Thesis (M.A.). / Written for the Dept. of East Asian Studies. Title from title page of PDF (viewed 2008/05/12). Includes bibliographical references.

This thesis presents an inductive study of the theological method of Athanasius exhibited in <i>Contra Arianos</i> 1-3. It proceeds as a commentary on that work, following its structure and giving attention to its argumentation and actual semantical expressions as Athanasius attempts to define orthodoxy vis a vis Arianism. Following this approach, the purpose of the thesis is to set forth Athanasius' view of the foundational structures which make theology possible, the nature and bearing of explicit sources in the discernment and articulation of doctrine, and the method of theological reasoning. In the course of the commentary, attention has been given to various critical issues much discussed in the modern study of Athanasius. These include, for example, the structure and integrity of <i>Contra Arianos</i> 1-3, the integrity of the Arian citations in the work (including the <i>Thalia</i> citations, the role of certain Arian theses anathematized at Nicea, citations from Asterius, and other dialectical and expositional fragments), the hermeneutics of Athanasius, and the question of explicit philosophical sources for Arian and Athanasian ideas and expressions. Also, as much as possible, Athanasius' theological ideas have been examined as they appear in the <i>Contra Arianos</i> in order to set forth the epistemological structures of his theology and to provide the necessary context for understanding his theological argumentation. Particularly evident in Athanasius' theological method is the personal communion of the theologian with the triune God through the grace of the Incarnate Son effectuated by the Holy Spirit. This communion is set in the context of the Church and informs hermeneutics and tradition. Theological language is framed within the semantics of Scripture, shaped by the teaching of the church and rethought and reconfessed by the orthodox theologian in his personal, faithful communion with the Referent of that language.

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Revolutionary currents with transformative ideals were part of the Sufi religious identity during the late medieval Islamic period. This dissertation tries to make sense of this phenomenon by focusing on the historical evolution of the Bayrami-Malāmi Sufi order within the Ottoman Empire. The scope of the study extends from the beginnings of the order during the ninth/ fifteenth century until its partial demise by the end of the eleventh/seventeenth century. The Bayrami-Malāmiyya was essentially marked by a reaction towards the established Sufi rituals of the time: its adherents refused to wear Sufi clothes, take part in gatherings of remembrance of God, or rely upon imperial endowments for their livelihood. I suggest in this study that Bayrami-Malāmis carried some of the distinguishing signs of religiosity belonging to the anarchic period between the Mongol attacks and the rise of the powerful Islamic Empires. During that time, many local forms of Sufism, which were tied to charismatic and independent communities that were quite prevalent and powerful in their own domains, had emerged. These communities often held a particular vision regarding the saint, whose persona came to be defined in terms exceeding that of a spiritual master, often taking the form of a community elder or a universal savior. Taking their inspiration from this period, Bayrami-Malāmis reconstructed their teachings and affiliations as the social and political conditions shifted in Anatolia. While several pīrs were executed for being heretics and making messianic claims in the sixteenth century, the Order was able to put together a more prudent vision based on the writings of Ibn Arabi (d. 638/1240) during the seventeenth century. After this, it became a secretive order that attracted the upper classes in the imperial city of Istanbul, and extended its influence to imminent poets, bureaucrats, and political figures. This study is essentially concerned with the dynamics of this evolution. It also tries to conceptualize how the teachings of the Order were rooted in the persona of the saint, who was regarded in divine terms and seen as the culmination point of creation. This worldview had the potential to lead to apocalyptic urges that did not harbor the immediate end of the world, but yearned for the beginning of a new era in which people would understand and experience divinity in its true monistic fashion.

Hinduism has always been noted for its ability to absorb potentially schismatic developments. The assimilation of heresies (pākhaṇḍa- dharmas) was made possible in part by the open-ended quality of the religion itself but also by the vagueness of the Hindu definition of heresy. The two primary, ostensible criteria of orthodoxy are the acceptance of the Vedas as the sacred canon and adherence to the basic law of society -- varṇāśrama dharma, the regulation of class and stage of life. By these criteria, heresy would seem to be a fairly straightforward matter, separating Hindus from non-Hindus, but this is not the case. To the Hindus as a whole, Buddhists arid Jains (and Cārvākas or Materialists, with which these two religions are often confused) are heretics. To most Hindus but Śaiva Kāpālikas, Kāpālikas are heretics. To the Brahmin Kāpālikas, the Śudra Kāpālikas, are heretics. To most non-Tantric Hindus, Tantrics are heretics. Levels of heresy and hierarchical concepts of status cloud the issue and invalidate any single definition. [Continued in text ...]

In the context of the continuity of Christology into ecclesiology, this thesis investigates the implications of a Docetic Christology and its consequences in the life of the church. Against the background of the development of orthodoxy and heresy in earliest Christianity it indicates a docetic Christological/ecclesiological parallel found in the Gnostic dualist tradition, countered by the catholic one of a growing orthodoxy, and the continuing influences and implications in Alexandrian theology. It notes in this setting the implicit docetic tendency in 'heretical' thought to undermine salvation history (t'eilsgeschichte), as well as the element of timeliness which could separate orthodoxy from heresy. It proceeds by looking at the exegesis of the New Testament and the Fathers of the church which indicates a Christological/ecclesiological continuity. From this context it examines the understanding of Christ as tradition and Christ as corporate which continues into the Middle Ages. It illustrates further, how concepts such as martyrdom and suffering bear an implicit relationship to Christology and ecclesiology. In considering the views of medieval movements in the context of more orthodox understandings of their age, it explores the continuity of themes found in them from early heresy, particularly dualism and its effects. It notes in particular the role of Platonism in theological interpretation, and considers the place of the establishment of the church in the legitimising of a Christological/ ecclesiological view. These themes and concepts combine to demonstrate the implications of dokesis within an alternative understanding of the church, with the rejection of an incarnational theology, and the development of new criteria for Christian life. In this respect it questions how the immediacy of mystical and spiritual experience relates to ecclesiology. Taking into account the appeal to primitivism as a motive for reform which undermined the medieval synthesis and its doctrine of society, it reviews the late medieval concept of the invisible church, which prepared the way for the Reformation. In this setting it examines the recurring themes which appear, and concludes by outlining the implications of ecclesiological docesis for the church of today.

Thesis (Th. M.)--Grace Theological Seminary, 1982. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 80-86).

This thesis seeks to add to our information regarding the many lollards discussed by John Foxe in his <i>Actes and Monuments</i>, first published in English in 1563, and destined to become as much a part of the English Reformation as Cranmer's <i>Book of Common Prayer</i> and John Jewel's <i>Apology of the Church of England</i>. In particular it considers the group of later lollards who were the subject of serious inquiry by the ecclesiastical authorities during the first five decades of Tudor rule, 1490 to 1535, and who were found by their 'inquisitors' to be living along the Thames Valley. The counties studied here are Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Middlesex and Oxfordshire. For reasons of space and time it has been impossible to include other work undertaken covering Essex, Kent and London. Previous studies of this sect have relied on official sources, usually the few extant transcripts of trials found in episcopal court books and act books. Consequently the details may be thought of as biased, although not necessarily <i>pro forma</i> of charge lists, and the very nature of trial procedure at this time, suggests that not too much reliance can be put on the evidence we have. Nevertheless that is all we have so far been able to consider. Evidence as to the social and economic status of lollards is lacking in such sources; consequently previous studies of lollardy have tended to accept contemporary disdain, and to consider them as a sect made up of comparatively poor, usually illiterate, individuals, who were in some way divorced from their communities, as a consequence of their beliefs. That the church was sufficiently concerned with the sect to undertake such determined persecutions should caution us against such conclusions. The martyrologist, John Foxe, supplies us with what we know of the trials within this area for the period under discussion. We are fortunate that he saw fit to transcribe so much detail from what he claimed was a register of Bishop Longland of Lincoln. This study has abandoned the previously-tried sources and turned to what are loosely called 'secular' sources: taxation and muster returns, probate material, usually wills, but including some inventories of testators' goods, and cases from central courts, to which lollards, as all the litigious English nation at this time, often went for redress. I have not abandoned the ecclesiastical material: visitation documents and episcopal court material both figure in the study; additionally there is some parish material: churchwardens' accounts and manor court rolls, but not as much as I should like. Taking the names of those charged with heresy, or the detectors of those so charged, as given us by Foxe, I have sought them out in their every-day lives, within the sources detailed above. This conglomeration of material adds flesh to those we have previously simply known (if we were lucky) by name, place of residence, and occupation. Now we can see lollards in the context of their societies and communities. Now we can talk of them as members of the early Tudor 'commonweal' to which so many of them seemed to have aspired. As a result of this thesis lollards are seen to have been socially, economically, and politically integrated within their communities. They are found at all levels of economic standing within most settlements we have come to associate with lollardy. They are also, occasionally, seen to be willing to declare their religious affiliation when making their last wills and testaments; sadly, however, many appear to adopt, whether sincerely or not we can not say, a conservative stance at the final public declaration they would make. Perhaps of prime importance is that we show lollards listed by Foxe to have existed, and to have been thriving in the mid-Thames valley, despite the apparent harshness of the episcopal attacks on them.

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Marcion is unanimously acknowledged to be one of the most important and most intriguing figures of the Early Church. In spite of this importance, there is no comprehensive up-to-date study on his life and thought. Thus, the desire to fill this gap within the academic world – which is inconvenient for both students and professors alike – has been my inspiration for writing this thesis. However, this work does not only aim at providing a complete study on Marcion for the twenty-first century, but also at ridding scholarship from several severe misconceptions regarding the arch-heretic. The main argument of my study is that previous scholarship has turned Marcion’s exegesis of Scripture upside down. He did not find the inspiration for his doctrine in the teachings of the Apostle Paul, it is the Old Testament and its portrait of an inconsistent, vengeful and cruel God which forms the centre of his doctrine. Marcion does not understand the Old Testament in the light of the New, he interprets the New Testament in the light of the Old. This insight casts a new light on Marcion’s place within the history of the Church, as the initiator of a fundamental crisis of the Old Testament in the second century. But not only did he have an enormous influence on Christian exegesis, he also stands at the beginning of the epochal fight between orthodoxy and heresy. As the first man to ever officially break with the Church, and whose biography would become a stereotype for future heresiologists, Marcion can rightfully claim the title of ‘arch-heretic’.