Ecclesial theatrics. Toward a reconstruction of evangelical Christian education theory as critical dogmatic practical theology: The relevance of a second 'Barthian reckoning' for reconceiving the evangelical Protestant educational imagination at the metat

The purpose of this dissertation is to place Protestant practical theology generally and evangelical Protestant Christian education theorizing specifically, into conversation with recent efforts, since about 1980, to recover the relevance of Karl Barth's theological vision for practical theology. It will be noted in Part I, "The Neo-Barthian Imperative," that the contemporary efforts by mainline Protestant theorists to reconsider the nature of practical theology and Christian religious education as constructive and scholarly disciplines generally understand the theoretical task to have entered a post-Barthian, post-confessionalist era which mandates some form of mutual critical praxis correlation as the only legitimate form of theologizing. Contrary to this understanding, we will argue that Protestant practical theology and Christian religious education remains pre-Barthian in vision and that a critical dogmatic practical theology in the "imago Barth" is possible and may be emerging to challenge the post-confessionalist assumptions which dominate the guild. We will seek to outline some of the conceptual coordinates and relational contours for critical dogmatic practical theology that have emerged since about 1980 which give shape and scope to the "neo-Barthian imperative.";In Part II, "The Neo Barthian Critique," we will seek to address neo-conservative Protestant Christian educators from the standpoint of this Barthian reckoning in practical theology. We will argue that efforts by evangelical Protestants since mid-century to reform fundamentalism through Christian education have contributed mightily to the evangelical cause in America, but that the time is ripe for evangelicals to discover a new critical depth to their theorizing efforts. Evangelicals therefore would do well to attend to the emerging Barthian recovery for practical theology as a potential Ursource for sponsoring further theoretical maturation. In particular, three different evangelical Protestant theorists whose works span the past 60 years---Frank Gaebelein, Lawrence Richards, and Robert Pazmino---will be analyzed for (1) their contribution to evangelical theorizing and (2) for the way in which the contemporary recovery of the relevance of Karl Barth's theological vision might enhance, deepen, and radically reshape the critical power of the evangelical imagination vis a vis christian education theorizing.