Christian Leadership: Exploring the Theological, Biblical, and Social–Scientific Foundations and Applications

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024 | Viewed by 1770

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Jannetides College of Business, Communication & Leadership, Southeastern University, Lakeland, FL 33803, USA
Interests: Christian leadership; biblical leadership; theological studies; biblical studies; religious studies; ecclesiology; leadership; character; values; leader behavior; leadership styles

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue is devoted to exploring theological and biblical perspectives of Christian leadership. Leadership research, specifically from the Christian worldview, requires an interdisciplinary dialogue of scholars representing the fields of theological, biblical, religious, social-scientific, historical, and leadership studies. While the study of Christian leadership is not new, recently increased attention has been given to how the wealth of research in various academic disciplines can be harnessed to deepen our understanding of how the Christian worldview shapes leadership character, values, behaviors, and styles. Scholars who have been researching Christian leadership recognize the interconnectedness of these disciplines, however, there are few opportunities for researchers to provide deep, meaningful contributions that leverage theological, biblical, and religious perspectives of Christianity with the practical applicability of the organizational leadership paradigm.

This Special Issue seeks to address this need with the aim of advancing the understanding the role of Christianity in shaping the perspectives and practices of Christian leaders in sacred and secular spaces we well as the biblical and theological principles that mold our understanding of Christian leadership, including theology, ecclesiology, historical, and religious studies. This issue will provide a forum for presenting and discussing empirical research carried out by scholars in the field of social sciences and religious studies who have a special interest and expertise in addressing this issue.

Relevant proposals that address the following suggested (but not exclusive) topics will be welcomed:

  • Theological perspectives of Christian leadership
  • Biblical (OT and NT) perspectives of Christian leadership
  • Social-scientific perspectives of Christian leadership
  • Historical and Religious contributions to Christian leadership
  • Christian leaderships in sacred and secular contexts
  • Theological, biblical, and social-scientific perspectives of the character, values, behaviors, and styles of leadership from a Christian worldview

Dr. Joshua D. Henson
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • Christian leadership
  • biblical leadership
  • theological studies
  • biblical studies
  • religious studies
  • ecclesiology
  • leadership
  • character
  • values
  • leader behavior
  • leadership styles

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

23 pages, 1551 KiB  
Article
The Widening, Deepening, and Lengthening of the Seven Mountains Mandate (7MM) Network: The Role of Network Apostolic Leadership
by Fernando Mora-Ciangherotti
Religions 2024, 15(11), 1363; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15111363 - 10 Nov 2024
Viewed by 970
Abstract
This article describes the leadership and organizational elements that have made the Seven Mountains Mandate (7MM), one of the main doctrines of the Apostolic Restoration Movement (ARM), a very adaptable, simple to explain, and feasible to implement message and portable practice, which can [...] Read more.
This article describes the leadership and organizational elements that have made the Seven Mountains Mandate (7MM), one of the main doctrines of the Apostolic Restoration Movement (ARM), a very adaptable, simple to explain, and feasible to implement message and portable practice, which can be started at the local level and expand progressively to acquire regional and national dimensions. A new classification of apostolic networks is proposed in this article and a partial map of some of the networks that participated in the expansion of the 7MM is presented. Additionally, using definitions from network leadership theory, it is shown how different types of leaders, who function as horizontal connectors in apostolic networks, such as conveners, catalysts, mobilizers, facilitators, weavers, provocateurs, illuminators, hosts, and curators, contribute to the diffusion of the 7MM by promoting its global Widening, Deepening, and Lengthening (WDL). The article first describes the evolution of the church from denominations to networks and how the ARM adopted the network organizational structure that serves as a channel for the diffusion of the 7MM. Cases from the USA, Guatemala, Zambia, and Venezuela are used as examples to demonstrate how the 7MM’s expansion, or Widening (W); its contextualization and adaption, or Deepening (D); and its sustainability, reproduction, and evolution, or Lengthening (L), occur globally based on the network nature of the ARM and the network leadership enacted in the process. Full article
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