Palestinian Muslims Coming to Christ, Invitation

July 16, 2014 by Leave a Comment

This entry is an excerpt from my dissertation that begins a new series in which I highlight my doctoral research, which was an investigation of the process of West Bank Palestinian Muslims coming to faith in Christ. The goal of the research was to find out what these people thought were important and helpful in persuading them to trust Christ.

I interviewed 24 converts, and their conversion-story summaries will be provided as individual blog entries for this series. These stories also will be supplemented with other entries that explain my research process and important findings.

Feel free to interact in the comments or download my dissertation as a free PDF here.

The following information is ©2014 University of Pretoria and Craig Dunning and, if used elsewhere, should be cited as:

Dunning, CA (2014) Palestinian Muslims converting to Christianity: effective evangelistic methods in the West Bank. Pretoria, South Africa: University of Pretoria, PhD thesis, pp. 1-2.

Preface

I like stories. I like to hear them and I like to tell them. One of the things I enjoy most in meeting new people is hearing their stories. Where are they from? What was life like in their childhood? And, if they are Christians, I want to hear the story of how they came to faith in Jesus. I am always thankful to hear a testimony of God’s saving grace, but I am a missionary/pastor, and that makes me also want to know how the good news of Jesus Christ was delivered. That is the focus of this project, finding out how people heard the Gospel. What were the challenges they faced in believing? What solved those challenges? What moved them from unbelief to belief?

I’m not interested for the sake of marketing another method. Honestly, I’m quite disheartened at the marketing madness of the Western church, which seems so hungry for the next fad in marketing the gospel. It is very discouraging for me to receive email advertisements of crafted sermon series that have been used in this or that church and “caused a 50% increase in attendance.” This project is not about finding the next wave of methodology. I agree with Scott McKnight, who said, “Conversion can’t be reduced to a formula anymore than love can be set out as an equation” (2002:77).

Certainly conversion involves methodological considerations, but this project is primarily about hearing individuals tell the story of how they actually heard the gospel and learning what we can from their experiences.

Because I like stories, and this report is actually the story of how the gospel is being effectively shared among Muslims in the West Bank, I have chosen a more personal, narrative format to report my findings.

Without shame I will use the personal pronoun “I” in telling the story of my research. The process of decision making will be detailed and personal, often elaborating on the various possible methodological choices, and how and why I made certain choices; why I did it this way and not that way, as well as stories of things that were said or done that confirmed my decisions along the way. This story will include much about the personal aspects of how I went about my research, and, when necessary, in an appropriate way that protects my respondents, I will share portions of their stories.

The researcher and the nature of the project are appropriately represented in this narrative style of presentation, which is well supported in the literature (Weiss 1994:193-210; Newman 2006:498-500; Emerson, Fretz &Shaw 1995:169-210). It also accurately reflects my research findings, which is the main thrust of the project.

Please join me as I tell the story of how the greatest story ever told is being told in the West Bank.

Sources Cited:

Emerson RM, Fretz RI and Shaw LL. (1995) Writing ethnographic fieldnotes. University Of Chicago Press.

McKnight S. (2002) Turning to Jesus: the sociology of conversion in the gospels: Westminster John Knox Press.

Neuman WL. (2006) Social research methods: quantitative and qualitative approaches. Allyn & Bacon.

Weiss RS. (1995) Learning from strangers: the art and method of qualitative interview studies. Free Press.

NEXT: Palestinian Muslims Coming to Christ, Demographic Issues

Download my dissertation as a free PDF here.

Filed Under: conversion, cross-cultural, Evangelism, Intercultural Studies, Islam, Middle East, missionaries, Muslims, Palestine, PhD, PhD excerpts, testimonies, The Gospel, West Bank

Palestinian Muslims Converting to Christianity

January 23, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Palestinian Muslims converting to Christianity: effective evangelistic methods in the West Bank

Free PDF Download

Free PDF Download

This document is my PhD dissertation, which is ©2014 University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.

It should be cited:
Dunning, CA 2014, “Palestinian Muslims converting to Christianity: effective evangelistic methods in the West Bank”, PhD thesis, University of Pretoria, Pretoria.

Interviews about the contents of this document can be obtained by contacting Prof Craig Dunning at (817) 461-8741, ext. 143.

ABSTRACT
This thesis provides the findings of an explanatory case study that utilized elements of ethnographic research to discover effective evangelistic methods being practiced among Palestinian Muslims in the West Bank. With the assistance of gatekeepers, twenty-four former Muslims were asked to explain how they were evangelized, with a particular focus on evangelistic methodology, the barriers to faith the respondents encountered, solutions to those barriers, and motivations to consider conversion.

This qualitative study follows the research model of Thom Rainer (2001) by asking those who have actually converted to describe the things that were helpful in the process of their coming to faith. For a theoretical framework it utilizes a nuance of McKnight’s (2002) theory of conversion with an emphasis on crisis providing an intersection of the natural and supernatural for the purpose of conversion.

This thesis investigates examples of effective evangelism within the context of the West Bank, giving thorough consideration to Palestinian Nationalism and Islam as overarching cultural influences. It considers fruitful practices being practiced globally among Muslims, comparing those with what was found being practiced in the West Bank. The advocates represented in this report were primarily Palestinians born and raised in the West Bank, with the exception of three messianic Jewish Israelis and an American missionary. Additionally, they were evangelicals who generally utilized a contextually sensitive, traditional mission approach rather than an Insider model.

The end result is a knowledge base that can be helpful for future evangelism of Muslims in the West Bank or other similar contexts.

Filed Under: Arabic, Arabs, conversion, Evangelism, Helpful Tips, Hope this Helps, Islam, Israel, Life in Christ, Middle East, Muslims, Palestine, Papers, PhD, Prayer, Quran, testimonies, The Gospel, Uncategorized, West Bank

We Will Return, Part II

October 2, 2011 by 1 Comment

According to Haaretz News, Hamas leader Khaled Meshal said, “Palestinians must resort to resistance no matter how costly it is, until Palestine is free and Israel is destroyed (emphasis added).”

That was said in Iran at an international conference supporting the Palestinian Intifada, which was headlined by Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Khamenei was quite outspoken regarding the two-state solution. Among other things, he said, “Our claim is freedom of Palestine, not part of Palestine. Any plan that partitions Palestine is totally rejected,” And, as if he was intentionally confirming the content of my last post, he clarified, “Palestine spans from the river (Jordan) to the sea (Mediterranean), nothing less.”

Other reports from/about the conference:
-The full text of Khamenei’s speech is provided by the Islamic Republic News Agency.
-The Arab Monitor also has some commentary.

Filed Under: Israel, Middle East, Palestine, Thinkers

We Will Return!!!

September 26, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Many people who are discussing a “two-state solution” to the Middle East problem are unaware of the sentiment and symbolism expressed in this photo:

The key in the photo can be found at the southern entrance to Jericho and is used both as a reminder and a warning. It is used as a reminder to the Arab people that they have an obligation to regain any territories that are considered to be stolen by the Jews (i.e. the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea). Also, it should be understood by the West to be a warning that a Jewish state is ultimately unacceptable in the neighborhood.

The key in the photo isn’t a unique example; it’s actually a well-known symbol among Palestinian refugees, many of whom still hold keys to property they (or their predecessors) left in 1948. This is why the final disposition of the Palestinian refugees “right of return” (to Israel or Palestine) and the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state are critical issues in the negotiations between the two sides in any discussion of a two-state solution.

“The Key” demonstrates that it’s much more complicated than simply having the UN declare a Palestinian state as was requested last Friday.

Filed Under: Israel, Middle East, Muslims, Palestine, Photography, Thinkers
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