Does Generation Matter? – Changing the Church from the Inside
In this article, possible generational differences between younger and older pastors in the Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Denmark are examined with respect to their understandings of the wedding and the ecclesiological implications of these understandings. Building on the generational theory of Kar...
| Published in: | International journal of practical theology |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
De Gruyter
2018
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| In: |
International journal of practical theology
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Danske folkekirke
/ Pastor
/ Generations
/ Difference
/ Wedding ceremony
/ Worship service
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| RelBib Classification: | AD Sociology of religion; religious policy KBE Northern Europe; Scandinavia KDD Protestant Church RB Church office; congregation RC Liturgy |
| Further subjects: | B
Evangelisch-lutherische Kirche Dänemarks
Traugottesdienst
Generations
Ecclesiology
B The Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Denmark Wedding Generations Ecclesiology in the 21st Century |
| Online Access: |
Presumably Free Access Volltext (Verlag) |
| Summary: | In this article, possible generational differences between younger and older pastors in the Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Denmark are examined with respect to their understandings of the wedding and the ecclesiological implications of these understandings. Building on the generational theory of Karl Mannheim, the hypothesis is that despite in-group similarities between older and younger pastors, the two generations will show differences in the way they represent their office and thereby the church is changed not only from the outside but also from the inside. An explorative qualitative study of the understanding of the wedding among selected pastors investigates their understanding of the wedding service in three different dimensions and shows that both groups primarily understand the wedding as a traditional ritual, but younger pastors appear to enact this understanding in a relational approach in which the meaning of the wedding emerges in the encounter between pastor and wedding couple. The older pastors appear to link the meaning of the wedding closely to the ritual procedures themselves. At the end of the article, the ecclesiological implications of these different understandings of the wedding service are elaborated. Der Beitrag untersucht, welche unterschiedlichen Auffassungen von Traugottesdiensten bei jüngeren und älteren Pastorinnen und Pastoren der evangelisch-lutherischen Kirche Dänemarks bestehen. Unter Bezug auf die Generationstheorie Karl Mannheims arbeitet diese explorative qualitative Studie Ähnlichkeiten und Differenzen zwischen den Altersgruppen heraus. Es zeigt sich, dass die rituelle Dimension beiden Generationen stark präsent ist, die jüngeren Pastorinnen und Pastoren jedoch eine stärker relationale Herangehensweise an Traugottesdienste und ihre Deutung verfolgen. Dies hat Implikationen für das Amtsverständnis und die Außenwahrnehmung der Kirche. Der Aufsatz schließt mit Überlegungen zur ekklesiologischen Dimension der Generationenunterschiede bei der Gestaltung von Traugottesdiensten. |
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| ISSN: | 1612-9768 |
| Contains: | In: International journal of practical theology
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1515/ijpt-2017-0002 |