Thesis (D.Min.)--Acadia University, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 222-231). Also available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.A.(Th.))--Acadia University, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.A.(Th.))--Acadia University, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.A.(Th.))--Acadia University, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.A.(Th.))--Acadia University, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.A.)--Acadia University, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 108-119). Also available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

This project begins to build a bridge between the commonly held assumption that congregational renewal is leader-dependent and the understanding that new life is found by tending to relationship as learned through worship. Samuel Wells’ concept of “being with” and James K. A. Smith’s liturgical anthropology provide a theoretical framework for relationally oriented renewal and reimagined worship. This project provides a practical means for the Franklin United Methodist Church (Franklin, Massachusetts) to conceive, implement, and assess the efficacy of worship to help congregants relate. By reimagining worship as relational, relationships should be strengthened, and the community should find new life together.

My thesis entails an examination into the presence of the sublime in two novels by Cormac McCarthy: his postmodern western The Crossing and his apocalyptic work The Road. I draw on Kant's aesthetic theory of the sublime, specifically focusing on the Dynamical and Mathematical sublime in relation to the settings of these two narratives. For the sake of brevity, I limit my study to nature's and religion's relation to the sublime in these works. Areas of particular interest to me include: a) How/why the characters of each novel appear unaffected by or even resigned to the lack of control or explanation concerning their surroundings and b) Whether the characters' sense of choice is dependent upon the presence of the sublime in their surroundings. At the thesis' conclusion, I suggest further routes for research, such as the potential connection between the aforementioned Kantian notion of human freedom and a burgeoning concept of morality in McCarthy's later novels, and perhaps a link from McCarthy's sublime and otherworldly slant to literary subgenres such as Magical Realism.

The shift from the paradigm ofthe Enlightenment (modernity) to post-modernity will have a significant impact on the concept and practice of stewardship in the church and in the theological seminary. This thesis project examines fund-raising under the emerging paradigm and offers proposals for the raising of funds for McMaster Divinity College. It does so by looking at current and potential donor sources in addition to examining and suggesting methodologies to assist in underwriting the visions and purposes ofthe College. As a background, the study presents a brief analysis ofthe philosophical and theological roots of McMaster Divinity College. This is done by considering a number of the influences common to most theological schools founded in conjunction with North American universities in the 19th century. The influences peculiar to McMaster are considered as well. The thesis project also examines several points of conflict that have arisen periodically between the College and its long-time sponsor, the Baptist Convention of Ontario and Quebec, in order to understand better the relationships between the two institutions. This is accomplished by consideration of their legal relationship and the circumstances leading to a denomonational schism in 1927, the Sunday school "curriculum controversy" of 1964-65, and, more recently, the so-called Bishop Robinson controversy of the mid-1980s. The meaning of stewardship has changed both in its theological concept and its usage in society. It continues to change. Several theologians and biblical scholars ofthe post-modern era are returning to a more biblically informed understanding ofstewardship with its much greater emphasis on accountability and responsibility, not only for the use of personal resources such as money and property, but for all the resources that God has entrusted to his people. The theological school likely will continue to be the primary training institution for Christians who desire more formal theological education but the churches likely will wish to see those teaching in and administering the Divinity College model the qualities ofthe Christian steward. That probability will be a major factor for recruitment and financial support. / Thesis / Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

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