academic

On the Construction of Religious Texts. The Case of Writing a Catechism

Religious texts represent a specific rhetorical genre. What does it mean to construct these texts? In order to answer this question we reflect upon our experience of co-authoring a religious text, the *Ordinary Catechism* (*Gewone Catechismus*), …

Comparing Multiple Case Studies of (Military) Chaplaincy Care: Methodological Issues

[...] In the military chaplaincy research community that we are both involved in as researchers, the issue of case comparison emerged while discussing single cases. This research community consists of six military chaplains, working in multiple …

Do Military Chaplains Preach? Exploring Sermons for Soldiers by Protestant Military Chaplains in the Dutch Army

This paper provides an introduction to the study of the sermons of military chaplains based on 10 sermons by Army and Navy chaplains within the context of peacekeeping missions. Three concepts emerge from these data, focusing upon the homiletical …

Legal Euthanasia in Pastoral Practice: Experiences of Pastors in the Protestant Church in the Netherlands

This representative survey amongst 653 ministers in the Protestant Church in the Netherlands (PKN) maps their experiences and views with regard to euthanasia. We found that three-quarters of the ministers have experience with euthanasia requests from …

Predigen erinnert Gott an sein erstes Wort. Homiletische Überlegungen zu einer Predigt von Martin Luther

Jedes Jahr beginne ich den Kurs Feiern und Predigen (Vieren en preken) innerhalb der Pfarrerausbildung an der Protestantse Theologische Universiteit mit der Predigt von Martin Luther über die Kanaänitische Frau nach Matthäus 15. Luther predigte …

Response to Anathea Portier-Young

The fear of the Lord should be understood as an emotional response to divine power (PortierYoung). Equating fear of God with worship or with obedience reduces it to a pious spirituality on the one hand or to a political-ethical agenda on the other. …

The Personal Presence of the Preacher in Preaching: An Explorative Study on Self-Disclosure in Sermons at Pentecost

How does self-disclosure work in preaching? This study explores that question empirically, using a variety of data collection methods such as sermon analysis, focus groups, and interviews. Self-disclosure is an ambiguous concept in homiletical and …

You Can Remove a Person from the War, But Not the War from a Person

The following case description touches on a painful chapter in the Netherlands' national history: the deployment of Dutch soldiers in the Dutch East Indies. The description deals with an army chaplain`s home visit to 89 years old Mr Klaas2, a veteran …

Preaching (as) Atonement

Atonement is a central doctrine in Christian theology. Even though preaching is not about doctrines, doctrine does operate in and through preaching. In this essay the relationship between atonement and preaching is explored. Based upon a contemporary …

Do Military Chaplains Preach? Exploring Sermons for Soldiers by Protestant Military Chaplains in the Dutch Army

The practice of Military Chaplains has been studied from various angles (sociological, historical, ethical) except from an empirical homiletical perspective. What do military chaplains do when they preach, if `preaching' is the correct label for …