Character Of God Research Articles

PARASITE SOUP: FAITH AND SCIENCE IN THE HISTORY OF PARASITOLOGY

AbstractPopular conceptions of the relationship between science and religion often emphasize the mutual compatibility but segregation of these two authoritative domains. However, along the uncertain border between these two spheres exist many questions that appear to influence and be influenced by both scientific and theological evidence. For biologists, the gruesome details of parasite biology and behavior illuminate a shadow in nature where science and theology must intersect—did a loving creator God design parasites? Here, I explore the writings and experiments of the early fathers of parasitology who established and matured a new scientific discipline while deeply integrating their theological beliefs with their scientific investigations. I argue that modern scientists can, and often should, follow in the footsteps of our scientific forefathers and intentionally allow our theological presuppositions to inspire scientific experiments, especially in these important boundary‐crossing subjects. In doing so, I believe we may advance scientific understanding of the way reality is by asking unexpected questions and uncover deeper truths about the character of God as revealed in his intricately complex and eternally fascinating creation.

How Audience Members Envision New Testament Characters: Mental Character Models, Blending, and the Reception of Luke 1:5–2:52

Abstract In the Gospel of Luke 1–2, the narrator focuses on two couples and their (future) sons. The plot of the narrative emphasizes the main characteristics of the characters, which in turn accentuate important characteristics of God. Audience members construct these characters like real-life persons based on the discourse aspect (textual features which indicate character traits, plots, focalization, etc.) and the suggestion aspect (memories, emotions, schemata that are activated or primed, etc.). In this article, the construction of characters is analyzed with insights into mental character models and social schemata. The linear presentation of information in orally performed narratives structures the first part of the analysis. The latter part draws on conceptual blending theory to explore how the character of God is constructed based on selected information projected from the utterances of the other characters to the blended space.

Tangible Experiences of Grace: A Qualitative Investigation of Divine Grace in Roman Catholics.

According to Catholic theology, God offers a gift of love, known as divine grace, to all of humanity. This gift of divine grace is the gift of redemption and forgiveness of sins from God that is offered to everyone who decides to acknowledge and accept it. Grace is central to the lived experience of many Christians. This qualitative study examined how Catholics perceive and experience divine grace using interviews that assessed perceptions of divine grace in 29 practicing adult Catholics. A grounded theory analysis resulted in themes indicating that these Catholics view God’s divine grace as a tangible gift that is undeserved though continuously offered. The participants’ experience of God’s grace is not just an abstract theological concept but an embodied aspect of religious life with which believers can interact in many powerful ways. Three characteristics of God’s divine grace (i.e., salvific grace, cooperation through free will, primacy of conscience and the afterlife) and three mechanisms to experiencing God’s grace (i.e., sacraments, prayer and meditation, saints) are presented.

Religious Advertising as an Evolutionary Form of Canonical Text Retelling

Religious advertising is a new phenomenon within the Ukrainian media sphere. It is successfully developing within the framework of modern media technologies. The expansion of the semantic field of religious concepts, the citation of sacred texts, the synchronization of the visual-figurative series, the synchronization of the substitute characteristics of God were revealed in Ukrainian religious advertising. In traditional approaches, the substitutional function is realized mainly by anthropic visualizations and appeal to the Sacred text. Another substitutional type can be observed when the emphasis is on the verbalized story, rather than on the visual component. Characteristics of God's linguistic personality, behavioural models of God, status-role structure of interaction with God are modern substitutes of God. As a rule, the substitution is represented as a complex of the sensor experience verbalizators of the concept ‘OWN’. This type of substitution causes the comfortable feelings of high selfesteem, relaxation, security, care, associated with God as the subjective source of these states. As a result, a renewal of the subjective perceptual model of communication with God is achieved. The social perception of God, through the objectification of His virtual presence in informal interpersonal interaction, including sexual, domestic, cognitive, etc., is also enriched. On account of this, the level of tolerance in society to various manifestations of deviations from traditional normative ideas (religious, ethnocultural, gender, etc.) is growing.

Pendidikan Kristen dan Karakter

The basis of Christian ethics in living together and working is not in rules, but in God's unchanging character. As the image and likeness of God, humans have good social and relational relationships with one another. The problem in this research is that the damage to humans due to sin makes humans no longer able to have the character that comes from God in achieving their life goals and in living together. Humans face many challenges in life so that there is competition for millions of people in a place (Gen. 3: 17-19). Humans throw each other down, hate, jealousy, bribes, injustice happen everywhere. This research uses descriptive theoretical qualitative research methods through literature and biblical studies. The benefit of this research is that through the Christian Religious Education process, Christians are active in teaching and learning the truth of God's Word, teaching God's people that in Christ man is a new creation (Ephesians 2:10) to do good deeds. The conclusion in this research is that with a mind and conscience renewed by Christ, it is possible for humans to develop the world of creation and life together with honesty, holiness, justice and love. Man in Christ finds himself stronger and can bring honor to his Creator. God's character is reflected in the character life of Christians in fulfilling God's purposes. This Christian character cannot be obtained simply through shortcuts but can only be obtained through the process of Christian education.

Attributes of God in Ephesians: Meaning and relevance

Who is God according to the author of the letter to the Ephesians? What does this letter communicate about the character of God? Which attributes of God are specifically in focus in Ephesians? The focus of this article is the meaning and relevance of these characterisations of God in the letter structure, in the argumentation, in the rhetoric of the author and in the socio-historical context of the author and readers. The method of interpretation includes word studies, the epistolographic structure, the argumentation, the socio-historical background and the persuasion strategies used in the letter. The author identifies and categorises all attributes of God in Ephesians within the structure of the letter and argumentation and shows how these contribute to the purpose of the letter. The author of Ephesians presents God as being in total control of the universe, willing to be mankind’s Father and to equip them with wisdom and strength and gifts and blessings and he exhorts them to trust this God and imitate Him in their behaviour.Contribution: Although the attributes of God have been discussed by various scholars, this article is an attempt to not only identify the attributes of God in the letter to the Ephesians, but also to discuss the meaning and relevance of these in this letter.

I Kings 12–22. Concordia Commentary

I Kings 12–22. Concordia Commentary

God as Righteous Agitator: Grounding Biblical Theology

Biblical theology should be grounded in a broad perspective, an Überblick, on the character of God as the main actor in biblical history. Without such a perspective, we will lose sight of what kind of agent motivates the main story-line of the Bible. If our perspective is inadequate, we will fail to recognize how God works in history, including biblical history. Biblical interpreters typically have neglected a key feature of the biblical God: God as righteous agitator for redemptive good in human lives, individually and socially. In doing so, they have failed to give an adequate portrayal of what God is doing or trying to do in history. This article corrects that neglect by acknowledging the biblical God as agitating in history for righteousness among humans as a reflection of God’s unique moral character. It explains how such agitating distinguishes God from the gods of deism and determinism, while enabling the redemptive work of this God to be seen not only in biblical history but also in everyday human life. The article relates divine agitation to the crisis of Jesus in Gethsemane in relation to the kingdom of God and to the apostle Paul on dying-and-rising with Christ.

佛敎의 東進이후 民間故事 중 龍의 기능 변화 양상 고찰

Before Buddhism was introduced in China, dragons were already imprinted on the public mind with multiple images of God's character and animal character, worship and fear. Dragons, which are divine beings formed from totem and have animal characteristics, stayed around people's lives. Therefore, the dragon was suitable to replace the Nāga of the Indian Buddhist scriptures and was translated into the dragon during the translation process. Based on this background, the dragon was anthropomorphized, and the domain of activity was extended. The anthropomorphized dragon penetrated into the minds of the general public through the story as Yongawng(龍王) and Yongnyeo(龍女). If they had a special relationship, they could enter the palace. When humans enter the Yonggung, wishes that were not fulfilled in reality were solved. The Yonggung was a place full of all kinds of treasures that resolved the deficiencies of the human world. It was also a fantasy world in the water where all kinds of injustice, corruption, and irrationality in the human world do not exist. The story of Yonggung and Yongnyeo influenced by Buddhism is based on the universal life of mankind. Stories performed cultural functions that influenced human’s personality by revealing various types of good and bad life. Therefore, the story basically unfolds in a space of extremely ordinary human beings' daily activities. The crisis set up here and the process of overcoming reflected the aesthetic and life views of people in crisis. Folktale are essentially characterized by variability because they reflect the real-life environment of the public. These features were also applied to The Yonggung and Yongnyeo stories. Therefore, they influenced the diversification of the story distance and the multipolarization of the story space in the Folktale. In addition, it was positioned as the center of the Folktale and performed a cultural function that exerts influence.

Theology of the Gospel of Mark: A Semantic, Narrative, and Rhetorical Study of the Characterization of God by Paul L. Danove

Theology of the Gospel of Mark: A Semantic, Narrative, and Rhetorical Study of the Characterization of God by Paul L. Danove

Characters and Characterization in the Book of Samuel

Characters and Characterization in the Book of Samuel

The Christian spirituality of the love of God: Conceptual and experiential perspectives emanating from the Gospel of John

Christians will never be able to fully grasp the identity and character of God. The Bible, despite acknowledging its divine inspiration, cannot fully communicate and explain the attributes or qualities of a God nobody has ever seen (Jn 1:18; 1 Jn 4:12, cf. 4:20). Christians do believe in the love, forgiveness and grace/mercy of God, but will never comprehend it completely; although, we still need to continuously investigate it. The objective of this study, from the perspective of the Gospel of John, was to investigate the concept of God’s transcendent love and how God can immanently be experienced as a God of love. Firstly, the article constructs a Johannine picture (concept) of love between the Father and the Son. Secondly, it points out how the love of God is foundationally linked to and ‘experienced’ of the familia Dei . Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The article explores one of the qualities (attributes) of God, namely, the love of God as referred to in the Gospel of John. The exploration is carried out from two perspectives: God’s love within the divine being and love of creation. It relates to biblical, systematic and practical theology and also has some implications for missiology.

Christian Religious Education and Integrity: A Case Study of Babock University, Nigeria

The goal of education, especially Christian religious education, is to restore human beings back into the image of God in which they were created. This is achieved by inculcating moral values into students and use education to build their character that it might reflect the character of God. One of the major moral values that is highly needed in Nigeria society is integrity. Babcock University as a Christian institution practices religious education in which Christian faith is integrated into every fabric of her educational practices. Since inception, Babcock has had integrity as part of her core values. This has been promoted, encouraged practiced and coached by the university personnel. This study investigated the level of integrity and the process of its attainment. Since religious universities constituted about two third of private universities that takes about 45% of the total private institutions in Nigeria, there is a high need of building integrity in these universities in order to promote integrity in the nation. The study adopted qualitative research method using interview as means of data collection. The study found that leadership and freedom are essential factors in ensuring integrity.

The Ancient Egyptian Conception of God: From the Predynastic Through the Old Kingdom (ca. 3800–2135 B.C.E.)

It is not clear what an Egyptian god was, what was believed about them, or how people responded to them. This qualitative work induces the nature of gods from the fourth and third millennia B.C.E. culture with the intention of stating what Egyptians believed. Framed in a philosophical design, it explores three features. First, using language, archaeology, and iconography the essentials of the god identity are outlined for original qualification. Second, god existence is argued using classical proofs. Third, god character is examined to reveal the specific psychological archetype that dictated their behaviour in myth. Then, delineated by the essential qualities of all three features, the nature of the gods is consolidated and filtered through an Old Kingdom value structure to reveal their conception—habitual ideal individual behaviour. The ancient Egyptians had a monistic idea for god that was internalised by every individual thus creating a system of internal equality despite the external inequality.

The boundless riches of God

This paper explores the concept of infinity in mathematics and its relation to theological considerations. It begins by seeking to answer the question of whether mathematical enquiry into the character of infinity may cast some light on the infinite character of God. Drawing on the work of Euclid, Cantor, and Gödel in particular, it considers concepts of potential and actual infinity and how mathematical discoveries have implications for (i) the relation of the finite and infinite (which has theological implications for the incarnation); (ii) the relation of theory and reality; (iii) the future scope of discovery and invention; and (iv) further reflection on the givenness of revelation.

Leading in the certainty of uncertain times

This research focused on the potential for Christ-following leaders to develop a theological and missiological posture in response to the current volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) world context. This research looks at how the attitudes and actions of the corporate world have influenced those of Christian organisations and Christian leadership. The corporate world primarily focuses on strategies for overcoming the challenges of the VUCA environment, but this research explores how Christ-following leaders might benefit from looking more deeply at what VUCA represents, rather than merely accepting and reacting to it. The research used a literature review to develop the groundwork for an increased understanding of how God and VUCA relate and how Christ followers can develop a perspective in keeping with an understanding of God’s mission, their calling and the VUCA world mindset. Although some research has been done regarding spirituality as part of a response to the VUCA world, it has often focused on the outward expressions (morality, values, collaboration and service) with little attention to the Christ follower’s source of spiritual life, the trinitarian God. This research integrates recognition of the character of God, evaluation of VUCA realities and rhetoric, and the responsibilities and opportunities of leaders who desire to participate in God’s mission. In this process, the research explores strategy metaphors, missional thinking and leadership implications. Contribution: This research encourages greater theological and missiological exploration of the Christian leader’s posture and response to the VUCA world mindset. The research engages with corporate thinking regarding strategy and the implications of VUCA and with theological and missiological thinking regarding God’s role, the leader’s role and the nature of current contexts, both local and global.

The Anomaly of Anomaly of Anomaly

The Anomaly of Anomaly of Anomaly

Ibn-Rushd (Averroes). The Incoherence of the Incoherence. Part One

The book “The Incoherence of the Incoherence” (Tahafut at-Tahafut) by a peripatetic philosopher Ibn Rushd (Averroes, d. 1198) is written in response to the work of the theologian-asharite al-Ghazali (d. 1111) “The Incoherence of the Philosophers” (Tahafut al-Falasifa), in which he criticizes Muslim philosophical school Falsafa, mainly represented by al-Farabi (d. 950) and especially by Ibn Sina (Avicenna, d. 1037). This series of publications presents a translation of the chapters dedicated to three theses attributed to Falsafa and qualified by al-Ghazali as “heretical” (kufr), which are about the eternity of the world, about the mere universal character of God’s knowledge of individual things and about the impossibility of body resurrection. This part includes Ibn Rushd’s answer to the first of two objections raised by al-Ghazali to the main proof for the pre-eternity of God’s creation - “from complete cause”. Parrying this objection, Ibn Rushd also examines the arguments of his opponents in favour of temporal creationism.

INTEGRASI KARAKTER HAMBA TUHAN KEDALAM PELAYANAN DALAM BINGKAI TEOLOGI MATHEUS MANGENTANG

The determinant of success in one's service is sustained by good and true character. Various attempts were made by educational institutions to implement character building in the learning process. But how can success in service if they do not have good character like Christ's character? The purpose of this study is to reduce the teaching of the theology of Matheus Mangentang about the character of God's servants in ministry at Sekolah Tinggi Teologi Injili Arastamar (hereinafter abbreviated SETIA) Jakarta and Gereja Kristen Setia Indonesia (hereinafter abbreviated as GKSI). The method used is an interview with Matheus Mangentang as the primary source of data and collecting data on centralization relating to the discussion of this topic. As a result, the character of God's servants in the theology of Matheus Mangentang is still relevant and can be integrated in the service of God's servants in SETIA and GKSI. The conclusion of this study is that the character of God's servants in the framework of the theology of Matheus Mangentang is very much needed in carrying out special services in SETIA and GKSI.

Dane Neufeld. Scripture, Skepticism, and the Character of God: The Theology of Henry Mansel

Dane Neufeld. <i>Scripture, Skepticism, and the Character of God: The Theology of Henry Mansel</i>