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In 1969, Richard M. Nixon became the thirty-seventh President of the United States. He brought with him an aggressive foreign policy aimed at retarding the escalating Cold War and ending America's war with Vietnam. In his inaugural address, he exclaimed that under his leadership the United States was going to enter an era of negotiation, leaving the age of confrontation behind. Determined to create a structure of peace around the world, Nixon and his administration fashioned a policy to reflect their goals. This study seeks to understand why the Nixon administration allowed the Middle East to fall into the peripheries of their foreign policy. A conflict as devastating as the October War was certainly the kind of incident Nixon and his advisors wished to avoid. Between the years of 1969 and 1973, they worked tirelessly in the Middle East and around the globe to secure a more hospitable international climate; so why, despite their efforts, did the Arab-Israeli conflict spiral so devastatingly out of control?

In Chapter 1 different phases of the application of exegetical methods with regard to texts in the New Testament were identified. Each phase provided a different perspective in response to questions about the contextuality of the New Testament. From the overview it became clear that the investigation of the historical background had received some attention, but it had not been as effectively utilized in the hermeneutical process as it could be, and had not been taken seriously enough. In Chapter 2, the place and function of the historical context or background of the New Testament in historical criticism, literary criticism and social scientific methods of exegesis were evaluated. Historical criticism often focuses on the different parts (forms) of the text, but does not consider the text as a whole to the degree required. Literary criticism focuses on the text as a whole. The Gospels are regarded as narrative texts. Narratology foregrounds the spatial aspects or topology of the Gospels. Socio-historical research on the world of the text, contributes to the study of the background of the New Testament. To enhance the progress already made, historical criticism and literary criticism can be supplemented by applying selected social scientific models. The use of such models makes it possible for socio-historical data to be systematized in a holistic interpretive framework. The use of social scientific models can bridge the historical distance between the text and its readers to avoid fallacies based on anachronism and ethnocentrism. A social scientific approach provides a holistic frame of reference for the interpretation of Biblical texts. However the approach may not pay enough attention to the topological or spacial aspects of the Gospel of Matthew. The model of advanced agrarian society and the pre-industrial city have not yet been applied effectively to the Gospel of Matthew. The current study fills this gap. In the study the model in terms of which an advanced agrarian society can be descibed, is used as a broad frame of reference within which the place and function of the Biblical jubilee can be studied. This diachronic overview of the research on the Biblical jubilee (Chapter 3) shows that no such study has as yet been undertaken with regard to the Biblical jubilee. Ancient economy developed from a simplistic agrarian society to an advanced agrarian society. The Roman Empire was the result of a long evolutionary process. Land was the primary economic resource in a self-sufficient society. The aim of the current research was to show that the socio-economic background of the first century forms the context within which the land and jubilee can be understood. The socio-economic background can be interpreted within a holistic perspective of first-century Mediterranean society. The social scientific model of advanced agrarian society includes four factors (family institutions, pre-industrial city, land tenancy and social stratification) that all influenced the land and economy of the first-century Mediterranean world. In Chapter 6, homomorphic models were used to simplify important and representative aspects of complex social structures, behaviour and relations. These models were used for the study of the political, economic and social systems of an empire or government. The current study used the social scientific model of advanced agrarian society as frame of reference for the interpretation of the place and function of the Biblical jubilee in the Gospel of Matthew. / Dissertation (DD(New Testament Studies))--University of Pretoria, 2001. / New Testament Studies / unrestricted

This dissertation deals with a holistic and multidisciplinary approach to the socio-economic relations between the Ancient Near East and East Africa during the Old Testament period. In my opinion this multidisciplinary approach by using inter alia Biblical Archaeology, History and Economics has the potential to offer various comprehensive opportunities for the analysis and discussion of such socio-economic relationships. For example, the relationship between the United Monarchy of Israel and Phoenicia involves the geopolitical, economic and other situations. In the last chapter attempts are made to integrate all the relevant dimensions in a wellfounded conclusion. / Biblical and Ancient Studies / M.A. (Biblical Archaeology)

The present thesis examines probably the ultimate focal point in the history of the Christian South Caucasian Cultures – the Caucasian Schism that occurred in the early seventh century – a major scandal that ended the ecclesiastical communion between the Georgian and Armenian Churches and gave impetus to the rise of the so-called national Churches. The schism became the central point of reference in both medieval and modern Caucasian historiographies. Modern scholarship has advanced different claims concerning the nature, reasons and results of the Schism, in many cases arguing that almost all aspects of the respective cultures have been affected by the Schism. As for medieval Armenian historical narratives, they made a good conceptual use of the schism, presenting the schism as a major interpretive schema for the explanation of all aspects of their relations with their northern neighbours. Contrary to such view, I argue that our knowledge of the reasons behind the schism and theological controversies that preceded, accompanied or followed the Schism in the sixth century is in most cases determined by the conceptual framework created in the Middle Ages together with the changes in political state of affairs in the Caucasus. In the period between the tenth to thirteenth centuries, when all major South Caucasian powers were struggling for the unification of the Caucasus under their aegis, the remembrance of the schism became particularly important. The remembrance and indeed forgetting of the Caucasian unity and separation became a rhetorical tool in medieval Armeno-Georgian debates. Therefore instead of taking the Schism at face value, I propose to abandon the traditional liminalist perception of the history of unity and separation in the Caucasus, and adopt a more rewarding approach, that is to say to try to understand when, why and by whom were the crucial events of the Late Antique Caucasian history conceptualized and adapted for contemporary ideological needs.

This study explores the motivations, perceptions, and imagery of beginning teachers in Lebanon. It foregrounds the importance of ‘images’ as potentially useful conceptual tools for understanding the developing identities of beginning teachers. The research consists of in-depth, semi-structured interviews in which student-teachers are encouraged to reflect on their own and other people’s views and perceptions about teaching. The thesis places the students-teachers’ personal portraits of teaching within broader cultural-historical representations of teachers in Lebanon and examines how the student-teachers deal with such representations while still in training. The core research questions focus on the participants’ motivations as well as the underlying cultural, social, and political factors that influence their views and perceptions about teaching. The research questions were designed to explore the various images of teachers and teaching that the students draw on in their personal portraits. Biographical information as well as students’ experiences at the time of training were explored for this purpose. The findings suggest that student-teachers’ developing identities emerge through their identification with competing images and representations of teaching and teachers. These images cut across various contexts, temporalities, and imagined settings in the student-teacher portraits, linking personal, educational and professional experiences. Many of the images synthesized large amounts of experiences and knowledge about teaching and contained gendered, religious, affective and interpersonal dimensions. Finally, the thesis offers a new way of conceptualizing images. This study hopes to help teacher education programs gain greater insight into beginning teachers’ thinking, motivations and developing identities.

This dissertation analyzes the struggle between the imperial court and the periphery in the context of Justinian’s reforms in the early A.D. 530s. The reforms targeting select Roman provinces sought to reduce the size of the imperial bureaucracy while simultaneously attempting to maintain imperial vertical authority. The reforms epitomize the imperial court’s struggle to rein in the imperial bureaucracy in the provinces of the Roman Empire. The analysis is framed within the cultural, social, political and economic evolution occurring in Late Antiquity. It shall be proposed that the reforms are one example of the imperial court’s attempt to limit the distance between itself and its provincial resources, particularly with regard to fiscality. The reforms also embody the political dynamics between the emperor and his bureaucracy, which is composed of the Roman elite. Roughly two centuries earlier, the Tetrarchic reforms fundamentally changed the relationship between both parties. Specifically, the upper stratum of the aristocracy saw the balance of power tilt in its favor substantially.

The Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party was established in Syria during the mid-twentieth century, originally championing Arab unity and freedom from foreign influence. The party eventually managed to rise to power in Syria and Iraq, thereby concluding the widespread political instability that had previously plagued both countries. In each of these contexts, autocratic leaders emerged at the forefront of the ruling regimes and manipulated the party to bolster their rule for over three decades. This paper examines the Ba’ath party’s history and ideology to understand the party’s source of strength. It also discusses the party’s role in achieving power as well as the different functions it undertook in Syria and Iraq once autocratic rule was established. Finally, it studies the fall of both regimes and the status of the Ba’ath party today.

'On All Fronts' is a thesis focused on the EOKA insurgency in Cyprus (1955-1959), which aimed at overturning British rule and unifying the island with Greece. EOKA’s campaign was one of several insurgencies carried out against Britain in the two decades following the Second World War. This allowed British policymakers and soldiers to apply lessons learned in other colonies on the island. These lessons included pursuing a political solution in tandem with military operations, unifying command and control, improving intelligence capabilities, and increasing the number of police and soldiers on the ground. Cyprus also presented distinctive challenges. The insurgency was not inspired by communism, like many other anti-colonial struggles, but by right-wing nationalism. The campaign was also intimately linked to the strategic reorganisation undertaken by Britain after 1945. Retreat from India and Palestine increased the importance of the Middle East and Africa, making a presence in Cyprus central to Britain’s post-war plans. Finally, Cypriot demographics meant that the island’s Turkish minority (some eighteen percent) – supported by Ankara – opposed union with Greece. An ethnic-based civil war on the island was possible, as was a regional war between Greece and Turkey. British policy sought to avoid both of these potential conflicts while maintaining the strength of NATO and positive relations with both Athens and Ankara. Utilizing newly declassified papers from the British government, in conjunction with evidence from Greek-Cypriot sources, this study offers insights into the campaign from the perspective of both insurgent and counter-insurgent forces. Parallel to the military analysis, the thesis addresses the political aspect of the insurgency, demonstrating the deep connection in insurgency war between military operations and diplomatic negotiation. While counter-insurgency operations failed to destroy EOKA, the success of government forces created pressure for a diplomatic solution and highlighted the reality that there were insurmountable military and strategic obstacles to union with Greece.