Casualties of war: The ripple effect of inner city violence on church and community
LE3 .A278 2013
2013
Brackney, William
Acadia University
Doctor of Ministry
D.Min.
Ministry
Acadia Divinity College
This work is an exploration of street violence in an inner city community, particularly as it relates to African Nova Scotians in North Central Halifax. The researcher’s aim is to gain an understanding of the determinants of violent behavior so that strategies may be employed to address the determinants and thus reduce the violence. The discussion centers on the particular case of a young man who was both a perpetrator and victim of violence. Ethnographical methodology is used as the means of gathering the case information. The researcher enters into the life and circumstances of the case subject to extract and analyze information, drawing conclusions that may help in the development of ministry approaches to inner city violence. The work begins with an auto-biography of the researcher and how she came to be interested in this work and then moves to the theological basis of concern and why finding methods to address violence should be a priority of the church. The researcher shares the background of the area of study from a historical perspective, specifically focusing on the deep-rootedness of societal dysfunction, including systemic racism, and with that knowledge presents a case as a typology of the casualties of the war that is claiming the lives of those that are marginalized in the city. The case is presented as a microcosm, examined through an analytical and theological lens, to draw conclusions about the state of the inner city and its challenges. Strategies are then suggested to help other churches facing similar challenges.
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https://scholar.acadiau.ca/islandora/object/theses:283