In this thesis, I intend to examine differences between religious communities and practices through a comparative study of funeral ceremonies performed at Hacibayram and Kocatepe Mosques in Ankara. The ethnographic data, which have been collected through eighty-seven funeral ceremony that I attended in these two mosques, shows that there are repetitive patterns among funeral ceremonies performed in the same mosque. When we compare the ceremonial patterns in Hacibayram Mosque and Kocatepe Mosque, it is observed that funeral ceremonies performed in these two mosques is differentiated in terms of material culture, gender and sentiments. There are different variables for these ritual differentiations, such as the nature and composition of a religious community frequenting a mosque, and the meanings and traditions ascribed to a mosque, which affect the way in which prayers are perceived and practiced. Besides, it is also realized that repetitive patterns among funeral ceremonies performed in the same mosque may even differentiate, because of social status and worldview of deceased and mourners.

The aim of this thesis is to argue about a Gypsy/Roma community&amp / #8217 / s identity construction from the point of view of classical literature on ethnicity, class and gender dimensions in the symbolic identity construction in the case of Turkey. In this regard, it is important to examine whether this community benefits from citizenship rights. For this purpose, Edirne is chosen as a sample of Turkey because majority of Gypsy/Roma population lives in and this border city into which migrations took place from Bulgaria and Greece. Also for practical reasons of building a communication network, Edirne is selected as a case. A qualitative study, using in-depth interviews with a total of 36 married persons of Gypsy/Roma community referring 18 household in-depth-interviews have been conducted from 2003 winter to summer. Besides, in-depth-interviews with 13 non-Gypsies have been conducted. All interviews were recorded, transcribed and the transcribed texts were used for discourse analysis. During the interviews socio-economic profile, marriage, practices of cultural habits, neighbourhood partnership, political identity, religious rituals and perceiving own identity were inquired. There are three major conclusions of this thesis. The first finding is related to Gypsy/Roma community&amp / #8217 / s socio-economic status. Gypsy/Roma community has problems accessing social benefits of education, health and the labour market in addition to having negative living conditions. The arguments of &amp / #8216 / &amp / #8216 / underclass&amp / #8217 / &amp / #8217 / and &amp / #8216 / &amp / #8216 / urban marginalization&amp / #8217 / &amp / #8217 / coincide with these results. Not only occupation, but also race, ethnicity and gender are linked together with Gypsy/Roma status as &amp / #8216 / inferior&amp / #8217 / citizens. Secondly, Gypsy/Roma community is a closed community in their relations with non-Gypsies with regard to marriage and social network. The third finding is associated with Gypsy/Roma community&amp / #8217 / s perceptions of their identity, which shows variations within community. In this regard, Roma is taken to be the &amp / #8216 / &amp / #8216 / other&amp / #8217 / &amp / #8217 / of not only the non-Gypsies but also Gypsy identity is accepted as the &amp / #8216 / &amp / #8216 / other&amp / #8217 / &amp / #8217 / even of Roma.

This thesis argues that organized crime is a sociological phenomenon with criminological dimensions that constitutes a threat to public security and order, economic development, social integrity, democracy and peace in Turkey, and consequently to the national security of the country. Sociological and political causes of organized criminality will be assessed through a multidimensional approach based on the identification of different conceptual areas and related indicators that characterize organized crime groups.

Esta pesquisa aborda a 'salvação' do SER através da mutualidade. Ela indica o significado da palavra SER que é o eixo central da presente pesquisa. Escolhemos o termo SER, proveniente da filosofia, por compreendermos que ele representa melhor o ser humano como um todo. Mostramos como esse SER é constituído através do processo de identificação com o outro nas relações sociais e da identidade que é a elaboração, desde muito cedo na vida do SER, dos conceitos e dos parâmetros que formam a sua individualidade. A salvação é vista em um sentido amplo conforme o original grego da palavra, que engloba a saúde do SER em todos os aspectos, físico, mental, psíquico, do self e do espiritual. Apresentamos o conceito da comunhão considerado de suma importância para que a salvação do SER possa acontecer no convívio do corpo de Cristo. A mutualidade é analisada como algo que se tem perdido nos últimos tempos. Ela implica em desenvolver relacionamentos pessoais na Igreja nos quais o conceito de família de Deus se manifesta e, nesta manifestação, há a possibilidade de salvação dos membros da Igreja. Existem vários conceitos de mutualidade constantes nas Escrituras, mas escolhemos três: o amor, a exortação e o perdão. O amor mútuo é descrito em três características diferentes: o amor que se entrega completamente, o amor que significa amizade e o amor que está mais voltado para o cuidado e para o zelo e o velar de um irmão para com o outro. Em seguida, contemplamos a exortação mútua abordando a necessidade da Igreja da exortação. Mostramos como deve ser esta exortação indicando os resultados da mesma. Apresentamos alguns dos textos em que os apóstolos usam a exortação para confrontar, encorajar ou consolar as Igrejas. E, por fim, está o perdão mútuo iniciando com a definição do conceito e apontando como deve ser este perdão. Demonstramos ainda a necessidade de conceder o perdão, tão necessário para a saúde dos seres humanos. / Having as central issue 'the salvation' of BEING through the mutuality, this research starts indicating the meaning of the word BEING to be the core of this work. We chose the term BEING derived from the philosophy, for we understand that it best represents the human being as a whole. We showed how such BEING is constituted through a process of identification with the other in social relations and his identity that is built of concepts and parameters comprising his individuality since very early age. Salvation is seen in a broad sense as from the original Greek word, which includes the health of BEING in all aspects such as physical, mental, psychic, self and spiritual. We have presented the concept of Communion considered of utmost importance for the salvation of BEING may occur in the living body of Christ. The mutuality is analyzed as something that has been lost in recent times. Mutuality involves developing personal relationships in the Church where the concept of Gods family is manifested and there is the possibility of salvation of the members of the church. There are various concepts of mutuality in the Scriptures, but we chose three of them: love, exhortation and forgiveness. The mutual love is described in three different characteristics: the love that gives itself completely, the love that means friendship and the love that is more focused on the care, the zeal and the diligence of a brother to another. Secondly, we included mutual exhortation, pointing out that the church needs the exhortation. We showed how this exhortation should be indicating its results. We have indicated some of the texts in which the apostles used the exhortation to confront, encourage or console the Church. And finally, it is the mutual forgiveness starting with the definition of the concept and pointing out how this forgiveness should be. We also demonstrated the need to release forgiveness, so necessary for human health.

Sexual abuse of children has profound negative effects on psychological development. This study examined the effects of sexual abuse on object relations functioning by using the Mutuality of Autonomy Scale (MAS, Urist, 1977) to score Rorschach protocols of 63 abused children and 60 non-abused clinical controls. The hypothesis that abused children would have less developed object relations than their non-abused counterparts was not supported. Neither was the hypothesis that children who experienced greater severity of sexual abuse would exhibit more malevolent object relations. The hypothesis that mean and modal MAS scores would be highly intercorrelated and interchangeable as research variables was supported. Comparisons of this sample to a normative sample are discussed.

In fact Dersimi people have constructed a visible population in Europe, there needs to be more studies made about the diasporic existence of Dersimis in Europe. Being aware of this need, this study attempts to contribute to the understanding of the existence of Dersimi people through Europe. In line with this, this study focuses on the re-invention of Dersim identity in Berlin around a Dersimi association, Berlin Dersim Community. According to this, the intensive participant observation conducted around the Dersimi association is the main source for this study. In the light of this ethnographic fieldwork, the following findings are found out in this study: Self identification on the basis of homeland identity is a significant phenomena for Dersimi people which unites Dersimi people around Berlin Dersim Community Association. And Dersimi people around the association can be defined as diaspora according to Robert Cohen&rsquo / s usage of the term. Being a part of Turkish labour diaspora in Berlin, Dersimi people have transformed into a cultural diaspora with the passing years abroad.

The main purpose of this study is to understand the organizational structures of Islamist/Islamic women&rsquo / s NGOs and explain the network mechanisms of them in the context of new social movements. This study is based on a social movement research / thus, both organizational structures and network mechanisms of Islamist/Islamic women&rsquo / s NGOs are explained and analyzed in terms of the features of new social movements, to answer the question of &lsquo / whether Islamist/Islamic women&rsquo / s NGOs are potential and possible actors of a possible Islamist/Islamic women&rsquo / s movement in Turkey&rsquo / . The fieldwork of the present study was conducted on Islamist/Islamic women&rsquo / s NGOs, which were selected according to a purposive sampling. 4 NGOs were selected, of which founders and the active members are all Islamist/Islamic women, from 4 cities of Turkey, One NGO was selected from each city. The semi-structured interviews and deep interviews were the main data collection techniques used to get information about their organizational structures and network mechanisms. The responses were analyzed through the issues of organizational diversities, three different levels of network mechanisms, and networking types in the context of formation a new social movement. As network mechanisms, the three levels of networks defined in the study: relations with the state and local governments, networks with the NGOs outside the sampling group and networks among the NGOs inside the sampling group, in the framework of the role and potential of Islamist/Islamic women&rsquo / s NGOs to form an Islamist/Islamic women&rsquo / s movement.

This study tries to understand the internal dynamics of the civil society organizations in Turkey on the experiences of three CSOs: the Ankara Branches of KADER, MAZLUMDER and IMO by focusing on the intra&ndash / organizational practices (the decision making processes, elections, general meetings, division of labor, basic conflicts and divergences, the disagreements, the way of deliberation and consensus). It tries to shed light on the transformative potential of the CSO&rsquo / s in public sphere as civil organizations themselves in time both in the sense of their political stances and organizational structure. The research was designed in the form of a case study including both the depth interwiews and participant observations. In this framework, ten depth-interviews were made with members having different qualities for each of these CSOs and participant observations were realized in the general meetings, elections and activities of these organizations. Since the aim of this study is to understand the contribution of the CSOs to the public sphere, the research findings were interpreted and considered basically in the light of the two main theoretical positions: the deliberative (Habermas) and agonistic (Laclau and Mouffe) democracy. The study espoused a post-structuralist conception of democracy combined with a weakened model of deliberation and dialogue pointing out the requirement of the existential publicity of man (Arendt) in the world. In this context, this study tries to discuss the following questions within the framework of the public sphere experience of the three CSOs throughout the thesis. Is the concept of civil society a proper concept for understanding the peculiar experience of Turkey (with reference to the historical context of civil associational life in Turkey and the recent civil resurrection)? Do civil organizations have the capacity to serve for deepening and consolidation of democracy in public sphere? Are these civil organizations democratic and participatory with regard to their intra-organizational structures and decision-making processes? And, more importantly, do they have any capacity to influence the process of democratic transformation in Turkey?

This thesis 1) argues that Paul's use of the boasting motif in Philippians (1:26; 2:16; cf. 3:3) presents a mutual boast in which three parties participate: Paul, the Philippians, and God/Christ, and 2) demonstrates that such mutual boasting is both theologically warranted and culturally intelligible. The theological warrant for mutual boasting or honor appears through attending to the wider contexts of the Scriptural texts to which Paul alludes in the key exhortation section of the epistle (2:12-16), most importantly his allusion to Deut 32:5 in Phil 2:15 and to Isa 49:4 in Phil 2:16. The wider context of Deut 32 includes reference to the covenant ceremony at the close of the law-code (Deut 26:16-19), where mutual honor appears in the relationship established between YHWH and Israel, with Israel being exalted to become a καύχημα for YHWH (Deut 26:19 LXX). The wider context of Isa 49:4 incorporates the important motif of the reward of the Servant (Isa 49:4b; 53:12), whose calling to facilitate Israel's glorious restoration (42:6-9; 49:6), though his labor was “in vain” (49:4), gains YHWH's promise that the Servant himself will be glorified (49:5). By drawing on both of these Scriptural contexts Paul presents the mutual honor arising from the Philippians' obedience as the eschatologically restored “children of God” (Phil 2:15) as engendering a καύχημα that is mutually shared between themselves (cf. 3:21), God who receives the glory from their righteousness (1:11), and Paul as the servant figure whose labor among them is now “not in vain” (2:16). This presentation of mutual boasting would also have been culturally intelligible in light of the nature of friendship and family relationships in the Roman world of first-century Philippi. Paul presents his relationship with the Philippians in terms both reminiscent of friendship and overtly drawn from kinship relations (cf. ἀδελφοί in 1:12, 14; 3:1, 13, 17; 4:1). In the Greco-Roman world, these two relational paradigms were conspicuous in their promotion of mutual honor, since friends were expected to work toward each other's honor, as were brothers. In view of the cultural expectation of sharing honor, friends and brothers were also able to deploy the reality of mutual honor for the purpose of exhortation, as can be seen in the rhetoric of Roman letter writers. In particular, Cicero, Seneca, and Fronto presuppose in their letters the motivational power that appealing to a regard for mutual honor has when issuing advice or commands. It is in the final chapter of this study that we treat Paul's motivation of the Philippians towards obedience by drawing on this cultural script of mutual honor as the “vehicle” for communicating his theology, appealing to such mutual honor at 2:16 to motivate the Philippians to “work out their salvation with fear and trembling” (2:12) and to “do all things without grumbling or disputing” (2:14).

The master thesis Reflection of gospels from the view of choosen feminist theological texts is situated do the context of christian feminist theology, specifically in the framework of feminist theology of liberation. It's focused especially on the texts of feministic protestant theologists Jana Opočenská and Dorothee Solle, mainly on texts which are related to the choosen parts of the gospels. The theoretical part is aimed especially on the theoretical and methodological basics which includes besides others the major concepts of feminist theories of gender stereotypes and the sex-gender system. The attention is also paid to the concepts of feminist theology with main focus to the thesis of relatedness and mutuality exercised in the field of exegesis of Biblical texts, anthropology nad christology. In this part of thesis is also mentioned the biographical context of the canonical gospels origin including its follow-up interpretation by the prism of texts written by feminist-theological authors mentioned above. The analytical part of the thesis is aimed on two concrete moments of gospels and their interpretation through the texts of Jana Opočenská and Dorothee Solle, considering the theoretical and methodological basis. Through the gender focused method of qualitative content analysis is subsequently...