New Testament / M.Th. (New Testament)

Chapter 1 first establishes the study's methodology, then explores Hebrews' interest(s) in Leviticus as a pathway into Leviticus itself, sketching Hebrews' appropriation of the Day of Atonement, the high priest as sacrificial officiant, daily sacrifices, the inauguration of covenant and cult, and the twofold conception of purifying God's people and place. Chapter 2 offers a portrait of Levitical sacrifice, first examining its creational foundations, canonical precursors, and covenantal context, then surveying the various types of sacrifices. Following this, two topics which receive more detailed attention are the Day of Atonement and the forensic logic running through the cult, the latter seen in (1) the links between priesthood, sacrifice, and wrath, (2) the blood canon of Leviticus 17:11, (3) the concept of sin-bearing, and (4) the "biological" and "legal" nature of impurity. Chapter 3 briefly outlines some of the answers this survey of Leviticus brings to the text of Hebrews then details a number of questions it raises which subsequent study of Hebrews should engage.

This thesis 1) argues that Paul's use of the boasting motif in Philippians (1:26; 2:16; cf. 3:3) presents a mutual boast in which three parties participate: Paul, the Philippians, and God/Christ, and 2) demonstrates that such mutual boasting is both theologically warranted and culturally intelligible. The theological warrant for mutual boasting or honor appears through attending to the wider contexts of the Scriptural texts to which Paul alludes in the key exhortation section of the epistle (2:12-16), most importantly his allusion to Deut 32:5 in Phil 2:15 and to Isa 49:4 in Phil 2:16. The wider context of Deut 32 includes reference to the covenant ceremony at the close of the law-code (Deut 26:16-19), where mutual honor appears in the relationship established between YHWH and Israel, with Israel being exalted to become a καύχημα for YHWH (Deut 26:19 LXX). The wider context of Isa 49:4 incorporates the important motif of the reward of the Servant (Isa 49:4b; 53:12), whose calling to facilitate Israel's glorious restoration (42:6-9; 49:6), though his labor was “in vain” (49:4), gains YHWH's promise that the Servant himself will be glorified (49:5). By drawing on both of these Scriptural contexts Paul presents the mutual honor arising from the Philippians' obedience as the eschatologically restored “children of God” (Phil 2:15) as engendering a καύχημα that is mutually shared between themselves (cf. 3:21), God who receives the glory from their righteousness (1:11), and Paul as the servant figure whose labor among them is now “not in vain” (2:16). This presentation of mutual boasting would also have been culturally intelligible in light of the nature of friendship and family relationships in the Roman world of first-century Philippi. Paul presents his relationship with the Philippians in terms both reminiscent of friendship and overtly drawn from kinship relations (cf. ἀδελφοί in 1:12, 14; 3:1, 13, 17; 4:1). In the Greco-Roman world, these two relational paradigms were conspicuous in their promotion of mutual honor, since friends were expected to work toward each other's honor, as were brothers. In view of the cultural expectation of sharing honor, friends and brothers were also able to deploy the reality of mutual honor for the purpose of exhortation, as can be seen in the rhetoric of Roman letter writers. In particular, Cicero, Seneca, and Fronto presuppose in their letters the motivational power that appealing to a regard for mutual honor has when issuing advice or commands. It is in the final chapter of this study that we treat Paul's motivation of the Philippians towards obedience by drawing on this cultural script of mutual honor as the “vehicle” for communicating his theology, appealing to such mutual honor at 2:16 to motivate the Philippians to “work out their salvation with fear and trembling” (2:12) and to “do all things without grumbling or disputing” (2:14).

M.A. / This script is all about interpreting and preaching that which happened and was taught in Palestine during the first century A.D. The emphasis is not so much, however, on what happened politically, but on what the socio-cultural circumstances were that surrounded those incidences. It must be noted that the political happenings had a tremendous influence upon the way people living in that age viewed their world and conducted their affairs with others around them. Their world was one that was wrought with political strife and continuous wars that ravaged the countryside and impoverished its inhabitants. This impoverishment led to resentment and deep hatred of the invaders that, in turn, led to constant uprisings against those same people. This trend had continued for many generations until the Romans came and brought some semblance of peace and prosperity to the region. However, that prosperity was not available to the ordinary man in the street. With the supposed prosperity, came a decline in morals that went dead against the grain of the culture of the Jews in particular. They reacted to this by withdrawing from society, and taking refuge in a strict interpretation of the Law of Moses. However, this was the reaction of the Scribes and Pharisees and not the populace who generally found the demands placed upon them too strict. Despite all this, social relationships were conducted at ordinary levels which accounted for some semblance of normality. and their group-orientated personalities and collective values bound them into a unit. Then came Jesus of Nazareth who captured the imaginations of many who left what little they had and followed him around the country as he taught a radically different way of dealing with existing pressures under the power of the God of Israel. However, many others believed that he was no more than a charlatan bent on organizing a revolt against the Roman authorities. Unfortunately the presentation of Jesus by his followers was based on his theological significance rather that on who he was as person living in first century Palestine, leaving no concrete evidence pointing to his humanity. The movement that developed after his death was viewed with as much suspicion as Jesus himself was, although they were really only concerned with the restoration of Israel's true worship of God. Matthew, or Levi, the tax collector was one of those who left what he was doing to follow Jesus and it is to him that authorship of the Gospel of Matthew is ascribed. It is contended that he wrote to present Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah to the Jews. How much of an influence, however, his culture and circumstances had on his writings is a matter of considerable debate as he only recorded his version of Jesus' teachings some thirty years after his (Jesus') death. The question of relevance is one that of necessity, has to be addressed. A paper of this nature would be incomplete if it was not done. It is a foregone fact that modem societies have morals exactly as low as those in first century Palestine and that there too, exists the need to remind people that there are still standards that do not conform to those prescribed by Godless men and women. But there is a great gulf between ourselves and Matthew and his audience. This gulf spans not only time, but culture as well. To begin with, the author wrote within the confines of his own cultural context, to a specific group of people with the intention of conveying a specific message to them. We stand outside of this work: to be exact, two thousand years outside of it. Our culture is not the same as theirs. So cannot hope to ever take what Matthew wrote and transpose it directly onto our own societies; we are too conditioned by our own cultural influences to do that responsibly. If, on the other hand, we sincerely wish to be responsible in our interpretation and application of the Word, we have to understand Matthew's and his audiences' context, keep it in mind all the time, and seriously endeavor to suspend our own prejudices and presuppositions in favour of letting the text "speak for itself'.

No abstract / New Testament / D.Th.

No abstract available / Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Studies / D.Th. (Old Testament)

The Concept of the Pauline church unity founded on baptism is investigated from a practical theological perspective in terms of both the theoretical and practical method. After outlining the theological principles of this analogy; an actual situation of a local church is researched and the findings of this empirical analysis are used to indicate terms of a practical model of the body of Christ. An essential theological principle is that the church is to serve the Kingdom of God and to be a continuing incarnation of the word of God. The church which is full of quarrels and divisions would not be able to proclaim the word of God freely. Instead of preaching the word of God; they will concentrate on calling themselves that; I am of Paul, and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. This type of expression does not build unity among Christians. What we must do as Christians is that we should accept one another regardless of being affiliated to ZCC; Roman catholic church, Apostolic Faith Mission; Nazarene church, etc. According to Paul's views, all churches from different denominations form the body of Christ. There are also a handful of local churches whose members are trying to increase diversity within their pews. My aspiration is to see all the Christians from different races coming together; praying together and worshipping together as the children of God. My wish is to see the leaders from various denomination focusing on promoting fellowship and reconciliation amongst themselves and their church members accepting one another. The resolute determination of some whites to travel to black communities to worship or of blacks to join and participate in overwhelming white congregations; reveals the depth of some Christians desire to overcome the barriers which have been part of South African life for so long. This desire may be for more prevalent among the laity than the clergy have traditionally imagined. Christians from different races must change if they want to enter into the Kingdom of God. The disturbing factor is that without a real willingness to change there is little hope that it will be achieved in a generation still cluttered with the baggage of the past. Reconciliation and dignity of all believers in Christ needs to be encouraged by Pastors and church members, because we all from the body of Christ. / Religious Studies & Arabic / M.A. (Biblical Studies)

No abstract available / New Testament / M.Th. (New Testament)

The times of Jeremiah were characterized by the spirit of imperial expansionism. Assyria had just collapsed and Babylon was quickly filling the vacuum. On the other hand Jeremiah was proclaiming doom on the nation because breaking the covenant. Which covenant? The covenant made during the reforms of Josiah. Was it the Davidic covenant or the Sinai Covenant? This research answers these questions and concludes that it was the Sinai covenant that was broken in Jeremiah 11 and led to the deportation into exile. * Chapter 1 outlines the challenge. The problem statement, the hypothesis and the purpose are outlined. * Chapter 2 delves into the challenges and problems pertaining to the study of Jeremiah. These are the historicity of Jeremiah, the ideological Jeremiah and the authorship of the book of Jeremiah. The deuteronomistic influence and the theme of Jeremiah are also examined. * Chapter 3 is a study of the origin and history of the covenant. Here the pentateuchal roots of the covenant are traced form the election of Abraham to the Sinai covenant. * Chapter 5 is a survey of the political and religious context of Jeremiah to determine whether Jeremiah experienced the times prior to the deportation. In this chapter attention is paid to the deuteronomic reform, the covenant with David and the Davidic ideology. The challenge in this chapter is the date of when Jeremiah commenced his ministry. This is due to the fact that Jeremiah is not consulted when the book is discovered in the temple. The prophetess Huldah is consulted by Josiah the king. * Chapter 6 is a focus on Jeremiah 11. The process of identifying which covenant was broken in Jeremiah 11 begins with the examination of the literary genre of the chapter. The Deuteronomistic influence is also taken into account. The three key Sinai phrases which point to the Sinai covenant are outlined in detail leading to the conclusion that Jeremiah pointed Israel to the fact that the impending disaster was a result of their violation of the Sinai covenant. / Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Studies / M. Div. (Old Testament)

The rapid changes in society today have caused many a leader in different environments to admit that they feel overwhelmed by, and inadequate to face the reality that this brings along. Our society is, according to many, in a transition, or as Roxburgh (2010) calls it, in an “in-between time”. This “in-between time” can be labelled as post-modern, post-colonial, post-democratic, or whatever language seems fitting; the fact of the matter is that studies are starting to show that leaders are struggling to lead in this changing landscape. This has also become particularly true in church leadership. This issue has been visited by many practical theologians of late. What has not been done yet was to visit this problem from an Old Testament perspective and to see if the Old Testament can contribute to this issue. In this study the Old Testament prophetic book of Ezekiel is taken as case study to see if it can shed any light on the matter. Ezekiel as prophet needs to speak to an audience that is also in rapidly changing circumstances. The lives of most Judeans changed with the first Babylonian exile of 597 BCE and got worse with the final exile in 586 BCE that also included the fall of Jerusalem. Suddenly the “known” became “unknown” and the familiar surroundings and lifestyle of Judea were substituted by the unfamiliar surroundings of Babylon and life as exiles. In these times people look to their prophets and their leaders to make sense of the reality and to offer some hope for the future. Ezekiel responds to this with communication. His communication criticises and energises. His communication seems vivid and metaphorically loaded and in the end stirs up imagination. This imagination gives clarity and hope for the future. What this study therefore attempts to do is to look for the process of this communication. It tries to find the different stages that Ezekiel goes through in his communication process. Out of these stages or steps it then builds a process of communication that is suggested as a possible Old Testament perspective on a modern-day problem. In this endeavour it proposes to build a bridge between practical issues of church life, leadership in the church and Biblical Studies. / Old Testament & Ancient Near Eastern Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Biblical Studies)