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WHDL - 00021459

Re-Examining Our Lenses: The Relationship Between the Restoration Movement's Pattern Hermeneutic and Spiritual Formation, with a Focus on the International Churches of Christ

Jeanie Shaw

William Broadhurst Library at Nazarene Theological Seminary

Resource Types

Academic (Thesis, Dissertation, Etc.)

Resource Languages

English

Institutional Repository

Description / Abstract

The Restoration Movement (RM), seeking to unify Protestantism through clear patterns of biblical teachings, instead resulted in further divisions caused by differing ways the “clear” teachings were interpreted. I believe many divisions among RM churches are rooted in patternism, a hermeneutic based on direct commands, apostolic examples, and necessary inferences in the New Testament. Patternism emphasizes performance over grace, boundaries over unity, and judgment over mercy, thus inhibiting healthy formation. This lens influences spiritual formation, yet the RM’s hermeneutic remains unknown to most of its members.
By exploring formational trends of historical and contemporary RM leaders, I explore ways patternism affects formation and unity and offer a revised hermeneutic gleaned from John Mark Hicks, William Webb, and Craig Keener, highlighting God's redemptive love and the continuing work of the Spirit. This revision deepens spiritual formation, relational experience, and unity among members of RM churches, and within the International Churches of Christ.