This thesis considers Gabriel Hebert’s Liturgy and Society: The Function of the Church in the Modern World. It does so in the conviction that Hebert offers a continuing contribution to theological endeavour and practical ecclesiology. The thesis identifies and explores three key themes emerging from Liturgy and Society which all contribute to Hebert’s central proposition that liturgy, principally the Eucharist, shapes Christian identity. The first theme is ecclesiology. This is significant because for Hebert the Church is indispensable in mission and her dogma is embodied in liturgy. The second theme is mission. Hebert’s examination of the function of the Church in the modern world has a missional character. The third theme is personhood. This theme comes from Hebert’s conception of what shapes persons through liturgy. I propose the notion of ‘liturgical anthropology’ as a way of articulating Hebert’s idea of personhood. The thesis sets Hebert in context historically and theologically within the ‘Parish Communion Movement’ and twentieth century Anglican theology. Furthermore it takes Hebert beyond his original setting by analysing his work alongside contemporary writers on the three themes, demonstrating that he can be set in relation to contemporary writers in the fields of ecclesiology, mission and liturgical anthropology. In each area Hebert is a fruitful conversation partner in which his thought is elucidated by and resonates with other writers. Whilst the influence of the Parish Communion Movement is still current in the Church of England, Hebert’s approach is not uncontested in the contemporary Church. Nonetheless the thesis demonstrates that his rejection of individualism, his recognition of the intimate relationship between mission and Church and his vision of the liturgical grounding of the practical and ethical consequences of the function of the Church in the modern world speak powerfully today.

This thesis demonstrates that there are materials in the Book of Revelation which reflect and build upon the Eucharist of the Seven Churches to whom the Apocalypse was sent. This material is shown to have been influential on the later development of the eucharistic worship. The argument develops in five stages: 1. The worship materials in Revelation have a number of features in common which relate well to elements in the cultural and religious milieux of the Seven Churches. Some of these features are used in a distinctive manner (Chapter 2). 2. The worship materials are extensive and integral to the structure of the Book of Revelation. They give an overall structure to the text which is very like that of the eucharistic liturgies of some of the early churches (Chapter 3). 3. The worship materials are essentially eucharistic. They presume a eucharistic context of hearing and contain elements from the Eucharist of the Seer's churches. The reading of the text of Revelation is impoverished if this context is neglected (Chapter 4). 4. The structure, content and theology of the Eucharist of the Seven Churches can be exposed, at least in part, by a careful study of the worship materials of the Book of Revelation (Chapter 5). 5. The Liturgy of the Seven Churches, as attested by the Apocalypse, is a precursor for the Antlochene (West Syrian) family of liturgies. This fills a gap in the present understanding of the derivation of this group of liturgies (Chapter 6).

This thesis is submitted by Frances E. F. Ward for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and entitled `Writing the Body of Christ: A Study of an Anglican Congregation". Month and Year of Submission: January 2000. On the basis of ethnographic research and data collected from interviews, this thesis presents an analysis of the relations of power within an Anglican congregation, and explores the ways in which Christological reflection might arise from the context of the local congregation, and inform the practices of the same. The introduction places the work within the disciplines of Congregational Studies and practical theology, and problematizes the practice of writing. The first chapter describes the research methods used, and the congregation concerned. Chapters two and three analyse different theories of power, and particularly the work of Michel Foucault on power. Chapters four and five offer a detailed description and analysis of the liturgical practices and preaching of the congregation, arguing that a dominant discourse subordinated members of different cultural origins. Chapters six offers a critique of the ways in which congregations have been written about within Congregational Studies, and the lack of attention that issues of power concerning race and gender receive within that discipline. Chapters seven and eight develop the theme of the practice of writing, and the function of the author as the regulator of data, by drawing upon contemporary ethnography. Chapter nine analyses how congregational members registered `silent' discontent, particularly by an analysis of gossip. Chapters ten and eleven suggest ways in which the Body of Christ can be thought to be embodied within the local congregation by drawing upon the metaphor of `hybridity' and developing the idea of the Body of Christ as hybrid.

This study provides a systematic analysis of the theology underlying the pastoral practice of spiritual direction in the Eastern Orthodox tradition. It asserts that spiritual direction lies at the centre of Eastern Orthodox pastoral theology as the paradigmatic modus operandi of pastoral care, and that by attending to the theology of spiritual direction one can thereby derive a coherent account of pastoral theology. The Eastern Orthodox model of spiritual direction is contrasted with certain contemporary models of pastoral care, which, from the viewpoint of this study, present deficient pastoral theologies, inadequate ecclesiological and sacramental frameworks, and are patterned upon individualistic frames of reference. In contrast to these models, it is argued that the locus of spiritual direction should be in the church, related to the sacraments and the ecdesial koinönia. Likewise, the spiritual father ought to be an ordained minister in the church. First, I set forth a theological Trinitarian, Christological, and anthropologicalfoundation for spiritual direction. I then assess different patterns of spiritual direction in the early church-Pauline, episcopal/presbyteral, and monastic-and, finally, I propose a normative account of pastoral care based on the theology and practice of pastoral care in the Eastern Orthodox tradition, and in dialogue with contemporary models of pastoral care. The main findings of the study point to the fact that spiritual fatherhood has been at the centre of the Christian tradition of pastoral care, a fact still reflected today in the Eastern Orthodox pastoral practice of spiritual direction. The originality of the work lies in the evaluation of the theological and practical implications of both the concept of spiritual fatherhood, and of the practice of spiritual direction, for Eastern Orthodox pastoral theology in particular and for contemporary Christian pastoral theology in general.

From the perspective of Feminist Liberation theology women who partake in the present sacramental Eucharist of the Roman Catholic Church assent to and actively consume their own oppression within its patriarchal symbolic system which denies women a discrete subjectivity. Re-evaluating the place of women in the divine economy and claiming equal value to 'thefeminine' and 'the masculine' traits where women have a subjectivity in their own right challenges traditional Roman Catholic theology but is in keeping with new theologies in which the traditionally 'feminine' values are central. ! As the celebration of the Eucharist uses the religious symbolic to communicate beliefs a theme running through the study is how human attributes have been afforded different value with the 'feminine' values symbolised as the female, associated with nature and denigrated in the past, now being reclaimed as central to the ecosystem that maintains human life and an essential element in the fabric of the cosmos. In Section 1 I examine the Vatican documents of the Roman Catholic Magisterium in relation to women, priesthood and Eucharist. I found that the theology put forward was unable to accommodate women and that the theologies of male priesthood and .Eucharist were intimately linked. Missing from this theology was any positive attitude towards the earth with which the feminine and the female was identified, a positive attitude towards the body and a discrete subjectivity for women. Section 2 addresses these areas found missing in order to re-evaluate the embodied feminine searching out a positive view of the body as the home of the divine. Contemporary theories of the construction of subjectivity are considered as a counter to the mediated subjectivity demanded of women in a patriarchal outlook. I then argue that given the restricted role offered to women in the traditional family which mirrors the Roman Catholic model of God, a Eucharistic theology based on friendship might offer a more inclusive paradigm. Section 3 is concerned with how the feminine can be included in our understanding of the divine economy and evaluate Relational Theologies that are offering a model of interdependent relationality as indicative of the divinelhuman relationship which . respects the feminine traits previously maligned. I utilize the findings of the sciences in challenging the inferior place of the natural world in religious thought, claiming matter as embodying the divine; I then focus on Feminist theologies of Christology and Redemption in which the previously marginalised can offer a fresh revelation of Christ.. Relational theologies, including the emerging Quantum theology are put forward as a means of including the missing feminine in a theology of Eucharist. In conclusion I posit that applying the findings of Feminist Liberation theology to the Sacrament of the Eucharist challenges the theology of Eucharist and theological reflection on Christ, Redemption, and the theology of Atonement that underpins the sacramental celebration of the human/divine relationship. Alternative Relational theologies advocate a different model of the divine rooted in relationships based on interdependence which radicalises reflection on the nature of God. I propose that Feminist Liberation theology has the potential to afford a sacramental Eucharist where women are not required to assent to their own oppression but offers an expanded understanding of who we may become when we eat at the Eucharistic table.

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Imprecations in the Psalter have aroused the interest and passions of readers since ancient times. The original contribution of this thesis is to approach the Psalter as the literary and theological context for prayers concerning retribution. This applies, for the first time, recent research in the arrangement of the Psalter to the age-old issue of imprecations. The first three psalms are a thematic introduction which leads the reader to expect and understand retribution in the Psalter. Already at the entrance to the Psalter, we find a refutation of much that is often asserted about vengeance in the Psalms, especially the frequently presumed distance from New Testament ethics. Various ideas from Pss 1-3 are further explored in Books I and V and compared with received scholarly wisdom. The Psalter introduces David as a type of exiled and restored Israel. David's sin with Bathsheba and Uriah, and the mercy he receives from Yahweh, is similar to the nation 's sin and Yahweh's mercy in restoring the nation from exile. Both David and Israel are repeatedly presented by the Psalter in connection with Yahweh's mercy after the golden calf. This is brought to bear on retribution, because there is also a correspondence between David 's enemies and Israel's exilic enemies. Book V has arranged some imprecations of David in order to educate Israel's desire for retribution and set the standard for praying Ps 137. Israel must understand that their own sin and guilt caused the exile, and that their restoration from exile was undeserved mercy. Enemy nations may not deserve Yahweh's mercy, but neither did Israel at the golden calf, neither did David after Bathsheba, and neither did Israel deserve to be restored from the exile they had earned. Israel must learn to love God's wider purpose of blessing the nations in mercy.

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Sanctification is a central theme in the theology of John and Charles Wesley. Whilst John’s theology of sanctification has received much scholarly attention, much less research has been conducted in relation to Charles. This thesis contributes to redressing the balance, drawing particularly on the evidence of the extensive and theologically rich corpus of Charles’ poetic texts to do so. In this analysis of Charles’ theology of sanctification, the centrality Charles accorded to resignation is uncovered. Resignation is a positive attribute for Charles involving an act of intention, desire and offering to God. Part I of the thesis addresses three contextual issues: firstly Charles’ frequently overlooked particular theological perspective on sanctification in comparison with that of his brother, also locating the thesis within the context of other scholarly work in the area; secondly an historical and spiritual context for Charles’ understanding of resignation is set; and thirdly, the use of poetic texts to establish theological and spiritual truth claims is examined. Part II comprises a detailed analysis of Charles’ use of resignation, whether of Jesus or the believer, through an examination of each of its appearances in Charles’ extant poetic corpus. These texts have been collated and form volume two of the thesis, the Resignation Texts. Part III draws on the foregoing analysis and identifies two fundamental and distinctive ways in which Charles understood the relationship between resignation and sanctification which have not been recognised until now, but, being clearly evident, cannot be dismissed. Resignation is a lens through which Charles views holiness, a lens through which other aspects of his belief and understanding must now be viewed.

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