"Baptism inaugurates a life that daily moves forward to a battle, confident that in each sorrow, there is a more vigorous expression of the presence of the risen Christ. Baptism warns the Christian ...that if he shares the same life, he must face the same struggle of life unto death so that life is eternally victorious. Recent events in the Romanian Orthodox Church regarding the baptism of infants by immersion have ignited a civil debate and much criticism. The issue of baptism and for that matter, the baptism itself is very important. For the believers especially this is important. However, no matter how important this is, one has to agree that it should never ever lead to division and hate. Unfortunately, it looks like nothing among believers can lead to disagreement more than such discussions about the role of baptism, the meaning of it, and of course, the methods used to perform the baptism.
On the other hand, there should be an agreement that ignoring the problems raised by this issue will not solve it at all, but instead creating even more problems and further the gap among many Christians, ultimately. The fact that there is a possibility to discuss this important doctrine as part of a dialog among many denominations, among many religions it will prove the level of one’s maturity to “agree to disagree” with the main goal of learning always and know what to stand for and what is worth fighting for. When it comes to major doctrines special attention should be given to the text, making sure that there is a proper, correct, throughout exegesis as well as a very good lexical and syntactical study. The purpose of this research is to dig deep into the Bible and more specifically exegete the text found in The Gospel of Matthew chapter 3, from verses 13 to 17, then view its theological lessons followed by practical applications."
Persecution and discrimination is an everyday activity. Among the persecuted and the discriminated are the blacks and also the Roma, known in other places by the name gypsies. In the United States ...and other parts of the world, the whites are persecuting and discriminating against blacks but, in Europe, whites are persecuting and discriminating against the Roma people. Unfortunately, to this day, the Roma people are considered still to be of a lower class or, even worse, a more inferior human being. It is a shame to live in a society that considers itself to be one of peace and unity and to accept these things and allowing them to take place. In this article, special attention will be given to the persecutions and discriminations that the Roma people were facing. Then a descriptive analysis of their contributions and influences on many nations at different times and dates and, in the end, an attempt to best present solutions for such things to cease. In particular, how the churches and humanity will apply it to their ministries and life for the persecution and discrimination of these people to stop and for reconciliation to take place. It is time to move from theory to practice.
A large number of casualties in our day and our eroded testimony to the world around us, allows for a lot of grieving but also calls for the reassessment of our understanding of sin, forgiveness and ...the context of restoration: the community of the forgiven. True, there is around us a growing concern for the problem of sin. However, it is more a face-saving concern vis-a-vis the secularized world and the Church. Unfortunately, it is less a concern compared to God and His righteous standards. // How do we define sin? How are we to understand the forgiveness of sin? How do we recognize it, how do we administer it? These are some valid questions that need to be addressed. The purpose behind the present research is not to sift the Bible through our experience to accommodate our generation’s understanding of sin but the other way around: to sift experience through the Bible, expose misunderstanding and thus proceed toward restoration through a way of understanding godliness. The intend is not to fill an ontological gap, but rather address the current situation from a biblical and pastoral perspective, into a situation in which theologians and churches together have lost the ability to talk meaningfully about topics such as sin and the internal workings of the human soul and thus have rendered as irrelevant the meaning of Forgiveness that the Gospel brings. The concern in the following pages is to understand the concept of sin and the experiential dynamics of sin and that of Forgiveness and its personal and corporate experience. Even though a better understanding of Forgiveness may not rid our lives of sins nor make us the best forgivers in the world, it will alert us to what is happening around us and offer insight that can become opportunities.
Persecution and discrimination is an everyday activity. Among the persecuted and the discriminated are the blacks and also the Roma, known in other places by the name gypsies. In the United States ...and other parts of the world, the whites are persecuting and discriminating against blacks but, in Europe, whites are persecuting and discriminating against the Roma people. Unfortunately, to this day, the Roma people are considered still to be of a lower class or, even worse, a more inferior human being. It is a shame to live in a society that considers itself to be one of peace and unity and to accept these things and allowing them to take place. In this article, special attention will be given to the persecutions and discriminations that the Roma people were facing. Then a descriptive analysis of their contributions and influences on many nations at different times and dates and, in the end, an attempt to best present solutions for such things to cease. In particular, how the churches and humanity will apply it to their ministries and life for the persecution and discrimination of these people to stop and for reconciliation to take place. It is time to move from theory to practice.
Baptism inaugurates a life that daily moves forward to a battle, confident that in each sorrow, there is a more vigorous expression of the presence of the risen Christ. Baptism warns the Christian ...that if he shares the same life, he must face the same struggle of life unto death so that life is eternally victorious. Recent events in the Romanian Orthodox Church regarding the baptism of infants by immersion have ignited a civil debate and much criticism. The issue of baptism and for that matter, the baptism itself is very important. For the believers especially this is important. However, no matter how important this is, one has to agree that it should never ever lead to division and hate. Unfortunately, it looks like nothing among believers can lead to disagreement more than such discussions about the role of baptism, the meaning of it, and of course, the methods used to perform the baptism. On the other hand, there should be an agreement that ignoring the problems raised by this issue will not solve it at all, but instead creating even more problems and further the gap among many Christians, ultimately. The fact that there is a possibility to discuss this important doctrine as part of a dialog among many denominations, among many religions it will prove the level of one’s maturity to “agree to disagree” with the main goal of learning always and know what to stand for and what is worth fighting for. When it comes to major doctrines special attention should be given to the text, making sure that there is a proper, correct, throughout exegesis as well as a very good lexical and syntactical study. The purpose of this research is to dig deep into the Bible and more specifically exegete the text found in The Gospel of Matthew chapter 3, from verses 13 to 17, then view its theological lessons followed by practical applications.
This paper presents multiple, cooperative ways and levels of reality in working with Jesus Christ (Yeshua Hamashiach) to share the Word of God with people in a very specific context: a meeting ...between the Jews, and the Samaritans from the city of Sychar. In the context of His visit with the sinful Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well in Sychar, the ministry school that Rabbi Jesus has for His Apostles is configured as a laboratory of life to teach them His methods in understanding the multiple levels of reality in life and the synergistic significance of the evangelistic message. At the same time when the Apostles are closed in a room learning about the lands or fields full of harvest, the Samaritan woman leaves her vessel at the well, goes into the city, and openly proclaims her meeting with Him. There are two remarkable synergistic significances to transmit the message about the Savior of the world, Yeshua Hamashiach, in a particular transcultural context.
A new transdisciplinary perspective on the integration of knowledge is introduced in the context of the informergic society/economy (KBS/E) to achieve, share and implement the knowledge giving the ...openness to a better understanding of the world, using sustainable, integrative all-life learning. A new more complete perspective on the well-known system of knowledge integration, based on a five steps scale in a synergistic-generative transdisciplinary process to achieve, transfer and implement knowledge in the knowledge-based society/economy (KBS/E) context is configured, connecting DIMLAK knowledge paradigm to Knowledge Integration Management (KIM). It presents a possible connection between the all¬life, sustainable, integrative learning and the DIMLAK hetero-hierarchic paradigm of knowledge in the biblical context, the heaven ladder from Sychar.
The communication and the authority rank issue in resolving the conflict in Paul’s letter to Philemon are two important issues to be addressed in this application. The problem of the role of ...communication in general and particularly in this paper can be summarized by three points: a) communication is closely related to knowledge and understanding; b) communication’s purpose is to connect to others; c) communication can play a decisive role in influence and persuasion. Addressing this topic involves a synthesis between exegesis, as an essential part in the study of the text and communication within the larger context of science education. One can easily identify the deep relational character of the epistle, which is why it can be framed in synergistic communication with a warm language, full of sacrificial overflow, forgiving and ministering love. We can identify as the author of this short epistle not only Paul as a theologian, but especially Paul as a wise old man.
"A large number of casualties in our day and our eroded testimony to the world around us, allows for a lot of grieving but also calls for the reassessment of our understanding of sin, forgiveness and ...the context of restoration: the community of the forgiven. True, there is around us a growing concern for the problem of sin. However, it is more a face-saving concern vis-a-vis the secularized world and the Church. Unfortunately, it is less a concern compared to God and His righteous standards. How do we define sin? How are we to understand the forgiveness of sin? How do we recognize it, how do we administer it? These are some valid questions that need to be addressed. The purpose behind the present research is not to sift the Bible through our experience to accommodate our generation’s understanding of sin but the other way around: to sift experience through the Bible, expose misunderstanding and thus proceed toward restoration through a way of understanding godliness. The intend is not to fill an ontological gap, but rather address the current situation from a biblical and pastoral perspective, into a situation in which theologians and churches together have lost the ability to talk meaningfully about topics such as sin and the internal workings of the human soul and thus have rendered as irrelevant the meaning of Forgiveness that the Gospel brings. The concern in the following pages is to understand the concept of sin and the experiential dynamics of sin and that of Forgiveness and its personal and corporate experience. Even though a better understanding of Forgiveness may not rid our lives of sins nor make us the best forgivers in the world, it will alert us to what is happening around us and offer insight that can become opportunities. "
This paper is presenting a precise contextual methodology to teach and learn in a transdisciplinary way, the very current message from the Gospels through the Parables, and explicitly the parable of ...the Sower. The method used is the generative synergistic way to integrate the knowledge in a tree of knowledge profile using five levels of representation of reality, statistics-measuring, syntax-absorbing by codes, semantics filtering by the selection, pragmatics-interacting by teaching/learning, and apobetics innovating, in order to attain the Expertise as wisdom (top-down) and skills (bottom-up), the final goal being the Truth. A critical aspect of transdisciplinary teaching/learning is the use of the creative expression to engage the learner using their outer senses of sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell, as well as their inner senses of imagination, intuition, and impulse. In the parable of the Sower, an exceptionally special story is set up where the Sender, Jesus Christ, describes the individuals within the context of the story through heart attitudes and actions stemming from their will. The listener or reader of the parable, as receivers of the synergistic contextual message, is drawn into the story and identifies immediately with the character that describes their heart attitude. It is also a predictor of what decision they will make and what road they will take – accepting the Truth and walking in obedience or rejecting the Truth and following after their own heart’s desire. The purpose of telling the parable is two-fold. First, for those who have ears to hear, it means to reveal the meaning and receive the message, which is Himself (the Sender of the message) and understand His Kingdom, as the place where the knowledge is attained in its highest form and in the deepest way through communion. Secondly, for those who do not have ears to hear, the meaning will remain concealed, exposing their lack of belief.
