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Book Review (Extended): A Guide to Bible Translation: People, Languages, and Topics by Philip A. Noss and Charles S. Houser

Author: Christopher J. Lovelace

Christopher J. Lovelace, Seed Company

A Guide to Bible Translation: People, Languages, and Topics is a general reference resource produced mainly through the joint efforts of the United Bible Societies (UBS) and the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL), with the participation of many people associated with the Nida Institute…

Book Review: A Book-by-Book Guide to Biblical Hebrew Vocabulary by William R. Osborne and Russell L. Meek

Author: Dustin Burlet

Dustin Burlet, Millar Bible College (MB)

Typically, upon successful completion of their first year of Hebrew studies, many individuals (rightly) believe that they have a relatively firm grasp on the basics of the language, as a whole…

The Influence of Forgiveness on Radicalization into Violent Extremism among the Youth in Eastleigh Area, Nairobi County, Kenya

Author: Florence Wamahiga

r. Florence Wamahiga Githuthu, a Christian, a married woman and mother of two children hails from a small town called Nyeri in central Kenya. She began her career as a civil servant in 1982 and worked for the Kenya Government for ten years before she began practicing psychological counselling. She has garnered much acclaim for her presence and service in Tangaza University College as a psychological counsellor. Florence is a finalist for a second prestigious doctorate award by the Institute of Social Transformation, Tangaza University College of Catholic University. She earned her first doctorate in 2007 from Washington International University (Doctor of Arts in counselling). She holds a master’s degree in Sociology (Counselling option) and two postgraduate diplomas, one in psychology from Amani counselling center and training institute and another in International Humanitarian Assistance from Fordham University, USA.

Keywords: radicalization, extremism, forgiveness, violence
Radicalization continues to pose a serious threat to security in the contemporary world. Youth are at risk of radicalization and recruitment to militant groupings. Therefore, this study was carried out to investigate whether forgiveness can be used as an intervention to curb radicalization of youth into violent extremism. The study was guided by two theories: Relative Deprivation and Rational Choice Theories…

Is the Prosperity Gospel, Gospel? An Examination of the Prosperity and Productivity Gospels in African Christianity

Author: Joshua Robert Barron

Mr. Joshua Robert Barron has lived with his wife and family in Kenya since 2007, where they have served together as missionary curriculum developers and teachers, working primarily with Maasai churches. God has blessed them with six children. He has had previous missions experience in Papua New Guinea, India, and South Africa. He has been active in theological and ministerial education in South Africa, the USA, and Kenya, and served as a bible translation consultant for The Bible Society of Kenya for the recent revised and corrected Maa Bible translation. He is currently a Ph.D. student in World Christianity at Africa International University in Nairobi and has recently joined the staff of the Association for Christian Theological Education in Africa (ACTEA).

Keywords: prosperity gospel, productivity gospel, African worldviews, culture of envy, hope
The teaching of the Prosperity Gospel is widespread throughout African Christianity—especially within African Initiated/Independent Churches (AICs) and Pentecostal churches. For many, it is only a natural expression of biblical teachings on abundant life from the viewpoint of Africa’s holistic worldviews. For others, it arises as an extension of the deliverance theology of Pentecostals…

Is Divine Providence Risky? A Dialogue Between John Calvin and John Sanders

Author: Aku Stephen Antombikums

Mr. Aku Stephen Antombikums taught Philosophy of Religions, Systematic Theology, and Biblical Studies at The Evangelical Reformed Church of Christ (E.R.C.C) Theological Seminary, Fadan Ayu in Nigeria. He is currently a Ph.D. researcher at the Faculty of Religion and Theology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. His main areas of interest are the Analytic Philosophy of Religion, Analytic Theology, Moral Philosophy, and Public Theology.

Keywords: creation, providence, risk-taking, foreknowledge, divine repentance
This study presents John Calvin and John Sanders as an example of the ongoing debate on the nature of divine control and human freedom. Given the time gap between Calvin and Sanders, the study uses a dialogical hermeneutics methodology. The former upheld a “no risk” while the latter propagates a “risky” conception of providence…

Coherence in Ecclesiastes 3:16–22

Authors: Kimmo Huovila and Dan Lioy

Dr. Kimmo Huovila holds a Ph.D. in Old Testament from the South African Theological Seminary and a master’s degree from the University of Helsinki, majoring in general linguistics and minoring in classical Greek language and literature and Semitic languages and cultures. He has also completed studies in mathematics, pedagogy, and computer science at the University of Helsinki.

Prof. Dan Lioy (Ph.D., North-West University) holds several faculty appointments. He is a senior research academic at the South African Theological Seminary; a professor of biblical theology at the Institute of Lutheran Theology (in South Dakota); and a dissertation advisor in the semiotics, church, and culture DMIN program at Portland Seminary (part of George Fox University in Oregon). His areas of specialization include OT and NT Exegesis, OT and NT Theology, OT and NT Hermeneutics, Hebrew, and Greek.

Keywords: Ecclesiastes, coherence, judgment, afterlife, joy
Ecclesiastes 3:16–22 has been interpreted as an incoherent text or as having unresolved tension. This article seeks to explain the flow of thought in the text. Various exegetical options are evaluated in light of the text and the theology of the book. To trace the flow of thought, different views on the coherence of the text are surveyed and evaluated on the basis of the exegesis.…

Metonymic Conceptualization of Body Parts in the Greek New Testament

Author: Charles Owiredu

Prof. Charles Owiredu is a Langham scholar and holds a Ph.D. from Durham University, England. He is a theologian, an educator, and an anthropologist. His area of interest is in Biblical Studies and African Thought. He is a faculty member at Central University in Ghana. He has taught Biblical Languages in several universities.

Keywords: body parts, New Testament, Greek language, metonymy, Conceptual Metonymy Theory, cognitive linguistics
This paper examines the metonymic structure of body parts in the Greek New Testament within the framework of the Conceptual Metonymy Theory. The question is, “How are body parts conceptualized in the Greek New Testament?” The aim is to explore the ways in which body parts and their functions are conceptually used in the New Testament in reference to the whole person…

The Rhetoric of Rejuvenation: Restoring the “Weak” and “Wanderers” according to James 5:13–20

Author: Ernst R. Wendland

Prof. Ernst Wendland obtained a Ph.D. in African Languages and Literature (1979, University of Wisconsin, USA) and has been teaching and writing at Lusaka Lutheran Seminary since 1968. He is affiliated with the Department of Ancient Studies at Stellenbosch University and several other tertiary educational institutions. A former translation consultant for the United Bible Societies, he still presents periodic training workshops at the Jerusalem Center for Bible Translators and online for other areas in the world. He is on the editorial review board of several academic journals.

Keywords: James, rhetoric, restoration, church discipline, pastoral theology
The passage of Scripture under consideration in this study, James 5:13–20, is important for several reasons. First, this pericope occurs at the very end of the letter, which is normally a position of topical prominence in the epistles—providing some information that the writer, in closing, did not want his readers to forget. Second, both the form and the content of this text draw attention to its significance…

Conspectus 33

April 2022
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