A biblical and theological rationale for a familial motif of congregational life that facilitates the transfer of faith from generation to generation

The thesis to be argued in this dissertation is an important component of a larger ecclesial theology. It asserts that there is a familial motif found throughout scripture that is grounded in trinitarian ontology. This motif provides the structural underpinnings for spiritual nurture and facilitates the transfer of faith from generation to generation. This thesis also asserts that apart from this familial structure, faith is passed on with a great deal of difficulty.By way of example, chapter 1 outlines the nature of one symptom of a larger theological problem, introducing and contextualizing the thesis. Chapters 2-5 comprise the heart of the biblical and theological argument generated by the thesis. Chapter 2 establishes the familial motif as grounded in the nature of God through the revelation of the familial nature of God in the Gospel of John and in the contemporary trinitarian theological conversation. It demonstrates the familial motif as intrinsic to the concept of perichoretic personhood, a concept at the heart of trinitarian ontology.Chapter 3 demonstrates that God's perichoretic personhood, traced through the Imago Dei to created human reality, provides a link between the nature of God and the familial motif that is the underpinning structure shaping the people of God. Chapter 4 traces the familial motif from the beginning of a-set-apart people of God, the family of Abraham to a redefined surrogate family in the teachings of Jesus to the structural form of the communities of faith established by Paul. In chapter five is divided into two parts. Part one demonstrates from scripture how the familial structure facilitates the transfer of faith from one generation to the next. Part two surveys contemporary literature from both ecclesial and social science sources demonstrating how widely the familial motif is found in the conversation regarding the nurture of faith and the well-being of persons---children in particular.In chapter 6, a two component model of congregational life that facilitates the transfer of faith from one generation to the next is put forward. Additional areas of study suggested by the research and the model are outlined.