This thesis is a comparative study of the concept and role of the law in the theologies of Rosemary Radford Ruether and Gustaf Wingren. The analysis of their theologies shows that Wingren uses the law as a formal theological category and Ruether does not. The absence of the law in Ruether's theology has implication for theological ethics. For Wingren the law has two uses. The first use, the so called political use, is that which compels and coerces ethical behavior in the human. The first use of the law is used to insure that all humans receive the fullness of life that God intends for all of creation. The second use of the law, the so called spiritual use, accuses the human when he/she does not meet the demands of the law. When the conscience is accused the human is prepared to hear the gospel. For Wingren, the gospel is what gives the human a new will to live by freeing the human from the burden and condemnation of the law. The law and the gospel serve each other but have distinct functions. The law demands ethical behavior and the gospel gives salvation. According to Wingren, the source of ethical behavior is located in the doctrine of creation not in the doctrine of the revelation of God through Jesus Christ; thus preserving the notion that the gift of grace is not earned by good works but is given freely. For Ruether, appropriate ethical behavior is revealed to humans through paradigmatic individuals who denounce systems of oppression and announce God's intent for creation, namely, liberation. Jesus is one such paradigmatic individual who both denounces oppression and announces the kingdom of God. Jesus both demands justice in relationships and offers liberation. The gospel message of Jesus, in effect, collapses the law and the gospel into one entity. The follower of Jesus hears that salvation is dependent upon appropriate ethical behavior thereby nullifying the notion that grace is an unearned gift. The thesis concludes with a constructive statement which develops a feminist theology based on Wingren's concept of the law / Biblical and Ancient Studies / D. Th. (Systematic Theology)

Implicit in the concepts Incarnation, narrative, Christology, Shona women of Zimbabwe today is the God who acts in human history and in the contemporaneity and particularity of our being. The Incarnation as the embodiment of God in the world entails seizing the kairos opportunity to expand the view and to bear the burdens of responsibility. A theanthropocosmic Christology that captures the Shona holistic world-view is explored. The acme for a relational Christology is the imago Dei/Christi and the baptismal indicative and imperative. God is revealed in various manifestations of creation. Human identity and dignity is the flipside of God's attributes. Theanthropocosmic Christology as pluralistic, differential and radical brings about a dialectic between the whole and its parts, the uniqueness of the individual, communal ontology and epistemology, the local and the universal, orthodoxy and orthopraxis, Christology and soteriology. God mediates in the contingency of particularity. Emphasis is on life-affirmation rather than sex determination of Jesus as indicated by theologies of liberation and inculturation. At the interface gender, ethnicity, class and creed, God transcends human limitedness and artificial boundaries in creating catholic space and advocating all-embracing apostolic action. Difference is appreciated for the richness it brings both to the individual and the community. Hegemonic structures and borderless texts are view with suspicion as totalising grand~narratives and exclusivist by using generic language. The kairos in dialogue with the Incarnation is seizing the moment to expand the view and to share the burdens, joys and responsibility in a community of equal discipleship. In a hermeneutic of engagement and suspicion, prophetic witness is the hallmark of Christian discipleship and of a Christology that culminates in liberative praxis. The Christology that emerges from Shona women highlights a passionate appropriation that involves the head, gut, womb and heart and underlies the circle symbolism. The circle is the acme of Shona hospitality and togetherness in creative dialogue with the Trinitarian koinonia. The Shona Christological designation Muponesi (Deliverer-Midwife) in dialogue with the Paschal Mystery motif captures the God-human-cosmos relationship that gives a Christology caught up in the rhythms, dynamism and drama of life. / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / D.Th. (Systematic Theology)

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 106-115) / The purpose of this study is to critically analyse selected scholarly views on the visionary experiences during Jesus’ baptism. Modern scholars have different opinions about the reports in the New Testament on Jesus’ baptismal visionary phenomena. Some scholars interpreted the events as Jesus’ actual seeing or vision and others accept it as literary creations by the authors, to make sense of the reports on seeing and hearing that are hard to understand. Reports like a Spirit descending in the form of a dove are extraordinary for most people and pose interpretive challenges. The two distinct trends identified in the study of visionary experiences are those who take the text on the visions literally and those who see them as literary creations. There is a new trend in biblical scholarship, which is comparative and invokes insights from cross-cultural research in order to understand the accounts of the visions as altered states of consciousness (ASC). These views are also presented, compared and evaluated selecting three major views from modern New Testament scholars. Among the scholars identified, who take the baptism visions literally, are Dunn, Meier, Marcus, Hurtado, Borg and Webb. The scholars selected, who consider the baptism visions as literary creations, are Sanders, Crossan, Miller and Strijdom. The scholars, who contributed to the new development in interpreting the texts on visionary experiences as ASC, are Pilch, Davies and DeMaris. Pilch uses the theoretical model of ASC and understands it differently from those used by Davies and DeMaris on which they base their interpretations. A scientific explanation of ASC is built from theories about how the brain and culture, together, create certain states of consciousness. All these views are analysed based on the scholarly interpretations from the three definitive trends in the visions research, comparing the caretaker versus critical at a meta-analysis level. / Biblical and Ancient Studies / M.A. (Biblical archaeology)

Implicit in the concepts Incarnation, narrative, Christology, Shona women of Zimbabwe today is the God who acts in human history and in the contemporaneity and particularity of our being. The Incarnation as the embodiment of God in the world entails seizing the kairos opportunity to expand the view and to bear the burdens of responsibility. A theanthropocosmic Christology that captures the Shona holistic world-view is explored. The acme for a relational Christology is the imago Dei/Christi and the baptismal indicative and imperative. God is revealed in various manifestations of creation. Human identity and dignity is the flipside of God's attributes. Theanthropocosmic Christology as pluralistic, differential and radical brings about a dialectic between the whole and its parts, the uniqueness of the individual, communal ontology and epistemology, the local and the universal, orthodoxy and orthopraxis, Christology and soteriology. God mediates in the contingency of particularity. Emphasis is on life-affirmation rather than sex determination of Jesus as indicated by theologies of liberation and inculturation. At the interface gender, ethnicity, class and creed, God transcends human limitedness and artificial boundaries in creating catholic space and advocating all-embracing apostolic action. Difference is appreciated for the richness it brings both to the individual and the community. Hegemonic structures and borderless texts are view with suspicion as totalising grand~narratives and exclusivist by using generic language. The kairos in dialogue with the Incarnation is seizing the moment to expand the view and to share the burdens, joys and responsibility in a community of equal discipleship. In a hermeneutic of engagement and suspicion, prophetic witness is the hallmark of Christian discipleship and of a Christology that culminates in liberative praxis. The Christology that emerges from Shona women highlights a passionate appropriation that involves the head, gut, womb and heart and underlies the circle symbolism. The circle is the acme of Shona hospitality and togetherness in creative dialogue with the Trinitarian koinonia. The Shona Christological designation Muponesi (Deliverer-Midwife) in dialogue with the Paschal Mystery motif captures the God-human-cosmos relationship that gives a Christology caught up in the rhythms, dynamism and drama of life. / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / D.Th. (Systematic Theology)

This study deals with the character of Jesus in the Gospel of John and follows the social-scientific approach and aims to correct the traditional views regarding the personality of Jesus. The aim is not a personality analysis but to situate Jesus as a typical person who was a part of and functioned in the first Mediterranean world. The pivotal values of the ancient world such as honor/shame; collectivistic/dyadic personality; family and group orientation; kinship; the patronage system with the patron/broker/client relationship and the purity system are applied to reach the aim of my thesis. It is found that Jesus was a collectivistic/dyadic personality. He functioned in this family orientated as well as in a group orientated community and socially structured patronage system as a broker, totally the contrary to contemporary personality drawings of Jesus found in modern literature. / In hierdie studie, wat 'n skripsie van beperkte omvang is, word nie gepoog om 'n persoonlikheidsanalise van Jesus te doen nie. Die studie wil die probleem van die toepassings en interpretasies van Jesus in populere literatuur aanspreek. Jesus word deur moderne mense en teoloe in prentjies en idees van 'n moderne mens met moderne kategoriee, denke en perspektiewe, waardes en oordele beskryf, geteken en geinterpreteer, en dit is nie 'n werklike getroue en realistiese weergawe van Jesus as historiese mens nie. Jesus word in populere literatuur as 'n individualis geteken; sy persoon en emosies word alleenlik in moderne denke en kategoriee geinterpreteer en dit word slegs op grond van moderne individuele ervaring gedoen. Hierdie interpretasies is nie tipies van die kollektiwistiese, groep-georienteerde eerste-eeuse mediterreense persoon nie. Afsydigheid en terughoudendheid (4:9, 10; 13:36-38) is kenmerkend van persone in hierdie samelewing waar warmte in verhoudings ontbreek het (2:16; 9:16)'. Emosies soos 'liefde' wat Jesus toon, is nie 'n emosionele konnotasie wat in die moderne samelewing dui op die gevoelslewe van die mens nie. In hierdie antieke samelewing het 'liefde' gedui op lojaliteit, solidariteit en groepgebondenheid en as Jesus die blinde man sy sig teruggee (9:7), herstel hy nie hier die geneesde man se plek as individu in terme van die moderne samelewing nie, maar hy herstel die sieke in sy regmatige, groep-georienteerde sosiale plek in die antieke samelewing waarin hy - weens sy siekte - as 'buitestaander' geetiketteer is en dus geen deel in die groep gehad het nie. In hierdie antieke eerste-eeuse mediterreense samelewing het ander spilpuntwaardes as in ons moderne samelewing gegeld. In hierdie kollektiwistiese en groepgebonde kultuur het persone gedeel in 'n gemeenskap met die spilpuntwaardes, norme en ingestelde sosiale reels van hierdie spesifieke kultuur en aspekte wat vormend op hulle ingewerk het. Jesus se persoon en optrede moet nagevors word in hierdie sosiale sisteem waar mag deur simbole daargestel is, en waar mense, dinge en gebeure elkeen 'n simboliese werklikheid verteenwoordig het. / New Testament / M. A. (Biblical Studies)

Michael Servetus (1508 - 1553) and Emanuel Swedenborg (1688 - 1772) are both considered heretics. They share many concepts about the nature of God, especially their rejection orthodox Nicene and Chalcedonian theology. This thesis explores their respective theologies relating to the Trinity and Christology, with speculation of what sources they may have had in common. While attention is paid to Ignatius, Irenaeus and Tertullian, particular attention is paid to Tertullian, whose work Adversus Praxean lays the foundation of Servetus' ideas and has much in common with Swedenborg's theology. In light of their similarity to Tertullian, the question is asked if Servetus and Swedenborg would have been called heretics prior to Nicaea. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / D.Th. (Church History)

Text in German / Die vorliegende Dissertation untersucht die christologischen Schwerpunkte im Leben und Denken von Frère Roger Schutz von Taizé und zeigt Querverbindungen zu unterschiedlichen theologischen Ansätzen. Dabei werden dogmatische Berührungspunkte zu den Vätern der alten Kirche, zur lutherischen, katholischen und orthodoxen Christologie dargestellt und untersucht. Als Basis der systematisch-theologischen Forschungsarbeit dienen die theologischen Studien, Tagebücher und erbaulichen Schriften, die Roger Schutz zwischen 1943 und 2005 geschrieben hat, sowie die liturgischen Hefte und Gebetsbücher von Taizé, die auf ihren christologischen Gehalt untersucht werden. Die poetische Sprache von Frère Roger erfordert eine literarische und theologische Interpretation, die mit zwei Brüdern der Gemeinschaft in Taizé besprochen wurde. Die Entwicklung der christologischen Ansichten von Roger Schutz wird durch alle Phasen seines Lebens hindurch untersucht, sodass am Schluss der Arbeit drei wichtige Thesen dargestellt werden können, die für die Zukunft von Taizé und für die christologische Diskussion im ökumenischen Umfeld interessant sind. / This present dissertation researches the christological key factors in the life and thinking of Frère Roger Schutz of Taizé and shows specific connections to different theological theories. We find several points of reference to the church fathers, the lutheran, catholic and orthodox Christology which are categorized and evaluated. As a base of this systematic research, I use the theological reflections, the diaries and the devotional books which Roger Schutz wrote between 1943 and 2005 as well as the liturgical sheets and prayer books in Taizé center. The poetic language of Frère Roger needs a literally and theological interpretation which I discussed with two Brothers of the community. The development of the christological thinking of Roger Schutz is analysed through all phases of his life, so that at the end of my research I conclude with three final observations which are interesting for the future of the community in Taizé as well as for the christological discussion in the ecumenical context. / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / M. Th. (Systematic Theology)

The diversity of Jesus images that resulted from historical Jesus research poses the single most pressing problem of the research endeavour. Diverse historical images lead one to ask questions about historiography. It is a fact that we do not have bruta facta in history but only interpretations of what might have happened. The problem of diverse images is taken up in this thesis. Three different images that are the result of different points of departure and different methods of research are closely scrutinised. The images are: Eschatological prophet, Cynic sage and Galilean Hasid. After close·examination of each of these images one has to conclude that each of them is a viable image. One may question the proponents of each of these images on methodological aspects as well as their presuppositions. This line of questioning would not solve the problem. One would also expand the problem if one were to seek yet another image. A way out of this impasse would be to try to understand the diversity. Is there an image that could explain the diversity? The modem diversity of Jesus images is a continuation of an ancient diversity that one could find in the ancient texts at our disposal. From this we could deduce that Jesus was understood differently by different people from the onset. The challenge is to find an image that would clarify the diversity. What sort of Jesus would have been understood in so many ways? We have reason to take Jesus to be a Jew from Galilee. If we could find a Galilean Jewish image that would explain the diversity, we would be very near the historical Jesus. The image of the Galilean Hasid is a very promising option. Some of the kingdom sayings, that are most probably authentic, were taken as test cases to see whether they could have been uttered by a Galilean charismatic and later interpreted as Cynic and/or eschatological. The conclusion is that the image of Galilean charismatic would open up new avenues to approach the diversity of images of the historical Jesus. / Biblical and Ancient Studies / Th. D. (New Testament)

This thesis is a comparative study of the concept and role of the law in the theologies of Rosemary Radford Ruether and Gustaf Wingren. The analysis of their theologies shows that Wingren uses the law as a formal theological category and Ruether does not. The absence of the law in Ruether's theology has implication for theological ethics. For Wingren the law has two uses. The first use, the so called political use, is that which compels and coerces ethical behavior in the human. The first use of the law is used to insure that all humans receive the fullness of life that God intends for all of creation. The second use of the law, the so called spiritual use, accuses the human when he/she does not meet the demands of the law. When the conscience is accused the human is prepared to hear the gospel. For Wingren, the gospel is what gives the human a new will to live by freeing the human from the burden and condemnation of the law. The law and the gospel serve each other but have distinct functions. The law demands ethical behavior and the gospel gives salvation. According to Wingren, the source of ethical behavior is located in the doctrine of creation not in the doctrine of the revelation of God through Jesus Christ; thus preserving the notion that the gift of grace is not earned by good works but is given freely. For Ruether, appropriate ethical behavior is revealed to humans through paradigmatic individuals who denounce systems of oppression and announce God's intent for creation, namely, liberation. Jesus is one such paradigmatic individual who both denounces oppression and announces the kingdom of God. Jesus both demands justice in relationships and offers liberation. The gospel message of Jesus, in effect, collapses the law and the gospel into one entity. The follower of Jesus hears that salvation is dependent upon appropriate ethical behavior thereby nullifying the notion that grace is an unearned gift. The thesis concludes with a constructive statement which develops a feminist theology based on Wingren's concept of the law / Biblical and Ancient Studies / D. Th. (Systematic Theology)

This paper explores the importance of the doctrine of the eternal generation of the Son in Basil of Caesarea's Trinitarian writings. In order to judge the importance of the doctrine for Basil, its impact on all of his exegetical and dogmatic writings on the Trinity were surveyed and evaluated. In his writings, Basil repeatedly addresses his belief that the Father and the Son is the one, eternal God. He considered this possible due to the Son's eternal generation from the substance of the Father. Basil considered the eternal generation of the Son to be both a scripturally warranted and philosophically coherent doctrine that explains how the Father and Son are indelibly same in substance and truly distinct persons. This study concludes that the doctrine of the eternal generation of the Son is essential to Basil's Trinitarian theology throughout his life. / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / M. Th. (Systematic Theology)