Doss, Gorden R.

English

Andrews University

11Dissertation AbstractsTrinity.International.UniversityTitle: A Malawian Seventh-day.Adventist.Theology.of.Wealth.and. Poverty. and. Missiological.ImplicationsName.of. researcher:.Gorden.R..DossAdvisers:.Tite.Tiénou,.Ph.D.,.and.Paul.Hiebert,.Ph.D.Date.completed:.May.2006This dissertation seeks to give voice.to.a.select.group.of.Mala-wian Seventh-day Adventists in rural northern Malawi, Africa as they reflect on their theology of wealth and poverty. The basic re-search concern was that African Christianity.is.poorly.understood.by. the. global. church. and. that.this. hinders. Christian. global.mission.The research was done at Lunjika Secondary School in Malawi, Africa. The research group was composed of eight people, four men and four wom-en, equally divided on the basis of.education..The.researcher.met.with each person for eight inter-views of one hour. The researcher is an American missionary who has lived in Malawi for about 30 years.Two typologies were used to locate the theological reflec-tions of the group within global Christianity—David T. Williams’ typology.of.Christian approaches to poverty (Williams. 2001). and.Terrance Tiessen’s ten models of Christian.theology.(Tiessen.2000,.Providence and prayer: How does God work in the world?)..The.research.occurred.in.the.wake of a serious famine and the subjects.painted.a.vivid.picture.of. serious. poverty.. Topics. that.emerged.included.evolving.con-cepts of ownership, causes of poverty, causes of wealth, rela-tionships between poor and rich, gender. relationships,. and. the.role.of.government..Word.stud-ies led to the identification of the social theme of “finding,” which contrasts with the American theme.of.“having.”.The.subjects.forthrightly.described.the.role.of.envy in their society and saw it as.a.major.spiritual.issue..The subjects were asked to bring biblical texts that were either. helpful. or. challenging. in.their. understanding. of. poverty..One of the troubling texts was Gen 9:18-25, about Noah’s curse, that.has.been.applied.to.Africa..1/2007 1Doss: A Malawian Seventh-day Adventist Theology of Wealth and Poverty aPublished by Digital Commons @ Andrews University, 200711Using.the.Williams.typology,.the.group’s model could be described as the “Charity in Community with Self-Limitation.and.Trusting.Faith”.model. As for Tiessen’s typology, the group was faithful to their Anabaptist,.Seventh-day.Adventist.roots. in. the. Wesleyan-Arminian.tradition,. although. giving. divine.determination of wealth and pov-erty. a. little.more. emphasis. than.Americans would.A. number. implications. are.drawn from the research for the enhancement.of.mutual.relation-ships for the sake of Christian global.mission..Andrews University, Seventh-day Adventist.Theological.SeminaryTitle:. Leadership. Develop-ment in Albania: Equipping Young. Pastors. for. Apostolic.LeadershipName. of. researcher:. Leigh.RiceAdvisers:. Bruce. L.. Bauer,.D.Miss.,.and.Rudi.Maier,.Ph.D.Date.completed:.June.2005Albania. opened. to. Christian.missions.in.1992..The.church.is.new and the pastors are young and with limited experience. Initial rapid growth has been followed by slow decline. Leadership and leadership.development.is.in.the.hands of foreign missionaries with limited. experience. in. Albania..There.is.a.need.to.develop.cultur-ally-appropriate,.apostolic.leader-ship for a country with a predomi-nately.Muslim.population.Library research, question-naires, interviews, and observa-tions were conducted to develop an.understanding.of.the.Project.Director,. the. Albanian. culture,.a. theology. of. leadership. and.church,.and.methods.in.leader-ship.development..An.apprecia-tive inquiry approach was used to create.and.implement.a.plan.for.developing.apostolic.leadership.Apostolic leadership was cho-sen.as.the.preferred.leadership.model. to. plant. the. church. in.this. recently-entered. country..An appreciative inquiry summit was conducted that successfully partnered young Albanians with experienced.foreign.missionaries.in.creating.a.preferred.pattern.for.leadership. A plan was partially developed. and. implemented..There is greater confidence and enthusiasm. in. leadership. but.the.process.is.at.an.early.stage.of. implementation.. If.proven. to.be effective, this approach will help. develop. apostolic. leader-ship.in.the.current.pastors.of.the.Albanian.Church.and.provide.for.future.generations.of.leaders.An. apostolic. leadership. ap-proach. created. through. appre-ciative inquiry will increase the effectiveness.of.the.leadership.of.the Albanian Church. It affirms the skills and experience of the Albanian. pastors. and. creates.ownership through participa-tion. Apostolic leadership will increase the health and growth of.the.church..Journal of Adventist Mission Studies 2Journal of Adventist Mission Studies, Vol. 3 [2007], No. 1, Art. 10https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/jams/vol3/iss1/10

A Malawian Seventh-day Adventist Theology of Wealth and Poverty and Missiological Implications

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A Malawian Seventh-day Adventist Theology of Wealth and Poverty and Missiological Implications

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