Church discipline – semper reformanda in Reformation perspective

dc.contributor.authorDuncan, Graham A.
dc.contributor.emailgraham.duncan@up.ac.zaen_US
dc.date.accessioned2011-02-03T11:05:46Z
dc.date.available2011-02-03T11:05:46Z
dc.date.issued2010-09
dc.description.abstractChurch discipline – is semper reformanda in a time and space warp? Church discipline has become an anachronism in the life of the Christian faith community. In part, this results from a misunderstanding of the fundamental meaning of the term. Its early emphasis was on spiritual nurture, discipling people into the faith and into a relationship with one another and God. By the time of the Reformation, it took on a legalistic and rigid form that militated against its earlier approach. This resulted from a misunderstanding of key reformers from the Reforming tradition such as John Calvin and John Knox, who were concerned to build up individuals within the Christian community to become responsible members of society. In this way, discipline is transformative of individuals and society. The work of discipline was closely related both to pastoral care and Christian education and offered a corrective to Medieval discipline, where the concept of discipline was distorted when the use of punitive discipline as a last resort was elevated to become the norm. This situation was replicated in the post-Reformation period. Consequently, it now needs to be rehabilitated in the form of discipling or mentorship in order to restore its usefulness as an educative tool in the process of the pilgrimage towards the kingdom of God.en
dc.identifier.citationDuncan, G., 2010, ‘Church discipline – semper reformanda in Reformation perspective’, HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies 66(1), Art. #789, 6 pages. DOI: 10.4102/hts.v66i1.789 [http://www.hts.org.za]en
dc.identifier.issn0259-9422
dc.identifier.other10.4102/hts.v66i1.789
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2263/15814
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherOpenJournals Publishingen_US
dc.rights© 2010. The Authors. Licensee: OpenJournals Publishing. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.en_US
dc.subjectGuidanceen
dc.subjectPost-Reformationen
dc.subjectPunitive measuresen
dc.subjectSpiritual growthen
dc.subject.lcshChurch discipline -- Historyen
dc.subject.lcshPunishment -- Religious aspects -- Christianityen
dc.subject.lcshSpiritual formationen
dc.subject.lcshSpiritual life -- Christianityen
dc.titleChurch discipline – semper reformanda in Reformation perspectiveen
dc.typeArticleen

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