The question of the important role played by Abraham in the Qur'an has rais d many controversies between the Orientalists. For some of them, such as Snouck-Hurgronje, Abraham holds in the Our'an a quasi-political role which gives some independance and some authenticity to Mohammed's Mission. For others, such as youakim Mubarak, Muhammad followed Abraham because he saw him as the perfect religious pattern, responding to his own ideal. As for us, our opinion is that Abraham is, the "universal Father of all the Believers" (Qùr'an II. 118). He is consequently a personage with a universalist character. We wonder then that Muhammad, who made of Islam an abrahamic religion, was not looking for an answer to his own oecumenical vocation; moreover, did not he try, through Islam to structure a religion with universal character? Our study consists of two parts. In the first one, we expose the principal thesis and the textual criticism about Abraham's role in the Qur'an. In the second part, we expose the different aspects which attract us to see in Islam a universal religion. And, while in our introduction, after a short analysis of the subject, we present Abraham such as he appears in the Qur'an, our conclusion calls for both judeo-christian religions to reconsider positively the messianic elements contained in the Mohammed's Message, in view of a final and oecumenical dialogue.

No description available.

The story of Abraham, as understood by Christians and Muslims, has always had a formative influence on the central theological dicta of Christianity and Islam. In theologies that perceive class struggle and oppression of the poor as issues distinctly within the purview of religion to address, the role of Abraham is remarkably significant. In re-telling the story of Abraham from the perspective of the oppressed, Abraham becomes an archetypal monotheist within a new reading of history, one which sees God on the side of the exploited masses. / This thesis examines and compares the socio-theological themes connected to the interpretation and application of the life story of Abraham in these two faith traditions. it does so by comparing the position of the Iranian religious ideologue known to many as one who had a major role in inspiring the Iranian youth to revolution in 1978--79, Dr. 'Ali Shari'ati, with Latin American liberation theology. It suggests that the affinity of their goals leads them to use similar methodologies---symbolism and constant interplay between text, context and reader---and ultimately, to create images of Abraham that are as much related to each other as they are to their own faith tradition.

Conclusion: The [Abrahamic] stories reveal a man caught up in the struggle of faith. But the God who took the initiative in establishing the Covenant shows that in spite of first appearances, He is faithful. The stories present various pictures of Abraham as a Covenant Mediator. Because he is in a sense Israel in microcosm it is not strange that he is described in the terms of Israel's most important institutions: prophet, priest, and king. Nevertheless the most significant Sitz im Leben is the family. While he is usually meant to be understood as an individual representing his immediate family, his descendants, and even all nations, at times, because he is the founding ancestor of Israel and therefore Israel in microcosm, he is best understood as a "Corporate Person". He and Israel are to be a source of blessing to the nations.

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This thesis aims at studying the life, works and thought of Louis Massignon and at demonstrating how they find their unity in the God of Abraham. It is not a chronological study but a study of the principal themes of his works, following the pattern he often used -- the five pillars of Islamic religious and social life: alms giving which includes the respect of the guest and his word, prayer seen under the aspect of intercession, pilgrimage, sacrifice exemplified in fasting and a witness to faith in the Judgment of God. In chapter VI an attempt is made to study the evolution of the thought of Massignon from 1914 to 1947 concerning some aspects of the Christian-Mus1im encounter which, for him, points to the Judgment.

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Thesis (Ph.D.)--Brite Divinity School, Texas Christian University, 2007. / Title from dissertation title page (viewed Dec. 11, 2007). Includes abstract. "Dissertation presented to the Faculty of the Brite Divinity School in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Biblical interpretation." Includes bibliographical references.

This dissertation examines the Christological witness function of the Old Testament characters in the Gospel of John. Chapter 1 discusses the problem concomitant to the bi-partite nature of the Christian Bible and the scholarly solutions suggested to remedy this issue. The importance of Christology for John and the Gospel's indebtedness to the Jewish heritage is also noted. Combining these two aspects, some scholarly attempts to account for Johannine Christology in terms of Jewish hero redivivus theories are reviewed. An important consensus has emerged from German scholarship that sees the role of the Old Testament as Christological witness. This perspective gave impetus to the present research concerning the same witness function of the Old Testament characters. The rest of chapter 1 discusses the preliminary questions, such as, the justification, contributions, methodology, terms, and limits of the present study. Chapter 2 investigates the contribution of Jacob and Abraham to Johannine Christological understanding in view of relevant intertestamental Jewish literature. In contrast to some scholarly arguments, the main function of these patriarchs is to undergird the messianic identity of Jesus. Chapter 3 concerns Elijah in early Judaism and John. The eschatological expectation of Elijah in the former period is marked by his militant subjugation of the gentiles along with the reconciliation ministry. The contextual reading of the passages related to Elijah in John reveals that he is a type of John the Baptist rather than Jesus. Chapter 4 examines David, probably the most influential messianic prefiguration of the intertestamental period. He is characterized by his competence as a ruler, his loyalty to Judaism, and his status as an eschatological figure. While the first half of John's Gospel does not portray Jesus as a Davidic figure, the latter half is replete with the references to the Davidic trials. Although one can argue for a correspondence between David and Jesus in the Johannine passion accounts, the analogy is more evident between Yahweh and Jesus, let alone the suffering aspect of David, which did not constitute the messianic expectations of early Judaism. Chapter 5 engages in a study of Moses as depicted in early Judaism and John. In contrast to the perspectives of the Hebrew scriptural traditions, in which Moses is understood as the prophet par excellence, the fourth evangelist presents him merely as a Christological witness, not as a messianic prefiguration. Chapter 6 summarizes the foregoing observations and offers hermeneutical implications for the study of the Gospel of John, especially with reference to the redactional capability of the fourth evangelist and the value of the intertestamental Jewish literature. / This item is only available to students and faculty of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. If you are not associated with SBTS, this dissertation may be purchased from <a href="http://disexpress.umi.com/dxweb">http://disexpress.umi.com/dxweb</a> or downloaded through ProQuest's Dissertation and Theses database if your institution subscribes to that service.

Text in German / An drei Stellen im Römerbrief verweist Paulus auf die Vergangenheit Israels: auf Abraham in Röm 4,1–25, auf Abrahams Nachkommen, Mose und Pharao in Röm 9,6–18 und auf Elija in Röm 11,1–10. Gegenstand der Untersuchung ist die Bedeutung dieser Verweise auf die Vergangenheit Israels für die Argumentation des Römerbriefs. Nach der Analyse der rhetorischen Situation und der Einordnung der relevanten Stellen in die rhetorische Makrostruktur des Briefs werden alttestamentlicher Kontext und frühjüdische Rezeption der rezipierten Ereignisse untersucht. Auf diesem Hintergrund werden die drei Passagen detailliert betrachtet, indem der Argumentationsgang untersucht und die mögliche rhetorische Wirkung auf die Adressaten aus sechs unterschiedlichen Perspektiven analysiert wird: mit hoher Schriftkenntnis, mit geringer Schriftkenntnis, aus jüdischer, nichtjüdischer, christlicher und stadtrömischer Perspektive. Auf diese Weise können unterschiedliche Aspekte der leserseitigen Rezeption differenziert wahrgenommen werden, bevor sie zu einem Gesamtbild zusammengeführt werden. / New Testament