Abstract
The review essay starts out with an overview and brief evaluation of A History of Christian Conversion by David W. Kling. It then focuses on a few examples of conversion narratives depicted in this volume and examines these conversion stories in light of contributing factors discussed by Kling as well as in the author’s own model, also touching on Lewis R. Rambo’s work. The essay concludes with a few general thoughts on how Kling’s work could be extended.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
Kling also lists many factors that contribute to conversion in the New Testament (even though, as he points out, there is “little direct testimony” available). These range from experiences of healing or seeing Jesus’ miracles and family members becoming Christians “because the head of the household converts” (p. 52) to finding community and coping with marginalization and oppression as well as repentance. Here as well, Kling highlights the immense role of the “theological dimension” (p. 52) in the way conversion narratives are depicted in the New Testament.
According to Loder’s (1998) description of Luther’s conversion, however, Luther very much struggled with his father and his father’s expectations of him, and his conversion experience can also be seen as distancing himself from his father’s influence. Kling does not discuss this issue as much as Loder does or, before him, the well-known psychologist Erik Erikson (1993).
References
Beckford, J. A. (1978). Accounting for conversion. British Journal of Sociology, 29, 249–262.
Erikson, E. H. (1993). Young man Luther: A study in psychoanalysis and history. New York, NY: W. W. Norton.
Gooren, H. (2010). Religious conversion and disaffiliation: Tracing patterns of change in faith practices. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Jindra, I. W. (2011). How religious content matters in conversion narratives to various religious groups. Sociology of Religion, 72(3), 275–302.
Jindra, I. W. (2014). A new model of religious conversion: Beyond network theory and social constructivism. Leiden: Brill.
Jindra, I. W. (2016). Toward an integrative theory of religious conversion: A review essay of the Oxford Handbook of Religious Conversion by Lewis R. Rambo and Charles F. Farhadian (2014). Pastoral Psychology, 65(3), 329–343.
Kling, D. W. (2020). A history of Christian conversion. New York: Oxford University Press.
Loder, J. E. (1998). The logic of the spirit: Human development in theological perspective. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Paloutzian, R. F., Murken, S., Streib, H., & Röβler-Namini, S. (2013). Conversion, deconversion, and spiritual transformation: A multilevel interdisciplinary view. In R. F. Paloutzian & C. L. Park (Eds.), Handbook of the psychology of religion and spirituality (pp. 399–421). New York: Guilford Press.
Rambo, L. R. (1993). Understanding religious conversion. New Haven: Yale University Press.
Rambo, L. R., & Farhadian, C. F. (2014). The Oxford handbook of religious conversion. New York: Oxford University Press.
Smilde, D. (2007). Reason to believe: Cultural agency in Latin American evangelicalism. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Snow, D. A., & Machalek, R. (1984). The sociology of conversion. Annual Review of Sociology, 10(1), 167–190.
Stark, R., & Finke, R. (2000). Acts of faith: Explaining the human side of religion. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Stromberg, P. (1993). Language and self-transformation: A study of the Christian conversion narrative. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher’s Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Jindra, I.W. A History of Christian Conversion and Other Conversion Models: a Review Essay. Pastoral Psychol 70, 141–150 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11089-021-00939-4
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11089-021-00939-4