Development of an Adventist Community Services Center to Serve Navajo Residents of Kayenta, Arizona

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Development of an Adventist Community Services Center to Serve Navajo Residents of Kayenta, Arizona Andrews University Digital Commons @ Andrews University Professional Dissertations DMin Graduate Research 1998 Development of an Adventist Community Services Center To Serve Navajo Residents of Kayenta, Arizona Dale A. Wolcott Andrews University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dmin Part of the Practical Theology Commons Recommended Citation Wolcott, Dale A., "Development of an Adventist Community Services Center To Serve Navajo Residents of Kayenta, Arizona" (1998). Professional Dissertations DMin. 703. https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dmin/703 This Project Report is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Research at Digital Commons @ Andrews University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Professional Dissertations DMin by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Andrews University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ABSTRACT DEVELOPMENT OF AN ADVENTIST COMMUNITY SERVICES CENTER TO SERVE NAVAJO RESIDENTS OF KAYENTA, ARIZONA by Dale A. Wolcott Adviser: Jon Dybdahl ABSTRACT OF GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH Dissertation Andrews University Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary Title: DEVELOPMENT OF AN ADVENTIST COMMUNITY SERVICES CENTER TO SERVE NAVAJO RESIDENTS OF KAYENTA, ARIZONA Name of researcher: Dale A. Wolcott Name and degree of faculty adviser: Jon Dybdahl, Ph.D. Date completed: March 1998 The Problem A decision had been made to establish a Seventh-day Adventist Community Services Center in Kayenta, Arizona, on the Navajo Indian Reservation, in connection with a church-planting initiative. Those in charge lacked experience and training in community services ministries and faced obstacles to implementation of the plan. The Method A combination of research and action was used to move the envisioned Community Services Center toward reality. Study of the Bible and related literature led to formulation of Scripture-based methodological principles. Demographic research and community needs assessment procedures were utilized to gain an understanding of the Kayenta community and especially of its social needs. In cooperation with the local Native American Seventh- day Adventist congregations and also with regional church organizations and officials, efforts were made to obtain land, erect a building, select personnel, and implement community service ministries in Kayenta. The Results Land was obtained and a Community Services Center building was erected in Kayenta. Community needs were ascertained and potential Adventist service projects were enumerated. A full-time Center director was employed and a budget for the first year of operation was developed and partially implemented. Methodological and theological uncertainties were clarified. External factors, including disagreements among the participating organizations regarding methodological and theological principles, hindered full operational implementation of the envisioned Center. At the project’s conclusion, Adventists were not yet providing substantial community service ministries in Kayenta. Conclusions For Adventist Community Services ministries to Native Americans to be effective in the context of God’s revealed purposes for the well-being of humankind, they must be conducted wholistically and in close connection with the church body. Service providers must deeply understand the needs, problems, and life situation of the people served. Spiritually based criteria need to be used when selecting project personnel, and the local Native church should be involved in planning, supporting, and operating the Center. Finances for Native American Christian humanitarian projects are not an insurmountable obstacle, with a variety of funding sources available. Specific changes are recommended in Seventh-day Adventist organizational structures which have responsibility for the Navajo region, and suggestions are made for fuller implementation of community services ministries in Kayenta and elsewhere. Andrews University Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary DEVELOPMENT OF AN ADVENTIST COMMUNITY SERVICES CENTER TO SERVE NAVAJO RESIDENTS OF KAYENTA, ARIZONA A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Ministry by Dale A. Wolcott March 1998 DEVELOPMENT OF AN ADVENTIST COMMUNITY SERVICES CENTER TO SERVE NAVAJO RESIDENTS OF KAYENTA, ARIZONA A dissertation presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Ministry by Dale A. Wolcott APPROVAL BY THE COMMITTEE: Director of D.Min. Program Jpn-Bybdahl Ricardo Norton Doug KilWier Dean,<;SD^T:hi6oro|ical Seminary Werner Vyhmeister fltcam MartL 13 IMS Ricardo Norton Date approved To my soulmate Nancy Joy whose walk with Jesus has challenged, strengthened, and encouraged mine for nearly thirty years in TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................... 1 Purpose of the Project.............................................................................. 1 Definition of Terms.................................................................................. 1 Justification for the Project ........................................................................ 4 Why Community Services? .................................................................. 4 WhyKayenta?...................................................................................... 4 Why Now?.......................................................................................... 5 Why E lse?.......................................................................................... 6 Limitations................................................................................................ 7 Procedure Followed.................................................................................. 7 Group One: Theological Questions.................................................... 8 Group Two: Sociological Questions .................................................... 9 Group Three: Practical Questions...................................................... 9 Results.................................................................................................... 10 2. PRINCIPLES OF COMPASSION MINISTRY............................................ 11 Introduction............................................................................................ 11 Biblical Motivation for Compassion Ministry ...................................... 12 The Source of Christian Compassion .............................................. 13 The Purpose of Christian Compassion ............................................ 14 Biblical Methods for Compassion Ministries ........................................ 15 The Doctrine of Scriptural Authority .............................................. 17 The Doctrine of Jesus’ Incarnation.................................................. 18 The Doctrine of S in .......................................................................... 19 The Doctrine of Salvation .................................................................. 20 The Doctrine of the Wholeness of Human Nature ............................ 22 The Doctrine of Freedom of the Will ................................................ 23 The Doctrine of Stewardship ......................... 24 The Doctrine of the Church (Ecclesiology) ........................................ 26 The Doctrine of Last Events (Eschatology) ........................................ 29 Conclusion.............................................................................................. 30 IV 3. UNDERSTANDING THE COMMUNITY: KAYENTA, ARIZONA........32 Kayenta’s Context: What It Means to Be Navajo .................................. 32 Navajo History.................................................................................... 32 Navajo Culture ................................................................................ 35 Dine Bizaad (Navajo Language) ................................................ 35 Shima (My Mother) ...................................................................... 36 K ’e (Good Relationship, Clan Relationship) .............................. 37 Dibe (Sheep) ................................................................................ 38 Hozhq (Beauty, Harmony, Happiness, Peace) ............................ 38 Navajoland Today............................................................................ 39 Wealth, Health, and Learning ...................................................... 40 Tribal Government ...................................................................... 42 Religion........................................................................................ 44 Kayenta: The Progressive Navajo Frontier .............................................. 45 Identifying Kayenta’s N eeds .................................................................... 49 Alcohol and Substance Abuse ............... 49 Problems of Families, Youth, and Children .................................... 50 Health Problems .............................................................................. 51 Other Needs ......................................................... 52 Conclusion................................................................................... 52 4. LEARNING FROM OTHERS: CONTEMPORARY PRECEDENTS FOR COMPASSION MINISTRY.................................................... 54 Introduction...........................................................................................
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