In this ecotheological study the immense magnitude of the ecological crisis, a modern but global problem for which solutions are sought internationally, has been looked at initially. Environmental conservation is not only important for the survival of humanity but also more specifically the moral motivation for an ecojust attitude towards life. The distressing dark future of planet Earth portrayed by ecological scientists proves undeniably that an ecological awareness of the environment is definitely no longer a philosophy propagated by a minority of fanatics but a life-style and attitude towards life that should be practised by all individuals on earth. Theology has been involved in the debate on the ecological crisis for the past four decades and that is why the Old Testament, and specifically the divine speeches in the book of Job, have been scrutinised for theological scientific knowledge about God and his creation and also for humanity’s environmental ethic responsibilities towards the non-living and the living environment. A review of the work of a number of theologians confirmed that creation theology is sufficiently present in Biblical texts to deserve to be studied and not remain on the periphery of theological importance. The tendency among a number of younger theologians to speak out on creation theology, hopefully introduces an alternative in theology that will contribute to the enrichment and broadening of text interpretation in the Bible. Subsequently ancient Israel as the environment in which the authors of the Bible and also the author(s) of the book of Job lived, was studied ecographically. The position of Palestine and the climate were determined. The natural vegetation, the animals and the population of ancient times were also studied. Since the Israelites were crop- as well as stock-farmers water and soil conservation and similar aspects were investigated. It was concluded that the Israelites utilised the soil primarily to survive and the specific idea of nature and conservation programmes was never an issue. Conservation was something natural and obvious since they were farmers. Nature had to survive in order for them to survive. A nobler goal like honouring God through conservation was apparently not present. In contrast to this general view stands the message of Job in the divine speeches, where the focus is on nature for the sake of nature, and especially about the God of nature. Hereafter the insights of Robbins (1996a; 1996b) and his socio-rhetoric method of approaching texts ideologically was used in determining the ideological foothold of the interpreter and the inscribed ideology, recognisable by the implied author’s values, beliefs and interests. The place of the divine speeches in the composition of the book of Job as a whole was looked at and the main message of the divine speeches was reflected upon. In the divine speeches God uses manifestations from the abiotic world and animals from the biotic world to answer Job in the theophany, the climax of the entire book. He does not respond to Job’s accusations about his undeserved suffering directly but asks a host of rhetorical questions through which He wants to show Job that humankind is not in the centre of creation and that man cannot interpret and evaluate everything as concerning him/her. The ultimate goal is to emphasise the distance between mankind as creatures and God as Creator. Humans are clearly placed below and not next to the Creator and cannot recognise the deep mysteries of creation. The ecological dimensions of the divine speeches were indicated, namely the value of creation that comes from God and is maintained by Him, that creation is theocentric and not anthropocentric and that nature is a wonderful teacher and training school. It has been concretised "green" by Habel’s (2000a) ecojust principles. The ecological implications emanating from this is that humankind must follow God in his maintenance of nature. Creation must firstly be respected because it has intrinsic value. Secondly humankind has to learn to be more humble and not exploit nature and the environment arrogantly. Lastly humankind must learn to utilise nature more. It presents the "training school" of life. In conclusion attention was focused on the ecological implications of the divine speeches. The role of schools regarding the establishment of sound values in learners and the creative utilisation of environmental education within school curricula, as indicated by Curriculum 2005, present creative possibilities for utilisation. This requires well-equipped educators of a high quality. The role of the church and religion was also emphasised. Unfortunately the church has mainly been silent about this matter. Theology can contribute tremendously to bring the scientific implications of the ecocrisis into the hearts of the faithful. The solution is vested in a change of behaviour and life-style. Attempts world-wide and in South Africa to find solutions to the ecocrisis have been noted with appreciation. / Prof. H. Viviers

Please read the abstract (Summary) in the section 00front of this document / Thesis (PhD (Dogmatics and Christian Ethics))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Dogmatics and Christian Ethics / unrestricted

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From a close reading of both the Book of Job and Deuteronomy I would propose that the former might be intentionally responding to and challenging the prevailing Deuteronomic doctrine of divine retributive justice as it is expressed clearly in the notion of blessings and curses in Deuteronomy (11:26-28; chs. 27-28). It is also claimed that in order not to offend or upset the mainstream theological position too much, the author of Job chooses to adopt another theological position, the principle of divine providence, to balance the radical nature of his/her project. The two theological themes intertwine and they address different circles of audience, the orthodox and the liberal. This may provide an explanation for the existence of the seemingly self-contradictory elements in the Book of Job. / I will place the Book of Job in the post-exilic historical background and relate it to the contemporary intellectual context, that is, the Deuteronomistic historical writings (hereafter DH). While fully acknowledging the scholarly hypothetical nature of the DH, it can nevertheless be observed that the theme of "a just divine retribution" (Noth) works through the writings of the Deuteronomists. It is in this sense that some scholars label the DH as "a theodicy" (Romer), i.e., a defense of divine justice in the face of the national tragedy of exile. Since the Book of Job also seriously questions the validity of divine retributive justice it seems quite reasonable to read it in the light of the Deuteronomistic works and their theological doctrines. / Many biblical scholars have stated, the Book of Job relates to the issue of the validity/applicability of divine justice (Jastrow, Crenshaw, etc.). There are others who disagree and they consider the book offers a strong confirmation of divine providence (e.g. Andersen). This is especially true with YHWH speeches (38:1-40:2; 40:6-41:34) and the so called "happy ending" (42:7-17). Though most scholars would acknowledge the complexity and even contradictions in the book and observe that there is more than one single theme, few would present competing ideas as parallel discourses of comparable significance. To my view, the dimensions of questioning the validity of divine justice and the confirmation of divine providence are juxtaposed in the book. They come into conflicts and contradict one with the other. What the present author intends to do in this thesis is to explore how the two discourses work together in creative tension in the book and why the two seemingly competing theological claims are employed by the author in his/her construction of the text. / This dissertation will employ multiple approaches. Classical theory of poetry, contemporary drama theory, and Intertextual reading strategies will be adopted in different stages of its argument. Basically, the literary-critical method will be relied on in the analysis of the text of Job. / 張纓. / Adviser: Archie C. C. Lee. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-02, Section: A, page: 0638. / Thesis (doctoral)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 267-288). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in Chinese and English. / School code: 1307. / Zhang Ying.

Perhaps the most perplexing issue in Psalm 82 is its obvious cultic and polytheistic background with its source remains elusive to scholars. Consequently, to grasp the main intention and purpose of this psalm becomes an equally baffling exercise. This thesis will take up these two pertinent issues. It attempts to take the psalm as a whole. This paper will put forward two arguments. First, the genre of 'cultic prophetic psalm' is not only the most helpful, but also the most befitting approach to grasp its holistic intent. Second, Psalm 82 is seminal in developing a new cultic motif on "righteous judgment" from the cult of the "living and dying god" of the ancient traditions. / Psalm 82---a text notorious of its brevity, yet profound complex concepts is the subject of this thesis. Since the last two extensive works which were published in the late 1960s by James. S. Ackerman and Hans-Winfried Jungling, there are several other pieces which develop from these two contributions but concentrate only on some aspects of the psalm, and not a comprehensive study of it. It is therefore more appropriate and necessary than ever, that at the beginning of the 21st century when the academia on the ancient Near East has flourished in leaps and bounds, a re-examination of the scholarship on Psalm 82 will be fruitful venture. / Therefore, I shall present my thesis as follows: In chapter one, I shall review the past research results on Psalm 82. This sets up a starting point for the thesis and raises the main issues for discussion. It is proposed that Psalm 82 is a cultic prophetic psalm, which is performed in the temple expressing the Israelite belief of a just God. It is proposed that Psalm 82 is a cultic prophetic psalm with performance in the temple and expresses the Israelite belief in a Just God. In chapter two, I shall analyze and present the contents and the structure of the whole cultic drama. It will attempt to prove that the core content of this psalm is 'Belief in the Just God' and that this content is both inherited and developed from the motif of the "living and dying god" in the ancient traditions. Hence, a new cultic motif is formed that the just God of Israel judges the unjust gods and pronounces a death sentence. In chapter three, the whole psalm is submitted under the framework of a cultic drama, and I will attempt to analyze the words and the complex concepts in the psalm. These include "the council of gods", the relationship between "God" and the "gods", the righteous God of Israel judging the unjust gods, the meaning of "the poor", "orphans", "widows" and "the wicked", the usage of the image and meaning of both "the foundations of the earth" and "the shaking of the foundations of the earth", the function of "the nations" and "inheritance", and the significance of the death of the gods. Finally in chapter four, after comparing the concepts and usage of words mentioned above with the myths and stories of the ancient Canaanites. I shall further verify that Psalm 82 mainly absorbs and uses the mythical and religious elements of ancient Canaan. The psalm expresses the firm belief in the just God Yahweh, albeit in a polytheistic setting. By using the idea of "the council of gods" in the ancient Near East, especially in Canaan, the psalm integrates many mythical elements and ideas of the ancient religious traditions, and finally develops a new cultic motif on "righteous judgment" from the cult of the "living and dying god" of the ancient traditions. / 徐雪梅. / Adviser: Archie C. C. Lee. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-08, Section: A, page: 3183. / Thesis (doctoral)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 235-253). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in Chinese and English. / School code: 1307. / Xu Xuemei.

Please read the abstract in the section, 00front, of this document / Thesis (PhD (Systematic Theology))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Dogmatics and Christian Ethics / unrestricted

[From Introduction]. "God, ... through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation." "Among all churches throughout the world there is a growing conviction that God's great reconciliation in Jesus Christ is still the answer desperately needed by modern man." The United Presbyterian Church U.S.A.'s Confession of 1967 made "reconciliation the all-embracing category for describing God's work and man's response, including especially his response in social and political action".

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This dissertation proposes that a necessary connection exists between a progressive model of sanctification and a compatibilist model of human freedom. Chapter 1 presents the thesis, background, and methodology for the dissertation, giving special interest to the way that compatibilism is uniquely qualified to accommodate the necessary link between one's character and conduct intrinsic to a progressive model of sanctification. Chapter 2 defines and examines the two most widely held models of human freedom: libertarianism and compatibilism. Compatibilism is shown to comport more closely with Scripture and to solve many of the nagging philosophical problems associated with a libertarian model of freedom. Chapter 3 continues to build a foundation for the remaining chapters by defining the three most widely held models of sanctification: Wesleyan perfectionism, Keswick, and Augustinian or progressive sanctification. Here it is argued that Wesleyan perfectionism and Keswick require a concomitant libertarian freedom, whereas an Augustinian model of sanctification requires compatibilism. Chapter 4 offers scriptural support for the connection between progressive sanctification and compatibilist freedom. The central focus is on determining the biblical author's intent and on laying the exegetical groundwork for the final chapter. Chapter 5 argues for the necessary connection between progressive sanctification and compatibilist freedom by questioning libertarian interpretations of the texts examined in the previous chapter. Since it potentially bifurcates the scriptural connection between one's character and conduct, libertarian freedom is shown to be a poor candidate for the type of freedom necessitated by a progressive model of sanctification. I close, in Chapter 6, by calling Evangelicals to return to a common sense understanding of the bounds of logic, scriptural fidelity to both God's gracious sovereignty and man's genuine freedom, and a greater sense of mystery concerning the nature of God.