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Boston, MA // F20
Fall 2020
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WELCOME TO PERSPECTIVES!
We desire to see the diverse body of Christ in the Boston area realigned with God's purpose for the world and empowered by the Holy Spirit to make Christ known and worshipped through the discipling of neighbors, students, families, and colleagues of the many nations living in our city, leading to greater engagement in the local church, and increased unity and partnership with the global church.
Given the uncertainty of COVID-19, we are planning to hold this course online via Zoom for the entire 15-week course. In addition to this, however, we also hope that we will be able to offer some of the course as optionally in-person at Park Street Church at some point if students are willing and safety permitting.
With everything that has happened in this time, now more than ever, the call to the Church to go and make disciples of all the nations is compelling and urgent. Our world is facing fear, despair, and death, and we must equip ourselves in order to respond to that call.
You are invited to explore, discover, and embrace how God has made you for more! Perspectives is a 15-week course about God's plan of redemption from beginning to end and how you fit into it. There are four components:
Biblical (Lessons 1-5): Have you ever wondered why the word "missions" isn't in the Bible? We'll take 5 weeks to illuminate God's unchanging promises as they unfold from Genesis to Revelation. These lessons will highlight how God has always been a missionary God, and how that gives us our charge to engage in missions worldwide.
Historical (Lessons 6-9): You will discover your spiritual lineage and learn that God has always been at work throughout history making His name known among the nations. You'll gain perspective and insight into how the past has shaped our understanding of Christianity and missions today.
Cultural (Lessons 10-11): The peoples of the world come alive as we see expressions of the New Testament church thriving among every nation, tribe, people, and language of the earth so that Christ Jesus is worshiped.
Strategic (Lessons 12-15): Find your place in God's story through endless opportunities to help complete the Great Commission. Learn practical application of broader strategic topics as it pertains to the many facets of missions throughout the world.
Dates: August 28 - December 18, 2020 When: Fridays 6:30-9:30pm Where: Zoom throughout the entire 15-week course
First Two Nights Free: Register at no cost to try out this course. Everyone is welcome to hear the first 2 lessons before deciding to commit to the course.
Perspectives offers 3 levels for completing the course: Key Reading Level ($250....because of COVID 19 you will pay $220 and will order your book with a coordinator provided link at approximately $30): Prepare for great speakers and great material with light reading. Be challenged to consider your own role in world missions. This level requires about 1-2 hours of optional reading each week with little written homework. Five "Personal Reflections" assigned during the term will require about an hour each to complete.
Certificate Level ($250...because of COVID 19 you will pay $220 and will order your book with a coordinator provided link at approximately $30): This is the recommended course level which provides a rich learning experience. It involves weekly homework assignments, five "Personal Reflections" and one research project due by the end of the course. This level requires about 4 hours of work per week.
Credit Level ($600...because of COVID 19 you will pay $570 and will order your book with a coordinator provided link at approximately $30): An in-depth study with 3 semester credit hours given through Trinity International University. It involves additional reading and two research projects. It is offered at the undergraduate or graduate level.
FAQs about Perspectives What is Perspectives?
Perspectives is a Christian education course designed to help believers understand God's heart for all peoples and the active role they can play in their day-to-day lives for the great commission. Why take Perspectives?
Perspectives equips believers with the Biblical, Historical, Cultural, and Strategic context in which missions is derived. It provides resources for believers of all walks of life to engage those around them in effective evangelism, discipleship, and partnership. In this course, you will learn about Abraham’s calling in Genesis to be a blessing to all nations. You will learn about the movement of the church after Acts and up to the present day. You will learn about God’s current work in redeeming people from every tribe, tongue, and nation to himself, and you will learn about the task that still remains. Throughout this course, led each week by 15 different key speakers sharing their experience and knowledge, you will discern God’s own invitation in your life to serve him, and begin to hear how and where God is leading you. Which enrollment level is right for me? - Key Reading Level: This is for people unable to commit to the reading requirements of the Certificate level. We recommend you sign up for Certificate level and if you can't keep up with the homework, you can change to Key Reading at any time during the course.
- Certificate Level: While the course provides fantastic instructors, the richness and full impact of this course come from the readings. This level provides accountability, and is often required by missions agencies. It is also required by those looking to coordinate a Perspectives course in the future. Because Certificate and Key Readings are the same price, we recommend students register for Certificate level and drop down to Key Reading at any point during the course if they are unable to meet Certificate requirements. Students who complete Certificate level can take future Perspectives classes as Alumni at no cost. - Credit Level: Graduate credit students attend class, read weekly articles, take weekly quizzes, take 2 exams (midterm and final), and write a 18-20 page paper at the end of the course to receive graduate credit. This level requires 5-8 hours of reading per week. Additional work may be required depending on the Graduate program. *With either Undergraduate or Graduate Credit levels, if students are planning on transferring credit, provided through Trinity International University, it is their responsibility to check with their adviser to ascertain their school's policy on transferring credit into their program. What about COVID-19? We are planning to hold the entire course through Zoom, but we hope that, safety permitting, students will also be able to optionally meet in person at Park Street Church at some point. If we are able to meet in person, we will not require students to do so and we will continue to offer the course online. While being unable to meet in person is not the ideal way we had originally planned to hold this course, we believe this course will still provide great value to participants because of the quality of the speakers, the reading material, and the additional class activities. We are staying current on events and will update this course accordingly.
Class Info
Date: Friday, August 28, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
Location: Zoom for the entire course; after the biblical section (lesson 5), there will hopefully be an in person option at Park Street Church 1 Park Street Boston MA 02108
Contact:
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Instructor
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Lesson 1
The Living God is a Missionary God
God's purpose is three-fold: against evil—kingdom victory; for the nations—redemption and blessing; and for God—global glory in worship. God's purpose revealed in promise to Abraham. Exploring God's purpose for the nations: Blessing to the nations described.
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Instructor
Dave Shive
Frontier Ventures (formerly US Center for World Mission), Catonsville MD
Dave Shive is a 1968 graduate of the Washington Bible College, a 1972 graduate of Capital Bible Seminary with a Th.M. in New Testament Studies, and a 1994 graduate of Baltimore Hebrew University with an M.A. in Biblical Literature. Dave has spent the past 47 years in full time ministry as a pastor, Christian school director, and college professor. He currently serves with Frontier Ventures (formerly the US Center for World Mission) as a missions mobilizer for the northeast region of the United States. Dave lives in Catonsville, MD, with Kathy, his wife of 52 years. Dave and Kathy have three married children, Dan, Mike, and Becky. They are also the proud grandparents of 9 grandsons and 2 granddaughters. b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, August 28, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 2
The Story of His Glory
Exploring God's purpose for Himself: How God has been steadily unfolding a plan throughout all nations and generations to bring about His greater glory, ultimately drawing to Himself the worship of all the peoples. Passion and prayer for God's glory.
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Instructor
Jamie Farr
Wycliffe Bible Translators, Orlando FL
I grew up in the South Pacific in Papua New Guinea the son of Translators speaking four languages. I experienced the joy of watching my ethnic people receive the NT and experience the power of God in amazing ways.
I later went with my beautiful Wife Anita to Thailand to serve with Wycliffe. On our watch we have seen over 2000 missionaries go to serve among over 1800 people groups in the last 24 years. We are passionate about God's glory to be experienced by all peoples. b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, September 4, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:00 PM
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Lesson 3
Your Kingdom Come
Exploring God's purpose regarding evil: How God has accomplished a defeat of evil powers in order to open a season of history in which the nations can freely follow Christ. The kingdom of God as the destiny of all history. Christ's mission seeks a hindering of evil to bring about a sign of the coming peace of the kingdom of God. Our prayers contend with evil in order to bring about the transformation of society with Christ's kingdom in view.
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Instructor
Daniel Ahn
Assistant Professor of Global Christianity and Theology, Gordon College, South Hamilton MA
Rev. Dr. Daniel Ahn is currently an assistant professor of Global Christianity and Theology at Gordon College, MA, USA. He has been a professor of missiology, missionary and ordained pastor (and mechanical engineer) in Central and Southeast Asia, Europe and North America for over twenty years. Prior to teaching at Gordon College, he taught World Christianity at Free University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands, and served Refugee churches
He holds Master of Divinity in Cross-cultural Studies & Master of Arts in Intercultural Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary in USA, and thereafter PhD in World Christianity at University of Edinburgh in UK. He worked as a research mechanical engineer at R & D center of Hyun-Dai Motor Company for six years with B.S. and M.S. in mechanical engineering. He is married to Dr. Eun Ha Hwang, and two boys, Eugene (14) and Yuchan (11). b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, September 11, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 4
Mandate for the Nations
Jesus shows great strategic interest in Gentiles; wise strategic focus by initiating a global mission on a few disciples among the Hebrew people. The Great Commission and the ways of God's sending in relational power. Dealing with the ideas of pluralism (all religions the same) and universalism (all persons saved).
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Instructor
Stephen Vannah
SIM USA, Lee MA
Stephen Vannah is an ordained pastor, has been the field leader for SIM in Senegal for about ten years. He is presently the Northeastern Regional Director for SIM. He and his wife live in Western MA. They have two daughters. He holds a Masters in New Testament Studies, an MDiv. and a DMin. His current responsibilities involve a considerable amount of traveling to churches, Christian colleges and institutions to preach, teach seminars and workshops on missions, leadership and synergetic teamwork. He teachers Missions, at Berkshire Institute of Christian Studies. b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, September 18, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 5
Unleashing the Gospel
The first followers of Jesus: obedient in costly, foundational ways. The climactic act of the book of Acts is the freeing of the gospel to be followed by Gentiles without Jewish traditions as a requirement. A foundational act of God which speaks to the situations where the gospel is hindered today. Strategic suffering and apostolic passion.
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Instructor
Pam Arlund
All Nations, Kansas City MO
Pam is currently the Co-Editor of Perspectives 5th Edition and a member of All Nations. She lived in Central Asia for ten years, where she planted churches among three people groups, two of whom are Muslim. She earned an MA and PhD in Linguistics (i.e. Bible Translation) from the University of Texas at Arlington. She has published numerous books and articles in missions. She is most well known as “The Stick Figure Lady” for her popular book “Stick Figures Save the World.” b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, September 25, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 6
The Expansion of the Christian Movement
The story of God's purpose continues relentlessly from Abraham's day until the present moment. An overview of the largest and the longest-running movement ever in history—the world Christian movement. How the gospel surged through the peoples and places of the world. Important insights for our own day.
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Instructor
Todd Johnson
, South Hamilton MA
Todd M. Johnson is Eva B. and Paul E. Toms Distinguished Professor of Mission and Global Christianity and co-Director of the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. Johnson is visiting Research Fellow at Boston University’s Institute for Culture, Religion and World Affairs leading a research project on international religious demography. He is co-editor of the Atlas of Global Christianity (Edinburgh University Press) and co-author of the World Christian Encyclopedia (Oxford University Press, 2nd ed, 3rd ed.) and World Christian Trends (William Carey Library). He is editor of the World Christian Database (Brill) and co-editor of the World Religion Database (Brill). b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, October 2, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 7
Eras of Mission History
The greatest explosion of growth ever has taken place in last 200 years in three "bursts" of activity. Why we could be in the final era of missions. The global harvest force comprised increasingly of non-Western missionaries.
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Instructor
Dan Darko
Wenham MA
A New Testament Professor at Gordon College. A native of Ghana, Dan served as a Director in Youth for Christ (Ghana), Dean of Students at the Evangelical Theological Seminary (Croatia), Seminary and University chaplain in Croatia and Ghana, and local church pastoral positions in Ghana, Croatia, England (Fulham–London) and the Poconos (PA) United States. He was educated in Ghana, Croatia and England. Dan and his family (Maryl his wife and two daughters, Esther and Debbie) live in South Hamilton, MA.
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Class Info
Date: Friday, October 9, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 8
Pioneers of the World Christian Movement
Today we anchor the race by continuing what others have begun. It's a day of finishing. All the more reason to learn the wisdom and the heart of ordinary people who did extraordinary things in earlier generations. Reading the writings of William Carey and other leaders to discern what these people have left to us. Exploring the contribution of women in missions throughout the centuries.
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Instructor
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Julian
Park Street Church, Boston MA
Dr. Julian Linnell formerly directed Anglican Frontier Mission. He taught English and applied linguistics in China/Taiwan for five years. He has also taught graduate and undergraduate courses at US and overseas universities. Academic publications include the field of applied linguistics, 2nd language acquisition, teacher education and apologetics. Julian earned BA & MA at Cambridge University, MS & PhD at Univ. of Pennsylvania and MDiv at Trinity School for Ministry, studying Mandarin at Wuhan Univ. and Tunghai Univ. b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, October 16, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 9
The Task Remaining
God's pressed His purpose forward until the present hour of amazing opportunity. Understanding the concept of "unreached peoples" to assess the remaining task. Recognizing the imbalance of mission resources shapes strategic priorities. The basic minimal missiological achievement in every people group opens the way for working with God against every kind of evil so that the gospel of the kingdom is declared and displayed with clarity and power. The need and opportunity of urban mission.
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Instructor
David Gadoury
TOGETHER, Cranston RI
David Gadoury served as Lead Pastor of the Cranston Christian Fellowship for 42 years, a missions focused church that invested heavily in its global partners and directly engaged in numerous projects among the world's unreached peoples. He and his wife have ministered to cross-cultural workers in nine foreign countries. In 2017 he became Executive Director of TOGETHER, a multi-church, multi-denominational partnership formed in 2010 to advance the gospel in the greater Rhode Island area.
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Class Info
Date: Friday, October 23, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 10
How Shall They Hear?
Culture and intercultural communication of the gospel. Communicating the gospel with relevance at the worldview level helps avoid syncretism (blending of cultural error with God?s truth) and also enables powerful movements of the gospel. Sensitive missionaries will look for ways that God has preserved or prepared people to hear the gospel, often finding redemptive analogies for God's truth.
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Instructor
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Judy A.
PI, South Yarmouth MA
A long-term worker committed to seeing God's glory among all nations. Loved serving overseas, but also loves walking beside and behind the next generation as HE calls them out to serve HIM here and to the ends of the earth. b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, October 30, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 11
Building Bridges of Love
The incarnation as a model of missionary humility. How missionaries can enter appropriate roles in order to form relationships of trust and respect to develop a sense of belonging, and thus to communicate with credibility for understanding. Explore the intricacy of identification in another culture. Explore the even greater complexity of presenting identity with integrity in a globalized, terrorized, pluralized world. Recognizing the dynamics of social structure in order to initiate growing movements of ongoing communication throughout the society.
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Instructor
Susan Patt
Frontier Ventures, Exton PA
Sue Patt has worked as a mobilizer for more than 40 years (since 1982) with Frontier Ventures, formerly the US Center for World Mission. She has served as a Perspectives Regional Director (13 years) and as the Perspectives National Program Director (7 years). Her current assignment is Chief Strategy Officer with FV. She has been developing deliberate friendships with Muslims since 1980, and Hindus since 2005. She is married to Fran Patt since 1986. They have 3 adult children and live in Exton, PA in the Philadelphia suburbs. b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, November 13, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 12
Christian Community Development
A survey of world need. Dynamic balance of evangelism and social action. Hope for significant transformation as a sign of Christ's Lordship by Christian community development. Exploring the charge that missionaries destroy instead of serve cultures. Healing the wounds of the world between the peoples.
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Instructor
Robert Antonucci
Frontiers/EPC, Wenham MA
Robert has worked in Church-planting and Development work in Central Asia in a war torn country 15 of the last 20 years. He and his wife and 3 children have led Frontiers Church-planting teams in new areas most of that time. Rob has an MA in World Christianity from Denver Seminary and teaches Christians insights useful in understanding Islam/Muslims in the world today. He did MDiv. studies at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, is a Doctor of Ministry program there and is Assistant Director of the Dr J Christy Wilson Jr. Center for World Missions and an adjunct professor at Gordon Conwell. He works with Frontiers and with EPC World Outreach consulting on ministry among Muslims. b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, November 20, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 13
The Spontaneous Multiplication of Churches
Look beyond institutional features of churches to understand churches as dynamic movements of Christ Himself being followed. Such a view of churches as organic, living things opens up the practicality of seeing them multiply rapidly as movements and also flourish in society bearing the fruit of social transformation. Churches as counter-communities, acting as salt and light, bringing change to their cultures. How movements multiply by connecting with entire families and larger social structures.
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Instructor
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Rick and Julie S.
Newton NH
Rick and Julie S. currently work as full-time missionaries and are involved in mobilizing teams to ignite church planting movements with unengaged, unreached people groups in the 10/40 Window. Rick and Julie have recently left their vocational careers in Finance (Rick) and Occupation Therapy (Julie) to pursue their passion for reaching the unreached. Rick and Julie have been married for 31 years and have 3 children. b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, December 4, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 14
Pioneer Church Planting
The hope of planting churches among unreached peoples. How the breakthrough of the gospel in an unreached people requires that the gospel be "de-Westernized". The difference of contextualizing the message, the messenger and the movement. Distinguish and appreciate people movements, church planting movements and insider movements.
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Instructor
James Cha
Crescent Project, Leesburg VA
Rev. James Cha was born in Korea, but grew up here in the US. He studied electrical engineering at Cornell University, and worked ten years as an engineer. In 2000 he and his wife, Faith, took their 3 kids to Central Asia, where they served ten years as church planting missionaries with Pioneers. They are now back in the US reaching out to the Muslims in the Washington, DC area. James & Faith are Washington DC Area Coordinators for Crescent Project. They also direct ESL ministry in Leesburg, VA. They have three adult children and one grandchild. James recently published a book about their missions journey - Fear Not: Living a Life of No Regrets. Available on amazon. b
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Class Info
Date: Friday, December 11, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Lesson 15
World Christian Discipleship
What it means to integrate life for Christ's global purpose as a "'World Christian". Into the great story for His glory: a Person-driven life as a way of. pursuing a purpose-driven life. The basic practices of world Christians: going, sending, welcoming and mobilizing. The essential disciplines of World Christian discipleship: community, giving, praying and learning. Simplifying your lifestyle as if in "war-time". Exploring the practical ways of pursuing God's purpose. Business and mission. Short-term mission. Welcoming international visitors. Wisdom in working with local churches and in partnership with Christians in different parts of the world.
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Instructor
Mike
Fairhaven MA
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Class Info
Date: Friday, December 18, 2020
Time: 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM
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Instructor
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Class Info
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