Inaug.-diss.--Halle-Wittenberg. / "Literatur": p. 7.

Thesis (S.T.D.)--Catholic University of America, 1946. / Bibliography: p. 193-206.

"Proefschrift ter verkrijging van het doctoraat in de Godgeleerdheid en Godsdienstwetenschap aan de Rijksuniversiteit Groningen."--t.p. / Title from caption (viewed Aug. 22, 2005). Includes bibliographical references. Also available in print.

This study concentrates on the traditions concerning Peter as they evolved in the early church from the New Testament period to the fifth century. It is suggested that there are many ways in which Peter is portrayed by the early church writers, and these portraits of Peter are studied with emphasis on the situations in the church which produced these portraits and which affected their evolution over time. A portrait of Peter considered seminal for the study of the Petrine traditions is that of Peter as apostle. In this portrait Peter takes on the roles of missionary and witness to Christ's earthly ministry and resurrection. Generally the trajectory moves from the "actual" to the "ideal." Thus Peter becomes in the mind of the church the greatest missionary and the best apostolic witness. This process of idealization continued with the result that Peter came to be regarded as the ideal Christian. Peter was also considered pre-eminent among the apostles. As the Gentile church became the most powerful of the churches, Peter was adopted as its figurehead. Thus by the fourth century Peter's primacy over the apostles had become axiomatic. Other groups, often considered heretical by the orthodox church, ascribed importance to other disciples of Christ and compared them to Peter. However, the Peter trajectory tended to overpower these other traditions. Connected to the tradition of Peter as the ideal apostle are the traditions which describe him as the pre-eminent prophet and wonderworker in the church, the ideal bishop and the most eminent martyr. Not only is Peter represented as exercising the episcopacy in a great many places, most noticeably in Rome, but also he came to be viewed as the ideal bishop and the founder of the universal episcopacy. As a martyr, Peter was viewed as the perfect martyr in that he endured a death like that of his Lord. Similarly, Peter came to be regarded as the ideal guarantor of the apostolic tradition, and thus the foundation upon which the church was built. In this capacity, and connected to the idea that Peter was the founder of the episcopacy, he was regarded as possessing the keys of the kingdom, thus having the full authority of Christ for the doctrine and discipline of the church. It is concluded that in all these aspects Peter was idealized and in a sense took the place of Jesus in the mind of the church. It is suggested that as the foremost apostle Peter was conceived as having been sent forth by Christ with His full power and authority, and thus Christ was seen as working in the church through Peter, His delegated representative, and through those who were viewed in succession to Peter. Thus, apostolic succession from Peter connected the beliefs and practices of the church with Christ Himself. / Arts, Faculty of / Classical, Near Eastern and Religious Studies, Department of / Graduate

This thesis examines Luke's portrayal of the Gentiles' state prior to their coming to Christian faith. Following the survey of research, it commences with Luke's direct references to Gentiles prior to faith. It then gathers conclusions concerning their state from the Gentile encounter with Jesus and Christian salvation. This includes Luke's notes on the condition of Gentiles and on their appropriation of salvation. Finally it draws conclusions from Luke's portrayal of Gentile Christians. Such a comprehensive study of this aspect of Luke's anthropology has not been undertaken previously and constitutes the major fresh contribution of this thesis. This comprehensive approach is necessary to challenge some previous contributions to Lukan anthropology. It argues that the main study in the field (J.-W. Taeger, Der Mensch und sein Heil; 1982) does not sufficiently consider all the evidence. By concentrating on the Gentiles in Luke-Acts (including Samaritans and God-fearers) this present thesis comprehensively covers all the relevant material. Against Taeger who suggests that Gentiles do not need 'saving' as much as 'correcting', it concludes that Luke portrays Gentiles prior to faith in a state requiring God's saving intervention. Thorough correction has to accompany and follow this salvation. Though allowing for distinct Lukan emphases, this portrait is not essentially at odds with that of other NT authors. These results further show that the Areopagus speech needs to be and can be satisfactorily interpreted in it's context and in conjunction with similar statements. This thesis further argues that Luke's narrative sections and the characterisation they present should no longer be neglected in favour of the speeches. Luke's portrayal of Gentiles prior to faith also bears on his understanding of sin and provides additional justification for the Gentile mission. This study challenges proposals of Luke's alleged anti-Judaism and provides some hitherto little-noticed correctives.

[pt] Qual o sentido do tempo na história do homem? Sabemos que vivemos no tempo dos homens (Chrónos). Mas como diz a Sagrada Escritura: não somos deste mundo, ou seja, não somos deste tempo. O próprio Cristo disse: meu reino não é deste mundo. Diante dessas considerações, a dissertação faz uma exposição atualizada dos termos Chrónos e Kairós na dýnamis do Espírito Santo - no sentido de situar o homem na realidade do tempo, a partir da leitura bíblica de At 1,6-8 - e, principalmente, dos termos Chrónos e Kairós, exaurindo uma reflexão sobre a ação do tempo na história do homem dentro da dinâmica da passagem do Chrónos para o Kairós; viver bem o Chrónos, reconhecendo, entretanto, que já chegou o tempo da graça, o Kairós: o Cristo que está entre nós. A encarnação do Verbo qualifica todo este sentido de tempo: conhecemos o antes e o depois de Cristo. Assim, Jesus Cristo é este grande qualificador do tempo e a sua atuação no mundo nos traz três dimensões diferentes de tempo. O estudo reflete sobre estes três tempos de atuação de Deus na história dos homens: o tempo de Israel; o tempo de Jesus e o tempo da Igreja. Deste modo, o estudo de Chrónos e Kairós são refletidos à luz bíblica e analisados na dýnamis do Espírito Santo, através da exegese e da hermenêutica bíblica, sistematizada e elaborada com oportuna pesquisa dos termos e sua atuação nos três tempos de estudo, perpassando elementos primordiais de compreensão, tais como: missão, testemunho e Igreja. Portanto, o estudo visa a colocar o leitor em uma perspectiva de tempo, bem como refletir sua atuação neste tempo, no Chrónos e no Kairós, desejando que cada um saiba descobrir o verdadeiro Kairós de sua vida, a graça de Deus que se manifesta. / [en] What is the sense of the time in men´s history? We know we are living in the human time (Chrónos), but as the Sacred Scripture states: we are not from this world, or, we are not from this time. As Christ said: my kingdom is not from this world. Taking these facts into consideration, the report explains the updated terms Chrónos and Kairós under the dýnamis of the Holy Spirit, in order to locate the man in the reality of the time in the Holy Bible literature of At 1,6-8, persuing an reflection about the of time in men´s history within the dynamic of chronological age from Chrónos to the Kairós, to live well the Chrónos, but keeping in mind that the time of grace has already started, the Kairós, the Christ among us. The incarnation of the Verb qualifies this time sense as we know the before and after Christ, and then Jesus Christ is the Major Qualifier of the time. His Action within the world brings us three different perspectives of time. It reflects about the three times of God Action over the men´s history: Israel time, Jesus time and the Church time. Thus, the study of Chrónos and Kairós are reflected in the Holy Bible and further analyzed within the dýnamis of the Holy Spirit through the interpretation and the exegesis of the Holy Scripture. A very careful research of these terms was developed, considering very important elements of study: Mission, Testimony and Church. This study intends to place the reader into the context of the time, leading the reader to reflect this chronological time into her reality. In the Chrónos and in the Kairós, wishing that men and women shall know how to discover the true Kairós in their lives. May each person be able to discover the grace of God shown in every day life.

A commonly used argument for the reliability of the first witnesses to the resurrection is that the apostles willingly died as martyrs for their faith. It is often claimed that all the apostles, except John, faced martyrdom. And yet until now, there has been no thorough scholarly evaluation of this claim. This dissertation demonstrates that (1) all the apostles were willing to die for their faith, and (2) a number of them actually did experience martyrdom. Their willingness to face persecution and martyrdom indicates more than any other conceivable course their sincere conviction that, after rising from the dead, Jesus indeed appeared to them. This dissertation takes a historical approach, which involves studying various sources that include the New Testament, the Apostolic Fathers, secular writers, and pseudepigraphical texts, such as the Acts of the Apostles, and Gnostic sources. The evidence for each apostle is examined with a scale that ranges from not possibly true (certainly not historical) to the highest possible probability (nearly historically certain). There are a few key steps to be established in this research. First, Christianity was a resurrection movement since its inception. The belief of the apostles was rooted in their conviction that Jesus rose from the dead. Second, the apostles were the closest followers of Jesus during his life and then were eyewitnesses of the resurrection. Paul and James are included along with the Twelve. Third, Christians really suffered and died for their faith beginning at the end of the first century. These three points provide the context and likelihood the apostles were martyred for proclaiming the name of Jesus. Fourth, the evidence for each apostle is examined and compared with a historical grid. Fifth, objections are considered and rebutted. While there is considerable evidence for the martyrdoms of apostles such as Peter, Paul and James the son of Zebedee, much less evidence exists for many of the others, such as Matthias and James the son of Alphaeus. Still, it is clear the apostles were all willing to die for reporting what they believed to be true and that many in fact did.

No description available.

Thesis (M.A.E.T.)--Western Conservative Baptist Seminary, 1995. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 101-107).

Thesis (M.A.)--Lancaster Bible College, Graduate School, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 95-99).