This study assesses Augustine's worth as a witness to the text of the Bible and evaluates his evidence for the Gospel according to John. The full collection of citations is presented in the Appendix. In the analysis a distinction is proposed between primary citations, which Augustine makes with reference to a scriptural codex, for example when preaching, and secondary citations, for which this cannot be demonstrated. The latter constitute the majority and often correspond to his mental text , a consistent form of a verse showing characteristic alterations attributable to memory. In polemical works, Augustine displays a different form of text which he has normally adopted from his opponents. Such variations in the biblical text suggest that the citations have been transmitted accurately, without interference by copyists. Augustine's text of John demonstrates the continuity in the Latin Bible between Old Latin versions and Jerome's Vulgate. Most of the non- Vulgate renderings in Augustine's citations are paralleled in one or more Old Latin witnesses, which suggests that the Old Latin texts known today are a representative selection. Nonetheless, his primary affiliation is with the Vulgate, which even comes to permeate citations made from memory in later works.

Colossians 1:24 has throughout church history presented problems of interpretation. This thesis investigates the possibility that the author expresses a belief in vicarious suffering within the church, and begins with a thorough linguistic analysis of the text and vocabulary to produce a radical fresh translation which emphasises Paul’s ministry of suffering on the church’s behalf. Two chapters investigate the reception history of the passage, with particular emphasis on three periods: the Church Fathers, the Protestant Reformation, and the modern era. Following evaluation of the many interpretations, an excursus on attitudes to suffering in modern Western evangelical churches, and a discussion whether the passage applies only to Paul or is of universal Christian relevance, three key topics are investigated in depth: the 'woes of the Messiah' and related eschatological issues; attitudes to substitution in the ancient world; and the 'common life' or koinonia expressed in Pauline descriptions of the church. This study indicates the probability that the author and his first readers shared cultural and religious understandings which comfortably accommodated a belief in vicarious suffering. In conclusion, the theological implications of such a belief are discussed, and the consequent repercussions for pastoral care.

This inquiry combines consideration of the Context Group’s emphases regarding the honour and shame culture of first-century Palestine with careful analysis of ten narrative parables of Luke’s Jesus in order to allow the proposed cultural setting to form an appropriate background for reading and understanding the stories and, in turn, to use the parables as material for assessing the adequacy or inadequacy of the Context Group’s models. In this way the cultural context is in dialogue with the literary text, the cultural context facilitating a non-anachronistic and non-ethnocentric approach to Luke’s narratives, and the literary text serving as a means to evaluate the stereotypical models often taken as a given starting point for hermeneutical reflection. This exploration demonstrates that the emphasis of each particular Context Group model is often too limited in its scope and frequently at odds with the cultural orientation of the parables, thereby highlighting the value of using the literary text to refine the cultural models in question and to restrict the chances of misleading readings. This study shows how dialogue between social-scientific modelling and careful textual interpretation has the potential to enhance both the understanding of the cultural map and the significance of the written word.

The focus of this study is the portrayal of the Strange Woman and the unnamed mothers and wives of Proverbs arguing for a realistic portrayal of these women within the book. Informed by a feminist approach it considers the impact of male-oriented reading strategies upon existing interpretation and attends to the way in which poetic parallelism and variant repetition create proverbial clusters which offer an alternative context for the interpretation of proverbs. The findings show, firstly, that current interpretations of women in Proverbs are unduly influenced by the portrayal of Wisdom, the Strange Woman and the Woman of Worth in the framework of chapters 1-9 and 31, rather than by the text itself. Secondly, women’s voices provide a possible source for material in the lectures of Proverbs 1-9 (along with the father), the poems of Proverbs 31, and as the narrator of the encounter with the Strange Woman in Proverbs 7. Thirdly, where mothers and wives are in focus, alternative interpretations can be offered which do not assess the character or behaviour of the woman, but rather focus on the son’s character and behaviour and its subsequent impact upon relationships with his parents, his wife and his own offspring.

No description available.

Historical research involving the schism within the German Baptist Brethren Church in the 1880s has only been found within broad, general histories of the church. The explanations given by historians relating to the cause of the split have previously centered on individuals and the church publications between 1850 and 1883, and on contemporaries who argued among themselves about whether to adopt practices common among surrounding American religions and society. No known project has focused directly on the content within the publications as it relates to the way these brethren used the Bible and other religious and spiritual rhetoric to substantiate their arguments on either side. My research focussed on the Brethren periodicals during the decades between roughly 1850 and 1880. I selected four of the most prominent papers of the period: the Gospel Visitor, the Christian Family Companion, the Vindicator, and the Progressive Christian. Each of these periodicals contained arguments for or against adopting practices not previously accepted within the church. Within their pages I found that every argument, for or against a particular practice, was based on scriptural interpretation, or other religious commentary used to persuade readers.

Thesis (M. Div.)--Emmanuel School of Religion, 2004. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 78-82).

Thesis (Th. M.)--Grace Theological Seminary, 1985. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 141-148).

Texte remanié de: Doct. th.--Oxford, 2003. / Bibliogr. p. 323-370.

Texte remanié de: Th.--Geneva--University, 1999. Titre de soutenance : Calvin on the visions of Ezekiel : studies in his sermons inédits with a critical edition of the sermons on Ezek. 36-48. / Bibliogr. p. 262-270. Index.