Ecclesiology and Adaptive Change

Download or read book Ecclesiology and Adaptive Change written by Kara Markell and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 342 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This project was conceived and executed as a survey of congregational leaders in the Northwest Regional Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), to create a grounded theory related to the connection between ecclesiological beliefs and adaptive change. The study's findings are based on data collected using a Delphi process that began with a short series of open-ended questions. Participants were asked to identity the nature and mission of the Church and to imagine their congregation in five years. Congregational pastors, elders, and board members provided data which was synthesized into common ecclesiological themes and possibilities for adaptive change. An audience review of findings provided triangulation of the data, additional insights into the data, and recommendations for the application of the study within congregations. The theological foundation of the study includes the traditional Four Marks of the Church identified in the Nicaean creed: one, holy, catholic and apostolic ((Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed AD 381), as well as four terms that represent the unique ecclesiology of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ): unity, liberty, mission, and resistance. The role of the Spirit in adaptive change provides an additional theological lens for the grounded theory that emerges from the data"--Abstract.