https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/issue/feed Asia Journal Theology 2024-10-18T01:55:14+00:00 Dr. Limuel Equina atesea.info@gmail.com Open Journal Systems <p><img src="http://ajt.atesea.net/public/site/images/admin/mceclip1-502973441213b61964c7ffe21e7543c7.png" alt="" width="250" height="353" /></p> https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/119 We Weep as “Jesus Wept” 2024-03-31T20:41:09+00:00 MAK Sue Ann sueannmak@gmail.com <div class="page" title="Page 1"> <div class="layoutArea"> <div class="column"> <p>It is observed that the New Testament contains fewer records of weeping narratives and employs comparatively restrained emotional language in contrast to the Old Testament. Additionally, psychologists and sociologists have noted that individuals from Asian cultures tend to exhibit a lower degree of emotional expressiveness relative to their counterparts in a European/ American culture. This article is a response to both claims through the lens of weeping and tears in the NT, in particular, the tears of Jesus. I demonstrate that there is sufficient data for a survey on the topic of weeping and sorrow in the NT and argue that our findings can and should inform the relatively emotionally suppressed Asian culture. I focus only on the emotional expression of weeping by Jesus, for if Jesus himself is known to have personally experienced pain and sorrow and even openly wept and cried, then should not followers of Jesus also be encouraged and allowed to do the same?</p> </div> </div> </div> 2024-10-10T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Sue Ann Mak https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/125 On the Continuity of the Western Christian Tradition in Asia 2023-12-20T22:32:43+00:00 J. H. W. CHAN jhw.chan@sptc.my <div class="page" title="Page 1"> <div class="layoutArea"> <div class="column"> <p>In this essay I address whether the Western Christian heritage is suitable for theologizing in Asian contexts or whether it is insufficient and ought to be discarded by the Asian church, as suggested by various Asian theologians. I respond primarily to the arguments put forward by Hwa Yung in his seminal book Mangoes or Bananas. Hwa’s critiques of the Western tradition have been influential in shaping the Malaysian and Southeast Asian theological context. I hope to show that his view is untenable and ultimately mistaken. The solution I advance takes seriously the concerns raised by Hwa but suggests that the goal should not be to part with the Western theological tradition, which is indispensable in maintaining orthodoxy. Rather, the answer lies in distinguishing between orthodoxy and orthopraxis in such a way that allows the Asian theologian to address context-specific needs without the danger of being lost in a sea of cultural relativism.</p> </div> </div> </div> 2024-10-16T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 J. H. W Chan https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/98 The Book of Jeremiah and What ‘Exile’ Means for the Hong Kong People in Diaspora Today 2023-06-22T00:36:00+00:00 WONG On Wing Tim timowwong@gmail.com <div class="page" title="Page 1"> <div class="layoutArea"> <div class="column"> <p>This paper examines the theological significance of the exile of Israel as depicted in the book of Jeremiah, with a special focus on chapter 29 and draws implications for the Hong Kong people who were forced to emigrate due to the social unrests in 2019 and the subsequent tightening policies implemented by the Beijing and Hong Kong governments. The experiences of the Babylonian exile resonate with the Hong Kong diaspora as they are similarly driven to depart from their native land and build new lives in foreign territories, despite differences in contexts and situations. By analyzing the biblical text and drawing parallels to the contemporary context, this study seeks to shed light on the theological implications of exile and offer insights that can be applied to the Hong Kong diaspora.</p> </div> </div> </div> 2024-10-16T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Tim Wong On Wing Wong https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/112 On Karl Barth and Asians 2023-10-02T03:03:29+00:00 Francis Jr. S. SAMDAO francissamdao@worldea.org <div class="page" title="Page 1"> <div class="layoutArea"> <div class="column"> <p>In this essay, I argue that Karl Barth (1886-1968) is a contextual theologian who can be an interlocutor in contextualization and decoloniality in Asia. While Barth is seen as antithetical to natural theology, which may imply opposition to contextual theologies, his theology is nevertheless contextual since he was fully engaged with the mood of his time while proclaiming that God turned his face toward humanity. In this article, I will draw on his concept of actualism found in his Church Dogmatics II. I contend that actualism calls us to 1) go beyond the translation approach, 2) respond to God’s revelation through contextualization and decolonization, and 3) consider God as the main subject and object in our contextual and decolonial endeavors in Asia.</p> </div> </div> </div> 2024-10-16T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Francis Samdao https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/130 Sin and Human Suffering 2024-03-06T22:38:48+00:00 Armand BARUS armand_barus@sttaa.ac.id <div class="page" title="Page 1"> <div class="layoutArea"> <div class="column"> <p>In the course of human history, sin and human suffering have been perennial topics of discussion. It was commonly believed that human suffering was the result of sin. This article argues, using contextual criticism, that the link between sin and human suffering is not found in John 5:14 and John 9:1-3. In other words, human suffering is not always caused by sin. The exegetical findings of John 5:14 and John 9:1-3 are then placed in dialogue with the Karo understanding of the connection between sin and human suffering. The aforementioned procedure is called contextual criticism.</p> </div> </div> </div> 2024-10-16T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Armand Barus https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/115 On Religious Liberty and Secularism in Plural Societies 2024-09-16T02:11:14+00:00 Edmund FONG edmundfong@ttc.edu.sg <div class="page" title="Page 1"> <div class="layoutArea"> <div class="column"> <p>This article argues that a rightly framed understanding of religious liberty and secularism in a plural society facilitates public square deliberation. Addressing first the religious (Christian) constituent, I demonstrate how the Noahic covenant and the traditional doctrines of eschatology, anthropology, and missiology push toward promoting religious liberty for all. By implication, a full-bodied religious liberty welcomes different voices in public square deliberations. Conversely, in addressing the nonreligious constituent, I explore how one dimension of the urge to exclude religious voices from public square deliberations comes from a misguided understanding that the secularization of a society is automatically accompanied by the emptying out of religion and religious beliefs. Rather, a more appropriate secularism focuses on the neutrality of the public square and does not prohibit religious voices in public square deliberations. I conclude by highlighting a philosophy of pluralism that captures this rightly framed understanding of religious liberty and secularism—covenantal pluralism.</p> </div> </div> </div> 2024-10-16T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Edmund Fong https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/214 Asian Christian Ethics: Evangelical Perspectives 2024-10-01T04:30:14+00:00 Nathanael GOH nathanaelgoh@gmail.com <p>This is a book review of Aldrin M. Peñamora and Bernard K. Wong, eds., <em>Asian Christian Ethics: Evangelical Perspectives, </em>Cumbria: Langham Global Library and Asia Theological Association, 2022.</p> 2024-10-16T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Author(s) https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/168 John Song: Modern Chinese Christianity and the Making of a New Man 2024-04-02T01:58:23+00:00 MA Tianji tianji.ma@omfmail.com <p>Song Shangjie (Chinese: 宋尚節; 1901-1944), also known as John Song or John Sung, was a prominent Chinese evangelist who played a key role in the revival movement in China and Southeast Asia during the 1920s and 1930s. Numerically speaking, Song, often considered an exemplary figure of an indigenous Christian tradition independent of the West and a source of the present Christian revival in China, can rightfully be called the greatest Chinese evangelist of the 20th century. Despite controversies surrounding his biography, mission methodology, and character, Song's influence in China and Southeast Asia remains palpable to this day. Daryl Ireland, Research Associate Professor of Mission at Boston University School of Theology and the associate director of the university’s Center for Global Christianity and Mission, stands as one of the foremost authorities on the life and work of John Song. His latest work, "John Song: Modern Chinese Christianity and the Making of a New Man," is an impressive culmination of years of research efforts previously captured in individual small publications and his 2015 dissertation on John Sung.</p> 2024-10-16T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Author(s) https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/202 The Alliance Movement in Hong Kong: The Historical Development of the Hong Kong Christian and Missionary Alliance, 1949–1999 2024-06-25T11:14:49+00:00 Joseph Tse-Hei LEE jlee@pace.edu <p style="font-weight: 400;">Visions and inputs are roadmaps for church growth, and this is particularly true for the Hong Kong Christian and Missionary Alliance (hereafter as the Alliance or Alliance Church), one of the most dynamic denominations in the territory. Even though Christianity (i.e., Catholicism and Protestantism) remains a minority in Hong Kong, making up appropriately 16 percent (1.2 million) of the population, its cultural influence is disproportionate to the small numbers. In the Alliance’s case, their evangelistic and educational services have exposed the non-Christian public to the faith.&nbsp;This book is derived from a Ph.D. dissertation that Ellis Ming-Cheung Ho defended at the Central China Normal University. Ho draws on archival materials to investigate the continuity and change of the Alliance Church in modern Hong Kong.</p> 2024-10-16T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Joseph Tse Hei Lee https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/213 Why Evangelical Theology Needs the Global Church 2024-09-30T23:38:35+00:00 LEOW Theng Huat thenghuat@ttc.edu.sg <p>This is a book review of Stephen T. Pardue's <em>Why Evangelical Theology Needs the Global Church </em>(Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2023).</p> 2024-10-16T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Theng Huat LEOW https://ajt.atesea.net/ajt/article/view/216 A Missional Reading of the Fourth Gospel: A Gospel- Driven Theology of Discipleship 2024-10-06T12:26:11+00:00 Philip SATTERTHWAITE philip2024uk@yahoo.com <p>This article is a book review of KWON Sung Chan, <em>A Missional Reading of the Fourth Gospel: A Gospel-Driven Theology of Discipleship, </em>Oxford: Regnum Books, 2022.</p> 2024-10-16T00:00:00+00:00 Copyright (c) 2024 Philip Satterthwaite