abstract Preaching a christian worldview in a post-christian culture Robert Craig Thompson, Ph.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2016 Chair: Dr. Timothy K. Beougher This dissertation examines worldview preaching in a post-Christian culture. Chapter 1 introduces the concept of worldview preaching and its necessity for evangelism within the church of the twenty-first century. This chapter also defines terms used throughout and establishes the methodology for the research. Chapter 2 takes a more in-depth look at presuppositional “apologetical preaching” and its application to the study of worldview in evangelistic preaching. This chapter also shows the difference between apologetical preaching and expositional preaching and suggests apologetical preaching as a needed corrective. Chapter 3 argues that worldview preaching is a form of spiritual warfare. This chapter also outlines the ways that preaching is spiritual warfare in three areas: battle with the flesh, battle with the world, and battle with Satan. Chapter 4 introduces the concept of sermon-driven discipleship. It is argued in this chapter that evangelism cannot be separated from discipleship and that evangelistic preaching necessarily focuses on discipleship as well. This chapter also shows how worldview preaching can direct the discipleship ministries of the church. Chapter 5 investigates examples of worldview preaching. It is argued in this chapter that some preachers from the past and present practice the form of worldview preaching advocated in this dissertation without having applied the particular terms associated with this research project. This chapter critiques those who have adopted secular worldviews in their preaching as well as those who have adapted their message delivery to fit the secular world. Chapter 6 examines the deficiency of worldview emphasis in preaching literature. It commends John Stott’s approach, but also shows that bridging the two worlds doesn’t go far enough. This chapter then surveys a number of preaching texts for their emphasis on worldview and presuppositional apologetics in their treatment of preaching. Chapter 7 answers the question of how these findings can be applied to contemporary churches. It concludes by emphasizing the need for preachers to engage with the world around them and to challenge the worldview of their secular hearers and challenges church leaders and educators to adapt their approach to preaching and preaching education to include presuppositional apologetics as a necessary component.

Approximately 900bp of the Phaseolus vulgaris cytosolic glutamine synthetase gIn-a gene promoter has been cloned and the DNA sequence determined. The transcriptional start site was mapped using primer extension and RNAse protection techniques. The promoter fragment was fused to the E. coli uidA reporter gene encoding the B-glucuronidase (GUS) enzyme and introduced into transgenic Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco) and Lotus corniculatus. In transgenic tobacco, the gIn-a promoter directed uidA expression in the root-tip, in incipient lateral roots and in emerging lateral roots of all the transgenic plant lines studied. The promoter also directed uidA expression in the root vascular tissue and in the root hairs of a proportion of the lines studied. With the exception of root hairs, the promoter conferred a similar pattern of expression in transgenic L.corniculatus roots and expression of uidA was also observed in senescing mature nodules and possibly in incipient nodules. Expression of gigA was absent from young and mature transgenic nodules. Activity of the gln-a promoter was also associated with several tobacco flower structures including anthers, ovary placenta and vascular tissue, ova, pollen and the stigma and style. Several developing tobacco fruit structures including the placenta, vascular tissue, the developing seed cotyledon and the developing seed coat were also associated with gIn-a. promoter activity. The level of extractable leaf GUS activity was observed to increase between 2- and 5-fold 24 hours after mechanical wounding, relative to non-wounded transgenic leaf tissue. Although twenty four hours after wounding, uidA expression was not associated with those leaf tissues adjacent to the wound site, a higher proportion of wounded leaves showed uidA expression associated with the vascular tissue than in nonwounded leaves. The extractable leaf GUS activity of control cauliflower mosaic virus 358 promoter uidA transgenic plants were seen to decrease up to 50% 24 hours after mechanical wounding relative to non-wounded leaf tissue. Possible physiological functions for gln-a gene expression are discussed.

Potato virus Y (PVY) is considered to be the most serious viral pathogen that affects potato crops worldwide and can cause substantial yield losses. PVY exists as a complex of strains that can be distinguished on the basis of their biology, serology and genome analysis. In recent decades novel recombinant PVYN strains have emerged that can cause Potato Tuber Necrotic Ringspot Disease (PTNRD). It is therefore important to understand the potential threat to the Scottish seed potato industry. This molecular nature of PVY isolates in Scotland was established through the use of partial sequencing, revealing a predominance of isolates belonging to the molecular EU-NTN clade (ca 75%). Assessing the biological characteristics of selected isolates indicated that most isolates in Scotland belong to the biological PVYN type, however PVYE is also present. Molecular analysis of a PVYE isolate has shown that identifying the molecular determinants for vein necrosis production in tobacco is complex. Although it has not been reported from the field in Scotland, PTNRD initiation is possible with most PVYN isolates under optimal climatic conditions. Field trials suggest that PVYEU-NTN is more efficiently transmitted by aphids across a growing season than PVYNA-NTN and PVYO, with a higher than expected proportion of tubers infected with the PVYEU-NTN isolate. This suggests that once plants are inoculated with the virus, PVYEU-NTN isolates are more likely to infect progeny tubers. Taken together, the outcomes of this project should provide a better understanding as of PVY molecular nature in Scotland its pathogenicity and epidemiology with the view to understanding why PVYN variants have become an important threat for the seed potato industry both in Scotland and worldwide.

Cassava brown streak disease (CBSD) threatens cassava production in eastern and southern African countries. Diagnostic protocols currently available for the causal agents of CBSD, Cassava brown streak virus (CBSV) and Cassava brown streak Uganda virus (CBSUV), were unreliable but were urgently needed. In this study, sampling procedures and diagnostic protocols were developed for accurate and reliable detection of both CBSV and CBSUV. The cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) method of RNA extraction was optimized for sample preparation from infected cassava plants and compared with the commercial kit RNeasy (Qiagen) for sensitivity and reproducibility. Results showed that both protocols were reliable but CTAB was more cost-effective and ideal for resource-poor laboratories. Mixed infections of cassava mosaic begomoviruses (CMBs) that cause cassava mosaic disease (CMD), CBSV and CBSUV have become more common with the recent spread of CBSD at mid-altitudes. A multiplex PCR for the simultaneous detection of viruses that cause both diseases, the first of its kind for cassava, was therefore developed to detect CBSV and CBSUV along with the three commonly occurring CMBs (African cassava mosaic virus (ACMV)), East African cassava mosaic virus (EACMV), and East African cassava mosaic virus-Uganda (EACMVUG) in eastern Africa. Similarly, a duplex PCR was developed for the simultaneous detection of CBSV and CBSUV, both viruses being detected in field-collected samples from Tanzania and Kenya. The genetic diversity of more than 40 CBSD isolates from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, and Mozambique was further examined by sequencing the coat protein (CP) gene and partial HAM1 gene sequences. The phylogenetic tree clustered the CBSD isolates into two groups reflecting the two virus species causing CBSD. In this study, various strategies were carried out for generating infectious clones of CBSV; gateway cloning, in vivo and in vitro transcription methods, and amplification of the viral genome in three fragments. Although 3 overlapping CBSV fragments were successfully cloned, the presence of an unexpected mutation at one of the cloning sites unfortunately did not allow reassembling of the fragments to construct the full-length cDNA.

Yam (Dioscorea spp.) is an important staple food crop in Sub-Saharan Africa and is vegetatively-propagated. This had led to the accumulation of viruses decreasing yam production and hindering international movement of selected germplasm. This study was to determine the prevalence and diversity of yam badnaviruses, as well as determine if badnavirus sequences are also integrated in the genomes of West African yam breeding lines. DNAs were extracted from Nigerian yam leaf samples (177 breeding lines, 78 landraces), using an optimised CTAB-extraction method and then screened using degenerate badnavirus-specific PCR primers targeting a 579 bp RT-RNaseH region. All 255 yam samples (100%) tested badnavirus PCR-positive. Denaturation gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis of these PCR products revealed 24 discrete bands in total. Sequence analysis of the bands confirmed they were typical of the genus Badnavirus and a nucleotide diversity of 1-37% in this partial RT-RNaseH region representative nine of badnavirus species group. To determine which sequences were from episomal infections, rolling circle amplification (RCA) was performed on samples, and three complete genome sequences of yam badnaviruses were amplified, cloned and sequenced. Two of these full viral genome sequences (7258 and 7538 bp) of D. rotundata origin represent new species in the genus Badnavirus and the third (7529 bp) from D. alata represented an isolate of Dioscorea bacilliform AL virus. The three new genomes shared nucleotide identities of 68.3-70.5% and demonstrated a typical size and organisation of yam badnaviruses. PCR-based assays were developed for the detection of the five yam badnavirus genomes, and for the detection of three putative badnavirus species groups (K08, K09 and U12) that contain integrated sequences. Southern hybridisation results using individual DGGE band partial RT-RNaseH sequences (NGb4_Dr, NGb5_Dr and NGb6_Dr), supported integration of badnavirus sequences in genomes of D. rotundata breeding lines. Fluorescent in situ hybridisation (FISH) results using badnavirus complete and partial cloned genome sequences as probes were inconclusive for the yam samples tested. The consequences of the integrated and episomal badnavirus sequences for yam improvement programmes in West Africa are discussed.

The research seeks to understand the virus-host plant interactions for cassava brown streak disease (CBSD) caused by two viruses, Cassava brown streak virus (CBSV) and Ugandan Cassava brown streak virus (UCBSV) of the genus Ipomovirus, family Potyviridae. The diversity of six CBSD isolates from the endemic (Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania) and the recently developed epidemic areas (Uganda) of the disease in eastern Africa was studied. Five cassava varieties differing in virus resistance levels; Albert, Columbian, Ebwanateraka, TMS60444 (all susceptible) and Kiroba (tolerant) were graft-inoculated with the UCBSV and CBSV isolates. Based on a number of parameters, the isolates can be grouped into two main categories; severe and milder forms. Transmission of viruses using non-vector modes confirmed that CBSV was sap transmissible from cassava to cassava. Graft-inoculation of infected scions onto CBSD-free cassava plants was the most efficient mode of transmission which resulted in 80 and 100% rate for UCBSV and CBSV respectively. The two virus isolates were not transmitted through contaminated tools and hands. The effect of host-tolerance on virus was investigated in a long-term experiment where three cassava varieties Albert, Kiroba and Kaleso (field-resistant to CBSD) were graft-inoculated with UCBSV and CBSV. The three cassava varieties showed differences in virus movement, symptom development, severity and relative virus titres. The mechanisms of resistance to CBSD were investigated by making cuttings, from various parts of the plants, and a greater number of disease-free plants were generated from cuttings made from Kaleso than Kiroba and Albert. The fecundity of B. tabaci and its ability to transmit the virus were determined and results indicated no significant differences in the ability of the three cassava varieties to support whitefly development. Finally, thermal and chemical treatments of tissue cultured plants were conducted and the combinations of both treatments produced the greatest number of disease-free plants in all three varieties; Kaleso (50%), Kiroba (44%) and Albert (35%). The information generated in this thesis has greatly improved our understanding of the interactions between the three biotic factors; the host, virus and vector in the CBSD-pathosystem, which would be highly useful in designing effective disease management strategies.

In 2009, a sweet potato begomovirus (sweepovirus) was detected for the first time in Uganda. An isolate was sequenced, providing the first full sequence of a sweepovirus from mainland Africa which differed from other sweepoviruses by at least 13%, discriminating this isolate as a new species, ‘Sweet potato leaf curl Uganda virus’ (SPLCUV). SPLCUV was quite common in cultivars (cvs) Ejumula, New Kawogo and 318L having uneven distribution in infected plants and reversion to healthy occurred, especially in cv New Kawogo. SPLCUV was observed not to be synergised by Sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus (SPCSV), apparently making it the first report of a sweet potato virus not synergised by SPCSV. Besides SPLCUV, a ‘mild’ SPCSV strain that induced purpling symptoms and 50% yield reduction similar to wild type SPCSV when infecting alone was identified from Busia district, Uganda. ‘Mild’ SPCSV was never observed to be co-infected with Sweet potato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV) in farmers’ fields. Experimentally, ‘mild’ SPCSV induced mild symptoms in Ipomoea setosa and sweet potato plants and SPFMV titre was greater in co-infections of SPFMV and wild type SPCSV than in co-infections of SPFMV and ‘mild’ SPCSV. Both RNase3 (accession No. HE575406) and p22 (accession No. HE575409) genes on RNA1 of ‘mild’ SPCSV compared closely to those reported previously. Instead, RNA1 region appears to be expressed less in the ‘mild’ SPCSV infection than in the wild type SPCSV infection though RNA2 continues to be more expressed in the ‘mild’ SPCSV infection than in the wild type SPCSV infection. Recovery from SPVD symptoms and reversion from SPFMV were observed in cv Kampala White co-infected with ‘mild’ SPCSV and SPFMV. Reversion from SPFMV single infections occured in several landraces with higher rates observed in shoots of resistant than susceptible cultivars. Overall, cv NASPOT 11 was the fastest to revert while cv Beauregard was the slowest.

This text is concerned with the intellectual and social alienation experienced by a twentieth century German writer (1906 - ).·the alienation begins in the context of German society, but this context is later globalised. The thesis first discusses the social and· intellectual origins and the salient features of this alienated stance, before proceeding to a detailed analysis of its recurring symptoms and later intensification in each of the author's main works, chronologically surveyed, supported by reference to minor writings. From the novels of the thirties' showing the burgher-artist conflict, and its symbolic dichotomies, the renunciation of traditional German values, and the ambiguous confrontation with new disruptive socio-political forces, we move to the post-war trilogy (1951-54), with its roots in the German social and political experience of the thirties' onwards. The latter, however, is merely a background for the presentation of a much more comprehensive view of the human condition:- a pessimistic vision of the repetitiveness and incorrigibility of this condition, the possibility of the apocalypse, the bankruptcy and ineffectiveness of European religion and culture, the 'absurd' meaninglessness of history, the intellectual artist's position and role(s) in mass-culture and an abstract, technologised mass-society, the central theme of fragmentation - of the structure of reality, society and personality, the artist's relation to this fragmentation, intensified in the twentieth,century. Style and language are consonant with this world-picture. Many of these features recur in the travel-books (1958-61); diachronic as well as synchronic approaches characterise the presentation of various modes of contemporary society in America, Russia, France and other European countries. Important features of intellectual alienation are:- the changelessness of historical motifs (e.g. tyranny, aggression), the conventions of burgher society, both old and new forms, the qualitative depreciation and standardisation of living, industrialisation and technology in complex, vulnerable and concemtrated urban societies, ambiguities of fragmented pluralism. Reference is made .to other travel-writers.

Despite the increasing popularity of research on intercultural preparation and its effectiveness, research on training for inpatriates has not been developed with the same level of rigour as research on training for expatriates. Furthermore, research on intercultural training hardly ever includes the aspect of preparing for the corporate culture of a company. For expatriates coming from headquarters’ national culture and equipped with a good knowledge of headquarters’ corporate culture, it might be sufficient to address only the national culture of the location abroad. But can the same be said for inpatriates coming from a foreign subsidiary? Therefore the qualitative research of my thesis was aimed at finding out if intercultural training programmes that address only the national culture of the host country are sufficient to prepare inpatriates for working at headquarters. A case study using a German multinational company has been conducted in order to find out what kind of problems and irritations inpatriates at the company’s headquarters perceive at work. In order to determine whether the findings are related to the national or the corporate culture, Hall’s and Hofstede’s approaches to culture were used. The interview analysis produced the following conclusion: Although the researched company promotes standardised worldwide corporate guidelines, there are many differences between headquarters and subsidiaries regarding the interpretation and realisation of these guidelines. These differences cause irritation, confusion and problems for the inpatriates. Therefore an effective intercultural preparation for inpatriates should be tailor-made and take into account the aspect of corporate culture, as well as the specific roles and functions of inpatriates.

Germany's latest attempt at unification raises again the question of German nationhood and nationality. The present study examines the links between the development of the German language and the political history of Germany, principally in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. By examining the role of language in the establishment and exercise of political power and in the creation of national and group solidarity in Germany, the study both provides insights into the nature of language as political action and contributes to the socio-cultural history of the German language. The language-theoretical hypothesis on which the study is based sees language as a central factor in political action, and opposes the notion that language is a reflection of underlying political 'realities' which exist independently of language. Language is viewed as language-in-text which performs identifiable functions. Following Leech, five functions are distinguished, two of which (the regulative and the phatic) are regarded as central to political processes. The phatic function is tested against the role of the German language as a creator and symbol of national identity, with particular attention being paid to concepts of the 'purity' of the language. The regulative function (under which a persuasive function is also subsumed) is illustrated using the examples of German fascist discourse and selected cases from German history post-1945. In addition, the interactions are examined between language change and socio-economic change by postulating that language change is both a condition and consequence of socio-economic change, in that socio-economic change both requires and conditions changes in the communicative environment. Finally, three politocolinguistic case studies from the eight and ninth decades of the twentieth century are introduced in order to demonstrate specific ways in which language has been deployed in an attempt to create political realities, thus verifying the initial hypothesis of the centrality of language to the political process.