Assessing the Impact of a Paid Children,Youth, or Family Worker on Anglican Congregations in England

Drawing on the survey conducted by Christian Research and commissioned by the Youthscape Centre for Research and One Hope, this study examined the impact of a paid children, youth, or family worker on the weekly attendance of 5- to 18-year-old children within 786 Church of England churches with adult attendance ranging from 20 to 250 people. Nearly one-third of these churches had a paid children, youth, or family worker (N?=?259). The data demonstrated that on average the presence of a paid children, youth, or family worker added seven young people between the ages of 5 and 18 years to the total weekly Sunday attendance, after controlling for the weekly adult attendance figures.     

Biblical mothers as images of the Church

Among the many images and symbols of the Church which the church Fathers used, biblical mothers had an important role. Some of these images, such as Mary as an image of the Church, became widespread and have influenced later Christian theology and iconography. In this article, both the development and different applications of these images will be explored. How and to what purpose these images were used in the Early Church will also be studied. Among the topics dealt with by using these images were the origin, age, character and purpose of the Church, as well as its relation to several ‘others’ (the Jews, the schismatics and the heretics). In modern ecclesiological discussions, especially of Eve and Mary as images of the Church, the role of the Church in salvation, as well as the communal interpretation of biblical mothers, are relevant.     

Connecting to belonging: a cross-disciplinary inquiry into rural Australian Anglican Church engagements with people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds

People from diverse backgrounds enrich the rural, regional, and remote communities where they relocate and settle. Research about rural diversity tends to focus on demographics (age, gender, country of origin) while ignoring personal narratives of integration, for example, engagements with religious institutions (such as the local Christian church). This article presents the research themes from an investigation using co-operative inquiry into rural diversity and the Anglican Church, with specific reference to the Australian experience. It is a cross-disciplinary dialogic exchange between social workers and theologians. Positive narratives about connection, welcome, participation, and belonging are shared.     

Semantics and Ideology During the Renaissance: Confessional Translations of the Greek Word ἐπίσκοπος

During the sixteenth century the disputes between Catholics and Protestants became the battleground to determine and shape authentic Christianity and the Church. Humanism played a key role in this process conditioned by cultural and theological diversity, justifying doctrinal positions and legitimizing the existence of respective institutions with an appeal to history. Translations from church historical sources illustrate how they often derived from theological preconceptions. Starting with the ‘episcopacy issue’ opened initially by Luther and Calvin inter al., this article analyzes the translations of the Greek word episkopos in the Magdeburg Centuries, Cesare Baronio's Ecclesiastical Annals, in contemporary vernacular versions of Eusebius’s Ecclesiastical History, in J. C. Dietrich’s Lexicon and in some English Bibles. The material gathered and also compared with the position of the Council of Trent shows how these confessionally conditioned translations impacted on the scholarly world, and how they influenced church law with religio-political consequences, thereby having a striking significance.     

The Making of the Reformation. The Early Urban Reformation Between Continuity and Change

While recent scholarship has highlighted various theological, social, and cultural continuities from the Middle Ages to the Reformation, the emergence of early urban Reformations still seems surprising and sudden. Focusing on the case of the electoral city of Wittenberg, this paper discusses elements of continuity and change in the early urban Reformation. It argues that the emergence of the Reformation can only be understood within the long-term social and political contexts of the city’s history. The historical record indicates that the negotiation of religious authority was a continuous theme expressed in repeated social and political conflicts; attitudes and mindsets changed only gradually, creating a sense of cultural continuity that contradicts the traditional idea of violent, rapid change. The narrative of change emerged only later as a result of archiving and collecting strategies, which shaped the collective memory and historical knowledge of subsequent generations.     

The ecumenical vision of Pope Francis: journeying together as fellow pilgrims − ‘the mystery of unity has already begun’

After reviewing some of the unique ecumenical steps taken by Pope Francis, this article examines briefly the three ecumenical paragraphs in Evangelii Gaudium. It presents them in the wider context of this post-synodal exhortation, of the ecumenical gestures and testimonies of Pope Francis, the ecumenical orientation of the Catholic Church and the ecumenical movement as such. It concludes with an outlook on a newly emerging ecumenical paradigm.     

The ecumenical commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in Western Europe

This article explores why the Lutheran/Roman Catholic commemoration of the Reformation in 2017 is an ecumenical challenge par excellence. In particular it contrasts the context of the 2017 commemoration with that of previous centenaries and goes more deeply into this by analysing the dialectics of centenaries both in general and with respect to this very special centenary. It also describes major changes in the relationship between Protestants and Catholics, presenting other main aspects of the new context in which that commemoration is taking place in 2017, and addressing different aspects of commemoration. It offers an analysis of how the Catholic/Lutheran Commission on Unity overcame the hindrances to a common commemoration and celebration in its document ‘From Conflict to Communion’, opening the way for a twofold commemoration, both in joy and gratitude, and in lament and confession of guilt. The article also focuses on five ecumenical imperatives which this document offers, not only looking back, but also looking forward, committing Catholics and Protestants to continue their way from conflict to communion. It concludes by describing the highly remarkable service of Common Prayer, which took place in Lund Cathedral, with Pope Francis, for which the above document prepared the way and formed the basis. It becomes clear how theological preparation and the Common Prayer in Lund concurred in making possible a historic ecumenical commemoration and celebration of the Reformation.     

Finding a Language for Faith: Liturgy and Worship

The sacramental and liturgical texts in The Annotated Luther series (volumes 1 and 3) reflect Luther's ongoing concern for the faith life of the people. They also give us an insight into Luther's own struggle to find words (and, of course, practices) that reflect the fundamental insight of the Reformation: justification by faith alone. Luther refused to abandon ritual or a strict liturgical order even though it can so easily become, in the minds and hearts of believers, a work they must do. The freedom of the gospel does not dispense us from a liturgical order or from participation; in fact, for Luther, that freedom compels us to worship! This tension can be found within these writings as Luther searches for new words and redefines and/or reorients other words to express a spirituality of justification.     

Embodying Confident Agency: Luther's “Three Estates” as a Resource for Virtue Theory

Martin Luther's social writings (volumes 44–47 in the American edition) provide a robust account of human agency that might help Lutheran social ethics address contemporary crises of confidence. When Luther addresses concrete moral issues, he enriches his two‐kingdoms frame with a focus on particular social roles such as ruler, merchant, soldier, parent, etc. This (often tacit) “three‐estates” approach creates room for a distinctly Lutheran contribution to contemporary virtue theory by focusing on the functions served by particular social roles more than on individual self‐chosen pathways of moral improvement. It also supports a prophetic affirmation of vocation against the contemporary breakdown of expectations and confidence in social roles.