Thesis (Honors)--Liberty University Honors Program, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. Div.)--St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, 1979. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 105-108).

Thesis (M.A.(Clinical Psychology))-University of Pretoria, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references. Available on the Internet via the World Wide Web.

Thèse--Paris. / Includes bibliographical references.

This thesis sets out to examine the historical growth of Freemasonry at the Cape and its expansion eastwards and northwards. It covers the period from the beginnings of Freemasonry in Cape Town in 1772 until 1876 when English and Dutch branches of the Craft had become involved in the political issues of that time. In doing so it tries to examine the effect of social, economic and political events in South Africa on Dutch and English Freemasonry, making the somewhat bold claim that this masonic movement acted often as a mirror to these events. The study confines itself to the historical aspects of freemasonry and does not endeavour to portray esoteric changes that took place within the Craft. Specifically it details the start of Freemasonry on the continent of Africa by Abraham Chiron and the founding of the first lodge, De Goede Hoop, a Netherlandic lodge, its decline and resurgence during the Dutch, British and Batavian occupations and the beginnings of English Freemasonry under the final British occupation. From then it sets out the expansion and changes in organisation brought about by several masonic personalities, many of whom were leading figures in the society of their time.

This thesis is the result of an investigation into the representations of the Jew that existed in the English Catholic discourse during the final years of the nineteenth- and the early decades of the twentieth-century (1896-1929). As very little has been written about English Catholic representations of the Jew during this timeframe, the primary aim of this project has been to excavate a layer of discourse which, with the exception of the published works of a few prominent individuals, has hitherto remained largely unexamined. In order to increase our understanding of the English Catholic discourse as much as possible, a wide range of sources have been examined, including the published works of prominent, obscure and anonymous authors, the pastoral letters and sermons of cardinals, bishops and priests, articles and editorials in English Catholic newspapers and periodicals, pamphlets, personal correspondence, letters to the editors of newspapers, unpublished documents and a small number of oral testimonies. Three main types of representation of the Jew have been uncovered in this project: the roles assigned to the Jew in traditional Christian myths, contemporary stereotypes of the Jew, and composite constructions which combine themes drawn from myths and stereotypes. Representations of the Jew which originated in traditional Christian myths include the Jew as Pharisee, Christ-Killer, fanatical murderer, diabolic sorcerer and Antichrist. Contemporary stereotypes portray the Jew as usurious, cowardly, unpatriotic and secretive. Composite constructions combining themes from traditional myths and contemporary stereotypes include the Jew-Freemason conspirator and the Zionist Menace. The material examined reveals that representations of the Jew in the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century were not always modern in character. In the case of the English Catholic discourse, they were often pre-modern or anti-modern. Many existing studies of English antisemitism argue that by the late nineteenth century, constructions of the Jew based on traditional Christian myths had largely, though not entirely, been replaced by modern socio-political and racial forms of antisemitism. This study however demonstrates that traditional religious myths about the Jews continued to thrive and function in the English Catholic discourse. Their continued existence was not confined to a handful of narrative artefacts from a bygone era. English Catholic constructions of the Jew combined these persistent Christian myths with other more contemporary social stereotypes, though surprisingly, the one element that was usually absent from these constructions was "race." Jews were rarely denigrated as racially inferior in the English Catholic discourse and there were few references to biology or pseudo-scientific "race" theories. They were however portrayed as greedy, cowardly, disloyal and secretive villains and diabolized as Pharisees, Christ-Killers, fanatical murderers, sorcerers and Antichrists. In some cases the language used to describe the Jew, the Pharisee, the Zionist and the Jew-Freemason, drew upon a vocabulary which suggested an apocalyptic conflict between the forces of good and evil.

This study explores the themes of the experience of belonging to a male-only society, namely Freemasonry, by allowing members of the Freemasons to tell their stories of their experience of belonging to Freemasonry. The epistemological framework was that of phenomenology, using a qualitative research design. The study involved a series of in-depth individual interviews. Their stories provide alternative ways of perceiving men’s experience of belonging to a male-only society, focusing on the Freemasons. Several common themes were also identified in the participants’ interviews. The researcher found that the history of the Freemasons plays a large role in the member’s justification for female exclusion. Gender, as well as the members need to belong to a male- only society, gave the researcher some insight into their experience of belonging to a male-only society. The themes that were articulated in the study may be helpful in trying to understand the experiences of belonging to a male-only society. / Dissertation (MA (Clinical Psychology)--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Psychology / unrestricted

This thesis in the History of Education studies the pedagogization of Swedish society from 1812–1828. These ambitions were promoted by state officials and educational innovators who we­re tightly knit through social networks. The research questions are: Why did these indi­vi­duals orga­nize themselves the way they did in the field of education? Which practices of external com­mun­ica­­tion and interaction within associations existed? Which impact did these practices of external communication and internal interaction have on the educational debate? Civic formation is analyzed through the activity or practices identified in the diffusion of useful knowledge, self-education, scho­ols, and educational policies. Arguments for civic formation, educational imperatives, are reflected in new words and new schools. The imperatives are in part an outcome of social networking studied through affiliations to associations, newspapers and governing boards. Hence, a great number of affiliations have been organized in a new and advanced web-based application. Papers and associations were important to in dissolving feudal society, and as key ingred­ients for the emancipation of the middle class, they gradually gained more in­fluence upon society. The educational reformers’ involvement in papers and societies were important for them coining new Swedish words with educational importance: it was an extern­al communicative practice. Involvement in associations is somewhat more internal and has been studied as leading to social interaction. This interaction is studied as social capital through social network analysis. This revealed focal points on the individual level which made a signi­fi­cant contribution to the educational debate. These were social networks sustained by the spi­rit of Enlightenment and emancipation. What has long been un­recog­ni­zed in the History of Edu­cation is presented as important features in this thesis through the analysis of social networks.

The black church and Prince Hall Freemasonry both played important roles in the black experience in America. Freemasonry and the black church; one secular, the other spiritual, played equally important, interrelated roles in the way the black community addressed social, political, and economic problems in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Ce travail vise à approfondir certains aspects de l’expérience des francs-maçons et laïques italiens qui ont été exilés en Belgique, suite à la persécution opérée contre eux par la dictature de Mussolini. <p>En effet, les premières associations qui ont été poursuivies légalement par le dictateur italien ont été les associations maçonniques et celles de la Libre Pensée. Jusqu’au il y a quelques années, l’historiographie ne pouvait pas analyser davantage les conséquences de cet exil, faute d’accès aux archives de ces associations. <p>À présent, il nous a été possible d’étudier cette documentation qui nous a permis de démontrer que certains francs-maçons et libres-penseurs italiens, qui ont pris la décision de quitter leur pays afin suite aux persécutions de la dictature, avaient été des exilés politiques et avaient trouvé asile dans certains pays européens grâce aux réseaux maçonniques et laïques qui y existaient déjà depuis la fin du XIXe siècle. La Belgique a été l’un de ces pays d’accueil, mais en outre elle avait été le pays où ces réseaux étaient nés et s’étaient le plus efficacement développés. <p>C’est cette généalogie des réseaux maçonniques et laïques qui nous a permis d’expliquer pour quelles raisons, même si la Belgique n’a pas été le principal pays d’accueil des exilés maçons et laïques italiens, un certain nombre d’entre eux y sont passés ou s’y sont installés avec l’aide de la Franc-maçonnerie et de la Libre pensée belges, pendant leur exil./<p><p><p>The aim of my research project is to investigate further into the experience of the Italian free-masons and free-thinkers who had to go on exile as a consequence of their persecution by the Mussolini dictatorship. As a matter of fact, the first associations to be persecuted by the Italian dictator were the free-mason and free-thinkers associations, but till few years ago, the contemporary historiography hadn’t really focused on the consequences of these actions because of the limited access to the Archives of these associations.<p>It was only at the beginning of this century that these documents were found and have been left at the disposal of the researchers.<p>The study of part of these documents allows me to demonstrate that these free-masons and free-thinkers who had taken the decision to leave their country, in order not to accept the dictatorship, were political emigrants and<p>that they found asylum in some European countries thanks to the free-mason and free-thinker networks that they had established since the end of 19th century. Belgium was one of these countries, but more importantly the one<p>where the relation networks concerned were born and developed.<p>This fact allows us to explain the reason why a lot of Italian free-masons and free-thinkers passed in Belgium or some of them lived. Even if Belgium wasn't the country to which the most of these people exiled. <p> / Doctorat en Histoire, art et archéologie / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished