Whole document restricted at the request of the author / Significant changes have occurred in the Catholic practice and theology of mission since the second Vatican Council (1962-65). To appreciate better the extent of these changes, I have charted major shifts in the story of mission of the Sisters of Our Lady of the Missions, founded in Lyon in 1861. In particular, I have examined the various theologies that informed these shifts. This micro-study of one particular Catholic group offers an entry-point into a consideration of contemporary Catholic theologies of mission and missionary practice. Since Vatican II, there has been a growing awareness of the universal and salvific presence of the Spirit in creation and history. I will seek to show how this has affected Catholic missiological reflection through an examination of the work of selected Catholic theologians. These theologians direct attention to the mission of the Spirit, and to the relation between the Spirit and the Son in the mission of the Triune God. This pneumatological emphasis often has been overlooked in theologies of mission that are more overtly ecclesiological or christological in their orientation. I then examine selected New Testament texts in order to discern the legitimacy of such pneumatological emphases in emerging trinitarian theologies of mission. While New Testament texts indicate that the mission of the Spirit is both antecedent and consequent to the mission of Jesus, the examination of scriptural texts in this research concentrates on the antecedent mission of the Holy Spirit in selected Johannine, Matthean and Lukan texts. My research suggests that an emphasis on the mission of the Spirit permits an understanding of mission that can expand the parameters associated with ecclesiocentric and christocentric models of mission.

Scholars have often seen the interpretation of the Son of Man as crucial in discovering Jesus’ self-understanding, given that the expression occurs so frequently and almost exclusively on Jesus’ lips. After ascertaining the authenticity of the Son of Man sayings, I carry out the exegesis in the Gospel of Mark using a methodology consisting of examining Biblical passages within the context of the Bible as a whole and of historical-critical and philological perspectives. Also, the narrative context of the saying is taken into account. I show that the Son of Man is a Messianic title derived from Daniel 7:13, and that the book of Daniel’s content and themes were used as a basis for the Son of Man sayings themselves. In addition to using the Son of Man as a Messianic title, Jesus used the title as a claim for divinity.

This thesis examines the use and interpretation of Revelation in the writings of the contemporary prophets Richard Brothers, Joanna Southcott and William Blake. Contributing to an emerging scholarly interest in the reception of biblical texts within marginalised interpretative traditions, the thesis offers a detailed exploration of how Revelation is incorporated into these authors' prophetic texts, and how it informs the identity of readers who see their activities as bringing about the fulfilment of the text's visions on the historical plane. This aim is achieved by engaging with extant comparative studies of Brothers, Southcott and Blake within historical and literary studies; a comparison with similar contemporary prophetic figures and the contribution of Revelation to their prophetic self-understandings; and contextualising these figures against contemporary constructions of Revelation as a prophetic text, and the recognition of the poetic nature of biblical prophecy in the eighteenth century. In particular, the thesis advocates for the continued exploration of "emic" approaches to these figures, a process started by members of Oxford's Prophecy Project. The thesis thus argues that "prophecy", rather than "millenarianism," is the most appropriate way of characterising these authors' scriptural engagement, and explores how prophecy is understood in their writings to delineate commonalities in their understanding of the prophet's role. Finally, it surveys how Revelation is interpreted within the respective works of the writers who are the focus of this thesis. The conclusion offers a hermeneutical reflection on the relationship between the prophetic interpreter and the texts they engage with. It suggests that the reader who claims to be "inspired" faces a tension between offering an interpretation of the authoritative text, and claiming an equivalent level of authority for their own works. The thesis makes three contributions to existing scholarly debates. Firstly, it demonstrates that attention to these three authors' interpretations of Revelation shows how attention to neglected voices illuminates the history of interpretation of this biblical book. Secondly, it justifies comparing these three authors under the framework of "prophecy", rather than the anachronistic terminology of "millenarianism." Thirdly, it explores their readings of Revelation to shed light on how interpretation of a scriptural text such as Revelation is key to the evolution of prophetic vocation; how Revelation’s images are developed and transformed in their own prophetic texts; and finally, their sensitivity to hermeneutical questions raised by Revelation’s relationship to other biblical texts and the problems posed by its eschatology.

No description available.

This diploma thesis "Isaiah 49 as seen by Rhetorical Criticism: Between Doubts and Radical Hope" adopts the method of rhetorical criticism and applies it on a chosen biblical text from the 49th chapter of Isaiah. Rhetorical criticism is an exegetical method which, provided that the form of the text firmly relates to its content, tries by an attentive studying of the linguistic structures of the text to better understand the intended meaning of the author. This studying is of a synchronic character and uses structural and literary tools. It also pays attention to elements of persuasion. In the first chapter of this thesis, rhetorical criticism is introduced as well as its emergence in the second half of the 20th century and its subsequent development is described. In the second chapter, the method of this thesis is specified. It is then used in the third chapter, which is the core of the thesis, to interpret the chosen biblical text. The utilization of the method of rhetorical criticism is then evaluated in the final fourth chapter.

No description available.

<p>  </p> <p>My dissertation demonstrates the Jewish tradition’s significance for rhetoric by analyzing Biblical ‎encounters with the divine—the ultimate Other. Thus, this dissertation responds to calls such as Steven B. Katz’s to continually redefine what ‎‎“rhetoric” means to us (“Hebrew Bible” 134). In the past several decades, there has been ‎increasing interest in rhetorics that challenge ‎our preconceived notions of what constitutes ‎‎“rhetoric,” both loosening the Greeks and Romans from a skewed reception history and calling ‎for definitions of rhetoric to move “beyond the Greeks” (Lipsom and Binkley). Both these ‎approaches highlight the need for a more diverse understanding of rhetoric—an understanding ‎that better foregrounds the import of the Other. The still-germinal field of Jewish rhetorics has ‎emerged as one response to these calls to diversify and decolonize the rhetorical tradition. As ‎such, this dissertation is also a reclamation of a Jewish tradition that has been—inadvertently ‎and explicitly—ignored, misunderstood, and suppressed.‎</p> <p><br></p> <p>I argue that representations of divine ‎encounters in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) offer a rhetorical framework for encountering the ‎Other—human and divine—as holy. Neither appropriative nor obeisant, this framework offers a ‎uniquely Jewish perspective on encountering the Other—one that has not received adequate ‎academic attention. In a moment where the imperative to engage with Others is so pressing, I ‎address that call to action by bringing together a breadth of scholarship in Jewish studies, ‎rhetorical theory, and Biblical studies to develop a Jewish rhetorical framework for encountering the Other—human and divine—as holy, which I call a “covenant rhetoric.”</p> <p><br></p> <p>This covenant rhetoric, I ‎assert, is not reserved for encounters with the divine, but is also applicable to human rhetorical ‎interactions. My dissertation thus offers a rhetorical model for encountering as holy the human ‎Others with whom we share our existence. As our diverse society continues to wrestle with the ‎ethical imperative towards the Other, I show how the Tanakh prompts us to reconsider the ‎rhetorical potential of encountering Otherness as holiness. In the process, I demonstrate ‎rhetoric’s centrality to religion, to spirituality, and to living an ethically-informed life. ‎</p>

In one of his letters to the church at Corinth, the apostle Paul sets forth as one of the basic facts of the primitive Gospel that "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. "l In the same passage, he asserts that it is by this Gospel that men are saved - that is that there is a definite relationship between the death of Christ and the salvation of men. To define this relationship has been a task that has occupied the thinking of some of the greatest minds of the ages since the day that Jesus of Nazareth hung on the cross on Golgotha's hill. The writers of the New Testament deal with the question from a Variety of viewpoints. Consequently, practically every theory of Atonement that has been developed during the centuries since the close of the apostolic age can find some Scriptural support. In the consideration of this subject, we shall begin with a consideration of the subject-matter which, at least in theory, lies at the foundation of all the views of Atonement that have been developed: the New Testament teaching. We shall then devote a chapter to each of the three main types of theories of the Atonement. These we may define as the classic or patristic theory, the satisfaction or Anselmic theory, and the subjective or exemplary theory. A fifth chapter will deal with some of the modern views that have been expounded by modern scholars. We shall endeavor in the concluding chapter to draw from our study some pertinent conclusions regarding the significance and the understanding of that bedrock truth of the ChristIan Gospel - that Christ dIed for our sins according to the Scriptures.

During Jesus' earthly ministry He taught the pure doctrine of corporeal resurrection to His disciples. Some of them became special witnesses to the literal bodily resurrection of Jesus after His death. Over time, men's philosophies perverted the true doctrine of the resurrection. Those teachings became the orthodoxy of the early Christian church and were handed down to modern Christianity. The pure doctrine of corporeal resurrection was weakened, and in some sects, was lost.The Lord restored the gospel through Joseph Smith. Part of the Restoration qualified him as a special witness of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Through him pure doctrines were restored. One of those doctrines was the Resurrection and its importance to eternal man.

The Book of Mormon, having long been a work of great interest to me, became a natural area of study for my Master's program. I was directed by Roy W. Doxey and Paul R. Chessman who brought to my attention several areas of the Book of Mormon which needed to be investigated for clarification and deeper understanding. The area which was settled on centered around a book which was written seven years prior to the publishing of the Book of Mormon. The controversy which surrounds the View of the Hebrews by Ethan Smith is similar to the "Spalding Manuscript" controversy which for many years plagued believers of the Book of Mormon. Similar in the sense that some are now claiming that Joseph Smith plagerized Ethan Smith when writing the Book of Mormon, this problem is different in that the Solomon Spalding controversy raged only while his manuscript was unavailable while the Ethan Smith controvery is warming as more people become aware of View of Hebrews.