Date
10-13-2023
Department
Rawlings School of Divinity
Degree
Doctor of Education in Christian Leadership (EdD)
Chair
Jason R. Waters
Keywords
Attribution, Baptist, Church Leader, Hermeneutic Circle, In-person, Online
Disciplines
Leadership Studies | Practical Theology
Recommended Citation
Melendez, Ismael, "A Phenomenological Study Exploring the Lack of Baptist Church Participation in Seminole County, Florida" (2023). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 4887.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/4887
Abstract
This phenomenological study explores the reasons for a lack of participation in in-person Baptist churches and the rise of participation in online Baptist churches in Seminole County, Florida. The theory guiding this study was Martin Heidegger’s hermeneutical framework which focuses on the commonality of experiences. Heidegger believed that to arrive at the essence of a phenomenon a researcher must go through the revisionary process of what Heidegger termed the Hermeneutic Circle. The principal research question in this study explored existing relationship(s) between in-person and online Baptist church leaders and how such relationship(s) contributed to a lack of church participation. The remaining questions explored what understanding of a lack of church participation existed amongst Baptist church leaders, how online Baptist church participation affected in-person Baptist church participation, and what relationship existed between in-person Baptist church members and online Baptist church members. Study data were derived from a qualitative research design which included interviews, a reflective journal, an audio recorder, and observations. Data were analyzed through the use of the NVivo 12 Pro qualitative data analysis computer software program.
