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Religions
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Preaching as a Theological Practice in Postmodernity
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Preaching as a Theological Practice in Postmodernity

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444). This special issue belongs to the section "Religions and Health/Psychology/Social Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 July 2024) | Viewed by 7707

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Rob O’Lynn

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Associate Professor of Preaching and Ministry, Director of Graduate Bible Programs, Kentucky Christian University, Grayson, KY 41143, USA
Interests: preaching and homiletics; practical theology; media and technology; Hebrew Bible
Dr. Amy McLaughlin-Sheasby

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Bible, Missions and Ministry, Abilene Christian University, Abilene, TX 79601, USA
Interests: preaching and homiletics; hermeneutics; practical theology; wisdom literature; trauma studies

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The focus of this Special Issue is the continuing practice of preaching as a theological practice within postmodernity. This focus follows in two interconnected directions. On the one hand, preaching is a theological activity. In every moment of sermon development, up to the moment the sermon is left in the hearts and minds of the congregation, the preacher—and the congregation—engage in the practice of what has been labeled as “doing theology.” Historically the congregation, together with the preacher, has engaged in the actions of hearing the Word, discerning its meaning and articulating confessions drawn from its hearing. Preaching is a formative cultivation of theological imagination, which in turn elicits a response in the community. The emergence of postmodern thought has led preaching to shed some of its modern trappings in exchange for practices that are attuned to social complexity, power dynamics, the plurivocity of scripture, and the changing shape of religious expression. Questions about the authority of the Bible, boundaries of Christian theology and practice, limits to diversity and pluralism, and the role of Christian witness in the public sphere continue to abound and require critical yet pastorally focused responses from those engaged in the theological practice of preaching.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to engage in continuing conversations on preaching’s role in shaping theology and Christian practice within postmodernity. Authors may approach this topic from several angles, such as engaging in imaginative approaches of moving from the text to the sermon in ways that honor the diverse plurality of the church, articulating a postmodern biblical hermeneutic for preaching, crafting a constructive approach to engaging in homiletical theology, or evaluating the role of Christian witness in the public sphere.

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 400–600 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send it to the Guest Editors, Dr. Rob O’Lynn (rolynn@kcu.edu) and Dr. Amy McLaughlin-Sheasby (acm12a@acu.edu), or to the Religions editorial office (religions@mdpi.com). Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editors for the purposes of ensuring proper fit within the scope of this Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

Dr. Rob O’Lynn
Dr. Amy McLaughlin-Sheasby
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • preaching
  • homiletics
  • postmodernism
  • theology
  • homiletical theology
  • theological practice

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 303 KiB  
Article
Contesting Power as Political Theology: Traditionalist Islamic Preaching and Post-Secularism in the West
by Abdessamad Belhaj
Religions 2024, 15(10), 1197; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15101197 - 1 Oct 2024
Viewed by 1375
Abstract
Traditionalist Islamic preaching in the West is not limited to the normative aspects of theology, law, and ethics. In addition, it addresses the most pressing social and political issues that Muslims are currently confronting in the West; it also challenges Western modernity in [...] Read more.
Traditionalist Islamic preaching in the West is not limited to the normative aspects of theology, law, and ethics. In addition, it addresses the most pressing social and political issues that Muslims are currently confronting in the West; it also challenges Western modernity in general and secularism in particular. Two critical sermons of secularism delivered by two of the most well-known traditionalist Muslim preachers in their respective countries—Hamza Yusuf in the USA and Hani Ramadan in Switzerland—are analyzed in this study. First, I shall examine the arguments put up by these preachers against secularism and in support of post-secular society. Next, I will study the rhetorical strategies used in these two sermons. Finally, I will discuss the relevance of these two sermons to the contemporary debates in the West on contesting secularism and multiple secularisms. It is argued here that traditionalist Muslim preachers see secularism as an encroaching power that poses a danger to the figures of authority and norms that control gender, knowledge, and education within Muslim communities and societies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Preaching as a Theological Practice in Postmodernity)
21 pages, 526 KiB  
Article
Collaborative Preaching for Collective Trauma Healing: A Model from Indonesia
by Linna Gunawan
Religions 2024, 15(9), 1070; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15091070 - 3 Sep 2024
Viewed by 1267
Abstract
In this article, I propose a collaborative preaching model for healing collective trauma. It begins with the preaching context of a society in the grip of collective trauma after a traumatic event. Taking the May 1998 tragedy in Jakarta, Indonesia, as a case [...] Read more.
In this article, I propose a collaborative preaching model for healing collective trauma. It begins with the preaching context of a society in the grip of collective trauma after a traumatic event. Taking the May 1998 tragedy in Jakarta, Indonesia, as a case study and employing descriptive, historical, and analytical methods, this study argues that the Church is called to respond to collective trauma in its ministries as part of God’s mission. The research focuses specifically on the ministry of preaching and explores theories of trauma-aware preaching to affirm that preaching can indeed be a medium for healing collective trauma. I then present a collaborative preaching model for collective trauma healing by integrating a conversational preaching approach with the local Indonesian traditions of gotong-royong and musyawarah-mufakat. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Preaching as a Theological Practice in Postmodernity)
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12 pages, 213 KiB  
Article
Learner-Centered Pedagogy and Preaching: A Postmodern Framework for Transformation of Preacher and Listener
by Bethany Joy Moore
Religions 2024, 15(9), 1063; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15091063 - 1 Sep 2024
Viewed by 1528
Abstract
This essay will contribute to the ongoing conversation related to postmodern homiletics by engaging with the elements of learner-centered teaching. Recognizing that modernist methods have diminished effectiveness for the postmodern hearer, learner-centered preaching holds potential value by realigning preaching with the cultural shift [...] Read more.
This essay will contribute to the ongoing conversation related to postmodern homiletics by engaging with the elements of learner-centered teaching. Recognizing that modernist methods have diminished effectiveness for the postmodern hearer, learner-centered preaching holds potential value by realigning preaching with the cultural shift in theological beliefs about authority, power, and community. Learner-centered teaching, represented by Maryellen Weimer, is a pedagogical approach rooted in democratic and egalitarian values that focuses on these changes in the classroom: the role of the teacher, the balance of power, the function of content, the responsibility for learning, and the method of evaluation. This essay will present the advent of learner-centered teaching and outline its elements. Next, the relationship between teaching and preaching will be examined. Then, an exploration of the context of learner-centered preaching. After that, each learner-centered teaching element will be considered focusing on how they have been utilized in preaching and offering proposals of how they could be integrated. Finally, conclusions will be drawn about the power of learner-centered preaching for the transformation of speaker and hearer. The end goal of learner-centered preaching is a change in Christian practice; therefore, more than just discussing the theory of learner-centered preaching, this essay will provide praxis for immediate implementation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Preaching as a Theological Practice in Postmodernity)
27 pages, 821 KiB  
Article
A Shared Pulpit: Creating a Hospitable Homiletic Culture for Congregational Formation in a Metamodern Age
by Tiffany Mangan Dahlman
Religions 2024, 15(9), 1040; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15091040 - 27 Aug 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1189
Abstract
Preaching has always been a means of congregational formation, and it is most effective in this endeavor when the homiletic matches the expectations of the audience. Modernism’s solo, authoritative clergy voice and postmodernism’s inductive New Homiletic responded to the needs of listeners in [...] Read more.
Preaching has always been a means of congregational formation, and it is most effective in this endeavor when the homiletic matches the expectations of the audience. Modernism’s solo, authoritative clergy voice and postmodernism’s inductive New Homiletic responded to the needs of listeners in their respective eras. This paper proposes a homiletical paradigm that responds to metamodernism—a movement emerging in the U.S. over the past 10 years—and imagines this paradigm’s contribution to Christo-formation in the faith community. After the introduction, this paper traces how modernism and postmodernism affected America’s homiletic and subsequent congregational formation. This is followed by a description of metamodernism, its place within postmodernity, and its effect on church members’ expectations. Next, I present a shared pulpit culture, where the congregation hears a myriad of preaching voices, as a formative response to metamodern demands for more complex truths to be discerned within trusting communities. The paper ends with experiences from a faith community that practices a shared pulpit to show how the practice forms the vocational preacher, the members who preach, and the church at large. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Preaching as a Theological Practice in Postmodernity)
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10 pages, 175 KiB  
Article
Homiletical Theory as a Pedagogical Paradigm
by Nicole Danielle McDonald
Religions 2024, 15(8), 1009; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15081009 - 18 Aug 2024
Viewed by 1457
Abstract
Every preacher has a unique homiletical theory evident in their preaching, regardless of whether it is understood through scholarly examination. Homiletical theory is the academic examination of disciplines in the understanding of the methodological functionality in preaching. Historically, theology and rhetoric constitute frames [...] Read more.
Every preacher has a unique homiletical theory evident in their preaching, regardless of whether it is understood through scholarly examination. Homiletical theory is the academic examination of disciplines in the understanding of the methodological functionality in preaching. Historically, theology and rhetoric constitute frames of reference in homiletical theory. However, as the field evolves, other frames of reference emerge, including pastoral care. In this paper, I argue that homiletical theory is a pedagogical paradigm in which the lead partner, either rhetoric or theology, determines the point of departure for teaching, with emphasis on the rhetorical situation or the theological implications. Therefore, understanding one’s homiletical theory can lead to a pedagogical experience that translates to more effective preaching by developing a coherent delineation from theory to praxis. As a case study, I use my approach to teaching students how to preach funerals with a rhetorical point of departure that focuses on answering the existential question: how then shall we live now that our loved one has died? Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Preaching as a Theological Practice in Postmodernity)
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