Bachelor of Arts in Theology

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    Discipleship in The Synoptic Gospels as A Means of Nurturing Integrated and Mature Christian Members of Saint Joseph's Githare-Ini Small Christian Community in Miguta Catholic Church Parish.
    (Tangaza University College, 2004) Mbugua, Maguta Bernard
    Miguta Catholic Church Parish is within Nairobi archdiocese located 20 lcms North East of Nairobi city Centre towards Githunguri town in Kiambu District in Central province. Miguta Parish has five outstations. The biggest geographically and population wise among these five outstations is known as Miguta. As the mother center, it caters for nine Small Christian Communities. One of these Small Christian Communities is Saint Joseph's Githare-itti Small Christian Community where I come from and the center of attention in this my paper. In 2002, I went home for my long holidays. I met with my Parish Priest with whom I shared a lot about the pastoral work in the parish. Knowing that I am from Saint Joseph's Githare-ini Small Christian Community, he shared with me on how the members were faring on. In the course of the discussion the Parish Priest said; "I don't know your view! Personally, I have experienced a great lack of realization in life about the implications of living the Christian faith. It is a concrete problem with most of the Christians here in the parish in general, over the five years I have been here." My desire to know more led me to ask him what exactly are the problems facing him on this pastoral issue. He mentioned a good number of things, just to mention a few: how to let my flock see the relationship of all human issues in life and how they can be attended by our basic Christian call; how we are here not as individuals but as one whole body; what role each one has to embrace in relation to his/her neighbor; how a spiritual journey is not necessarily from the Father-in-Charge; can help in support of each other, how it is not enough to come for the Eucharistic feast on a Sunday then leave with no gain or change of lifestyle back in the family and village relations in general. With this situation at hand, I spotted a pastoral challenge to be researched on. With time, the interest and enthusiasm to research more on this made me to settle on it as my thesis. Thank God that when we reported back to College, I found among the pastoral related courses offered, 'Pastoral counseling', "... an intervention for the well-being of a parishioner, the Gospel made incarnate a response to the need for someone to really care for the troubled within the Church fellowship and (outside)." I could trace some elements of help related to the situation of St. Joseph's Small Christian Community. In fact, among the proposed topics for a research paper was one that read: 'Discipleship as a means of nurturing mature and integrated Christians in Africa'. I picked on this and wrote a paper, an endeavor that made me more convinced that I should borrow from the gospel on the call to discipleship and apply this "... as a systematic method of enabling (St, Joseph's Githare ini Small Christian Community) ... overcome ... (their) problems of ultimate concern within a perspective of faith in order to live a more creative and meaningful life."2 I have thus chosen to develop this for the good of our pastoral work now and in the future. For as long as this confrontation of worthy level of living Christian virtues in practice and the prevailing culture of silence, doing what the others are doing, Catholic Christians will remain alienated from the Gospel message; being shy about witnessing to their faith.
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    Enimaus Experience as a Paradigm of Jesus Presence in Discipleship: Luke 24:12-35 A Challenge to Christian Life in Malawi
    (Tangaza University College., 2002-02) Nimana, Clement; Nimana, Clement
    The crisis of identity among many priests, religious and the lidtliful in Malawi has motivated the writer of this long essay to exploie Luke 24.12-b order to get encouragement and insights from the situation of the two disciples on the way to Emmaus. In this story, two disciples, Cleopas and his companion are seen grieving over the death of Jesus Their hope and expectation were dashed as they complain: "But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel (21a)." Their disappointment is the reason of their sadness It was in this time of disappointment that Jesus changed the situation of the disciples from sadness to a wonderful experience when they recognised him in the breaking of bread (30-31). The objective of the study is to give assurance of Jesus' presence in our discipleship whether as ordained ministers, professed religious men and women or as the faithful. Many Christians have lost that zeal, which they had when they were newly baptised, newly professed their religious commitment, or newly ordained. Undergoing a crisis of identity, it may be found that what supported many Christians for so many years: "prayer, worship, sacrament, community life, and a clear knowledge of God's guiding love-has lost its grip on them. Long- cherished ideas, long-practised disciplines, and long-held customs of celebrating life can no longer warm their hearts. Consequently, they tend to ask themselves why and how they were so motivated." 2 However, what happened to the disciples on the way to Emmaus gives us hope that Jesus joins us as we walk in sadness, explains the scriptures to us and presents himself in the breaking of bread He is ever present in our 1k es and in our difficult situations. Therefore, we accept the Emmaus inn rative as a paradigm of Jesus' presence in our discipleship. St. Luke is taken as ow guide knowing that he will lead us along the road to Emmaus The body of the Emmaus narrative is literarily framed by the theme of recognition. It tells us how Cleopas and his companion moved from not being able to recognise Jesus (24:16) to their recognition of him (24:3 1b). Like the two disciples, the Lukan communities suffered from not being able to recognise the risen Lord in the midst of their difficulties and persecutions The experience of the two disciples and the Lukan communities is also own experience. There are moments when we experience the absence as well as the presence of Jesus in our lives. His absence causes perplexity while his presence causes joy. It is when we are aware of Jesus' perpetual presence in our lives that even his apparent absence becomes cause for joy.
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    Christian Discipleship In The Parables of the Lukan Tradition
    (Tangaza University College, 1997-02) Mwageni, Honoratus C.
    The Parables on discipleship teach us what a disciple should be like and what may be required of him. I have chosen some of the Parables from the Gospel of Luke. I have chosen this Gospel because Luke's purpose of writing the Gospel is to address a Gentile audience who are painfully rethinking their missionary thrust in a hostile environment. Luke shows how the followers of Jesus should be in such environment. Luke portrays Jesus as a model of Christian discipleship. The structure of the Gospel shows that Jesus is on the journey to Jerusalem; this journey has a double meaning: the way to Jerusalem and the Way of discipleship. On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus teaches his disciples what is required of them who want to be his followers. He uses the parables to convey this message. All the parables on Christian discipleship are placed on the journey section to Jerusalem, (Lk 9:51-19:27). This is where Jesus gives instructions on the meaning of discipleship, the Way of living, its cost and the demands of Christian discipleship and also the life of a disciple in relation to God and neighbor. The true disciple will heed and realize what the call of Jesus may demand of him, after discernment and calculating the cost of being a disciple, resolutely, he will answer that call. We shall see this in the Parable of Tower-building and Making War (Lk 14:28- 33). What is the cost of following Jesus? And what is the cost of choosing not to follow Jesus? The one who has chosen to be a disciple would be expected to express his/her choice in deeds. His service will find expression in action, it cannot be a matter of words only. As he/she strives to serve his master as faithful as he can, he will be aware that he never does more than may be expected of him. All the time he must be vigilant and perseverent and never give way to self-confidence for his world can end any time, and so, he must be open to God's will. But he can be of good heart because he has a Father in heaven who will surely hear his prayers. A true disciple will put all his trust in God and pray persistently without losing hope for there is nowhere he can go except to his master whom he has chosen to follow. So, he has to persist in prayer even if his master seem not to answer his prayers as we shall see in the parables of the Unjust Judge (Lk 18:1-8) and the Friend at Night (Lk 11: 5-8). And the true disciple must bear in mind that what his Lord asks of him, more than anything else is the unlimited practice of fraternal charity. As John puts it: "By this all men shall know that you are my disciple if you have love for one another." (Jn 13:35). The true love of a disciple is not the one expressed in words but in actions. This kind of love is clearly exemplified in the Parable of the Good Samaritan as we are going to see in detail in chapter three. The love of a Christian disciple will always be in two aspects love of God and love of neighbor. These two aspects should always go together without ignoring one or the other for love of God and love of neighbor cannot be separated.