A Delphi Study of the Biblical/Doctrinal Knowledge That Ministers of Christian Churches/Churches of Christ Consider Essential for Spiritual Development
In: Dissertations, 2012
Online
academicJournal
Zugriff:
Purpose and rationale of the study . The primary role of the minister is to spiritually lead others and facilitate their spiritual growth. Traditionally, biblical and doctrinal teachings have played an essential role in this process. Sadly, two recent trends have worked against this pastoral role. First, research indicates that Americans and many Christians are less and less biblically literate. Second, spiritual growth scholars have observed that church leaders seem less and less prepared to convey biblical knowledge that can systematically and effectively guide others in their spiritual growth. Christian spiritual growth literature establishes a functional and necessary connection between biblical literacy and spiritual growth. Both scholars and clerical leaders have articulated a leadership mandate on ministers that challenges them to guide church members toward spiritual growth. The purpose of this study is to use a Delphi panel of experts to identify the biblical/doctrinal knowledge items considered most essential for the purpose of facilitating spiritual development of congregants. Method . A Delphi study was employed to identify the biblical/doctrinal knowledge items considered most essential for facilitating spiritual growth in church members. Invitations to participate in the study were sent to 250 Christian Church/Church of Christ ministers via email. A custom web-based instrument was used to allow participants to select biblical and doctrinal ideas they thought were most essential for spiritual growth in church members. Respondent characteristics were also collected. Three Delphi rounds were used to finalize a list of 26 most selected biblical and doctrinal teachings. Findings . An initial 600-item list of biblical and doctrinal teachings was refined by three Delphi rounds with 43 ministers to a final list of 26 biblical/doctrinal knowledge items perceived to be most essential for facilitating spiritual growth in church members. Those 26 items were: (1) Discipleship (what it means to be a disciple); ...
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A Delphi Study of the Biblical/Doctrinal Knowledge That Ministers of Christian Churches/Churches of Christ Consider Essential for Spiritual Development
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Autor/in / Beteiligte Person: | Derico, Jeffrey D. |
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Zeitschrift: | Dissertations, 2012 |
Veröffentlichung: | Digital Commons @ Andrews University, 2012 |
Medientyp: | academicJournal |
DOI: | 10.32597/dissertations/327 |
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