An analysis of factors contributing to congregational fractures within four Churches of Christ congregations in Zomba, Malawi: A practical theological study
Hayes, Ryan F.
An analysis of factors contributing to congregational fractures within four Churches of Christ congregations in Zomba, Malawi: A practical theological study - Johannesburg South Africa South African Theological Seminary October 2019 - 178 pages PDF A4 Abstract, TOC
The purpose of this thesis is to elucidate the causes of conflict and division within four Churches of Christ in Zomba, Malawi. This topic is examined through the processes of empirical research through focus groups and subsequent corroboration with literary sources. Before the empirical research was carried out, the assumption was that the primary reasons for the conflict related to the leaders’ lack of education in relation to ecclesial and theological matters. After the research, it became clear that the reasons for the conflict were much deeper. A new theory was therefore developed considering the research, which was that personal and systemic anxiety relating to unstable identity formation is the ground out of which conflict and division occur in the four Zomba congregations. The letter to the Galatians is utilized as a normative guide to understand the importance of anxiety and identity in Zomba congregations. Paul’s exhortations are also utilized to form the transformative intervention for this context. Several interventions are suggested to ameliorate the problem in context, but the most important of which is a whole-life discipleship model created for Zomba church leaders. It is the assumption that such a program will effectively ameliorate the root causes of anxiety and unstable identity formation. In doing so, the symptoms of conflict and division will be amended over time.
An analysis of factors contributing to congregational fractures within four Churches of Christ congregations in Zomba, Malawi: A practical theological study - Johannesburg South Africa South African Theological Seminary October 2019 - 178 pages PDF A4 Abstract, TOC
The purpose of this thesis is to elucidate the causes of conflict and division within four Churches of Christ in Zomba, Malawi. This topic is examined through the processes of empirical research through focus groups and subsequent corroboration with literary sources. Before the empirical research was carried out, the assumption was that the primary reasons for the conflict related to the leaders’ lack of education in relation to ecclesial and theological matters. After the research, it became clear that the reasons for the conflict were much deeper. A new theory was therefore developed considering the research, which was that personal and systemic anxiety relating to unstable identity formation is the ground out of which conflict and division occur in the four Zomba congregations. The letter to the Galatians is utilized as a normative guide to understand the importance of anxiety and identity in Zomba congregations. Paul’s exhortations are also utilized to form the transformative intervention for this context. Several interventions are suggested to ameliorate the problem in context, but the most important of which is a whole-life discipleship model created for Zomba church leaders. It is the assumption that such a program will effectively ameliorate the root causes of anxiety and unstable identity formation. In doing so, the symptoms of conflict and division will be amended over time.