No description available.

The last three decades has seen a significant shift in the discipline of New Testament studies. In particular we have observed the rise of the social sciences and with them, new methodologies which have eclipsed the more traditional "criticisms" such as form criticism and source criticism. New Testament scholars have realised that we can no longer afford to ignore these advances, and have produced a prolific amount of work which draws upon sociology in particular, and also social anthropology and psychology. Despite the consensus that the social sciences are able to provide invaluable tools for the study of the New Testament, the research that has drawn on these tools has not been without critique. A common thread to these evaluations is that the focus is so exclusively social scientific that the text often becomes lost in the endeavour. When the text is referred to, it is used not unlike a proof text - to prove the suspicions one has already formed. Similarly, we have noticed that those literary studies which relate more to the structure, plot and themes of a text may become so focused on specific words, tenses and so on, that the actual people and context of the text become lost in the exercise. Therefore our challenge is to develop an approach that takes both the social sciences and the text into equal account. This thesis is then an experiment in method. In the quest for an inclusive and holistic approach to the New Testament, we propose to combine Mary Douglas's anthropological "grid/group" model with a series of questions developed by Howard Kee which are aimed at "Interrogating the text". Having discussed a number of methodological considerations we suggest a four step approach which we believe will enable us to analyze the New Testament from a comprehensively anthropological perspective, while at the same time considering the text responsibly and fully. As a test of our methodology we first analyze the complete text of Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, and then compare our approach with a similarly anthropological method adopted by Stephen Barton in his 1986 article entitled, Paul's sense of place: an anthropological approach to community formation in Corinth (1) which discusses the specific texts of 1 Cor. 1:17-34 and 14:33b-36. The results of this test were mixed. On the one hand our methodology provided a detailed examination of the views held by both the Corinthians and Paul which we were able to contrast. Our use of Douglas's "grid/group" "model also allowed a certain amount of prediction as to how these players would likely have responded to events. However, we discovered that the questions used to "Interrogate the text" are somewhat tedious and repetitive. Therefore, some modification and refinement of these questions would be advocated. (1.) New Testament Studies, vol. 32, pp. 225-246. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 1996.

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1989.

The title of this thesis is:- "Biblical hermeneutics and exegesis as criteria for assessing diagnostic variables in diagnostic theology". This thesis is concerned with the role, place and influence of the Bible in the context of diagnostic theology. Diagnostic theology is the scientific-theological investigation into a parishioner's problems in order to arrive at a spiritual diagnosis and direct the individual to the appropriate form of spiritual, clinical or psychological help. The major emphasis has been placed on the use of the Bible in the counselling situation. This has direct bearing on the three scholars whose work is examined, namely Anton Boisen, Paul Pruyser, and Seward Hiltner. The greater emphasis of this work has been placed on the writings of Seward Hiltner. He devised and used a set of diagnostic variables which brought into sharp focus the possibility of assessing the parishioner as a personality in a situation, also taking into account the individual's spiritual resources or coping mechanisms. Furthermore, this thesis investigates the use of these three variables under the categories of biblical theology, doctrinal theology and didactic theology. Moreover this investigation has drawn conclusions in the form of a derivative exegesis which has issued forth in an answering theology or hermeneutic. Finally, this work deals with critical inquiry in the context of the Christian faith which makes it relevant to the situation in the modern Western world. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1989.

There is no abstract available for this thesis.

'And I saw the city, the holy one, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride, made beautiful for her husband. And I heard a great voice from the throne saying: "See, the home of God is among human beings, he will live with them and they will be his people and he himself, God, will be with them and be their God'. (Rev 21:2-3). Throughout history, the vision of a new city, the heavenly Jerusalem coming down from heaven has inspired human beings to dream about community, society, the world. It has been an incentive to turn unsatisfied longing into utopian idea and ultimately action. The fact that the language of the Apocalypse can inspire human imagination in a highly effective manner certainly contributed to the book's controversial role in the history of New Testament interpretation. The bizarre, often- paradoxical language seems to veil rather than reveal its message. Interestingly, the book never ceased to be an inspiration for artists. It is the thesis of this study that the text embedded world of the Apocalypse can impel the reader or audience into a new understanding of world and cosmos in a manner similar to visual arts. In contrast to conceptual language, art does not confine interpretation but opens space for imagination. Using artistic expression as paradigm therefore offers considerable insights regarding the striking language in the Apocalypse. In this context, a central image, the city as it appears most prevalent in Rev 1:19-3:22; 17:1-18:24 and 21:1- 22:5 is analysed as metaphorical material, which carries the power to incite the reader/audience to create mental images. To imagine provides a vital step in a dynamic interpretive process of understanding in which significant aspects of the metaphor of the city become textual visuality.

Our mandate in this thesis is in essence to tackle and complete two inter-linked, tripartite tasks. Firstly, the sources and traditions of the inaugural throne-vision of the Apocalypse (Rev. 4-5) will be considered; its contents and omissions will be closely examined; and its progressive context will be traced throughout the book with special attention being given to its relationship with the final eschatological vision (Rev. 21-22). Secondly, in parallel and in conjunction with these first three objectives, there is a further threefold consideration which stems from this primary analysis. This secondary concern will deal with the doctrine of God, the Christology of the Lamb, and the eschatological hope of the Christian. These tasks will serve to firmly anchor Revelation in its Jewish traditional background, and John's methods employed in handling these sources will be described. The comparison of the inaugural and the final throne-room visions will be made, and also their resemblance with and difference from other throne-room scenes will be highlighted. Finally John's theological messages, that develop from this, will be detailed.

Although the Book of Judith has been thought to reflect a historical situation, this is not necessarily the case, and more recent literary critical studies have provided greater access to its intricacies. Judith contains a number of direct speeches, and direct speech in Hebrew literature in general, influences both plot development and characterization. This thesis is a discussion of how the direct speeches in Judith influence both its plot development and characterization. Since a number of the speeches contain irony, special attention has been given to this literary device.

This thesis explores the interaction of literature and theology by means of archetypal criticism with specific reference to certain characters in the Gospel of John. Northrop Frye's system of archetypal literary criticism consisting of the four mythoi or archetypes of romance, tragedy, irony and satire, and comedy forms the governing framework and means of exchange between literature and theology. This synchronic interaction is centered on Jesus, an innocent man acting on behalf of others, as romance; Pilate, unable or unwilling to act justly in an unwanted and unavoidable particular circumstance, as tragedy; Thomas and the Jews, variations on the theme of seeing and not seeing as irony; and Peter, who denies Christ and later recovers, as comedy. These characters' function as points of exchange, each reaching their defining literary and theological climax during the crucifixion events. Within the FG's narrative these characters also serve as imaginative points of contact and identification for the reader at which the reader's own faith response may be placed within the literary and theological milieu of the Fourth Gospel. Conceptually, Jesus and romance, Pilate and tragedy, Thomas, the Jews, and irony, and Peter and comedy may be characterized by representation, reduction, negation, and integration, respectively. The variable between these four mythoi and between these characters is the relationship between a belief or an ideal and experience or reality assumed by the work as a whole and/or assumed and displayed by each character.

This thesis considers the evidence for current assertions that the book of Ecclesiastes is a deterministic work composed during the Hellenistic period. It reviews the linguistic and socioeconomic arguments for its dating either to Persian or Hellenistic times, and concludes in favour of the latter (Chapter 1). An examination of key terms occurring in passages thought to be deterministic follows. The contexts in which these terms are used support the thesis that Qohelet was a determinist, and that this concept is expressed in the catalogue of seasons in 3:1-8 (Chapter 2). Recently, Joseph Blenkinsopp has challenged deterministic readings of 3:1-8 on new grounds: this thesis provides a response to the specific criticisms raised by his article (Chapter 3). Thereafter, it goes on to discuss the question of whether "the work of God" and "the work which is done under the sun" are equivalent, providing fresh evidence is produced to demonstrate that this is indeed the case (Chapter 4), and offering a new explanation as to how Qohelet may have reconciled the concept of determinism with free will (Chapter 5). Thereafter, it considers the activity of God in the sphere of human emotions and concludes that the ultimate decision not just about what human beings do, but about what they feel, rests with God (Chapters 6, 7). Finally, this thesis views the determinism of Ecclesiastes against its Jewish background and possible Stoic sources : it reaches the conclusion that Qohelet's thought and manner of expression is fundamentally Hebraic but that he probably had some knowledge of Stoic determinism as well (Chapters 8, 9). The apparent connection with early Jewish deterministic texts and Stoicism supports the current consensus that the book of Ecclesiastes was composed in the period 250-225 B.C.E.