In Ordained Ministry in Free Church Perspective Jan Martijn Abrahamse offers a methodologically innovative way to understand ordained ministry in terms of covenantal theology by returning to the life and thought of the English Separatist Robert Browne (c. 1550-1633).

A discussion of the historical development of the order of deacons, its theological basis in the Western and Eastern Churches, and the relevance and significance of the diaconate for the Church in the twenty-first century.

Advancing strong, scholarly discussion on the Holy Spirit and the church in the context of the ecumenical movement, six theologians in five different churches offer new theological and pastoral insights into the work of the Holy Spirit in the churches of Christianity, in ecumenism, and in witness. With The Church: Towards a Common Vision (World Council of Churches) document serving as a common point of reference, a pastoral perspective is distinctive throughout. Relating theology to non-theological knowledge of the contemporary cultural context, as well as application to pastoral practice, this book draws from, and is applicable to, clergy formation, preaching, lay discipleship, church-world relations, social mission, congregational life, grass-roots ecumenical cooperation, and witness to Christ and the gospel by racial minorities.

A unique situation exists in the Nordic countries where there is a Lutheran majority living in ecumenical cooperation with other churches and ecclesiastical communities. This book attempts to shed light on what the churches have discovered they hold in common and on areas where they recognise that there are divergencies between them, both in relation to ordination and ministry, and in particular to the theology and terminology of ordination. The book brings together the research and insights of 23 researchers from all the Nordic countries studying more than 200 different kinds of 'ordination' rites from the Orthodox and Roman Catholic as well as Lutheran and non-Lutheran protestant traditions. After an introduction to the churches in the Nordic countries, the book presents 19 case studies from the Nordic countries. The last part includes some general ecumenical and liturgical perspectives on ordination and rites presented by international researchers.

The World Council of Churches has called for renewed theological reflection on the biblical roots of ordination to strengthen the vocational identity of the ordained and to provide a framework for ecumenical dialogue. This book is a response to that call. It is grounded in the assumption that the vocation of ordination requires an understanding of holiness and how it functions in human religious experience. The goal is to construct a biblical theology of ordination that is embedded in broad reflection on the nature of holiness. Dozeman's study of holiness and ministry interweaves three methodologies. The first, from the History of Religions, describes two theories of holiness in the study of religion, as a dynamic force and as a ritual resource. Both play a central role in biblical literature and establish the paradigm of ordination to Word and Sacrament in Christian tradition. Second, the study of the formation of the Mosaic Office illustrates how the two views of holiness model ordination to the prophetic word and to the priestly ritual. Third, Canonical Criticism provides the lens to explore the ongoing influence of the Mosaic Office in the New Testament literature. Holiness and Ministry will assist candidates for ordination to discern their call experience and establish professional identity within individual traditions of Christianity, while also providing a resource for ecumenical dialogue on the nature and purpose of Christian ordination.

Included in this collection of documents from the twentieth-century ecumenical movement are passages from texts produced by assemblies, conferences, and studies of the World Council of Churches and similar bodies, covering three areas of historical concern within modern ecumenism: faith and order, life and work, and mission and evangelism.