No description available.

This thesis is an analysis of the use of combined concepts of covenant and priesthood in some late Second Temple period Jewish and Jewish-Christian texts. In this thesis I investigate 1 and 2 Maccabees, Dead Sea Scrolls, and Hebrews, to see the various ways in which these Second Temple compositions have articulated the combined concepts of covenant and priesthood on the basis of their treatment of various biblical and extra-biblical traditions. The elaborate articulations of the combined concepts of covenant and priesthood in these texts partly reflect the concern of the Second Temple Jewish authors: how significant the priestly institutions and priesthood were, not only in terms of cultic matters, but also in terms of political and identity concerns. By means of this study, I hope to demonstrate that the combined concept of covenant and priesthood is necessary for a better understanding of some Second Temple texts.

The Book of Mormon, having long been a work of great interest to me, became a natural area of study for my Master's program. I was directed by Roy W. Doxey and Paul R. Chessman who brought to my attention several areas of the Book of Mormon which needed to be investigated for clarification and deeper understanding. The area which was settled on centered around a book which was written seven years prior to the publishing of the Book of Mormon. The controversy which surrounds the View of the Hebrews by Ethan Smith is similar to the "Spalding Manuscript" controversy which for many years plagued believers of the Book of Mormon. Similar in the sense that some are now claiming that Joseph Smith plagerized Ethan Smith when writing the Book of Mormon, this problem is different in that the Solomon Spalding controversy raged only while his manuscript was unavailable while the Ethan Smith controvery is warming as more people become aware of View of Hebrews.

Thesis (D. Phil.)--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: As modern society becomes more complex and diverse, a colonial reading paradigm is increasingly becoming less plausible and has reached a point at which it is no longer possible to play tricks with colonized peoples. It belongs to a period and expresses an outlook with which we can no longer identify. A new epoch in the field of reading has opened. What we see in a postcolonial paradigm is a radical shuffling of the cards into a new pattern. This study argues that a postcolonial assumption of a plurality of contexts of salvation is a liberating paradigm that proceeds along a path that includes the acceptance of the independence and separate character of the various religions and the avoidance of superordination-subordination relationships. It acknowledges and seeks to detect religious intolerance and to encourage an approach that celebrates human cultural diversity—a rainbow religion or religious landscape. In this study a colonial reading paradigm of the bible in general and the letter to the Hebrews in particular, is turned on its head and colonial conception of supersessionism – an absolute claim to superiority – rendered largely obsolete. It is no longer a case of business as usual. As the Christian assumption of absolute claims to superiority over non-Christian religions is increasingly becoming less plausible – in fact, obsolete – and no longer make sense to many people, collective and collaborative efforts are an ideal alternative. There is a need to create space for other religions to work in partnership with the Christian religion in our unprecedented communicational, democratic and pluralistic cultural contexts where we rub shoulders with devotees of non-Christian religions. A pluralistic form of religious environment, where there is no one religion with preferential privileges, is an ideal thing in our contexts. We need a different conceptualization of the role of religion, where non-Christian religions are viewed not as demonic, false or inferior, but as worthy colleagues in the religious quest. They are alternative and valid version of religious faith as well. The idea that the ultimate reality, the cosmic power, has dealt with only one segment of humankind, the Christian people, and that ideally there should be one, and only one, universal religion should be rejected. Moreover, for Christian people to be receptive to non-Christian religions does not entail abandoning or betraying the Christian religion. It simply entails appropriating insights previously unavailable to them. The idea that the Euro-American Christian theoretical line carries automatic evaluative judgements should now be regarded as decidedly outdated. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: In ‘n toenemend diverse en komplekse moderne samelewing is daar nie meer ruimte vir ’n koloniale lees-paradigma nie. Dit is trouens onwaarskynlik dat gekolonialiseerde mense (steeds) ’n rat voor die oë gedraai kan word. Sulke tye behoort tot die verlede en beliggaam ’n wêreldbeskouing waarmee nie langer geïdentifiseer kan word nie. ‘n Nuwe epog wat betref die lees van tekste is op die horison. Binne die post-koloniale paradigma bemerk mens ‘n radikale herposisionering van weë, en selfs nuwe weë. Hierdie studie betoog dat ’n post-koloniale veronderstelling van ’n verskeidenheid-van-kontekstevan- verlossing uiteindelik ’n bevrydende paradigma is, wat sigself beywer om die afsonderlike en onafhanklike karakter van ander godsdienste te aanvaar en enige magsverhoudinge tussen hulle te bestry. Dit wil enige vorm van religieuse onverdraagsaamheid hokslaan en die viering van kulturele diversiteit aanmoedig. In die studie word ’n koloniale lees-paradigma van die Bybel in die algemeen en die Hebreërbrief in besonder op sy kop gekeer, terwyl die idee van absolute koloniale super-heerskappy as uitgediend beskou word. Dit is gewis nie meer ’n geval van klakkelose berusting in die algemene gang van sake nie. Soos ‘n Christelike veronderstelling van absolute aanspraak vanuit ‘n magsposisie en heerskappy teenoor ander godsdienste al minder verantwoordbaar blyk te wees en vir baie eenvoudig nie meer sin maak nie, bied gesamentlike pogings nuwe en verfrissende alternatiewe. Daar is ’n behoefte om ruimte te skep vir ander godsdienste waarbinne hulle juis as vennote saam met Christene in vandag se ongekend kommunikatiewe, demokratiese en pluralisties-kulturele kontekste kan meewerk. ’n Pluralisties-religieuse omgewing – waar geen godsdiens enige spesiale bevoorregting bo ’n ander geniet nie – kan daarom as die ideaal in huidige kontekste beskou word. Hiervoor word egter ‘n ander begrippe-apparaat ten opsigte van die rol van religie benodig, waarmee nie-Christengelowiges nie as demonies, vervloek of minderwaardig beskou sal word nie, maar veel eerder as waardige vennote in die religieuse gesprek. Hul standpunte behoort as alternatiewe en ewe geldige perspektiewe erken en gerespekteer te word. Die idee dat die Almagtige, na wie almal vra, slegs by één bepaalde segment van die mensdom betrokke sou wees, naamlik by Christene, word heeltemal verwerp. Dieselfde geld die beywering en uiteindelike daarstel van één universele geloof. Christene se openheid teenoor andersgelowiges beteken egter allermins ’n verloëning van die Christelike evangelie. Die gedagtegang van hierdie studie impliseer bloot dat Christene voortdurend oop sal wees vir ander se religieuse insigte. Die idee dat ‘n Westerse teoretiese raamwerk outomaties waarde-oordele kan fel, word dus daarmee beslissend as gedateerd verklaar.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-27T13:47:48Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DARLYSON MOYSES ALVES FEITOSA.pdf: 1214034 bytes, checksum: 1b81048f4a31214e567aa4c0a936941d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-06-29 / Epistle to the Hebrews: a theocentric perspective is a dissertation which treats of the various affirmations about God in the biblical book known today as the Epistle to the Hebrews. This Epistle has been traditionally studied from the Christological point of view, due to the strong emphasis in the book on Christology; however, this present study considers the epistle from another perspective, due basically to one reason: the author refers to God in every section of this work. The Greek text was used as the basis from which the various declarations about God were extracted, while Portuguese versions of the Bible served as references for a better comprehension of the various possibilities of translations. / Epístola aos Hebreus: Uma Perspectiva Teocêntrica é uma dissertação que trata de apresentar as diversas declarações sobre Deus no livro da Bíblia hoje conhecido como Epístola aos Hebreus. Esta Epístola tem sido tradicionalmente estudada a partir da forte ênfase na cristologia, de modo que a presente pesquisa a considera a partir de uma outra perspectiva, devido basicamente a uma razão: o autor se refere a Deus em todas as seções desta obra. As diversas menções sobre Deus foram extraídas do texto grego, sendo que as versões da Bíblia em português serviram sempre de referencial para uma melhor compreensão das diversas possibilidades de tradução.

西部苗族有豐富又多彩的創世故事，這是他們民族分散在廣大的地區並與其他民族接觸的結果。其龐大的神系有需多不同創造天地萬物的神，有的是男神，有的是女神，有的男女神是夫妻而分配創造天地。由於苗族在20世紀起才開始有自己的文字，在此之前他們是以口傳方式延續其創世神話。雖然這些神話故事時有宗教方面的色彩，但是它們本身並無神聖的地位。 希伯來人的創世故事記錄於《聖經》〈創世記〉。它們反映了早期的書寫傳統。他們的神是男神，也是唯一的神。因為這些故事的地位神聖，被視為是其唯一正統的創造故事，因此被留傳下來的版本被賦與不可改變或附加其他內容的神聖地位。 兩個完全不同的創世傳統可以提供非常豐富的對比研究。筆者對兩個創世傳統所反映對神、對宇宙結構與對道德的觀念特別有興趣。透過研究發現，這兩個表面上完全不同的創世傳統，深入探討後，發現二者竟有許多相似之處。共同的概念包含天地被至高無上之神創造、混沌的原始世界、創造好的完美世界被死亡與疾病破壞、樂園的失去、普世的洪水氾濫、泥土造人、善與惡的對立等。筆者假設以上的共同概念，再加上無故土的西部苗族很容易認同歷史上亡國的希伯來人，導致其對基督教的接受度有比較高的傾向。 / The Western Miao have an abundance of rich and colorful creation myths. This is the result of their living scattered over a large area, and interacting with other ethnic groups. Their large pantheon contains many different kinds of creator gods. Some are male, some are female, and some are male/female couples. Because the Miao did not have their own alphabet until the early 20th century, any passing on of their myths was done orally. Although these myths sometimes hint of religious influences, they do not have sacred status in themselves. The Hebrew creation myths are recorded in the Bible, in the book of Genesis. They reflect an early written tradition. Their God is male, and He alone is God. Because of their sacred status, these stories are seen as the only legitimate creation stories. Thus, in passing down these stories, no changes or additions can be made. Two such very different creation traditions provide rich opportunities for comparison. The author is especially interested in examining how these stories reflect different concepts of god, of the structure of the universe, and of morality. This study revealed that while on the surface, these two creation traditions appeared to be very different, a deeper probe revealed many similarities. These included the concept of a supreme creator God, original chaos, a perfect world marred by the introduction of sickness and death, the loss of paradise, a universal flood, man made from clay, the dual opposites of good and evil, etc. The author postulates that these similarities, plus the fact that the Miao, without a homeland, could relate to the Hebrews, contributed to their easy acceptance of Christianity. Key words: Western Miao, Hmong, A-Mong (Hua Miao), Hebrews, Genesis

This work concerns the shifts in the perception of the figure of Melchizedek in the Old Testament, Intertestamental sources and the New Testament. It explicates three central biblical texts which are speaking about Melchizedek. These texts are: the book of Genesis 14, Psalm 110 and the Epistle to the Hebrews. The work also aims to notice perceiving Melchizedek{\crq}s figure in non-biblical sources, like Qumran texts, Targums, apocryphs or the testimonies of church fathers. The findings coming from these sources are compared together in the conclusion of the work. Each of traditions is different, so we can not make unambiguous conclusion about figure of Melchizedek. Some non-biblical Melchizedekian traditions still continue, some others have disappeared entirely.

Repetition has received a bad press in certain streams of theological tradition; this reception has in part been caused by, and has in turn affected, readings of the Letter to the Hebrews, which speaks about repetition in ways unique in the New Testament. The present study addresses the insufficient critical attention paid to repetition in Hebrews, challenging the assumption that it functions uniformly and negatively throughout the letter, and exploring the variety of ways in which Hebrews presents repetition. The plurality of prophetic speech displays God’s manifold kindness in the old covenant; such speech is not opposed to but is fulfilled in Christ’s coming, and its ongoing repetition in the new covenant through citation and exposition serves to promote and explicate that event. Repeated mutual encouragement is essential to persevering in the Christian life and avoiding apostasy. And the regular entry of the Levitical priests into the outer sanctuary of the tabernacle in Heb 9.6 foreshadows the continual access to God achieved through Christ. Where repetition has a negative or contrastive role in the author’s argumentation, it does not cause inefficacy but rather indicates a weakness whose source is elsewhere – and which, moreover, is revealed fully only in the light of the Christ event. The uniqueness of Christ and of his death construed as a sacrifice, developed from concepts of singularity in Day of Atonement and early Christian crucifixion traditions, forms a unifying strand in the letter’s Christology. Rather than functioning in simple opposition to repetition, this singularity corresponds to continuity and eternity, and is developed at times in contrast to, and at times in correspondence with, repetition. The study thus offers a reappraisal of repetition in Hebrews, laying the foundations for renewed appreciation of the importance of repetition for theological discourse and religious life.

The common elements which emerge from this study are: Melchizedek was a priest-king, ruling a small city-state and presiding over the cult. He lived among a people far advanced from the primitive. There is no consensus among scholars concerning the meaning of his name but "Sedeq (a name for God) is my King" is a possible translation. Melchizedek's city-state was named Salem and of the four plausible geographical locations postulated, the Salem-Shechem theory leaves fewer problems. Abraham and Melchizedek worshiped the same God who was known by several names, among which were 'El 'elyon, God Most High and Yahweh. All of these names point to a superlative god above all others. Jewish traditions identify Melchizedek with Shem and Salem with Jerusalem. They also subordinate Melchizedek to Abraham and see the priesthood lost by Melchizedek and passing to Abraham. The Christians claimed Melchizedek as the type for Christ and his priesthood, and thus forged their own link to antiquity. Joseph Smith's teachings parallel the early Christian traditions of Melchizedek as a type of Christ and other traditions on priestly kingship and ritual. He also defines orders in the priesthood.

Cette thèse porte sur l’usage du terme σήμερον (« aujourd’hui ») en Luc-Actes (vingt-deux occurrences), dans la correspondance paulinienne (Romains 11.8 ; 2 Corinthiens 3.14, 15) et dans l’épître aux Hébreux (1.5 ; 3.7, 13, 15 ; 4.7 [à deux reprises] ; 5.5 ; 13.8). Elle accorde une importance particulière à la possibilité de l’influence de l’ « aujourd’hui » du Deutéronome dans le Nouveau Testament. Deux hypothèses principales sont au cœur de cette étude. D’une part, celle de la thématisation, dans le Deutéronome comme dans les trois corpus néotestamentaires envisagés, du mot « aujourd’hui » : dans chaque cas, ce terme acquiert le statut de thème théologique à part entière. En effet, ses divers emplois démontrent un travail de réflexion sur « l’aujourd’hui ». D’autre part, celle d’une influence deutéronomique commune : les trois écrivains néotestamentaires sont conscients des attaches théologiques de l’aujourd’hui deutéronomique. Ils transposent volontairement et diversement ce motif vétérotestamentaire à la lumière de l’événement Jésus-Christ. En fin d’enquête, on constate que l’aujourd’hui lucanien, l’aujourd’hui paulinien et l’aujourd’hui de l’épître aux Hébreux, tout en conservant des accents qui leur sont propres, contribuent tous à mettre en valeur les mêmes concepts théologiques clés, parmi lesquels figurent l’accomplissement de l’Écriture, l’eschatologie en cours de réalisation, l’avènement du salut, l’annonce de la bonne nouvelle et la proclamation de la parole de Dieu. / This dissertation examines the use of the term σήμερον (“today”) in Luke-Acts (22 occurrences), the Pauline letters (Romans 11:8; 2 Corinthians 3:14, 15) and the Epistle to the Hebrews (1:5; 3:7, 13, 15; 4:7 [twice]); 5:5; 13:8). It gives special attention to the possible influence of the Deuteronomic “today” in the New Testament. Two main hypotheses are at the heart of this study. First, the word “today,” in Deuteronomy as well as the three New Testament corpora under consideration, becomes a theological theme of its own. In effect, it is argued that its various occurrences reveal the presence of reflective work on “the today.” Second, in the minds of the three New Testament authors who give attention to this motif, there seems to be an awareness of certain theological associations that are bound up with the Deuteronomic “today.” In diverse manners, they intentionally transpose this Old Testament motif in the light of the Christ event. By the end of this investigation, it becomes apparent that Luke’s today, Paul’s today and the today of the Epistle to the Hebrews, while each possessing unique characteristics, all contribute to emphasize the same key theological concepts, such as the fulfillment of Scripture, an inaugurated and progressively realized eschatology, the coming of salvation, the heralding of the good news and the proclaiming of God’s Word.