Mark R. Elliott

Serving God Under Siege

History & Biography

“Serving God Under Siege, a firsthand account of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, bears witness to the faith and resilience of seminary president Valentyn Syniy and his family, colleagues, and students at the Tavriski Christian Institute. As the seminary shifts overnight from classroom ponderings to lifesaving ministries of humanitarian aid and refugee evacuations, their experience illuminates crucial spiritual truths: the encouragement of Scripture in times of distress, the beauty of Christian hospitality, the value of ministry partnerships, and more. Serving God Under Siege also provides a wealth of practical insight for any reader with a heart for Christian service. In the seminary’s responses to war and displacement, readers see the importance of offering help that fosters initiative instead of dependence, providing trauma counseling, exercising sensitivity to cross-cultural issues, and taking steps to avoid burnout. This compelling memoir paints a vivid picture of the Tavriski Christian Institute’s outstanding educational and humanitarian ministry.”

The Development of Russian Evangelical Spirituality

History & Biography

“"Gregory L. Nichols has made a major contribution to our understanding of the theological development of evangelical faith in Russia . . . Thanks to this carefully wrought work we have the clearest explanation to date for the unique blend of holiness, pietistic, and Anabaptist strains in Russian evangelicalism.”

Theologizing Place in Displacement

Theology

“Elliott’s Theologizing Place in Displacement details the dislocation of some 270,000 Georgians made refugees by armed conflicts in Abkhazia (1992-93) and South Ossetia (2008). Paradoxically, the author tells a tale of bridges involuntarily burned by building bridges across disciplines. This study is especially successful in utilizing insights and methodologies drawn from ethnography and theology to relate the role of faith to aiding displaced Orthodox believers as they cope with wrenching loss. Here global implications abound.”