Looking back on the use of distance education tools by religious groups, one word that stands out is change. The old adage "We've never done it that way before" will become less valid as religious bodies find themselves in the midst of a world inundated with online possibilities that call them to question how they interact with members…

The Baha'i Faith, which was founded in 1863, holds as its purpose the awakening of humanity to invisible possibilities, providing humankind with conscious direction and hope vis-a-vis the challenges and perplexities of time (Rosen, 2010). The Baha'i writings explain that spiritual forces are the foundation of reality and that the Word of God is…

Although research has demonstrated education programs are an effective way of reducing recidivism, little has been done to investigate the role of prison administrators in supporting such programs. State Chief Correction Officers (CCOs) from the 50 states and one from the District of Columbia were invited to complete surveys concerning…

The emerging field of educational visioning is full of challenges and phenomena worthy of careful analysis and documentation. A relatively neglected phenomenon is the learning curve of the leaders (often lay leaders) involved in the visioning process. This article documents a range of experiences of the author serving as a vision coach to five…

This article investigates the long-held assumption that Christian educators need their own curriculum orientation. Seminal documents published by Philip Jackson and Harro Van Brummelen in the nineties are analyzed against the background of a brief history of the field of curriculum theory. The author accepts Jackson's conclusion that curriculum…

This article investigates the use of the contextual orientation to the Bible--which seeks to understand the Bible as a product of its time, and in the context of historical-critical biblical scholarship--as a deliberate, significant aspect of a teacher's overall approach to reaching Jewish adults in their 20s and 30s. Through classroom observation…

In light of today's explosion of knowledge and the complexity of American culture, Pentecostal church leaders face the daunting challenge of effecting biblical change in their communities. Biblical truth reveals that true, lasting change begins by the power of God activated in a believer through faith and perseverance in Christ. To assure the…

The sacrament of reconciliation has fallen into disuse among Roman Catholics. For the Holy See this signifies a loss of a sense of sin and reconciliation, rightly connecting moral consciousness and faith in salvation with sacramental celebration. Cultural studies underscore the importance of ritual practices as an essential element of religion's…

Mary Perkins Ryan remains one of the least recognized of the twentieth-century figures in the modern renewal of Catholic education in the United States. The reasons are many but none satisfactory. Ryan was an intellectual without a scholarly credential. She was an educator without an affiliation to an academic institution. She was a leading voice…

The purpose of this study was to examine the lived experience of 12 missionaries living in the Countries of Kenya and Tanzania who had participated in various field based orientation programs in order to determine their perceptions of personal success and make recommendations for future field based orientation programs for missionary personnel.…

In this mixed methodology study, the researcher became the research practitioner through Educational Action Research. His personal practice of training adult Bible teachers was examined by measuring the self-perceived changes of a group of adult Bible teachers as they were trained to change from their traditional mode of primarily teaching the…

This year-long study explored how adult church members experienced the phenomenon of spirit and the relationship between their experience and peace. Four themes emerged from the analysis of personal journal entries and transcripts of individual and group interviews: depth in the encounter with spirit, soul as the locus of spiritual growth,…

The aim of this article is to propose a method for practical theology, the hermeneutical-praxis paradigm, based on discussions of three different methodological approaches to practical theology. This article suggests the hermeneutical-praxis paradigm, which bridges theory and practice, which connects church with society, which correlates theology…

The vision statement of St. Saviour's Anglican Church in the Parish of Glen Osmon reads, "We aim to be a worshipping, caring, learning and serving Christian Community." These four aspects of Christian Community are essential and inter-related. The intention in the first part of this article is to explore the "learning" aspects…

More than a decade ago, the popular topic of discussion in higher education and in pop culture concerned the character traits of what was then called "Generation X" or "GenX" for short. One lasting impact of this focus has been a renewed effort on the part of higher education to define young adulthood and to reassess young adult education. In the…