Original Research

The influence of dwelling in the Word within the Southern African Partnership of Missional Churches

Marius J. Nel
Verbum et Ecclesia | Vol 34, No 1 | a778 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/ve.v34i1.778 | © 2013 Marius J. Nel | This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 16 August 2012 | Published: 20 September 2013

About the author(s)

Marius J. Nel, Faculty of Theology, Stellenbosch University, South Africa

Abstract

‘All of creation dwells within the Word of God, the Word who created us, the Word who redeems us’ (Ellison 2009:91). The article evaluated the influence that the communal spiritual practice of dwelling in the Word had in the missional transformation of congregations that formed part of the Southern African Partnership of Missional Churches. It investigated the background, hermeneutic and methodology of dwelling in the Word on the participating congregations. The article concluded that the practice had a profound effect on the theology and missional practice of most of the participating congregations as it had a positive influence on the attitudes and beliefs, minimum knowledge base, and skills of a number of churches leading to spontaneous missional activity, the discernment of a specific missionary calling, and the integration of theory and practice. However, it had not always led to the formation of new faith communities.

Keywords

Dwelling in the Word; Congregations

Metrics

Total abstract views: 3460
Total article views: 7628

 

Crossref Citations

1. Transformative Spirituality and Missional Leadership
Cornelius Johannes Petrus Niemandt
Mission Studies  vol: 33  issue: 1  first page: 85  year: 2016  
doi: 10.1163/15733831-12341435