiography of non-Catholic provenance has concentrated on texts about Jan Hus, or other Czech supporters of religious reforms who died violent deaths. However, literary works such as a series of twelve Czech short texts published anonymously at the early seventeenth century under the title “Hystorye o bratru Janovi Palečkovi” (The histories of Brother Jan Palček) show that the equation of early modern Czech Non-Catholic hagiography with martyrology is unjustified. Indeed, the series employs many textual practices and topoi of (late) medieval Christian hagiography, and although its main character is not called a saint, it still bears distinctive features of the concept of Christian sanctity. The article aims to argue that the series can be interpreted as an example of non-martyrological hagiography of a Protestant Reformation type.

The Da Vinci Code movie is Ron Howard’s master piece which is laden with symbols where the cradle of mystery is arranged in series of symbols. Additionally, the movie sparks controversy relating to a feminine figure, Mary Magdalene. The present study revolves around the symbols which contribute ominously to the controversy that the movie sparks. This study is intended to uncover the symbols related to the Holy Grail and to elaborate the meaning of symbols found in context of the Holy Grail. Moreover, this study aims to demonstrate the relation built between the movie and modern day Christians as its viewers. The descriptive qualitative method is employed in this study, using Charles Pierce’s Semiotic Theory as a theoretical framework. The movie The Da Vinci Code is the primary source. The secondary sources are texts concerning semiotic theory which is employed to study the symbols. The study reveals twelve symbols which are closely related to the controversy that The Da Vinci Code movie sparks. They are Opus Dei, Vitruvian Man, Pentacle, The Mona Lisa, Madonna of the Rocks, Star of David, Rose Line, Rosa Ragusa, Holy Grail, The Last Supper, Cruciform, and Church. The study finds out a contrast between modern Christian beliefs and the hidden message or the signified of the symbol studied i.e. Church signifies sexism. The study suggests future researchers to study symbols using Charles Pierce’s semiotic theory and triadic model of semiotics.

This study examines the intersection of faith and family life, exploring how Christian couples in the 21st century navigate and manage multiple roles within the institution of marriage. Contemporary Christian marriages are influenced by shifting gender norms, economic pressures, technological advancement, and secular ideologies, all of which complicate the balance between spiritual commitment, family responsibilities, and professional obligations. The study seeks to understand how faith functions as both a guiding principle and a coping mechanism in role management among Christian couples. Using a mixed-methods design, data will be collected through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with married Christian men and women drawn from various denominations. Findings are expected to reveal that strong religious commitment enhances marital satisfaction, facilitates conflict resolution, and supports role negotiation, though challenges persist in reconciling traditional Christian teachings with modern social expectations. The study will provide insights into how Christian values, gender roles, and family systems interact to sustain or strain marriages in a rapidly evolving social context.

This article examines Karl Barth's theology with a focus on the implications of that theology for modern Christian ethics. Barth affirms the sovereignty of God and Revelation as the primary basis of ethics, rejects secular ethics, and emphasizes social and moral responsibility rooted in a relationship with God. The implications include Christian ethical acts that are oriented towards obedience as well as social responsibility in the context of the contemporary world.

The work continues the series of publications on the Cheboksary regional dialect of the Russian language. This study examines Russian surnames of Chuvash origin as a feature of the speech of residents of Cheboksary. The material for the study was surnames common in the Chuvash Republic. The work is based on a qualitative analysis of factual material. Chuvash surnames have undergone significant qualitative changes over the past three centuries from the original eastern Tatar-Islamic tradition to the modern Christian one. The surnames of Cheboksary residents cannot be a marker of the Cheboksary regional dialect of the Russian language. In general, Cheboksary surnames, due to their simple denominal origin, can be understood as a generalizing marker. The combination of Orthodox-conditioned denominal surnames such as Ivanov, Petrov, Fedorov with Chuvashism surnames such as Sadyrga, Yakku, Mulgachev, Kashkarov creates a unique anthroponymic background for the functioning of the Cheboksary regional dialect, reinforcing the impression of its qualitative parameters. The Christian foundations of the Chuvash nomenclature go beyond the anthroponymic dictionary: in modern conditions, almost all names in the Chuvash environment are oriented towards the Russian tradition. Russian-Orthodox names largely form the Russian visual landscape of the region.

Abstract Due to the mass production of the nineteenth century, Gustave Doré’s biblical images were widely disseminated, significantly influencing the religious imagination of the modern era. This article closely examines Doré’s illustrations of Esther and Vashti and suggests that Doré’s images were both informed by past Christian reception of the book of Esther and influenced the modern Christian understanding. By examining the historical reception and interpretations of the book of Esther in both Jewish and Christian contexts, Doré’s interpretive claims become clear—he creates religious art in a context that values morality, and he employs a “dramatic chorus” as an interpretive community within the images themselves. Doré’s depictions of Esther and Vashti are paralleled in other images of females who assert their agency during a banquet: Jael, Salome, and Judith each invert scenes of hospitality into locations of violence. Through Doré’s dramatic chorus, readers are led to a judgment of these women.

The Decline of Morality and Spiritual Stagnation in Contemporary Indonesian Churches Indicates the Urgency of Pneumatologically Studies. The decline of morality and spiritual stagnation among contemporary Indonesian churches indicates the urgency of pneumatologically studies. This research aims to build understanding about the 'governance of the Holy Spirit' in modern Christian life, namely how the Holy Spirit guides and transforms the character of believers, by examining Romans 8:1-4 as a biblical foundation. The methodology used is systematic theology with narrative-dogmatic analysis of biblical texts, accompanied by biblical reflection and contextualization of spiritual ethics in the context of contemporary churches. The study results show that through Christ's redemptive work, believers are freed from the power of sin and condemnation ("there is no condemnation", Romans 8:1).

This research explains the role of women in Judges 4 in the context of modern Christian teachers. The background of this writing is to find out the role of women in the book of Judges 4. The character discussed in the book of Judges 4 is Deborah. The method used in this research is qualitative method. The qualitative method used is literature study. The author uses books, journals, and literature that support the writing. This study found that Deborah had three roles, namely as a prophetess, wife, and judge. Deborah's example for modern Christian teachers is as a teacher, helper, and good listener.

It is all too common in modern Christianity to regard creation merely as a backdrop to the theater of humanity, as some floor upon which the jewels of God’s handiwork live, move, and have their being. However, in contrast to this vision of the natural world and its bizarre, yet dazzling host of creatures and living beings, is the perspective put forth by scholars Douglas Moo and Johnathan Moo in their work Creation Care: A Biblical Theology of the Natural World. One of the main goals of this book is to challenge the mistaken idea that we are to be saved "from" this earth, rather than embracing the perspective for which the authors argue, which is that the true eschatological goal is to be saved "with" the earth (1). Creation is not merely some additional appendage of God’s creative act, namely Man. It should be understood as the aggregated entirety of God’s design. This review will focus on the authors’ discussion of creation care, their challenge to both modern and traditional views of creation, as well as their prescriptive theses for the Church, along with a comprehensive theological analysis of creation and our responsibilities as members of the created order.

The teaching of the kingdom of God is one of the centers of Christian faith. This teaching is inspired by the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament. Modern Christianity holds the challenge of living the values of the kingdom of God for an age that is increasingly changing social structures and beliefs about society. In marginalized communities, the values of the kingdom of God are very difficult to accept because of the circumstances and conditions that drive faith. For this group, the values of the kingdom of God cannot be understood if they still feel social injustice. This paper aims for the church not to ignore the values of the Kingdom of God in pastoral teaching or in sermons as part of peace. This study uses qualitative methods, namely literature, books, journals and others to analyze the values of Christ's teachings. The results of this study found that service in the Kingdom of God as taught by Jesus is holistic, covering spiritual and social dimensions. The church is responsible for realizing the Gospel of the Kingdom of God for this group so that it can accept and live the message of peace and justice by this marginalized group. Therefore, the teaching of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God must be carried out through concrete actions in society.

The article explores the relevance of the biblical book of Lamentations in modern Christian life. It highlights the book’s raw portrayal of grief, despair, and suffering following Jerusalem’s destruction, emphasizing its universal resonance with human pain and loss. ​ Despite its brutal imagery and accusations against God, Lamentations offers a pathway to spiritual healing by encouraging honest expressions of sorrow and lament. ​ The text challenges the tendency in Western culture and Christian worship to suppress grief in favor of positivity, arguing that lamenting is essential for emotional and spiritual authenticity. ​ By rejecting Lamentations, believers risk losing the ability to confront injustice, express vulnerability, and engage deeply with God during times of suffering. ​ The article underscores the importance of lament as a means to reconnect with God, address personal and communal wounds, and navigate life’s tragedies. ​ It advocates for embracing Lamentations as a tool for healing, reflection, and prayer, asserting that its timeless themes of anguish and hope remain profoundly relevant in a world marked by disasters and loss. ​ Ultimately, Lamentations invites believers to honor their pain, confront reality, and seek God’s mercy amidst life’s darkest moments. ​

Amid growing concerns over financial illiteracy and the declining integration of spiritual values in modern Christian economic life, this study constructs a conceptual model of Christian personal financial stewardship based on a symbolic exegesis of Proverbs 30:24–28. The passage presents four small creatures—the ant, rock hyrax, locust, and lizard—commended for their wisdom. These animals are interpreted as archetypes that embody key principles of financial stewardship. The study aims to develop a biblically grounded and theologically relevant framework for personal financial ethics in the Christian context. Utilizing a qualitative-reflective approach within practical theology, the research employs grammatical-historical exegesis in conjunction with symbolic-narrative hermeneutics, informed by the works of Osborne, Ricoeur, and Vanhoozer. The findings reveal four theological pillars: Sense Strategy (ant), which emphasizes financial awareness of seasonal rhythms; Shield Stewardship (rock hyrax), which promotes ethical and moral safeguarding; System Discipline (locust), which represents internal financial order; and Shift Scaling (lizard), symbolizing adaptive and incremental growth. These dimensions are synthesized into the 4S Conceptual Model and aligned with modern financial theories such as the Life-Cycle Hypothesis, Precautionary Saving, Behavioral Finance, and Adaptive Financial Resilience. The model offers a transformative framework that bridges biblical wisdom and contemporary financial practice. Its implications extend to discipleship, church education, marketplace ministries, and the spiritual formation of financial life.

This research examines one of the theological issues that is considered as a central issue in the study of Christian theology, namely Justification. The main focus of the study of justification in this research is directed to the debate between the thoughts of reform theolog, especially Martin Luther, and the decisions of the Council of Trent regarding the issue of justification by faith. This study uses a qualitative descriptive method by conducting a literature review of several scientific works, both books and articles, whose topics of study are related to theological subject matter, namely justification by faith according to the Council of Trent and Protestant Reformation thought. The findings of this study are that in essence the two opinions have the same starting point regarding the concept of justification as God's gift, but the basic difference is that Luther's thought as a reformer wanted to release the concept of justification as God's sovereign gift from all human intervention through services or deeds. Good. While the Council of Trent decided in its Decree that it was impossible to separate justification by the grace of God from good works