Christian World Research Articles

Studying World Christianity

Studying World Christianity

Is the True Jesus Church a Chinese Indigenous/Independent Pentecostal Denomination? With Special Reference to the Orientalism of Western Scholars toward “Pentecostalism” in the Global South

The True Jesus Church has been regarded as a Chinese Indigenous/Independent Pente-costal denomination by scholarship specifically in the area of Global Pentecostal/Charismatic Studies and World Christianity irrespective of those scholar's definitions---inclusive or exclusive. This paper argues that it might be inappropriate for scholarship to define the True Jesus Church as Pentecostals at least for three factors: 1. The refusal from the True Jesus Church to be regarded as Pentecostalism due to its' providential and exclusive self-identity; 2. The primary intent of the establishment of the True Jesus Church was to seek church independence and religious reformation rather than promote Pentecostal spirituality; 3. There is a lack of synchronous network between the True Jesus Church and Pentecostalism both at global and local levels. Also, this paper indicates a latent Orientalism among Western scholars of Pentecostalism based on an exotic imagination and representation of Non-Western Christianity enhanced by the complicity of Orients and native informants.

Prostitution og oprejsning

In this article, I conduct a diachronic cultural-historical analysis of the phenomenon of prostitution in pagan and Christian antiquity. My prime focus is how the spread and consolidation of Christianity in the Greco-Roman world effected the social attitudes towards prostitutes and their prospects in terms of social and spiritual rehabilitation. I begin with an introduction to the issue of prostitution in pagan roman antiquity, highlighting some of the social, legal, and economic aspects pertaining to it. I then examine the perspectives on social and spiritual rehabilitation in The Shepherd of Hermas and the stories of the repenting prostitutes, Mary of Egypt, and Pelagia of Antioch. Finally, I discuss and sum up the differences between the pagan and Christians attitudes towards prostitutes and their rehabilitation

Neoplatonic and Gnostic Resonances in the Martyrdom of Cyprian of Athenais Eudocia

Aelia Eudocia Augusta (formerly Athenais), wife of the emperor Theodosius II, lives at the borderline between the ancient and the Christian world and writes one of the most distinctive poetic texts of Byzantine literature. In the Martyrdom of Cyprian, written in Homeric language, the Saint's past, when he was a magician and initiated into a multitude of Greek mysteries, is presented in an original and remarkable way. Within this text, the resonance of philosophical ideas originating from Neoplatonism and Gnosticism is of particular interest. This article attempts to highlight these resonances in order to open a research dialogue regarding the complex network of ideas and the coexistence of different worldviews in early Byzantium.

Provincializing European Christianity? Constructing and Collapsing the “Grand Narrative” of Modern Christian Europe

Abstract This article applies selected aspects of Depesh Chakrabarty’s concept of “Provincializing Europe” to the discourse of world Christianity studies. It argues that colonial-era mission scholars constructed a grand narrative of a united Christian Europe to justify European missions to the rest of the world. Contemporary postcolonial efforts to de-center Europe now contrast a vitiated European Christianity with a vibrant nonwestern Christianity that is required to re-evangelize Europe. Paradoxically, the trope of a formerly Christian Europe merges with a caricature of its numerical failure to make European Christianity the permanent foil for world Christianity studies. The article urges that European Christianity be studied in its diverse contexts, that the distinction between migrant and missionary be queried, and that European Christianity be considered essential to world Christianity studies.

The 1517 Project and World Christianity: Migration and the Uses of Doctrine

This article examines the dynamic relationship between Christian doctrine, migration, and social circumstances, tracing how the uses of Christian doctrines have evolved and interacted with different socio-political conditions from the Protestant Reformation to present-day Christianity in Asia. It delves into pivotal historical moments, such as the Protestant Reformation, symbolized as the “1517 Project,” and the Modernist-Fundamentalist Controversy in the United States, to show that Christian doctrines have shaped and been shaped by cultural and socio-political landscapes. This work particularly contrasts the uses of doctrine in Anglo-European Christendom contexts with post-Christendom situations relating to Asia. The study emphasizes the significant role of migration in spreading Christianity globally and in the development of doctrine, focusing on the Christian faith of Dalits in India and Taiwanese Americans. It calls for a holistic understanding of how Christian doctrine’s universal character interacts with diverse racial and ethnic formations. The article argues for and imagines a more expansive view of the catholicity and contextual embodiment of the Christian discursive tradition for the twenty-first century.

African Religion in our Contemporary Society

Characteristically, African Religion is a resilient enterprise that cuts across centuries of interaction with other religions such as Christianity and Islam. This research article sets out to unveil its resilient characteristics, as it underlines the fact that it is part and parcel of the African cultural heritage. Methodologically, it highlights the multi-dimensional ways in which the African Religion has permeated into the lives of Africans to date. In the context of Christianity and Islam, it has remained a ‘controversial’ areaof research among theologians, as some fail to understand its relevance. On the flip-side, there are other scholars who contends that it needs to be recognized as an independent and self-fulfilling religion, just as it is the case with Christianity, Islam, and other world religions.To address the divergent views, an application of an Afro-Biblical Dialogue, as a theory, has been proposed to address this development. As the dialogical methodology, this model which was first adopted by the Jerusalem Christian Council in the wake of Hellenism(Acts15), will thus attempt to answer the question regarding the place of Gentiles who became Christians. Were they meant to abandon their religio-cultural backgrounds?

Ecumenical Formation in the Context of World Christianity

AbstractThis article sets out the background to and the significance of the Global Ecumenical Theological Institute (GETI), an educational course for younger and emerging theologians, first organized by the World Council of Churches (WCC) to coincide with its 10th Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, in 2013. Further GETIs have taken place since then, most recently at the WCC's 11th Assembly in Karlsruhe, Germany, in 2022. The article finishes by setting out five statements about ecumenical education and formation.

Born Againism in Northern Nigeria: The Pentecostal Experience in Taraba State

Global Christianity has been punctuated by the sudden upsurge of Pentecostal’s born again phenomenon in the 20th century. Employing historical and analytical approaches, this study sought to explore the conceptual clarification of born againism and to determine the historical evolution, growth, attractions and impacts of born againism within the religious landscape of Northern Nigeria. The study revealed that born againism has so far gained wider acceptance among the Northerners with its overwhelming impacts currently being felt in almost every home in Northern Nigeria. Regardless of their religious affiliations, almost every home in the North has recorded the presence of at least a born again Christian. Even in the far North which has been the bastion of Islam religion, Moslems are getting born again by the day in their number and are being discipled secretly. Some of these Moslem converts to Christianity returned back to their people as Christian missionaries and busy evangelizing their fellow Moslem faithful with great zeal and positive responses. The study submitted that if the Northern Christians especially the Pentecostals are given more opportunities and financial backing to evangelized Northern Nigeria freely, there will be more explosion of born again experience that will not only revolutionalized the lives of the normal Christians in the North but also those of Moslems as well as the devotees of our indigenous religion. Received: 20 February 2024 / Accepted: 2 May 2024 / Published: 5 May 2024

The Role of Institutions in the Civilization Schism (the Case of Christianity)

The geopolitical transformations of recent decades have added to the topicality of the study оf civilizational differences between the East and the West relevant. Religion is often cited as a contributing factor to these differences. This can be confirmed by the example of the split of the Christian Church into the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches and, as a consequence, the emergence of the Western and the Eastern Christian civilizations. As a rule, the authors “isolate” religion from the social system, considering it independently of all other spheres, as the primary factor that triggers the emergence of civilization. In this work, the emergence of a new Western and Eastern Christian, is considered within the framework of the institutional approach, as a process of formation of a certain complex institutional structure that regulates the life of society and consists of a whole complex of interconnected and interdependent economic, political, and socio-cultural institutions, including religion. This process can begin in the bowels of the “mother” civilization, causing its crisis. The stages of development and resolution of such a crisis are analyzed using the example of a split in the united Christian world using a matrix approach. This approach assumes that civilization is characterized by a civilizational matrix formed by an institutional core that simultaneously contains market and redistributive institutions on the basis of dominance/complementarity, and a shell that includes cultural-religious and national-demographic characteristics, the naturalclimatic and material-technological environment. The necessity of both strengthening dominant institutions in the institutional core and creating balancers (complementary institutions) for the sustainable development of civilization is shown.

Ten Outstanding Books in Mission Studies, World Christianity, and Intercultural Theology for 2023

Ten Outstanding Books in Mission Studies, World Christianity, and Intercultural Theology for 2023

Book Review: Women in World Christianity: Building and Sustaining a Movement

Book Review: Women in World Christianity: Building and Sustaining a Movement

The Conundrum and Promise of Intercultural Theology in the Western Academy

Intercultural theology has a dual origin. On the one hand it derives from the development of diverse forms of theologizing in Christianity worldwide, while on the other hand it originates in the North Atlantic university where intercultural theology and world Christianity have developed as particular fields of study. With reference to two examples of spiritual possession and biblical interpretation, this article argues that its location within Western academic institutional settings presents obstacles to the ability of intercultural theologians in the West to do justice to the proper nature of various forms of theologizing in other contexts. In particular, attention is drawn to the fragmentation of theological disciplines, the secularization of academic discourse, the use of cultural analysis, and the power of the Western academy. The article concludes with some proposals regarding how an awareness of this dual origin can help intercultural theologians to be a critical presence within the Western academy beyond their discipline.

Christianity in North America

“Diversity” predominates as the main message of the book Christianity in North America, the seventh in a series from Edinburgh University Press on Christianity in the world’s regions. It includes extensive demographic data from the World Christian Database (Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary), twenty-nine chapters on US regions, ethnic groups, ecclesiastical traditions, and specific themes (such as Faith and Culture, Theology, Immigration and Xenophobia, Media)—with some of these chapters including comparisons with the material presented in the six chapters devoted to Canada, St. Pierre and Miquelon, Greenland, and Bermuda. Reckoning with a history of White oppression of Natives and Blacks features prominently in many of the chapters.

The spread and influence of crusading ideology in Bohemia and Poland

This article investigates the transmission and influence of the idea of crusade in Bohemia and Poland, pivotal in shaping East Central Europe’s religious, cultural, and political landscape during the Middle Ages. Exploring cultural exchanges, political alliances, and ecclesiastical influences, it reveals the mechanisms of this ideology’s dissemination and absorption in the Piast realm. It examines the nuanced transformation in attitudes and policies following the reception of the idea of crusade, contributing to a deeper understanding of the interplay between ideology and regional dynastic dynamics and its enduring impact on the Christian world.

Образ Пятидесятницы в иконографической программе алтарного кивория Собора во имя первоверховных апостолов Петра и Павла в Санкт-Петербурге

The article is devoted to the unique monument of Peter the Great Baroque – the altar ciborium of the St. Petersburg Peter and Paul Cathedral. The study presents an analysis of the decoration of the ciborium (1722-1729, I.P. Zarudny). First of all, the connection of the iconographic and iconological program of the monument with the circumstances of the apostolic dedication of the cathedral of the new capital of the Russian Empire in the context of the church reform carried out by Peter I is traced. The synodal reform is proposed to be considered from the point of view of the principles of the structure of the ancient Church as a justification for the transition from patriarchal governance in favour of the conciliar Most Holy Governing Synod.In the article, the altar canopy of the Peter and Paul Cathedral is compared with the baldachin of the Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, with the imperial coronation baldachins of Catherine I and with the baldachin of D.L. Bernini from Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome. The external imitation of the European fashion for baldachins was perceived as an embellishing decoration, which didn't prevent the continuation of the Moscow tradition of church decoration in the St. Petersburg monument, and the preservation of its archetypal relationship with the Jerusalem temple. Thus, the semantic connection of the royal and Divine thrones, laid down in the early Byzantine period, continues until the beginning of the XVIII century. It has found its artistic interpretation, including in the composite monogram crowning the Cathedral of Peter and Paul, the variant of interpretation of which is proposed by the author. The theme of the kingdom in the decoration of I.P. Zarudny's ciborium is intertwined with the theme of apostolic succession and the foundation of the church. The apostolic dedication of the Peter and Paul Cathedral was embodied in the artistic solution of the entire altar composition, for which the image of the "Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles" became central. The establishment of a new Church and a new Jerusalem, manifested in the image of "Pentecost", indicated a particularly important role for the new state symbolically denoting its continuity from both the artistic tradition of Byzantium and the tradition of the Western Christian world.

Inaugurated eschatology from a transgender perspective

Many people who identify as transgender, experience discrimination, stigma and societal marginalisation as if they are not really human beings created in the image of God. This article argues for more acceptance of transgender people within a Christian world view. I contend that gender and the imago Dei can make room for more inclusivity and inherent human dignity for all people. Transgender identity, the idea of inaugurated eschatology as ‘already/not yet’ with the arrival of the Holy Spirit, the restoration of God’s image, and the acceptance of transgender individuals in God’s Kingdom will be focussed on. Inaugurated eschatology enlightens us on who we are in Christ. The topic focusses on transgender issues in relation to inaugurated eschatology and its effects on transgender roles within the Christian faith community. The nature of the research is qualitative and descriptive, either contradicting or supporting different views on transgender and inaugurated eschatology.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: To encourage discussion and deeper exploration of the concepts of transgenderism and inaugurated eschatology that could contribute to more inclusivity and inherent human dignity for all people in the fields of theology, gender studies, politics, philosophy, history and psychology.

Servant-Leadership as a Model for Christian Community: A Subversive Rhetoric and Ideology in Luke 22:23–27

This article carefully examines the meaning of servant leadership as embedded in Luke 22:23–27. We believe that servant leadership as taught by the Lukan Jesus is an ideal leadership style suitable for anyone who aspires for any leadership position. To examine this topic, this article adopts subversive rhetoric to interpret the text in Luke 22:23–27 to understand the embedded ideology within the text. The application of subversive rhetoric and ideology in reading Luke 22:23–27 provides insights into the leadership problems faced in Christian community today. Using subversive rhetoric and ideology as a means of interpretation, this article emphasises that the Lukan text is an invitation to the Christian community to model their leadership style based on the premise of the Lukan Jesus since leadership is the centre of every good governance. The Lukan Jesus instructed his followers not to follow the empire’s leadership style of ruling over people without caring for their wellbeing. However, the article acknowledges that the disciples were instructed to subversively change the leadership style and implement the one that would be of benefit to the entire humanity—the servant leadership model. It concludes that the Luke text aims at introducing a servant leadership system that was against the Roman Empire for the new Lukan community and invites the present Christian community and world leaders to imbibe the ideology of servant leadership style as introduced by the Lukan Jesus and practised by Nelson Mandela.

Humanistic Buddhism and Holistic Health Management

Master Hsing Yun said that humanistic Buddhism has six characteristics: (1) human nature, (2) life nature, (3) altruism, (4) joy, (5) contemporary nature, and (6) universal relief nature. Among the six characteristics, life nature is closely related to the health of the whole person. When the World Health Organization (WHO) was founded in 1948, the definition of health was: "Health is a complete sense of physical, mental, and social well-being and not only the absence of disease or infirmity." This definition is the beginning of focusing on holistic health. Most people in the Western Christian world have a good understanding of the word spirituality, but it is difficult for believers in other religious faiths in the non-Christian world to grasp its meaning. This is also an important reason why most countries at the WHO meeting were unable to reach a consensus to include spirituality in the definition of health. Therefore, the concept of "spirituality" must be interpreted and integrated into the culture according to local characteristics in order to implement holistic health with local significance. Lu (2022) proposed a holistic health model that integrates three parts: (I) Dimensions: Physical, Mental, Spiritual, and Social, (II) Status: Health, Sub-health, Illness, and Recovering, and (III) Approach: Western medicine, Eastern medicine and Folklore Therapy, Religions and Beliefs, Sports and Martial Arts. This study explores religion in the third approach within the holistic health model, exploring its relationship within (I) Physical, Mental, Spiritual, and Social dimensions, and (II) states of Health, Sub-health, Illness, and Recovering from a perspective of Humanistic Buddhism.

Problematising Hierarchy and Dualism for Ecological Concern: Johnsen’s Decolonial Methodology in Defence of Non-Hierarchical Worldmaking

The climate crisis presents an urgent problem for World Christianity. Since Lynn White, Jr., argued that ‘Christianity is the most anthropocentric religion the world has seen’ (White 1967), theologians have debated to what extent Christianity is responsible for ecological crisis. In this article, I will focus on two related problems for Christian thought that Majority World theologians have highlighted – hierarchy and dualism – in order to postulate what a non-hierarchical Christian worldview might entail, drawing on the work of Sámi Norwegian Lutheran theologian Tore Johnsen, primarily his recently published book Sámi Nature-Centered Christianity in the European Arctic (2022). This article utilises a multidisciplinary, World Christianity approach to theology that draws upon Johnsen’s work to examine the two themes of hierarchy and dualism, critically questioning these concepts and examining theological implications for the climate crisis. Johnsen’s research amongst the Sámi demonstrates their expression of ‘nature-centred’ Christianity that exhibits a non-hierarchical cosmology. He contrasts this with Western Christian expressions, in particular that of the Church of Norway. Johnsen’s decolonial approach questions aspects of the Western worldview critically and helpfully with reference to the climate crisis. This article therefore problematises two related concepts of hierarchy and dualism, notions which have become embedded within Christian tradition. In questioning these underlying concepts, it draws upon Johnsen’s work to consider whether and to what extent a non-hierarchical expression of Christianity might serve as a viable alternative.