Volume 15 Number 1

Didache 15.1 Introduction
Dean G. Blevins, Sr. Editor

Greetings and welcome to the Fifteenth Volume of Didache: Faithful Teaching. We have had a year off since our last publication due to the large volume of papers generated by the 2014 Global Theology Conference.  This edition returns us to our normal twice-yearly publication schedule. We are pleased to return to a more interdisciplinary edition. The work includes several interesting exchanges between leadership, technology, science, education, and global engagement.

The first two articles address the key theme of leadership and handling crises; substantive theological themes in light of recent global developments. Dr. Erik Groeneveld, who pastors in Australia, opens this volume with a theological expansion of one of the global theology papers in our previous edition. Groeneveld expands on the role of filial love in guiding congregational leadership, stressing a cooperative theological framework for decision-making.  Joanne Solis-Walker continues the conversation by addressing how leadership might deal with crises through the guidance of Saint Francis of Assisi. Dr. Solis-Walker serves as Director of Latin@ Education & Adjunct Professor at Wesley Seminary, at Indiana Wesleyan University and will continue to contribute as an associate editor for the journal.

This edition also revisits the authority of scripture, particularly the use of the term inerrancy within the Wesleyan tradition. E. Jerome Van Kuiken opens this edition by raising an appeal to the scripture study commission of the Church of the Nazarene and its published report recommending the use of plenary inspiration over the language of inerrancy. That report was published in 2013 in Didache 13: 1 Report of the Scripture Study Committee to the Twenty-Eighth General Assembly, Church of the Nazarene (http://didache.nazarene.org/index.php/volume-13-1/892-didache-v13n1-01-scripturestudycommitteereport-king1). Van Kuiken argues for a reconsideration based on a larger Wesleyan context. A response will appear in our next edition; however, this challenging writing bears a hearing.

Our next two articles address the intersections of technology and science in relation to theological education. Dr. Janice L. Duce engages the intriguing theme of sacramental practice within a virtual universe. Her study (adapted from her doctoral project) illuminates key themes that may well inform any engagement between historic practice and contemporary technology. Dr. Tom Noble follows with an historical overview of the role of theology and its engagement with Darwinism. Noble’s treatise helps educators and theologians close the needed gap between the two disciplines.
 
Science also serves as a bridge with the next three articles addressing the primary task of education. Pastor S. Scott Mapes opens the treatise by drawing upon cognitive neuroscience to explicate his new approach to teaching doctrine. Mark Mann and faculty members of Point Loma Nazarene University follow with an expansion of their earlier work with a Wesleyan articulation how a university seeks to remain faithful to its tradition and missional context. This document builds upon a previous work in volume 12: 1 titled Our Wesleyan Tradition: Wesleyan Faith and Practice and the PLNU Mission available at http://didache.nazarene.org/index.php/volume-12-2/878-didache-v12n2-01-our-wesleyan-tradition-plnu/file

Michael E. Scott concludes this section with an exploratory essay over the purpose of lifelong learning. Dr. Scott, well known educator and administrator in Guyana, serves as a member of the International Board of Education for the Church of the Nazarene and Chair of the Board of Directors of Caribbean Nazarene College. I commissioned Dr. Scott’s treatise as a beginning point for contemplating the need for lifelong learning for clergy. Dr. Scott blends biblical conviction with his own extensive educational background to provide a short essay that may well spark ongoing reflection.

Dr. Scott’s international experience provides a backdrop to our next two essays by students. These publications revolve around the future of global efforts both “abroad” (through short-term missions) and “at home” through immigration. Zach Ellis explores the need for faithful, not effective, presence in short-term missions. Zach’s paper comes by recommendation of Dr. David Wesley at Nazarene Theological Seminary.  Finally Lynne Bollinger provides a helpful theological treatment addressing how the church can welcome the immigrant, the stranger, in our relational midst. Bollinger’s publication received the Tom Nees Social Justice Award at Nazarene Theological Seminary and we are pleased to publish this document much like other award papers of the past.
 
As always I want to thank the team that makes this edition possible. In particular I would thank close friends who, as seasoned scholars, provide blind reviews of a number of the publications. Others, like Doctors David McEwan and David Wesley in this edition, encourage their students to publish. Please note the journal publishes articles along the themes of theology, culture, and education within a Wesleyan heritage. Guidelines for submissions are available at the website.  Professors may also submit outstanding student papers (with student permission) as long as they will agree to serve as the reviewer.

In closing, I would acknowledge the professional expertise of Ernalyn L. Fausto, with the staff of the World Mission Communications Asia-Pacific, who works diligently in the formatting and maintenance of our website. I would like to also thank Dr. Tammy Condon whose energy remains contagious in supporting this effort (Tammy arranged contact with Dr. Solis-Walker) while also working diligently in the development of the Wesleyan Holiness Digital Library (WHDL) . I also want to express a deep appreciation for IBOE Commissioner and Director of Clergy Development Dr. Dan Copp who continues to support this publication. Finally, as a point of personal privilege, I would also like to thank my wife JoAnn Blevins and our daughter Rachel, who remain patient with a husband and father with far too many obligations.

Table of Contents

pdf Introduction (84 KB) pdf   (90 KB) by Dean G. Blevins

pdf Filial Love in the Church of the Nazarene (161 KB)  by Erik Groeneveld

pdf Saint Francis and Authentic Leadership: Leading Through Crisis with Heart and Hands (179 KB)  by Joanne Solis-Walker

pdf For Clarity and Charity: A Wesleyan Response to the Scripture Study Committee’s Report on Article IV (The Holy Scriptures) (281 KB)  by E. Jerome Van Kuiken

pdf Theological Considerations Concerning the Practice of Eucharist in Cyberspace (269 KB) by Janice L. Duce

pdf Darwin and Theology (221 KB)  by Thomas A. Noble

pdf Communicating the Covenants: A Proposal for Applying Principles From the Cognitive Sciences to the Basic Education of Nazarene Members (240 KB)  by S. Scott Mapes

pdf Implications of our Wesleyan Tradition for Our Life Together (488 KB)  by Mark Mann and the Faculty of Point Loma Nazarene University

pdf Dimensions of Lifelong Learning: An Exploratory Essay (147 KB)  by Michael E. Scott

pdf To Go or Not to Go: Faithful Presence in Short-Term Mission (227 KB)  by Zachariah C. Ellis

pdf Moving beyond Homogeneity: Immigration, Wesleyan Hospitality and A Preferred Future for the Church (278 KB)  By Lynne Bollinger (2015 Tom Nees Social Justice Award)