Zugl.: Pretoria, Univ., Diss., 1990

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This thesis offers a reappraisal of the Sabine glosses through the analysis of thirty-nine words, all glossed explicitly as Sabine in ancient sources ranging from the first century BCE to the sixth century CE. The study of the Sabine glosses found in ancient grammarians and antiquarians goes back to the beginnings of Italic scholarship. Over time, two positions on the Sabine glosses have crystallised: (a) the Sabine glosses are evidence of a personal obsession of the Republican author Varro, in whose work many Sabine glosses survive, and (b) the Sabine glosses are true remnants of a single language of which little or no epigraphic evidence has survived. By using the neogrammarian observation that sound-change is regular and exceptionless, it is possible to ascertain whether or not the Sabine glosses are likely to be from the same language. This thesis finds that the sound-changes undergone by the Sabine glosses show no broad agreement. The developments are characteristic of different languages – Latin, Faliscan and various Sabellic languages – and many changes are mutually exclusive. This consequently throws doubt on the assertion that the Sabine glosses are all taken from one language. Instead, the glosses should be seen as part of a discourse of the relationships between Romans, Sabines and Sabellic-speaking peoples. During the Republic, Sabines were central to Roman myth, historiography and political rhetoric. As the Sabines were a distinct people in the Roman foundation myths, but were largely Romanised in the Republican present, they became a convenient bridge between Rome and the Sabellic-speaking peoples of Central and Southern Italy, to whom Greek and Roman writers ascribed myths tracing origin back to the Sabines. This continued into the Empire, when emperors such as Claudius and Vespasian utilised their (supposed) Sabine heritage to gain ideological capital. In light of this, the phenomenon of Sabine glosses cannot be seen as one man’s interest, but as a means of reflecting on Rome’s relations with Sabellic-speaking Italy.

This essay is an attempt to provide an initial phenomenological reading of Saint Paul's notion of dunamis. Throughout his letters a thematic of dunamis is mentioned over forty times – often in close proximity to other central motifs of the Pauline message and not least to God. Although there has been a resurgence of philosophical interest in reading Paul for the last twenty years, a phenomenological thematic of dunamis hasn't been developed. Giorgio Agamben and Alain Badiou (among others) has both provided an analysis of dunamis: but for both mostly along the key of the messianic and prominently related to the political sphere. Following Martin Heideggers phenomenological reading and re-interpretation of the Aristotelean notion of dunamis in the thematic of a twofold disclosing of being I attempt to show how Paul's dunamis, through a praxis of kenotic self-emptying, manages to transform his weakness into strenght. By providing a space for the Sacred to enter and incarnate – and not least the Other – Paul's oppenes shows an ontological receptivity for change which is at the heart of the Aristotelean metaphysical framework. Thus a first attempt is made.

This thesis sets out to proof that Paul advised the Corinthians, at least prominently, from a Christ-centred koinwniva frame of mind when addressing their issues in 1 Corinthians. Firstly it has been established that the koinwniva word group may be defined within the nuances of a dynamic relationship. Secondly the study has compiled, with this definition in mind, at least 47 of the most prominent koinwniva elements as found throughout the Bible, with special focus on the New Testament. These elements have then been organised in a koinwniva defined theological framework so that it could be easily accessible for further study into the way Paul might have used them later on in 1 Corinthians. The study then continued not only to point out the important role of 1 Cor 1:1-9 in the Corinthian letter, but also to show how the themes still to be addressed are actually being set in a koinwniva frame of mind. Furthermore, the role of 1:9, as nexus, combined with the specific reference to koinwniva with Christ has also been stressed. In doing so Paul actually supply us with what could be called a “key” to unlock other koinwniva elements in the rest of 1 Corinthians without encountering the koinwniva term as such. So, armed with this “key” and our carefully defined koinwniva theological framework, 1 Cor 5-6 and 8:1-11:1 have been selected as test cases in proving the hypothesis as true. After the issues that Paul encountered in these chapters have been clarified and his responses exegetically laid out, it has been shown in every textual unit, within the designated macro units, that Paul most definitely put koinwniva with Christ in the focus of each suggested solution. Through this “key” other relevant referrals were then made to one or more of the 47 koinwniva elements from the previously compiled koinwniva theological framework. Realising that the koinwniva dynamics featured consistently behind Paul’s suggestions to the Corinthians, led to the conclusion that Paul extensively tapped into a Christ-centred koinwniva dynamic as a prominent frame of mind to address some of the key issues featuring in 1 Corinthians. / Thesis (PhD (New Testament Studies))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / New Testament Studies / unrestricted

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This paper studies the perception of the Christian body during the second and third centuries CE. It engages with this question with the aid of early Christian literature from this time period, additionally containing a particular focus on how the Pauline theology of the body influenced later Christian bodily conceptions. By subjecting these works to a close reading and with the aid of an intertextual theory, this thesis attempts to ascertain whether this early Christian perception of the body was fractured in nature, and whether aspects of this division – if evident – can be derived from and ascribed to a Pauline influence. This thesis argues that corporeality was a particularly complex component within the early Christian faith, the fractured nature of which could be derived from the contrasting influences of prior Graeco-Roman and Jewish theologies. / Den här uppsatsen studerar den kristna uppfattningen av kroppen under 100- och 200-talet e.v.t. Den behandlar denna fråga med hjälp av tidig kristen litteratur från denna tidsperiod, och inbegriper utöver detta även ett särskilt fokus på hur den Paulinska teologin om kroppen påverkade senare kristna uppfattningar av det kroppsliga. Genom att utsätta dessa verk för en närläsning och med hjälp av en intertextuell teori  så försöker den här uppsatsen därmed att avgöra om denna tidiga kristna uppfattning av kroppen var motsägelsefull i sin natur, och huruvida aspekter av denna splittring – om synlig – kan härstamma från eller tillskrivas Paulinsk influens. Den här uppsatsen argumenterar för att kroppslighet var en särskilt komplex komponent inom den tidiga kristna tron, vars splittrade natur kan härstamma från de kontrasterande influenserna av tidigare grekisk-romerska och judiska teologier.

The aim of this essay is to get a broader understanding of the women who lived in the early Christian church. I intend to do so through a closer look into Phoebe, who is mentioned in Romans 16:1-2. I have posed two questions, one which concerns Phoebe’s mission and function in the church, the other question is regarding how Paul’s words about Phoebe can give us a wider understanding of the women in the early church. My aim with this paper is to try to solve a problem that I identified. The problem consists of gaps in the existing research which in my opinion poses difficulties in a deeper understanding of the women in the early church. I have tried to solve this by connecting different areas of research through a historical-critical method and a social-science theory on Romans 16:1-2. My conclusions are that Phoebe as a sister was reliable and loyal. Phoebe as a diákonos was a trusted servant to the congregation and Paul. Phoebe as the person who carried the letter of Romans to Rome had a special standing. Phoebe was an important part of the early church and its future, as through her Paul could present his theology in Rome.

This paper uses feminist criticism and gender criticism as theory behind an analysis of Paul’s rhetoric. The aim is to make out his intentions of telling women to cover their hair in 1 Cor 11:2-16, in a context where several different cultures meet. The main question is Why does Paul write that women should cover their hair? To give more specific answers I also ask how and when he intends for it to be done, why women should cover their hair when men should not and what it meant for the Corinthians in their context. I argue that the natural differences Paul points out between men and women are not necessarily reason for inequality between them in societal hierarchies. Covering the hair of women in Corinth could be a way of protecting them from being taken advantage of (sexually). The directions Paul gives in 1 Cor apply to the gatherings but does not tell us what he thinks is appropriate in society in general. However, it would make sense for him to tell people not to disturb the societal order by going against the norms and wearing their hair differently outside of the churches.

This essay has examined Paul's Epistle to the Philippians to examine how his letter, in the context of his time, may contribute to the discussion of the modern day, regarding assisted suicide in palliative care. This has mainly been done through a hermeneutical study of Philippians, specifically 1:21-1:27, 2:5-11 and 3:17-21. Additionally this study has utilised historical-critical methods to contextualise Paul's rhetoric and focusing on the idea of de-intoducring of the biblical text from the subsequent theological tradition and anachronisms. This essay has primarily been informed by Arthur J. Droge's article about the subject of suicide in Philippians (Mori Lucrum: Paul and the Ancient Theories of Suicide 1988), Linda Joelsson's book about Paul and the idea of death in the hermeneutical of psychology (Paul and Death - A Question of Psychological Coping 2017) and Karin B. Neutel & Peter-Ben Smits article about the likely conditions of his arrest while writing Philippians and the trauma of prison factors into the text (Paul, Imprisonment and Crisis 2021). The second chapter briefly examined the development of the theology of suicide since the time of St. Augustine and subsecuenty different modern day attitudes toward assisted suicide. The third chapter examined the occurrence and frequency of suicides in the Hebrew Bible and found a lack of moral condemnation of those who took their own lives. Thereafter the essay investigates the attitudes towards death and suicide in the jewish tradition, the Roman empire and finally the early christians. The fourth chapter examined the background of Philippians and the conditions of the imprisonmentand thereafter performed a exegetical investigation into the issue suicide in relation to the ideas of death and suicide of his time. The study showed that Paul expresses what can likely be interpretedas suicidal language in Philippians, but that Paul clearly rejects the idea in favor of performing hisapostolic duty. The essay concludes with a broader discussion on the idea of the challenges of interpretation, a comparison of Paul and the augustinian tradition in relation to suicde and the change in perception of the idea of the holiness of life in favour of personal autonomy. The answer to the main question of the study is that Paul's perspective in Philippians, may be valuable as a troubled and sympathetic christian role-model, a person who, when faced with the prospect of suicide, chooses life. Not because suicde is extraordinarily sinful, but does so for the sake of his chrisitan calling of living for his community. This seems to be a more contemporary and fruitful rhetoric, than the condemning tone of classic augustinian theology in the matter of assisted suicide.