Typical Church Research Articles

“Licensed” and “underground” religious revival in postwar northern Soviet Kazakhstan

The patriotic fervour surrounding the "Great Patriotic War," amplified by Soviet propaganda, led to concessions for some religious groups, though still constrained by Soviet anti-religious legislation, while others were excluded entirely. This paper argues that ethno-religious groups that aligned with the Soviet narrative, which mythologised the war effort, were able to engage in limited religious activities. In contrast, communities excluded from this narrative were compelled to maintain their religious traditions clandestinely for a prolonged period. These excluded groups were also deprived of any centralised religious organisations or church structures. Consequently, unlike in Central and Eastern Europe, the struggle for religious freedoms in this context did not follow the typical church vs. state model, but rather a citizens vs. state dynamic. This phenomenon is particularly evident in northern Kazakhstan, where the deportation of various nationalities resulted in the coexistence of ethno-religious groups with vastly different statuses.

Architectural Narratives of Aesthetic Form: Exploring the Perception and Psychological Design in Church Architecture

This article examines church architecture to explore the role of formal beauty in architectural spatial narratives and how perception and psychological design influence people's experiences and emotions. First, the article reviews the theoretical foundations of formal beauty in architecture, elaborating on the application of aesthetic elements such as proportion, symmetry, rhythm, and light and shadow in buildings. Then, through case studies of typical churches from different historical periods (such as Gothic, Baroque, and modern churches), it reveals how architects utilize spatial layout, verticality, light, and decoration to create unique spiritual atmospheres and enhance religious experiences. The article focuses on how architectural space guides people's perception processes, stimulates psychological resonance, and achieves emotional elevation. Finally, it summarizes the key role of formal beauty in architectural narratives, emphasizing the importance of perceptual and psychological design in enhancing the quality of architectural spaces. By deeply exploring church architecture, this study aims to provide new perspectives for modern architectural design, advocating for the creation of formal beauty to enrich the narrative and appeal of spaces while meeting functional requirements.

What Should Churches Post on Facebook? An Exploratory Study of the Perceived Contribution of Facebook Posts to the Mission of Churches

Facebook is the most popular social networking site in the world and is used by many churches. This study seeks to discover the type of Facebook posts that most contribute to the perceived spiritual formation of church attenders as defined by typical church mission statements. A broad range of church attenders who use Facebook ( N = 161) completed an online survey focusing on their church's Facebook page. They indicated the degree to which they believe various types of their church's Facebook posts contributed to their spiritual formation, specifically, their relationship with God, their relationship with fellow believers, their personal spiritual growth, and their involvement in ministry or service. They also indicated what type of posts they would like to see more frequently from their church. An exploratory analysis found that posts that had greater cognitive content (specifically, live broadcasts, video recordings, announcements, and devotionals) were perceived to contribute more to church attenders’ spiritual formation than did posts with less cognitive content (humorous memes, photos, inspirational quotations, and external links). Confirming these results, participants also expressed a preference for their church to make more posts with high cognitive content than posts with low cognitive content. These results lead to several applications of how churches can better use Facebook to contribute to their mission.

ГЕОДЕЗІЯ, КАРТОГРАФІЯ І АЕРОФОТОЗНІМАННЯ

The aim of this work is to develop an algorithm for mathematical three-dimensional modeling of a typical roof of a Ukrainian church based on ground-based laser scanning and to find ways to optimize the model depending on the input data set. Method. The accuracy of the simulation depends on the laser scan data. The number of points obtained and their accuracy will affect the final result - 3D model of the roof. Given the typical design of the church roof in the shape of a cone, you can apply the standard mathematical algorithm for modeling part of the buildings of a typical church. Result The proposed algorithm was developed in the MathCad software environment. 3D scanning materials of the Ukrainian typical church were used to develop the mathematical algorithm. The algorithm analyzes the location of the scanning points of the church roof and performs its averaging. As a result of the algorithm, erroneous measurements were rejected and a model of the part of the roof was obtained, which forms the optimal geometry of the structure. Scientific novelty and practical significance. The proposed mathematical algorithm allows to automate some modeling processes of a typical Ukrainian church for design decisions. This method of modeling can be used for similar structures of other buildings.

Agritourism and architecture of typical churches in Cossack settlements in the Middle Volga

The article analyzes the tourist potential of the cult architectural heritage of the Middle Volga region for agrotourism. The urgency of the problem under investigation is determined by the ever-increasing interest in architectural traditions of ethnical and sub-ethnical communities in various Russia’s regions, including the Cossacks. The methodology of the study is based on a comprehensive architectural historical analysis of the layouts and design of churches in Cossack settlements in the region. The author analyzes a wide range of issues related to the architectural layout, composition and character of churches in Cossack settlements in the 16th–20th centuries. The paper reveals an interesting stratum of regional heritage. It contains a description and analysis of little-known architectural monuments based on the author’s field surveys of the remaining settlements. The work includes examination of comprehensive archival data from local and central archives, as well as rich graphical material. The findings in this paper can provide a framework to further research in the area of architecture culture of the Cossacks in the Mid Volga regions.

Experimental investigation on non-breaking wave forces and overtopping at the recurved parapets of vertical breakwaters

This paper aims at investigating the intensity of the load applied by non-breaking waves on the recurved parapet wall of vertical breakwaters. For this purpose, 2-D experiments were carried out on a simple vertical breakwater physical model with four different geometries of the parapet (with an “exit angle” of recurve of 0°, 45°, 60° and 90°), under both regular and irregular waves.The tests showed the presence of loads of a quasi-static nature and loads with a typical church roof impulsive behaviour, depending on the (non breaking) wave characteristics and on the shape of the parapet. This impulsive force resulted significantly larger than the quasi-static load of the pure vertical wall case. The maximum measured total force under regular waves was compared with the one obtained by a numerical model based on IHFOAM.For irregular waves with Hs equal to 80% of the freeboard, the maximum measured horizontal load on a 90° recurved wall is equivalent to the force applied by a constant pressure of order 5 ρgHs. It was found, by analysing waves near the leading edge of a wave-group, that history effects are important, i.e., in certain circumstances, a high wave preceded by lower waves generated a larger force than if it had been preceded by waves of the same height. For regular tests, the largest impulsive forces occurred basically at the beginning of the tests, during the initial transient ramp-up period.The irregular wave overtopping was also measured, showing good agreement with the existing predictive formulae and confirming the significant reduction of mean discharge with increasing exit angle and overhanging extension of the parapet.

Moisture gradients in wood subjected to relative humidity and temperatures simulating indoor climate variations as found in museums and historic buildings

Climate-induced mechanical damage to cultural heritage objects of hygroscopic materials is not yet fully understood. This is particularly true of objects in historic buildings with less climate-controlled indoor environments. Research aiming at clarifying the response of hygroscopic materials to changes of the ambient relative humidity and temperature is scarce. The objective of this study was to use a method to monitor relative humidity and temperature at three different depths inside samples of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), subjected to relative humidity and temperature fluctuations in a climate chamber. This approach is important because mechanical stress is related to the moisture content of the material. However, the knowledge on how moisture gradients in wood progress before reaching equilibrium has not been studied in depth in cultural heritage science. The monitored relative humidity and temperature data in the wooden samples were converted to moisture content using a method that took both temperature and the hysteresis effect into account. The samples were subjected to step changes and daily relative humidity fluctuations at different temperatures. Moreover, museum climate, a non-heated historic building climate, and intermittent heating of a typical church were simulated in the experiments. Low temperatures reduced the moisture diffusion rate, resulting in moisture content fluctuations of smaller amplitudes. A response delay was noted which gradually increased with depth in the wood and with low temperatures. A combination of a step-change and daily fluctuations increased the time to reach equilibrium due to the slower desorption process compared to adsorption process. Occasionally, the moisture content could also exceed equilibrium at some depths. The moisture content levels in wood during intermittent heating stayed stable overall. The conclusion is that moisture transport in wood is complex and is influenced by the moisture history of wood, as well as duration and amplitude of the combined fluctuations in relative humidity and temperature.

USING REMOTE SENSING AND RPAS FOR ARCHAEOLOGY AND MONITORING IN WESTERN GREENLAND

Since 2002, German low-cost scientific expeditions to Greenland have been performed. The objective was a geodetic survey and glaciology with GNSS technology – mainly the measurement of glacier profiles (height). The same glacier profiles along the route were measured during German expeditions in 2006, 2010, 2012 and 2015. The last international expedition was supplemented with RPAS (UAV) measurement, the testing of small corner reflectors for Terra SAR X satellite measurement and the use of image based modelling technology for historical monuments documentation, all in specific arctic conditions. The RPAS measurement was focused on the documentation of existing valuable archaeological sites near Ilulissat city and the testing of RPAS technology for the monitoring of the face of the moving glacier. Two typical church wooden constructions were documented by simple photogrammetric technology based on image correlation. Both experiments were evaluated as successfully case projects. The last part of the experiments deals with the monitoring of a moving inland glacier using SAR technology; four corner reflectors were installed on the glacier and on a massive nearby rock. Two ascending and two descending overflights of the Terra SAR X satellite in fine resolution mode were performed. The InSAR technology give inconclusive results, but some movements were detected; small and inexpensive corner reflectors of our own production have proven suitable. Experience and expertise from the measurement such as the first outputs from the expedition are the content of the present article.

USING REMOTE SENSING AND RPAS FOR ARCHAEOLOGY AND MONITORING IN WESTERN GREENLAND

Abstract. Since 2002, German low-cost scientific expeditions to Greenland have been performed. The objective was a geodetic survey and glaciology with GNSS technology – mainly the measurement of glacier profiles (height). The same glacier profiles along the route were measured during German expeditions in 2006, 2010, 2012 and 2015. The last international expedition was supplemented with RPAS (UAV) measurement, the testing of small corner reflectors for Terra SAR X satellite measurement and the use of image based modelling technology for historical monuments documentation, all in specific arctic conditions. The RPAS measurement was focused on the documentation of existing valuable archaeological sites near Ilulissat city and the testing of RPAS technology for the monitoring of the face of the moving glacier. Two typical church wooden constructions were documented by simple photogrammetric technology based on image correlation. Both experiments were evaluated as successfully case projects. The last part of the experiments deals with the monitoring of a moving inland glacier using SAR technology; four corner reflectors were installed on the glacier and on a massive nearby rock. Two ascending and two descending overflights of the Terra SAR X satellite in fine resolution mode were performed. The InSAR technology give inconclusive results, but some movements were detected; small and inexpensive corner reflectors of our own production have proven suitable. Experience and expertise from the measurement such as the first outputs from the expedition are the content of the present article.

Réflexions autour des églises dites « à passages » : le cas de Saint-Pierre de Corgoloin (Côte-d’Or)

Saint Peter’s church in Corgoloin appears today as a typical church in the outskirts of Cîteaux abbey, stemming from a wave of reconstructions apparently concentrated around the 2nd quarter of the 13th century. In this context, the church defines itself by an architectural and decorative synthesis - between Cistercian tradition and Gothic innovation - but also belongs to a locally rare type of churches said « with passages », and so raises, beyond its general conception, a lot of questions particularly inherent in the liturgy and the internal movements of the clergy and the congregation.

Gottesdienste zählen: Ergebnisse einer Studie zum Gottesdienstbesuch

Abstract Counting Church Services: Results of a Study on Church Attendance. A survey on all church services and figures of attendance for a whole region of the Protestant parishes in Southern Germany produced new data. Whereas the typical church statistics are solely based on attendance at a few selected Sunday services and the Christmas Eve service, here the significance of services beyond those on Sunday mornings becomes obvious also regarding the quantitative dimension

Breaking Free to the Limit: Playing with Foucault, Otto, and Pentecostal Experience

ABSTRACTThis article explores different phenomenological approaches to understanding one of the central elements of Pentecostal spirituality: the ecstatic experience of the divine (often referred to as the ‘encounter’ of the divine). The article begins with a description, based upon participant observation, of a typical church service at ‘Breakfree’ Pentecostal church in suburban Perth, Western Australia. I then outline two phenomenological categories—one theistic, one non-theistic—which shed light on the significance of this experience. These categories are Rudolf Otto’s ‘numinous’ and Michel Foucault’s ‘limit experience’. It is demonstrated that neither of these can be prioritised, as both require an a priori position on the status of the divine. Instead of choosing one or the other, it is argued that both Otto and Foucault provide a resource for understanding and assessing the Breakfree encounter. The article concludes with the observation that a more playful methodology—one that allows the scholar to draw on theistic and non-theistic categories simultaneously—is required.

'The famous and new Italian taste': The Dissemination of Italian Sacred Music in the Southern Netherlands, 1675-1755

The seventeenth- and eighteenth-century diaspora of Italian music and musicians in Europe has been widely investigated, yet only fragmentary attention has been paid to the dissemination of Italian sacred music in the Southern Netherlands. By combining data from music inventories made between 1675 and 1755 and the remains of historical music collections, the present article constitutes a systematic inquiry into the circulation of Italian sacred music within this region. Questions are raised about the repertory that may have been available at a typical church, the proportion of Italian music within ecclesiastical music collections, and the extent to which the sacred repertory was renewed. The channels through which Italian sacred music circulated are mapped, with attention paid to the role of the local music presses, the mobility of musicians, and private donations to churches. Finally, closer consideration of the differences in character between the collections at different institutions clarifies the evolving availability of Italian sacred music within the southern Netherlands and demonstrates how extensive personal music collections, such as those of Vanden Boom and van den Branden de Reeth, influenced the repertories of local churches.

Australian physician advises advance planning for final exit

In many ways, it felt like a typical church gathering, although it was a suicide workshop. The elderly crowd of about 50 exchanged hushed pleasantries while they settled into their seats at the First Unitarian Congregation of Toronto in Ontario on Oct. 13. A kindly, graying woman with her hair in a

Volkspolizei und Bibelrüstzeiten – die Veranstaltungsverordnungen der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik in der Praxis der Evangelischen Kirche der Kirchenprovinz Sachsen

Article Volkspolizei und Bibelrüstzeiten – die Veranstaltungsverordnungen der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik in der Praxis der Evangelischen Kirche der Kirchenprovinz Sachsen was published on August 1, 2009 in the journal Zeitschrift der Savigny-Stiftung für Rechtsgeschichte: Kanonistische Abteilung (volume 95, issue 1).

Acoustical requirements for music in non-Western worship spaces

In this talk, an overview of different non-Western musical traditions for worship, and the particular architectural-acoustic requirements of these traditions, will be given. While the pipe organ, which plays a central role in the Christian and Jewish worship traditions, is rarely found in other religious services, the other two typical western worship instruments, choir and bells, serve in many other worship traditions as well. Brass instruments also are found in both Western and non-Western worship traditions, for example in the typical church brass ensembles with trumpets, trombones, horns, and tubas, and the long Tibetan temple trumpets. Percussion instruments, such as those in the Indonesian Gamelan Ensemble, are often an important element in non-Western rituals. However, aside from bells, they do not have a strong tradition in Western worship services, which is not surprising given the long reverberation times in most churches. The talk will focus on those worship traditions that are not addressed by other speakers in this session.

BELIEVING WITHOUT BELONGING? SOME REFLECTIONS

have been asked to reflect on the various discussions that have gone on during this consultation, and to respond with some personal thoughts from the perspective of my work in mission, and what has been termed the process of inculturation of the church in India. This process, which was set in motion by the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s, addressed a new situation that had arisen after the second world war with the disintegration of important colonial empires and the rise of many new nation states. India was one significant example of this new. phenomenon. am myself very much a child of this independent India; was born in 1944 towards the end of the war, and just before India gained its freedom. The church in India had been very much associated with the colonial period. The typical church styles that we find in different places reflect the prevailing cultural forms of the colonialists. Thus, we have the Baroque style of the Portuguese churches in Goa, the imitation Gothic style which was favoured by the French in Pondicherry, or the typical British architecture which copied models designed in London by the architect Christopher Wren. There was very little to be found in the culture of Indian Christians that drew from artistic forms related to the great tradition of Indian art and architecture. In fact, the missionaries had rejected Indian imagery and visual symbolism as pagan or idolatrous. It is incarnational theology that underlies the idea of inculturation. The church, like the divine Word, has to be incarnated through a process of translation. However, there is also the idea of transfiguration, i.e. a risen Christ who, freed from the limitations of his Jewish cultural identity, can walk with his disciples to distant lands. The Christ who appears to India is the Jesus of history, but a cosmic Lord who transcends all cultural and historical limitations, and is on this account able to enter into all spiritual traditions. The problem that we are continually debating is one of identity. Who am I? This question relates only to my own personal, historical narrative but also, at a more profound level, to not I, but the Christ who lives in The questions which am asked are: Why do you represent Christ as an Was Jesus an These same questions were poignantly put in a somewhat different way by a Hindu who was scandalized by Peter Brooke's famous representation of the Mahabharata. There, a British person acted the lead role of Krishna. How is this possible? demanded my Hindu friend, who was living in Leicester, England at the time, Krishna was an Indian, a British national! This brought me with a jolt to my own identity. Am an Indian? True, have an Indian passport and an Indian name. But my Indian friend in Leicester, who worships the Lord Krishna, has a British passport. Some of us struggle with the question of whether we are Christian Hindus or Hindu Christians. Interestingly, there is nothing in Hinduism that would deny either possibility. Hinduism is defined by any credal formula. Even the Indian constitution does understand Hinduism as a confessional belief expressed in some creed. A Hindu is a person who belongs to India. remember the occasion when visited the sanctum sanctorum of the Madhurai temple, one of the greatest temples of South India. went with my father, and was anxious to see the central icons of the temple. The priest who stood at the door of this inner locus of the mystery asked, Are you a Hindu? My father immediately answered, I am a Hindu from Panjab, and this is my son. It was an important moment for me. had never been defined like that before, especially by my own father. Of course, he was speaking his truth and the Hindu priest was entirely satisfied. He was concerned with my personal God -- my Ishta Devata, or God of my choic e. He was even concerned with my family God, or Kula Devata. …

From Typical Church to Social Ministry: A Study of the Elements Which Mobilize Congregations

From Typical Church to Social Ministry: A Study of the Elements Which Mobilize Congregations

The religious community as a partner in health care.

In-depth structured interviews were conducted with spokespeople for 176 inner-city churches regarding perceptions of existing community problems, number of currently offered church-based social and health programs, and potential interest in church sponsorship of new maternal and child health programs. The sample of respondents represented 78% of the 227 churches located in a low-income, primarily black urban area with 150,000 residents. The typical church participating in the survey was Baptist with a congregation of 100 to 500 people, most of whom were not community residents. The leading community problems identified by the clergy were, in descending order: lack of jobs, teenage pregnancy, gang crime, school drop-outs, and hunger. The perception of community problems matched the church services offered as measured by the number of food and clothing pantries. Few churches had ongoing programs for neighborhood youths. Although many of these same churches expressed interest in expanding services for mothers, adolescents and children, few perceived themselves as having the necessary staff, funds, or technical expertise to conduct such programs.

Archdeacon W. E. Owen: Missionary as Propagandist

No one has ever accused W. E. Owen of being a typical Church Missionary Society missionary. Known as Archdemon by many of his settler contemporaries, and as the only European in Kenya who dared to raise his voice in protest to colonial policy by a recent writer on Kenyan history,1 Owen has generally appeared as missionary sui generis : courageous, outspoken, indefatigable in his attempts to secure justice for his converts in Nyanza and for colony as a whole.2 Owen, it is said, courted unpopularity with settlers, administrators, and his fellow missionaries to see that Africans got a fair deal. He was a relentless propagandist, who to end resisted all attempts by colonial establishment to muzzle him. He repeatedly scourged settlers and officials for their misdeeds, vigorously exposing such abuses as forced labor. That he also at crucial moments put his full support and influence behind colonial system is a fact that has in recent literature been underplayed but not completely overlooked: in Oginga Odinga's words, Owen was man who blunted political sword of Piny Owacho (the Young Kavirondo Association) and diverted it into relatively harmless welfare channels (the Kavirondo Taxpayers' Welfare Association).3 On numerous occasions Owen worked hand in hand with colonial administration, and even put his weight behind settler community on such key issues as Indian question of 1921. He himself claimed more than once that no missionary has done more than I have to defend settler community.4