Closing the backdoor: an exploration of the theological, historical, psychological, and sociological reasons why people leave Churches of the Nazarene in Southern New Jersey

Ira Charles Gates

Etd

Closing the backdoor: an exploration of the theological, historical, psychological, and sociological reasons why people leave Churches of the Nazarene in Southern New Jersey

Public Deposited

MLA citation style (9th ed.)

Ira Charles Gates. Closing the Backdoor: an Exploration of the Theological, Historical, Psychological, and Sociological Reasons Why People Leave Churches of the Nazarene In Southern New Jersey. Wesley Theological Seminary. rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/bf889a77-69b4-438c-8591-f1d62e2efc22.

APA citation style (7th ed.)

I. C. Gates. Closing the backdoor: an exploration of the theological, historical, psychological, and sociological reasons why people leave Churches of the Nazarene in Southern New Jersey. https://rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/bf889a77-69b4-438c-8591-f1d62e2efc22

Chicago citation style (CMOS 17, author-date)

Ira Charles Gates. Closing the Backdoor: an Exploration of the Theological, Historical, Psychological, and Sociological Reasons Why People Leave Churches of the Nazarene In Southern New Jersey. Wesley Theological Seminary. https://rim.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/bf889a77-69b4-438c-8591-f1d62e2efc22.

Note: These citations are programmatically generated and may be incomplete.

Creator

Ira Charles Gates

Rights Statement

In Copyright

Abstract

This research investigates reasons people are leaving six Churches of the Nazarene in Southern new Jersey. The author studies the historical origins of the denomination and sister denominations to determine the ecology of the Church. Community diversity and postmodernism influence this problem. The author interviewed 68 individuals regarding reasons for leaving churches. Sociological differences, varying stages of faith development, and possible misunderstanding give insight on the gap between pastor and congregants. Rediscovering the communal foundation of the Eucharist may help. The author suggests the development of a mediation team to mitigate the stressors causing pastor/parishioner problems to polarize.

Publisher