Anabaptist discipleship : progressive sanctification and the role of community

Abstract

This thesis examines whether Christian discipleship, as conceived by Anabaptists, can be understood in connection with a doctrine of sanctification. It also studies how the community, in other words, the church, influences the practice of discipleship and the process of sanctification. The work first discusses the doctrine of sanctification as formulated in various denominational contexts, and then examines, from historical and biblical perspectives, the relationship between the practice of Anabaptist discipleship and the concept of progressive sanctification. A study of sanctification and discipleship in the Old and New Testaments leads, in the final chapter, to an examination of Anabaptist discipleship as progressive sanctification. It concludes that Anabaptist discipleship is a process characterised by community-centred sanctification. Finally, it offers an evaluation of the usefulness of this perspective in the Christian community, and formulates a doctrine of sanctification compatible with Anabaptist principles.