Year: 2025
Type: editorial
Abstract: A Note from the EditorsWithout further adieu, and with great joy, the Vanguard Journal of Theology and Ministry is pleased to present our fourth annual volume, (Re)Imagine: Ministry, Service, and Theological Application.It is perhaps only fitting that the issue's feature begins with a note from Vanguard College President, Mark MacKnight, who candidly shares the disruptions faced by the College in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic."Disruption is an opportunity," goes the expected and loved Markism; and this is not only true for the College, but for the Journal as well.Our anticipated publication date was Q4 of the 2024 calendar year, however, we too were not spared from disruption.Most notably, our team faced the increasing challenge of pioneering a new publication while incentivizing authorship.As the expected date of publication loomed, it became clear that the current state of the forthcoming volume fell short of our standards for excellence.It was not that the submissions lacked quality, but that what we received simply left us wanting more.We knew the Canadian Church, practitioners and students alike, had more to say, and it was our deepest desire to amplify their voices.After making the difficult decision to delay the publication cycle, and extend our call for papers, it quickly became apparent that the wait was worth it.Articles, creative submissions, and book reviews trickled in, and of a quality amply satisfying our long anticipation.Responding to the challenges of the 21 st -century Canadian and global contexts, the present issue contains reflective and thorough pieces addressing the dynamics of ministerial life.There is a certain practicality underlying the entire volume, stressing not just what we do, but how we do it.Submissions range from loving your neighbour in an increasingly heterogeneous environment, to a word of perseverance from eastern Ukraine.Furthermore, the present issue boasts not one, but two articles engaging with Israel-Palestine from opposing perspectives.In light of the Fellowship's 2022 SOFT update, our team felt it was both important and necessary to include different perspectives from what may be called before and after dispensationalism.It should go without saying, but neither piece is an official statement from the College, nor the Fellowship.The articles are compiled by the authors, and the positions are their own.In the spirit of academic freedom, our team believed the articles could facilitate gracious, healthy, and loving dialogue surrounding such a polarizing and important theme.What we have learned, is that in the ever-evolving Canadian and global ecclesiastical landscape, our hope and mission to see Christ's Kingdom here on earth remains unshaken, and despite disruptions, we are determined to (re)imagine timeless truths with fresh perspectives.Our vision is to be a Spirit-empowered platform where students, practitioners, and scholars engage in transformative dialogue that integrates faith, intellect, and ministry practice, fostering growth in the local church and introducing the next generation of reflective Pentecostals to the scholarly forum.We have striven to invite scholars, practitioners, and
DOI: 10.29173/vjtm98
Author: Joel Bornau
Language: English
Subfield: Religious studies
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4408926973