“The Centrality of ‘Life’ for Johannine Ethics”

Jan van der Watt has described ethics as rational and systematic reflection on actions that are deemed positive or negative. Basic questions involve the point of departure and the aim of ethical action. He rightly identifies God as the authoritative center for Johannine ethics and makes two observations that warrant further development. First, as the point of departure, “God is the living God (6:57), the God who is life and gives life,” and Jesus too “is and brings life.” Second, in “line with the task of Jesus, the aim of believers is to give, sustain, and promote life.” “Promoting life is the consistent point of focus for ethical behaviour in John.” These comments appear in van der Watt’s wide-ranging discussion of Johannine ethics, but here I give them central place. Although studies of Johannine ethics have often focused on Jesus’ command to love one another, I will argue that works of love and expressions of truth support the goal of life. From a Johannine perspective, the central ethical question is, “What will foster life?

Love and Politics: A Convergent Reading of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right and Kierkegaard’s Works of Love

This dissertation got its start when I realized that a convergent reading of Hegel and Kierkegaard may be possible on the topic of love and politics. That is not a capricious topic, but one that has become central in contemporary political philosophy besides being at the heart of what Christianity is about, and I will address it with the goal of making love politically operative today. So, before I immerse myself into Hegel and Kierkegaard, I will investigate some contemporary political philosophers who, although with different perspectives, agree that love is a significant concept for philosophy and politics: Roberto Mangabeira Unger, Martha Nussbaum, and two authors who have been writing collaboratively, Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri. And since I want love to be politically effective and not a mere ideal, I will submit these political philosophers to what I, inspired by Merold Westphal, call the motivation and enablement test: what would motivate us as their readers to try to enact this love; and even if we are so motivated, how might we be enabled to do so to any significant degree? Hegel and Kierkegaard are two prolific and complex authors, so I will concentrate on Hegel’s Philosophy of Right and Kierkegaard’s Works of Love, devote one chapter to each of these works, and submit these authors as well to the motivation ad enablement test. Next, I will attempt the convergent reading that prompted this dissertation. Finally, I will reread and review my expected convergent reading considering what I intend to learn from and with the contemporary political philosophers and offer an overall goal and more immediate goals toward a politically operative love for today

Reading Karl Barth\u27s Trinitarian Theology of Freedom in the Sociopolitical Context of Chin Christianity

This thesis argues that the act of reading Barth’s Trinitarian theology of freedom in the Chin context helps the Chin to acquire a new understanding of the Trinity, which reminds them of how the triune God stands in solidarity with them in their hard situation and how the triune God gives them freedom, which empowers them to engage their sociopolitical environment in a positive way. The sense of this Trinitarian logic requests the Chin evangelical and ecumenical Christians to appropriate the implications of Barth’s Trinitarian theology for reshaping their Trinitarian misperceptions underlined by the tendency to perceive the Trinity in a detached and individualistic way. Their interaction with Barth’s view leads them to notice that the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit always work in the shared divine mission of recreating, redeeming, and transforming humanity in its existential world. The picture of how the triune God embraces humanity and gives the gift of freedom to the latter basically reflects the indivisible, harmonious, and interdependent work of the triune God. This Trinitarian imagination will stand as a constructive inspiration for Chin theologians and pastors to improve their “pastoral” engagement with the suffering Chin, and also to reclaim the “political” role of Chin Christianity in response to the realities of their sociopolitical context. The function of this Trinitarian principle primarily deals with how the belief of God’s solidarity with humanity inspires the life of the dehumanized Chin and how their encounter with God in this setting transforms and shapes them to live freely for God and for the good of others

Listening to Millennials: An Exploration of the Relationship Between Millennials and the Church

This mixed methods exploratory research project investigated the relationship between the millennial generation and the Christian church. Through interviews of seven millennial couples connected to my congregation, six millennials not connected to the church, and conversations churched millennials had with peers, I was able to learn what the variables were that impacted their involvement or lack of involvement with the church. A survey of the congregation was also conducted to compare spiritual practices of millennials with other generations in the church. The results indicated the importance of a strong Christian upbringing and meeting millennials where they are at spiritually

Contextual Leadership Within Chin Immigrant Churches in the United States

This research explores the leadership practices of Chin immigrant congregations in the United States, focusing on how they can develop a more effective leadership practice in dealing with the new context of the new land. It attempts to answer the question: What kind of leadership practice will help Chin immigrant leaders apply adaptive leadership theory for implementing contextual oriented leadership theory for the church? The initial motivation for this research arose out of the researcher’s interest in the perception of Chin immigrant congregations on the issue of leadership. A qualitative case study research method was employed in this research. The research result indicates that the context of the immigrant churches in America challenges the traditional practices of leadership in Myanmar. It also challenges the total validity of western theories and methods of leadership when applied to different people with different cultures. Myanmar immigrant church leaders and ministers need to re-evaluate their understanding of leadership practice within the context of the immigrants they serve. At the same time, they should reconsider women’s participation in the church\u27s leadership role and let young people with contextual understanding of the new land participate in the leadership role for effective ministry to the immigrants in the US