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Jacobus Kok

Bio: Jacobus Kok is an academic researcher from University of Pretoria. The author has contributed to research in topics: New Testament & Ethos. The author has an hindex of 8, co-authored 29 publications receiving 175 citations. Previous affiliations of Jacobus Kok include Evangelical Theological Faculty & Katholieke Universiteit Leuven.

Papers
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BookDOI
01 Jan 2019
TL;DR: In this article, the mediator is to become aware of the dynamics of metaphor, by means of critically reflecting on metaphor theory, that which which is often overt in the mediation dynamics, could be reflected upon covertly.
Abstract: We live in a superdiverse and supermobile world which is Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous (VUCA). Diversity management, social cohesion, mediation and negotiation skills are needed in such times. In all discourses, within the context of leading and facilitating the resolution of disputes metaphorical frameworks of meaning are created. The challenge for the mediator is to become aware of, and keep in mind how metaphors affect the process of mediation and the mediator’s own role in it. Those unaware of the dynamics of metaphor theory might implicitly be limited in the mediation process due to the socio-cognitive confines and frames of the metaphors being used in a given mediation context. By becoming aware of the dynamics of metaphor, by means of critically reflecting on metaphor theory, that which is often overt in the mediation dynamics, could be reflected upon covertly. This in turn will empower not only the mediator, but also the parties to a conflict or dispute as they reflect critically on the “metanarraphors” (meta-narratives and metaphors) they mediate or are influenced by.

31 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a few of the elements and dynamics of social movements are explored and the traditional institutional church is in a critical period in the cycle of movements, where the need for the discovery of our missional-incarnational ethos and the theology of restoration might energise the church to (re)activate the dynamics of movements.
Abstract: In this article, a few of the elements and dynamics of social movements will be explored It will be argued that the traditional institutional church is in a critical period in the cycle of movements, where the need for the (re)discovery of our missional-incarnational ethos and the theology of restoration might energise the church to (re)activate the dynamics of movements The narrative of Jesus and the Samaritan woman in John 4 will be investigated as an example of Jesus’s missionalincarnational ethos and of the relation to a theology of restoration Finally, some challenges for the church with regard to ecclesiology, spirituality and leadership will be proposed

17 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated how the concepts identity, ethics and ethos interrelate, and how the ethics of the Pauline communities in Galatians functioned against the background of the missionary context of the early church.
Abstract: In this article, it is investigated how the concepts identity, ethics and ethos interrelate, and how the ethics of the Pauline communities in Galatians functioned against the background of the missionary context of the early church. The author argued that the missionary dimension originated in the context of the missio Dei , and that God called Paul as a missionary to be taken up in the latter. The missionary process did not end with Paul, but was designed to be carried further by believers who should be, by their very nature, missionary. In the process, the author investigated how the transformation of identity (the understanding of self, God and others) leads to the creation of ethical values and how it is particularised in different socioreligious and cultural contexts in the development of the early church. The author argued that there is an implicit missionary dimension in the ethics of Paul in Galatians. In the process, it is argued that those who want to speak of ethics should make something of mission, and those who speak of mission in Galatians, should speak about the role of identity, ethics and ethos in the letter.

16 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a study is made of the concept "oikodome" and its derivatives in the New Testament and early Christianity, and briefly turns to inspiring trajectories in early Christianity.
Abstract: In this article a study is made of the concept ‘oikodome’ and its derivatives in the New Testament and early Christianity. Hence, in this essay the focus is limited to the use of the term οἰκοδομέω/οἰκοδομὴ(ν) in the New Testament, and briefly turns to inspiring trajectories in early Christianity. A detailed focus on the term(s) reveals the complexity of the matter in the different Biblical contexts with its multi-layered dimensions of meaning. Subsequently, attention is turned to a study of 1 Thessalonians, followed up with a discussion of the trajectories of other-regard and radical self-giving love in the early Church as witnessed by insiders and outsiders in antiquity.

15 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the dynamic relationship between mission and ethics in contexts of conflict and change in the Corinthian correspondence was investigated, and the role Paul played as reconciling leader, examined The early Christian writers like Paul wanted to instruct and shape communities of faith, and also with the social and ethical boundaries between the community of faith and the world.
Abstract: In this article the dynamic relationship between mission and ethics in contexts of conflict and change in the Corinthian correspondence was investigated, and the role Paul played as reconciling leader, examined The early Christian writers like Paul wanted to instruct and shape communities of faith Paul was especially concerned with the maintenance and growth of his congregations and also with the social and ethical boundaries between the community of faith and the ‘world’ In the article it was illustrated that within the Corinthian congregational context there existed several conflict situations, and that much of it was a result of diversity within the congregation Diversity is a fact of life and reality of the church In Paul’s vision for unity and reconciliation, and in his attempt to address the factionalism in the Corinthian congregation, he would in all cases, ground his practical solution in a theological identity construction Paul focuses on corporate solidarity and unity and urges the congregation to find their fellow brothers and sisters in times of conflict by means of ethical reciprocity and other-regard, a matter in which he is also an example, typical of other philosophers of his time – but with a significant difference At the end it becomes clear that Paul’s ethical advice has a missional dimension, in the sense that the conflict management should take place in such a way that God is honoured and that both Jews, Greeks and fellow believers will see that the way this community handles conflict, is different to the way the ‘world’ would do it, and that in the process, even more might be saved

13 citations


Cited by
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01 Jan 2016
TL;DR: In this paper, a transforming mission paradigm shift in the theology of mission is presented. But, as a result, people have search hundreds of times for their favorite readings like this transforming mission shift, but end up in harmful downloads, and instead they juggled with some infectious virus inside their computer.
Abstract: Thank you for downloading transforming mission paradigm shifts in theology of mission. As you may know, people have search hundreds times for their favorite readings like this transforming mission paradigm shifts in theology of mission, but end up in harmful downloads. Rather than enjoying a good book with a cup of coffee in the afternoon, instead they juggled with some infectious virus inside their computer.

519 citations

Journal Article
TL;DR: Smith's Desinng the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview, and Cultural Formation as mentioned in this paper is the first volume in the Cultural Liturgies series, which focuses on what Christians do, articulating the shape of a Christian'social imaginary' as it is embedded in the practices of Christian worship.
Abstract: Desinng the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview, and Cultural Formation. By James K. A. Smith. Cultural Liturgies series, vol. 1. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Academic, 2009. 238 pp. $21.99 (paper). It may be an understatement to say that Anglicans do not look first to the Reformed tradition for insight and edification in regard to liturgical theology and proposals for liturgical renewal. In fact this book - exceptional in every sense of the word - was not even slated for review in this journal until, in the midst of an engaged reading, I successfully appealed to the editor for a hearing. The author is a Professor of Philosophy and Adjunct Professor of Congregational and Ministry Studies of Calvin College, an increasingly significant center in the aforementioned tradition for liturgical studies and renewal of worship. Smith projects three volumes in this Cultural Liturgies series. Of this first he says, "The genesis of the project was a desire to communicate to students (and faculty) a vision of what authentic, integral Christian learning looks like, emphasizing how learning is connected to worship and how, together, these constitute practices of formation and discipleship. Instead of focusing on what Christians think, distilling Christian faith into an intellectual summary formula ( a 'worldview'), this book focuses on what Christians do, articulating the shape of a Christian 'social imaginary' as it is embedded in the practices of Christian worship" (p. 11). This work is seen, then, as laying the foundation for a second piece centered on philosophical anthropology and a third volume addressing current debates in political theology. At least three things stand out in regard to this first volume: a newold reconstruction of anthropology, the eschatological focus at the center of Smith's argument, and his creative juxtaposition of the classic elements of Christian worship to the subtle and not so subtle liturgies of mall (the consumer culture), nation (the sports / military culture), and university (a culture producing self-consistent worldviews that are nonetheless disparate). All these compete for our ultimate allegiances in one way or another - sometimes congruent, sometimes not. Smith brings a wide range of scholarship and insight to bear in trenchant analyses of these other liturgical constructions that promise salvation in one way or another. In regard to anthropology, the thesis is advanced that human beings are not primarily thinking or believing beings, but only secondarily so. What is first is desire. With humans as first and foremost desiring creatures, the questions surrounding the ordering of our precognitive and prereflective loves are paramount. In other words, he investigates those seminal practices that willy nilly form us into some vision of human flourishing (the kingdom). It is the dimensions of such kingdoms ("social imaginaries" rather than "worldviews") that give both metaphorical and literal direction to our choices in life. In some ways this is, for Christians at least, as old as Augustine, as lasting as Dante's effoliation of it, and as recent as Alexander Schmemann's For the Life of the World, but it is given fresh and significant exegesis and application by Smith. The argument of the volume is set forth in two parts of three chapters each, following an extensive introduction that is focused on (1) the phenomenology of cultural liturgies; (2) a restatement of the necessary but often unperceived relationship between education and worship; and (3) a consideration of the elements for a theology of culture (with a focus on pedagogy, liturgy, and ecclesia). …

222 citations