KENARCHY JOURNAL VOLUME 7
Editorial
Sue Mitchell
Volume 7.1
The Great Music: Perfecting Love in Order and in Chaos
Spencer Thompson
Spencer Thompson PhD is an economist in the Scottish Government. His academic research has explored the potential of cooperatives as an alternative model of business.
Abstract
This paper starts from the observation that the modern world is characterised by a particular sense of discord, which seems to be broadly shared and to pervade multiple domains. To understand this discord, the paper proposes that the prevailing order of the modern world is driven by a logic of chaos elimination, within which we are prone to conflate chaos with discord, and order with harmony. But in fact, fields ranging from information theory to physics indicate that harmony is defined by a kind of divine marriage between order and chaos, meaning it is precisely the attempt to eliminate chaos that results in discord. The modern order also fulfils its own prophecies, while failing on its own terms, by provoking a corrective form of chaos that truly threatens it. The paper goes on to demonstrate that the creation myth of Genesis amounts to a defence of chaos, which, as propagandised in the earlier Babylonian myth, the imperial order sought to eliminate. Following the arrival of discord that accompanied the Fall, the Law represented an order that left room for the divine chaos, while the Prophets represented a chaos that reopened the door to the divine order; yet the hope of harmony remained unseen. The paper draws on the work of J. R. R. Tolkien to illuminate the way that this hope can be realised, pointing to a ‘higher harmony’ that is capable of including and transcending even the discord of the world. Examining the New Testament correlation between agape (self-giving love) and teleiotētos (consummative harmony), the paper concludes that it is Love, and only Love, which achieves the higher harmony, and in so doing recreates a world uniquely conducive to the flourishing of all things.
Volume 7.2
At last Towards the Good: The Eschatology of St. Gregory of Nyssa
Jeffrey Mears
Jeffrey Mears is currently completing graduate studies in Theology and Culture at St. Stephen’s University. His creative work is focused on cultivating a world where radically nonjudgmental, mystical, Jesus-centered community is available to all.
Abstract
In this paper, I will demonstrate that Gregory of Nyssa provides a compelling and beautiful alternative vision of last things, one that not only remains within the bounds of Christian Orthodoxy, but is sourced from its very roots. Gregory’s theology is centered around his vision of a God who is indeed only good and who has an ultimately good plan for all of humanity. Western evangelicals’ current hellish iteration of Christianity claims that God is good in ways that necessarily contradict human comprehension. In contrast, Gregory elevates the goodness of God beyond human comprehension. His belief in the ultimate restoration of all things allows him to congruently claim that “God in his own nature, is everything that can be conceived of as good; or rather, being beyond any good that can be conceived or comprehended.” This should pique the interest of those experiencing this Great Deconstruction.
For those who are on a quest to find an antidote to our current hellish theologies—theologies that would make God evil—Gregory offers a healing salve. For those whose heads and hearts have deemed this current iteration of Christianity untenable but who don’t wish to leave their Christian faith, Gregory offers a path forward. He beckons these seekers to journey deeper into the roots of orthodox Christianity to find a cohesive vision of a good God, with a good plan, and an ultimately good outcome for all. Gregory does not stand alone in this perspective. His thoughts echo in the writings and sermons of some of the most formative voices of Christian theology, both before him and after. We could also look to saints and theologians like Maximus the Confessor, Isaac the Syrian, Clement of Alexandria, Irenaeus, Macrina the Younger, Basil, and Gregory Nazanius, among many others, to receive this antidote to our current malaise. However, in this paper, I will specifically examine the eschatology of one of the most brilliant and celebrated early church Fathers, Saint Gregory of Nyssa. We will see how his view of last things might shape our view of all things.
Volume 7.3
Old Testament Land Promises and the Justification of Violence in the Crusades
Faith A. Edwards
Faith Edwards holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and is currently pursuing a Master of Theological Studies in Peace and Justice at St. Stephen’s University in Canada. She lives in Denver, CO with her husband Ryan and is passionate about justice powered by a theology of peace.
Abstract
This paper examines the contrasting interpretations of Old Testament land promises and the narrative of Joshua’s conquests as understood by early Christian theologians versus medieval Crusaders. Through an exegesis of Joshua 1:3-6, this paper highlights how early Church Fathers Justin Martyr, Tertullian, and Origen utilized typological hermeneutics to allegorize the conquest narratives, seeing Joshua as a prefigurement of Christ’s spiritual victory over evil. In contrast, the Crusaders literalized these texts, using them to justify violence and territorial conquest. This paper exposes the dangers of scriptural misinterpretation and emphasizes the modern implications of such hermeneutics, especially in contexts of political conflict and religious justification of violence as seen in Israel/Palestine today. The findings underscore the importance of responsible scripture reading to promote peace and align with Christ’s teachings in contemporary faith practice.
Volume 7.4
The Rise of Intercultural Theology and its challenge for Western and Non –Western Theologies
Paul Lancaster
Paul Lancaster’s background is in education and helping lead unity/mission teams in Leeds. More recently he has helped establish an intercultural mission forum and an innovative Intercultural leadership project with Leeds Trinity University. He holds a B.Ed. and an MA in Global Leadership in Intercultural Contexts.
Abstract
The last twenty years have seen a growing interest in intercultural theology alongside the rise of interculturalism as an increasingly important dynamic in wider society. For many there is a lack of understanding as to what ‘intercultural’ means as distinct from ‘multicultural’, especially when it comes to theology. This paper will outline some of the current definitions of intercultural theology, examining non-western theologies and their challenge to western theology e.g. eastern orthodoxy, indigenous theology, Palestinian liberation theology and intercultural feminist/womanist theology. These are often described as contextual theologies based on an assumption that ‘there is theology and contextual theology’, implying Western-Eurocentric theology is superior to contextual theologies.
However, it is now being asserted, particularly from the Global South, that ‘all theologies are contextualised ’and always have been and need to be seen in this way. Theology (i.e. western euro-centric) as well as bringing scholasticism, has from an indigenous and contextualised historical viewpoint often led to subjugation, injustice and untold suffering. In today’s world, unchallenged theologies from an intercultural perspective often contribute to polarisation, division and alienation. On a positive note however, intercultural theology can enrich existing understanding contributing to societal transformation, whatever the theological context.
Given the scope of these issues, this paper can only be a broad outline and the examples chosen are rather limited, acknowledging that there is much more to investigate, but it raises important questions to be considered for now and the future.
Volume 7.5
The need for contextual theology in the modern world: An exploration of Minjung Theology
Johan Francis
Johan Francis holds a BEd from the University of the Western Cape as well as an MEd from Framingham State University. He has been living and working in South Korea for the past 15 years. Johan is currently pursuing a Master of Ministry in Theology and Culture through St. Stephen’s University.
Abstract
This paper examines Minjung Theology as an essential form of contextual theology, highlighting its significance in today’s globalized society. Founded on the trials faced by the Korean minjung, individuals sidelined by war, poverty, and oppression, Minjung Theology reframes Christian orthodoxy through the perspectives of liberation, solidarity, and the shared experience of Han (한), the profound anguish of the oppressed. This theology claims that Christ resonates with the Minjung, sharing in their pain and providing liberation not only as atonement but as a dynamic, experiential reality. It also argues that faith should encompass orthodoxy (correct belief), orthopraxy (correct action), and orthopathy (correct feeling), encouraging the church to partake in the fight for justice. Viewed through the framework of Minjung Theology, the paper contends that theology should be dynamic, incarnational, and based on the actual experiences of individuals. It confronts Eurocentric theological supremacy, advocating for a wider acceptance of varied, contextually rooted theologies that testify to God’s continual action throughout history.
Volume 7.6
The Double-Edged Sword of Proximity: the Dialectic of Hostility and Hospitality in Light of God’s Cruciform Love
Lenée Fuelling
Lenée Fuelling is an ecumenical bridge-builder in Salt Lake City, Utah. She holds an M.A. in Teaching and is pursuing an M.A. Peace and Justice at St. Stephen’s University in New Brunswick, Canada. She writes for Multiply Goodness and helps to envision and facilitate interfaith gatherings that create safe space for connection with the Divine and each other.
Abstract
Some religious cultures exacerbate conflict by treating people who are of different religious orientations with antagonism – “othering” them – and rationalizing their treatment with a religious view that God’s nature includes hostility for the sake of justice. Anthropologist René Girard contended that this perceived hostility was in truth a projection of human nature and an effect of mimetic desire fueling rivalry. Girard theorized that utilizing a scapegoat mechanism through the ritual act of sacrifice eased rivalry-built tensions and temporarily reestablished unity. It naturally followed that this scapegoating hostility would become embedded in religion, including in Judeo-Christian theology. Alternatively, cruciform theology interprets God’s nature through what Jesus Christ exemplified on the cross, when he subverted human violence and hostility by absorbing and forgiving it through self- humbling, self-giving love. Contemplative priest Henri Nouwen presents God through this lens, exhorting Christ-followers to move from human hostility into God’s hospitality and insisting that this movement is integral to living a life in the Holy Spirit. So how does one reconcile Old Testament biblical narratives that portray God as condoning or responsible for violence? What about the use of animal slaughter and a scapegoat embedded in the origin of Jewish religious law? This paper will highlight the relationship between hostility and hospitality, consider René Girard’s insight around mimetic desire and the scapegoat mechanism, and apply Henri Nouwen’s wisdom and a Christotelic interpretation to the Hebrew Bible story of the Israelites establishing their Tabernacle and religious rituals. It will conclude that God’s nature is non-hostile and that the church is meant to demonstrate God’s hospitality in a multi-faith world.
Volume 7.7
How kenotic alignment reframes spiritual warfare prayer
Roger Haydon Mitchell
Roger Haydon Mitchell, PhD, is a theologian and activist, an honorary researcher in the Lancaster University Centre for Alternatives to Social and Economic Inequalities, and political theologian with the Westminster Theological Centre.
Abstract
This paper is partly autobiographical in its examination of the author’s theological shift as a prayer leader in the Pentecostal-Charismatic movement engaged in the practice of prayer as spiritual warfare to overcome obstacles to the kingdom of God. This popular form of prayer draws on Paul’s statements “the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but are mighty to the destruction of strongholds” (2 Cor.10: 4) and “put on the full armour of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil” (Eph. 6: 11). It is typically expounded in C. Peter Wagner’s Warfare Prayer: Strategies for Combating the Rulers of Darkness (1992). The paper is testimony to my initial engagement with the practice and the ensuing dramatic events that took place at a meeting of international prayer leaders from some 120 or more nations in South Korea in 1993. Intending to engage in spiritual warfare for the world, we ended up identifying and aligning with those damaged by colonial violence between nations. These events and some of the subsequent implications are spelt out in The Sins of the Fathers (Roger Mitchell and Brian Mills. Tonbridge, Kent: Sovereign World, 1999). This experience fundamentally reconfigured my understanding of the nature of both God and the kingdom of God and helped reorient my interpretation of biblical metaphors, such as those used by Paul, away from oppositional warfare to kenotic alignment with God’s loving identification with the perpetrators of past sin. In tracing this process, the paper will expose key elements of my developing theology leading up to that point and draw on three seminal gospel texts; John’s story of footwashing, Paul’s Philippian hymn and Jesus’ wilderness encounter with Satan. Supportive reference will be made to the theology of Thomas Jay Oord, Giorgio Agamben and kenotic feminists such as Catherine Keller and Anna Mercedes in consideration of the ontological implications for our theology of prayer and its strategic role in the coming resurrection of all things.
Volume 7.8
Book review: Apocalyptic Theopolitics: Essays and Sermons on Eschatology, Ethics, and Politics
Mike Love
Mike Love PhD recently completed his doctoral thesis at the University of Leeds developing a kenarchic political theology of cities.
Volume 7.9
Book Review: Faith, Politics, and Belonging: A Reflection on Identity, Complexity, Simplicity, and Obsession
Sam Tomlin
Captain Sam Tomlin is Corps officer and church leader at Liverpool Stoneycroft Salvation Army.
Volume 7.10
Book Review: FREEDOM- The Case for Open Borders
Mike D Winter
Mike Winter PhD, formerly a Post-Doctoral researcher in Agricultural Biosciences, is interested in how Kenarchy can help us better understand our relationship with land and nature.
Volume 7.11
Book Review: Reconciling Justice: Concepts of Justice in the Multireligious Context of Palestine/Israel
Robert Cohen
Robert Cohen is currently completing his PhD research in the Theology and Religious Studies department at King’s College London.
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