Thesis (M.A.)--Brigham Young University. Dept. of Sociology. / Bibliography: leaves 114-121.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1987. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 360-377).

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This MA thesis deals with the topic of the cult of Mother Goddesses in Vietnam with special reference to South Vietnam. The subject is discussed from the point of view of cultural anthropology and special attention is paid to some specific aspects, which differentiate this popular belief from other religions. The cult of Mother Goddesses is characterised in greater detail on the basis of certain hypotheses and is viewed through the prism of various ethnologically oriented paradigms. The first part of the work describes the development of this cult, its Vietnamese specifics and its position in the context of the local religious milieu. Furthermore, the work discusses the characters of the individual Mother Goddesses and the collected theoretical knowledge is compared with the results of empirical research. On the background of the example of Mother Goddess Bà Chúa Xứ, the work elucidates certain topics, which are related to the cult of Mother Goddesses, but are considerably differentiated regionally. It is therefore necessary to present these aspects by way of concrete examples and to see them in the cultural-historical context. The second part of the work is based especially on the analyses of the results of the field research and it attempts to clarify the extent of the public knowledge about this...

Thesis (M.A.)--Brigham Young University. Dept. of Sociology. / Electronic thesis. Bibliography: leaves 114-121. Also available in print ed.

This thesis examines the belief in and use of the concept of Mother in Heaven among some women's support groups comprised of female members (and attached males) of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The expectations were that those surveyed would express belief in Heavenly Mother, but that the concept would not be a central one. Various propositions suggested relationships between religious dimension, feminism, and alienation variables and belief in and salience of Mother in Heaven. Most of those surveyed believe in the Goddess, but the concept is underutilized among those surveyed. Belief in Mother in Heaven was found to be strongly a function of religious orthodoxy. Salience of Mother in Heaven was found to be related to a more complex set of model variables.

The purpose of this study is to illustrate the role of fertility goddesses in the lives and beliefs of the people of the Ancient Near East. Artefacts from the late Paleolithic period were crude female figures of pregnant women representing fertility. A mother goddess was specified as the giver and taker of life and vegetation. The polytheism of pre-exilic Israel that existed proves that not only Yahweh but also other gods existed. In the creation stories of the Ancient Near East, creation myths played a major role; in the Ugaritic myths the universe was ruled by powerful deities, and their presence could be felt in rain, vegetation and crops. Fertility cults were the force in their worship. Cultic sites associated with deities were often located in groves of trees, which made them sacred to the people. There was a close relationship between tree and tree figures, as well as gods and goddess images. / Biblical and Ancient Studies / M.A. (Biblical Archaeology)