Este trabalho analisa a influência da cultura na práxis cristã evangélica no contexto da cidade de Laguna. O primeiro capítulo aborda a cultura em suas diversas facetas. Revela a dificuldade de definição do termo e estabelece uma diálogo com teóricos a fim de encontrar um caminho para melhor compreensão e estudo da cultura. Diante de muitas possibilidades de definição, adota-se o pensamento de Rubem Alves que define a cultura como objeto de desejo de algo que outrora o ser humano tivera, mas perdera, e agora é objeto de desejo. A cultura procura suprir a falta desse objeto de desejo, preencher essa ausência, porém, é incapaz. É aí que entra a religião aquilo que a cultura não consegue, a religião tenciona fazer. Por isso, a religião é tratada nesse capítulo como o suprassumo da cultura. Este capítulo se encerra mostrando como a religião molda a cosmovisão e cultura de um povo e sustenta costumes e valores. O segundo capítulo traz um panorama da composição étnico, cultural e religiosa de Laguna. Desde os primórdios, já havia um povo aqui com sua cultura e religião. Mas então, chegaram os colonizadores portugueses e açorianos, os imigrantes, os aventureiros e os escravos. E houve uma fusão que produziu uma nova configuração cultural e religiosa. O terceiro e último capítulo trata da complexa relação da cultura com o evangelho: as principais manifestações religiosas da cidade e sua relação com a cultura e com o evangelho, a tensão na enculturação, tem pontos divergentes e convergentes entre cultura e evangelho. Termina sugerindo que o evangelho por ser transcendente, no processo de enculturação, deve exercer sua supremacia como juiz da cultura. Caso contrário, corre-se o risco de perder tanto um quanto o outro. / This paper analyzes the influence of culture on the Evangelical Christian practice in the context of the city of Laguna. The first chapter deals with culture in its various facets. It reveals the difficulty in defining the term and establishes a dialog with theoreticians so as to find a path to better understand and study culture. Faced with many possibilities of definition, the thought of Rubem Alves was adopted which defines culture as an object of desire of something which the human being had in some other time but lost and now has become an object of desire. Culture seeks to fill this lack of this object of desire, to fulfill the absence, however it is incapable of doing it. This is where religion comes in that which culture cannot do, religion intends to do. That is why religion is treated in this chapter as the epitome of culture. This chapter ends showing how religion shapes the cosmovision and culture of a people and sustains customs and values. The second chapter presents a panorama of the ethnic, cultural and religious composition of Laguna. From the beginning there was a people here with its culture and religion. But then, the Portuguese and Azorean colonizers arrived, the immigrants, the adventurers and the slaves. And there was a fusion which produced a new cultural and religious configuration. The third and last chapter deals with the complex relation of culture with the Gospel: the main religious manifestations of the city and their relation with culture and with the Gospel, the tension with enculturation, the divergent and convergent points between culture and the Gospel. It ends suggesting that, since the Gospel is transcendent, in the process of enculturation, it should exercise its supremacy as judge of the culture. Otherwise, one runs the risk of losing both.

1 Zdeněk Štipl: The Christian Ashram Movement in India Abstract This thesis deals with the Christian Ashram Movement. The Movement represents a remarkable experiment of Christian inculturation in India, through which Christianity attempted to penetrate the cultural as well as the religious world of India. In spite of its long- lasting presence in India, approaching almost 2000 years, Christianity is still generally regarded a foreign element in the country. The story of Christian ashrams has been developing continuously throughout the 20th century and the idea of an ashram can be found in use across the various Christian denominations. First ashrams were established by the Protestant churches, especially in southern India. However, the Catholic Church got hold of the Movement in the late sixties, as a consequence of changes that were brought into the life of the Church by the Second Vatican Council. The Movement reached its peak in the seventies and eighties. At that time the number of ashrams in existence exceeded one hundred, they were found in every linguistic region of India, and the idea of a Christian ashram spread out not only to the neighbouring countries, but even across the globe. In the first chapter a brief overview of the history of Christianity in India is presented through the prism of...

[pt] A presente tese versa sobre o tema da acolhida da fé no contexto multicultural. Pretende-se evidenciar as contribuições oferecidas pela teologia de Karl Rahner para o crer hoje. Para tanto, acredita-se que seja pertinente a chave de leitura da inculturação da fé. Com esse intuito e fundamentada na teologia do autor, essa pesquisa visa destacar os elementos indispensáveis para pensar a fé e a inculturação. Deste modo, coube num primeiro momento elucidar em que consiste o diálogo entre fé e cultura, para em seguida, com base no método antropológicoteológico transcendental de Rahner e na perspectiva de sua compreensão de Revelação e fé, assinalar como sua reflexão ajuda a pensar tal relação. São, então, fundamentais as noções centrais do seu pensamento, tais como a de: Deusmistério e sua autocomunicação, a da experiência que a pessoa faz de si e de Deus, a da intrínseca relação entre fé e vida, a da relação entre a dimensão existencial e sobrenatural da Revelação e da Fé, e, por fim, a da unidade do amor ao ser humano e a Deus. Do mesmo modo, merecem destaque os diferentes aspectos inerentes à fé, como: a razão, a emoção, a dimensão espiritual... Neste âmbito, as diferentes culturas mostram que tais dimensões completam-se e são determinantes para a unidade da fé. Igualmente determinante é a verdade de que é no bojo da nossa cultura que se experimenta Deus e é nela que Ele se revela para nós. Rahner, assim, enfatiza a estreita relação entre fé e experiência e atribui um papel indispensável à mistagogia. Ou seja, o processo de, com base na experiência humana, conduzir a pessoa ao mistério indisponível. / [en] This thesis addresses the theme of acceptance of faith in a multicultural context. We intend to highlight the contributions of Karl Rahner’s theology for contemporary believing, and therefore we consider the conception of inculturation to be appropriate. The research then aims to highlight the essential elements to be taken into account when it comes to thinking faith and inculturation. We firstly clarify what constitutes the dialogue between faith and culture. Then we focus on the author’s understanding on such relation on the basis of his transcendentalanthropological method in theology and his understanding of revelation and faith. Consequently, the fundamental notions of his thinking are central. We refer to notions like the one of God as a mystery and his self-communication, the personal experience of the self and God, the intrinsic relationship between faith and life, the relationship between the existential and supernatural dimension of Revelation and faith, and the unity of love of man and God. Likewise, we note the different aspects related to faith, such as: reason, emotion and spiritual dimension. In this sense, the different cultures show that such dimensions are complementary and crucial to the unity of faith. Equally crucial is the truth that it is at the core of our culture that God is experienced and this is exactly where God reveals himself to us. Rahner, therefore, emphasizes the close relationship between faith and experience and says that mystagogy plays a vital role in the process of guiding the man to the unavailable mystery, based on the proper human experience.

Submitted by Cláudia Bueno (claudiamoura18@gmail.com) on 2016-06-09T20:43:39Z No. of bitstreams: 2 Dissertação - José Reinaldo Felipe Martins Filho - 2016.pdf: 9606895 bytes, checksum: ee3d1ffe9251bd18a1df1dfd969f4138 (MD5) license_rdf: 23148 bytes, checksum: 9da0b6dfac957114c6a7714714b86306 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Luciana Ferreira (lucgeral@gmail.com) on 2016-06-10T13:20:18Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 Dissertação - José Reinaldo Felipe Martins Filho - 2016.pdf: 9606895 bytes, checksum: ee3d1ffe9251bd18a1df1dfd969f4138 (MD5) license_rdf: 23148 bytes, checksum: 9da0b6dfac957114c6a7714714b86306 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-10T13:20:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 Dissertação - José Reinaldo Felipe Martins Filho - 2016.pdf: 9606895 bytes, checksum: ee3d1ffe9251bd18a1df1dfd969f4138 (MD5) license_rdf: 23148 bytes, checksum: 9da0b6dfac957114c6a7714714b86306 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-03-31 / Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Goiás - FAPEG / This study aims to investigate the relationship between ritual music and inculturation and provide tools for the development of specific liturgical and musical repertoire for the celebra-tion of Catholic Christian worship, from the aesthetic and cultural elements inherent in the Folia de Reis, and in line with the fundamental criteria of the roman liturgy. For this, take the specific case of revelers group of San José do Morumbi, Go, seeking to highlight the close link between faith and life. The definition of terms such as ritual music and inculturation, as these are understood by contemporary theology, also occupy a prominent place, relating to, whenever possible, with current anthropological discussions, historical and cultural. The main result is intended to foster dialogue between culture and religion, through music, as privileged access, as well, notably to contribute to the theoretical support necessary for the further work of composing liturgical and musical repertoires inculturated in Goiás. / O presente trabalho visa investigar a relação entre música ritual e inculturação e oferecer fer-ramentas para a elaboração de repertórios litúrgico-musicais específicos para a celebração do culto cristão católico, a partir dos elementos estético-culturais inerentes à Folia de Reis, e em consonância com os critérios fundamentais da liturgia romana. Para isso, toma o caso especí-fico do grupo de Foliões de São José do Morumbi, Go, procurando realçar o estreito vínculo entre fé e vida. A definição de termos como música ritual e inculturação, tal como estes são compreendidos pela teologia contemporânea, também ocupa um lugar de destaque, relacio-nando-se, sempre que possível, com as atuais discussões de cunho antropológico, histórico e cultural. Como principal resultado, pretende-se favorecer o diálogo entre cultura e religião, por intermédio da música, como via privilegiada de acesso, além, notadamente, de contribuir com os suportes teóricos necessários para o ulterior trabalho de composição de repertórios litúrgico-musicais inculturados em Goiás.

Magister Philosophiae - MPhil / The aim of my research project is to give a theological reflection on the practice of initiation rites within Masasi district, in south-east Tanzania. While initiation remains a very significant tradition among the Yao, Makonde and Makua tribes in Masasi, the ancestral cult and the content of sex related education in these rites have presented challenges to the Christian communities. Some Christians do not feel comfortable with the inclusion of the ancestor cult since this does not immediately seem to agree with Christian doctrine. There is also a general acknowledgment that the rites could be partly responsible for the premature involvement in sexual activity by young people. In the past theological attempts were made to Christianise Masasi initiation rites with the hope of addressing these two issues highlighted above. This approach had its difficulties and limitations since not all communities in Masasi villages are Christian and since religious diversity has to be respected. Furthermore, in areas where Christianisation has been put into effect, not much change has been recorded with regards to the two main problems noted above. Christianisation simply touched on the form but did not influence the content of rites. Other theologies, especially in missionary circles, viewed initiation as an antithesis of Christianity, a view which undoubtedly discouraged constructive Christian dialogue with the practice. African theologians on the other hand seem not to have produced much systematised treatments on the subject of rites which otherwise would have been useful materials to various African Christian communities. As a result of these and other inadequacies we have a problem as far as what should be done to have the Christian faith inform the processes within the rites of passage. What kind of theology will respect the culture and yet uphold teachings of the biblical tradition in addressing cultural initiation? In this project I am proposing a theology of ‘inculturation and transformation’ to address the impasse described above. Inculturation “describes the process of integration of the faith and life of the church in a given culture” (Pobee 1992:35). The aim of inculturation is to express the Christian faith in a culturally relevant manner so as to transform the culture. Initiation rites will be made to engage with the Christian theology in such a way that the precepts of biblical theology will be applied to rites with a view to moulding those aspects of rites that are not consistent with the teachings of the Bible. The good elements already found in these rites will be maintained. The goal of inculturation is not to destroy the rites but to present the rites “in a far more perfect way on an essentially different and infinitely higher level” (Nyamiti 1971:6). Through inculturation the underlying cultural worldview behind rites is taken into account. Inculturationtransformation theology aims at addressing the inner levels of culture. For this to happen the Gospel has to go in-culture and mould it from within.September 2009

For decades Africa has tried to rid itself of the, most often, oppressive powers that have dominated the continent. Throughout the 20th century, and in the case of South Africa even further back in history, the church has played a vocal role in engaging the powers that refused Africans the right to be part of their own heritage. The church marched with the rest of Africa to a glorious victory over these powers. In 2004 the first decade of democracy in South Africa was celebrated. However, a number of challenging issues facing the very existence of the African continent, and especially the African church, did not disappear. Instead, over a number of years, these issues have surfaced, if not to a greater extent, at least in the full view of the whole world. It seems that the same vigorous voice of the church that spoke out against, for example, colonialism and apartheid, has now become silent. The goal of this study is to determine if the church, with focus on the church in South Africa, is taking serious cognisance of these challenging issues, and to find out what it is saying about these challenges. In order to assist us in this study, we look at what five of the South African theologians, who stand in different traditions of the church in South Africa, are saying about these challenging issues. The different theologians selected for this study are Archbishops Tutu and Tlhagale, Professor Maluleke, Bishop Mofokeng and Doctor Khathide. They, respectively, stand in the Anglican, Catholic, Reformed, AIC and Pentecostal traditions. Through the voices of these theologians, this study identifies various issues, defines areas of concern, and determines what the church is saying about these challenges. These challenges are identified as challenges in establishing the church in Africa as African church, challenges relating to social, economic and political issues, and challenges facing the church in a multi-religious society. Even though this study only refers to five of the church’s theologians, the finding resulting from this study indicates that the African church is taking serious cognisance of these challenging issues and is still speaking out. / Dissertation (MA (Theology))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Science of Religion and Missiology / MA / unrestricted

I hope this study will bring hospitality into the communities of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in South Africa (EPCSA) and will also bring the gospel to the people within their context. I hope this study will not only be fruitful to the EPCSA, but also to outside readers or other churches or congregations that might experience growth in their congregations that might come with language challenges. The principal aim of this research is to develop more inclusive liturgy praxis for the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in South Africa. The main focus of this study is the Sunday liturgy of the EPCSA, known as Magandzelelo Ekerekeni. Magandzelelo Ekerekeni is a Sunday liturgy for the EPCSA and is exclusively in the Tsonga language. It consists of five (5) Sunday orders of service, i.e. one for each Sunday of the month. Chapter 1 introduces the thesis and the church to the readers. The motivations for the chosen research are discussed as well as the relevance and the importance of the research. This chapter also states its aims and objectives of the research, the problems to be researched, methodologies and the expected outcomes. Chapter 2 introduces the history of the church (EPCSA), looks at the profiles of the founders of EPCSA and the possible influence they might have had on the Sunday liturgy of EPCSA. This chapter also considers the influence of the community on the development of the EPCSA in the past. Chapter 3 introduces the liturgy of EPCSA; it looks at John Calvin‘s view on liturgy and his influence in the EPCSA, discusses the historical development of the liturgy of EPCSA, analyses the liturgical inculturation in the township and city churches within EPCSA and concludes with a critical review of the liturgy. Chapter 4 shares Paul‘s theology of being inclusive and how South Africa‘s democracy helps us in this regard (Truth and Reconciliation Commission). This chapter also discusses Christology and inculturation from a biblical perspective and concludes with inculturation and liturgy. Chapter 5 concentrates on data collection and discusses the methodology considered, the ministers‘ view on the inculturation of the church‘s Sunday liturgy, compares the data collected from individual church members found in townships as well as in the villages, provides a brief detail on the meaning and methods of EPCSA and concludes with areas in the EPCSA in need of inculturation based on the collected data. Chapter 6 discusses the findings of the study and the challenges to the EPCSA liturgical team in the twenty-first century and multicultural context found in the church. To give the readers a brief idea on the structure, management and values of the church, I share a quotation from the general secretary‘s office. I found this to be very important to offer background to what I am working with and the kind of Presbyterian Church I am working with: Quote from the office of the general secretary of the church: “The Evangelical Presbyterian Church in South Africa —formerly known as the Tsonga Presbyterian Church —is the result of the work of the Swiss Mission in South Africa which that began in the Northern Transvaal in 1875. The gospel was first proclaimed to the Shangaans people by two Basotho evangelists, seconded by the Parish Evangelical Missionary Society. A Network mission station was established in the northern and eastern parts of the Transvaal. As Whilst the rapid growth of the mining industry drew many people to the towns, congregations were established in the Pretoria Reef and later the Welkom (Orange Free State) areas (Orange Free State) and also in Zululand. The church became autonomous in 1962, but still relied on the Swiss churches for financial support. Tsonga is the official language of the church. 1 The church confesses one universal faith, this faith being in Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Saviour of the World: the same Jesus whom God revealed Himself. The church, therefore, worships the ONE GOD, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, it strives to foster the advent of the Kingdom on earth and to prefigure God‟s new creation. I acknowledge her (EPCSA) dependence on the Word of God, as contained in the Scripture of the OLD and New Testament. This Word stands in judgment over the Church and constitutes the only foundation of faith and life. She (EPCSA) confesses the faith proclaimed by the early church as embodied in the declaration of the Ecumenical Synods and represented by the Apostles and Nicene Creeds. These are considered to constitute a witness and test of its faith, which the Lord Jesus Christ taught His disciples and are still confirmed by the Holy Spirit in the church. Activities and priorities:  Evangelism: planting of new churches;  Promoting of spiritual growth of the church;  Playing a leading role in health matters in the battle against HIV/AIDS,  malaria etc.;  Empowerment of ministers—lay preachers and administrative staff with management skills;  Health matters;  Addressing poverty and unemployment.” A quote such as the above from the general secretary of the EPCSA is informative for this research because it provides an understanding of what the church stands for and what its aims are. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / tm2015 / Practical Theology / MA / Unrestricted

Dès qu'il s'agit de missionnaires français en Chine aux XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles, on ne manque pas de parler de leurs missions religieuses, de leurs talents scientifiques et de leurs activités dans les échanges culturels sino-français. Il ne faudrait cependant pas oublier leur importante contribution au rapprochement économique entre la Chine et la France qui était pratiquement inexistant avant la fin du XVIIe siècle. En effet, le projet de faire du commerce en Chine fut initié et promu par les missionnaires français au milieu du XVIIe siècle, et c'était grâce à eux que le premier voyage commercial français vers la Chine fut organisé et effectué en 1698 par un vaisseau baptisé Amphitrite de la Compagnie de Jourdan. Basé sur des récits des marchands et des missionnaires ainsi que des documents officiels en français et en chinois qui constituent de très riches sources primaires, le présent travail consiste d'une part à examiner de manière diachronique l'ensemble de l'histoire de l'ouverture commerciale sino-française tout en l'encadrant dans les contextes politique, social et économique de ces deux pays ; et d'autre part, synchroniquement, notre thèse vise à déterminer l'état et le rôle des missionnaires français et surtout des jésuites dans le commerce français en Chine depuis la genèse du projet et pendant les deux allers-retours de l'Amphitrite entre 1698 et 1703. A cet effet, composée de huit chapitres, notre thèse vise à bien cerner, du point de vue du sinocentrisme et de l'inculturation, les multiples apports des missionnaires français dans cette rencontre historique et à expliquer pourquoi l'évangélisation et la commercialisation sont toujours indissociables l'une de l'autre lors de la présence française en Chine au tournant du XVIIIe siècle. / French Jesuits who were active in the Middle Kingdom in the late of seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries still remain one of the most important bridges between China and France. Sent to the Great Qing emperor by the Sun King Louis XIV, these French missionaries, especially the famous "The King's Mathematicians", had developed Sino-Franco relations through culture, science, the arts and Christianity during this period. Moreover, they had a significant impact on France's first trade relationship with China, a fact which, however, has been neglected by many historians and sinologists. Indeed, it was these French missionaries who initiated plans that led to the establishment of economic relations between the two monarchies in the middle of the seventeenth century. Then, led by Jesuit Joachim Bouvet, a commercial vessel named the Amphitrite, which belonged to a French merchant by the name of Jourdan, achieved the first direct travel from France to China in 1698. During the Amphitrite's two round trips between 1698 and 1703, China and France came to discover each other through the Jesuits missionaries' various ways they used to provoke an interest on the part of their Chinese hosts. Based on our main sources, including merchants and missionaries' writings and a rich corpus of official documents from French and Chinese archives, this thesis broaches the history of the first Sino-Franco trade relations in both diachronic and synchronic visions, in order to properly contextualize these commercial beginnings and evaluate the precise role played by French Jesuits from the outset and until the two round-trips of the Amphytrite between 1698 and 1703. Through eight chapters, our study, from the point of view of sino-centrism and interculturation, seeks to explain why the role of these Jesuits was invaluable in initiating the first direct commercial relations between China and France in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, as well as explain why, in the context of this historic meeting between France and China, evangelization and commercial goals are inextricably linked together when one looks at the French presence in the Middle Kingdom at the turn of the eighteen century.

Le mouvement des Églises émergentes qui s’est manifesté en Occident depuis la fin du XXe siècle cherche à répondre aux nouvelles réalités qu’impose la postchrétienté à l’intelligence de la foi. Par le biais d’un questionnaire en ligne destiné aux membres des Églises émergentes du Grand Montréal, ce mémoire explore les avancées de celles-ci vers l’inculturation de la foi chrétienne afin de percevoir si l’on ne pouvait pas y déceler des pistes ecclésiales et missiologiques qui pourraient éventuellement servir à d’autres Églises du Québec comme ailleurs dans les pays francophones. Par inculturation, j’entends la participation culturelle et citoyenne des membres d’une Église dans la vie, les projets et les débats de société à laquelle ils appartiennent, en cohérence avec leurs convictions religieuses. Comment vivre, interpréter et exprimer la foi chrétienne au sein de la société québécoise postchrétienne actuelle, en particulier dans les sphères culturelles, sociales et politiques, est au coeur de mon interrogation. Pour ce faire, je propose que des Églises n’aient pas d’autre choix que de vivre une forme de kénose qui lui permettra de se défaire de certaines traditions et structures associées à la chrétienté. / The emerging church movement that has arisen in the West since the end of the 20th century seeks to respond to the new realities that postchristendom has imposed towards the Christian faith. Through an online questionnaire designed for members of the Emerging Churches in Greater Montreal, this thesis explores their progress towards the inculturation of Christian faith in order to understand the ecclesial and missiological principles that could be identified and which could eventually be used by other churches in Quebec and elsewhere in the French world. By inculturation, I mean the cultural and civic participation of members of a Church in the projects and debates of the society to which they belong, in coherence with their religious convictions. How to live, interpret and express the Christian faith in today's post- Christian Quebec society, particularly in the cultural, social and political spheres, is at the heart of my interrogation. To do this, I propose that Churches have no choice but to live a form of kenosis by which to leave behind certain traditions and structures associated with Christendom. / Résumé en espagnol

Selon Vatican II, dans les conférences épiscopales, les évêques exercent conjointement le ministère reçu de l'ordination qui leur a transmis la plénitude du sacrement de l'ordre. Ce ministère est étroitement lié à la ministérialité diffuse dans tous les membres de l'Eglise sacrement. La sacramentalité de l'Eglise se réalisant dans une dynamique d'inclusion mutuelle entre l'Eglise universelle et les Eglises particulières, le ministère épiscopal comporte deux aspects inclus l'un dans l'autre: premièrement, l'évêque est agent d'inculturation dans son Eglise particulière, deuxièmement, le collège épiscopal sert la communion universelle entre les Eglises. Les conférences épiscopales sont à la croisée de ces deux aspects. Elles sont le meilleur moyen pour les évêques de promouvoir et d'intégrer la particularité de leurs Eglises dans la communion universelle. Elles sont aussi le lieu où se vivent le plus souvent la collégialité épiscopale et la communion entre les Eglises.