Church, Identity, and Change : Theology and Denominational Structures in Unsettled Times

by Roozen, David A.

• ISBN13: 9780802828194
• ISBN10: 0802828191
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-05-06
• Publisher: Eerdmans Pub Co

Summary

Since colonial days, religious work in American has happened through denominations. At least since the start of the twentieth century, these religious bodies consisted of a fairly tight, intra-denominationally connected system of congregations, regional judicatories, and national offices. This system was the product of more than two centuries of consolidation among Americanbs historic immigrant and indigenous churches. The vast majority of these structures are still in place, retain some semblance of internal coherence, have considerable social and religious significance, and will be with us for the foreseeable future. Nevertheless, the stresses upon them today clearly indicate that they are entering an unsettled period of transition. The purpose of this book is to examine the national structures of eight diverse Protestant denominations as a part of that shift. The frame of this study is the relationship between the theological and organizational nature of national denominational structures as they adapt to the changing situation of the twenty-first century.

Table of Contents

Introduction	1	(34)
David A. Roozen and James R. Nieman
"More Than Evangelical": The Challenge of the Evolving Identity of the Assemblies of God	35	(10)
Gary B. McGee
Charisma and Structure in the Assemblies of God: Revisiting O'Dea's Five Dilemmas	45	(52)
Margaret M. Poloma
The Challenges of Organization and Spirit in the Implementation of Theology in the Assemblies of God	97	(35)
William W. Menzies
A Short History of the Association of Vineyard Churches	132	(9)
Bill Jackson
Routinizing Charisma: The Vineyard Christian Fellowship in the Post-Wimber Era	141	(22)
Donald E. Miller
Theological Perspective and Reflection on the Vineyard Christian Fellowship	163	(25)
Don Williams
Anglican Mission in Changing Times: A Brief Institutional History of the Episcopal Church, USA	188	(10)
Ian T. Douglas
A Primacy of Systems: Confederation, Corporation, and Communion	198	(29)
William H. Swatos, Jr.
Crisis as Opportunity: Scandal, Structure, and Change in the Episcopal Church on the Cusp of the Millennium	227	(26)
Jennifer M. Phillips
Structuring a Confessional Church for the Global Age: Admission to Communion by the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod	253	(10)
Paul Marschke
Fellowship and Communion in the Postmodern Era: The Case of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod	263	(31)
David L. Carlson
The Theological Meaning and Use of Communion: The Case of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod	294	(33)
Eugene W. Bunkowske
How Firm a Foundation? The Institutional Origins of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.	327	(9)
Quinton Hosford Dixie
The National Baptist Convention: Traditions and Contemporary Challenges	336	(44)
Aldon D. Morris and Shayne Lee
Becoming a People of God: Theological Reflections on the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.	380	(20)
David Emmanuel Goatley
The Reformed Church in America as a National Church	400	(10)
John Coakley
National Engagement with Localism: The Last Gasp of the Corporate Denomination?	410	(26)
Donald A. Luidens
No Longer Business as Usual: The Reformed Church in America Seen through Its Mission Statement	436	(22)
Steve Mathonnet-VanderWell
The United Church of Christ: Redefining Unity in Christ as Unity in Diversity	458	(8)
Barbara Brown Zikmund
Strategy and Restructure in the United Church of Christ	466	(27)
Emily Barman and Mark Chaves
Faith and Organization in the United Church of Christ	493	(30)
Roger L. Shinn
Methodism as Machine	523	(11)
Russell E. Richey
Leadership, Identity, and Mission in a Changing United Methodist Church	534	(31)
James Rutland Wood
Practical Theology at Work in the United Methodist Church: Restructuring, Reshaping, Reclaiming	565	(23)
Pamela D. Couture
National Denominational Structures' Engagement with Postmodernity: An Integrative Summary from an Organizational Perspective	588	(37)
David A. Roozen
The Theological Work of Denominations	625	(29)
James R. Nieman
Contributors	654