Professional Dissertations DMin

Date of Award

1999

Document Type

Project Report

Degree Name

Doctor of Ministry

College

Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary

Program

Doctor of Ministry DMin

First Advisor

Benjamin D. Schoun

Second Advisor

Roger L. Dudley

Third Advisor

James J. North, Jr.

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this dissertation was to: (1) investigate and record historical and missiological foundations of Adventist Information Ministry; (2) survey, analyze, describe, and evaluate perceptions about the AIM chaplain's role and present resulting recommendations; and (3) provide summaries and conclusions for the major topics and methodology revealed in the main body of this report.

Method

Following an investigation of historical documents, a qualitative survey based on Dillman's "Total Design Method" was implemented with six different groups of individuals associated with Adventist Information Ministry. Recorded input from sixty-five telephone interviews was analyzed and described according to pertinent group perceptions regarding the principle subjects of the study. The historical probes and phone interview findings were augmented with observations from the author's two and a half years of work experience as senior chaplain at Adventist Information Ministry.

Results

A treatise of trends spanning a fifteen-year period of time leading up to the birth of Adventist Information Ministry is now available under one cover. The display of documented contributions reveals that a host of foundational proclamations, formative ideas, technological inventions, and key institutions were involved. For the Adventist Information Ministry chaplain, six fundamental functions are ranked according to survey results for the importance and time spent for each function. Discoveries among the chaplain interviewees includes intercession receiving the place of greatest importance but least time spent, administration voted least important but second in time spent, and counseling looked upon with lower importance but claiming the most time spent.

Conclusions

The variety of foundational sources made clear the delivery of Adventist Information Ministry was not the result of any one human being's work. It was concluded that the governing source behind these multiple developmental factors was the working of God through His Holy Spirit. Given the blend of widely differing perspectives pertaining to the counseling component of the chaplain's role, a concluding recommendation was directed to current leadership, staff, and chaplains at Adventist Information Ministry to meet together and work through the likelihood of ongoing misunderstandings in this important area.

Subject Area

Adventist Information Ministry

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

DOI

https://dx.doi.org/10.32597/dmin/648

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