Thomas Traheme (1637?-1674), Hereford born poet, priest and writer, has been variously understood as a nature poet, mystic, or even simply as a facile optimist. Sometimes he has been taken as an honorary Romantic poet, a sort-of Wordsworth before his time. Moreover, it has been common for critics either to divorce his theological beliefs from his literary contribution altogether, or to dismiss his spirituality as undisciplined and immature and his theological views as insubstantial. Based in part on new manuscript evidence, this thesis argues, on the contrary, that Traheme's literary works must be understood in the light of his comprehensive theological vision. Central to this theological vision were the interwoven concepts of felicity, the powers of the human soul, childhood innocence, love and glory, and transfiguration. Transfiguration, for Traheme, was the means by which his goals of felicity, love and glory were attained. For him, the fully human person may by God's grace anticipate even now the experience of final beatitude in which all the powers of the soul are fully employed and enlightened by the Spirit of God. The soul thus transfigured is able in turn 'to transfigure all things, and be delighted' to the glory of God. It is within this sweeping theological vision that Traheme's writings must be understood. It is an articulate vision, rooted in Christian theological tradition and an integrated Renaissance world picture of interdependent spheres, outward and inward, cosmic and anthropological. If we fail properly to appreciate Traheme's theological understanding, then we are in danger of misinterpreting his aesthetic and spiritual contribution. In contrast, when Traheme's devotional prose and poetry are seen in the light of his theological vision, then we are better able to see what Traheme saw - 'a transformed world of glory, inspired with a love as infinite as a creature can hold'. Accordingly, this thesis begins in Chapter 1 with an account of Traheme's biography and his place in the seventeenth century. Chapter 2 reviews the complex story of the Traheme sources, including manuscript discoveries past and present, before turning to a summary of the main lines of interpretation that have emerged in criticism of his writings. Chapter 3 examines the broader context in which Traheme's understanding of transfiguration arises. Chapter 4 traces the ways in which Traheme's anthropology, pneumatology, and eschatology undergird his theological vision of transfiguration. Chapter 5 focuses on a detailed discussion of transfiguration as process and event in Traheme's writings. A final concluding chapter offers a summary account of Traheme's view and demonstrates how this theological vision offers an enriched reading of his devotional prose and poetry while giving particular attention to the concept of transfiguration as action.

Latin use in inscriptions shows evidence of intersections between Roman and Greek languages and culture during the first century CE. Although the provenance for the Gospel of John is not definitively determined, this evidence is present in each proposed location as well as in the text of the Gospel itself (e.g., πραιτώριον in 18:28, 33 and 19:9). This suggests, based on Umberto Eco’s semiotics, that the Roman cultural encyclopaedia could shed light on the Gospel of John, particularly in the Roman trial narrative for a Roman-aware audience. Some words in particular intersect with important Roman concepts: πραιτώριον, βασιλεύς, υἱὸς θεοῦ and ἐξουσία. The phrase Ἰδοὺ ὁ ἄνθρωπος in John 19:5, when analysed from a Roman perspective, seems sufficiently close to hic vir, hic est from Vergil’s Aeneid (6.791) to mark it as a literary allusion. An exegetical analysis of John 18:28—19:22, the passages most imprinted with Latin words and Roman concepts, reveals a Roman Pilate who tests the loyalty of both Jesus and ‘the Jews’ to Caesar. This exegesis, furthermore, provides the data for a social-scientific reading of the passage which constructs a superordinate identity for Romans (and, although outside the main focus of this thesis, for Jews as well). It also conveys a hidden transcript that creates honour for the marginalized Jesus-believers and calls those with power to become vulnerable for the sake of God’s empire. Although others have looked at empire in the Gospel of John, and some have made connections between specific verses and the Roman cultural encyclopaedia (e.g., 19:2), no one has noted the literary allusion in 19:5 nor offered an in-depth and sustained Roman reading of the trial narrative.

The early Christian martyr narrative Passio Perpetuae et Felicitatis has been widely debated for centuries. Substantial interpretative quandaries remain about the Passio’s unique account of events surrounding the martyrdom of a group of catechumens in Severan-era Roman North Africa. Predominant scholarly assessment views the Passio as the product of a redactor whose text frames the prison diary of the elite matron Perpetua. Purportedly composed prior to her martyrdom, her account is undeniably exceptional among ancient texts. This thesis counters such views and argues instead that neglected aspects of its contextual dynamics warrant reinterpretation of the Passio. Firstly, ramifications of Perpetua’s identity – elite, abundantly educated, and a catechumen – can inform an alternative reading strategy. Perpetua’s account can be viewed as a sophisticated narrative which displays awareness of the potency of, and strategies for, commemoration in both secular and Christian contexts. Her authorial act is demonstrably in symbiotic relationship with, not subsumed by, the narrative that introduces and concludes the text. Secondly, the Passio arguably is situated within pre-existing commemorative traditions. The Passio’s literary portrayal of events cultivates legitimacy with the aim to be received into these traditions, and its authors utilize rhetorical mnemo-techniques for this purpose. For this reason, the theoretical insights of social memory provide valuable tools for interpreting and classifying the text. This study contends that the Passio account, particularly the narrative section attributed to Perpetua, is more complex than has previously been recognized and, for that reason merits significant reappraisal.

This thesis argues that Christianity exists only as it is embodied in particular cultures. Historically, however, those who brought the Christian message often gave little attention or understanding to indigenous cultures and points of view. The present work compares the Christianization process in two different cultural settings, focusing on the Jukun of central Nigeria and using the early Irish experience as a comparative framework. It elucidates the course of Jukun conversion by looking at the Jukun traditional cultural milieu and the missionaries’ assumptions and attitudes. It then contrasts this with the Irish Christianization experience, revealing a very different missionary attitude and an equally dissimilar indigenous experience. The focus on the Jukun is justified from an anthropological approach, presented, for instance, by Michael Adogbo and Friday Mbon. Following their paradigm of focusing on a specific cultural group, the study of the Jukun point of view is based on in-depth interviews with several elderly Wukari Jukun people. For the early missionary perspective, the thesis incorporates archival records, as well as communications with two retired missionaries who served in Wukari. The dissertation begins with an examination of the scholarly discourse on the inculturation of Christianity, particularly in Africa, and continues by describing the Jukun indigenous culture and worldview. Then it examines how Christianity impacted this society, with a focus on the kinship system. Next, early Irish society is examined, especially how their inculturation process compares and contrasts with the Jukun one. The thesis argues that the Jukun process was less successful than the Irish in terms of pre-Christian cultural practices being permitted to influence the final shape of Christianity; while Irish society shows a high degree of continuity between pre-Christian and Christian times, Jukun society demonstrates a radical discontinuity. It is hoped that the contrast between the two processes of inculturation demonstrated by the comparative nature of this thesis will contribute to the dialogue among religions and facilitate the kinds of respect and adaptability that are needed for peaceful coexistence in a globalized world.

Codex Bezae Cantabrigiensis is an important early manuscript of the Greek New Testament, whose Gospel text has received relatively limited attention. Because Matthew was the most widely used Gospel among the first Christian communities, the study of its textual form is of utmost significance for the understanding of the early transmission of the New Testament. The research proposed in this thesis is therefore to take a fresh look at the Bezan text of Matthew. It will challenge the commonly accepted view of its readings as reflecting scribal reworking, albeit performed at an early stage. A principal ground for viewing the text as secondary is the apparently extensive harmonisation between the Gospels. The approach adopted here has been to thoroughly re-examine the Greek text of Matthew, comparing its form in Codex Bezae with that of Codex Vaticanus, a manuscript generally accepted as having a greater claim to authenticity. After noting all the variant readings and classifying them according to the type of material they represent, the study pays particular attention to the significance of word order differences, applying the tools of discourse analysis. Thereafter, the focus of the thesis is on the issue of harmonisation, as all the instances of the feature noted in the current edition of the Greek New Testament are systematically scrutinised. The results of this work suggest that the judgement that the Bezan text of Matthew has a harmonising tendency is predominantly based on external criticism, or on the choice of the particular passage with which there is alleged harmonisation. It will be suggested that the existence of common material in Codex Bezae where it is absent in other manuscripts may not be only a consequence of genuine harmonisation but also of the simple fact that the text was originally in agreement. It is hoped that the research presented in this thesis may serve to advance the study of Matthew’s Gospel, in particular with reference to harmonisation, in the field of New Testament textual criticism as well as in the related field of Synoptic studies.

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Training incumbents have long worked to support and train new clergy for ministry in the Church of England and the Church in Wales. Often unacknowledged and uncelebrated, their skill, expertise and dedication has been one of the key elements in preparing junior ministers for the demands and challenges of the role of 'Vicar' in the Church. Employing quantitative data gathering, this thesis seeks to break new ground in investigating the reality of the life of the training incumbent today: their understanding of the role they undertake; their motivation for taking on or persevering in a training role; their profile from ethnicity to psychological type; their priorities and the resources available to them. This research recognizes the importance of context and so traces the history of training incumbency while offering an analysis of the mind of the wider Church on the role of the training incumbent as expressed in various reports. The verdict of those curates on the receiving end of the training is also to be weighed very carefully, acknowledging their unique insights and recognizing that the reality of the training experience for them will be different from that of their trainers. These insights will be treated as equally valid and prized for the way in which they illuminate the training dynamic from an alternative perspective. Psychological type theory will be employed to explore that dynamic further as the project seeks to understand to what extent approach to the training task is born out of theological conviction, personality type, prior experience or Church directives. Above all, this project seeks to celebrate the skill and dedication of an unheralded group of talented ministers; thereby disseminating their learning and pleading for further resources to enable them to continue to serve the Church.

INTRODUCTION : L'apparition récente des premiers implants rachidiens, au milieu du vingtième siècle, marque non seulement une accélération du développement de la chirurgie rachidienne, mais également la naissance d'une technologie spécifique, qui n'en est encore qu'à ses débuts. Comment évaluer ces implants rachidiens, aussi bien lors de leur conception que lors de la planification de la chirurgie? C'est autour de cette problématique que nos travaux de recherche se sont articulés. MATERIELS & METHODES: Le premier de nos deux axes d'investigation concerne l'évaluation préclinique en fatigue des implants rachidiens, et plus particulièrement des implants d'ostéosynthèse. Nous avons ainsi animé un groupe de travail, composé d'industriels et de chercheurs du LBM, afin de proposer un projet de norme internationale définissant des méthodes d'évaluation fonctionnelle des implants rachidiens, prenant en compte les dernières connaissances scientifiques, notamment concernant les contraintes subies par les instrumentations rachidiennes in vivo. Notre second axe d'investigation concerne l'analyse biomécanique par méthode numérique de la chirurgie du rachis lombaire. Nous nous sommes appuyés pour cela sur un outil de modélisation, géométrique et mécanique, et de simulation par éléments finis personnalisées du rachis lombaire et de sa chirurgie. Nous avons, dans le cadre du projet européen Orthosim, contribué à faire évoluer cet outil. Ensuite, une évaluation extensive de l'outil, en tant qu'aide à la planification chirurgicale, a été réalisée. Nous avons enfin réalisé une évaluation préliminaire de l'influence de l'opérateur sur la réponse de l'outil et participé à son intégration dans le cadre d'un portail Internet. RESULTATS : Les essais réalisés suivant le protocole proposé ont permis de mettre en évidence des modes de rupture en fatigue des implants tels qu'observés in vivo, confirmant l'aspect fonctionnel de l'évaluation. Le contenu technique du projet de norme en découlant à fait l'objet d'un consensus des différents experts de l'ISO en septembre 2006. La publication définitive en tant que norme internationale a été acceptée en avril 2008. Ensuite, l'outil de simulation a été développé et amélioré, d'abord en fiabilisant le processus, puis en élargissant le panel des options de chirurgie proposées. L'évaluation rétrospective a confirmé le caractère prédictif des simulations proposées, quant à l'influence d'une stratégie chirurgicale donnée sur le résultat clinique. Enfin, la mise à disposition des cliniciens de l'outil de simulation a été engagée. CONCLUSION : Ce travail de doctorat, nous a permis de contribuer d'une part à l'évolution des normes d'évaluation auxquelles nous avons tenté de donner une dimension biomécanique, et d'autre part de participer à mise en place d'un outil innovant d'aide à la planification et à l'analyse biomécanique de la chirurgie rachidienne, basé sur les simulations numériques personnalisées.

Neste trabalho utilizou-se 7 595 árvores reunidas em 189 espécies com DAP ? 45 cm, obtidas de 4 talhões de 100 ha do planalto da Estação Experimental de Curuá-Una, por ocasião da realização de um inventário florestal em 1990. O objetivo principal consistiu da análise da estrutura diamétrica de 3 grupos de espécies por qualidade de fuste, onde testou-se os modelos WEIBTJLL, BETA e EXPONENCIAL contra 4 amplitudes diferentes de classes de DAP (6, 8, 10 e 12 cm), a fim de se avaliar o comportamento do ajuste dos modelos em relação a precisão das estimativas do número de árvores por classe diamétrica e unidade de área (400 ha) para cada tipo de amplitude aplicada aos vários grupos. O método da máxima verossimilhança foi usado para estimar os parâmetros dos modelos. Os critérios de seleção dos melhores modelos versus amplitude, foram: i) soma de quadrado de resíduos; ii) análise gráfica de resíduos "studentizados" e, iii) análise da acuracidade. Os resultados apontaram o modelo BETA associado a uma amplitude de 10 cm (4 em 12 grupos) ou 12 cm (6 em 12 grupos), como a melhor combinação capaz de descrever com propriedade a distribuição diamétrica de 10 dos 12 grupos estudados, contra 2 em 12 grupos, favorável ao modelo EXPONENCIAL para a amplitude de 12 cm. O trabalho mostrou que não existiu um único modelo capaz de fornecer estimativas absolutamente acuradas em todas as classes diamétricas. Entretanto, os melhores modelos selecionados dentro de cada grupo, estimaram razoavelmente bem o número de árvores por classe diamétrica e unidade de área.

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