Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Marburg a.L., 1932. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [6]-10).

D. Litt. et. Phil / The purpose of this research was to answer the following question: The funding of the church according to the book of Acts: Socialistic or capitalistic? Can this model of giving be developed and defended that promotes and integrates the believer and his material possessions while at the same time respecting the believer as an autonomous agent, who, as such, may be led by the Holy Spirit to give up all his possessions in support of the work of the Lord? In order to answer the research question a discourse analysis of selected verses in the Sermon on the Mount (SM) regarding possessions is undertaken as well as an analysis of verses selected from the book of Acts regarding money and possessions. The ethical guidelines as presented in the SM, can serve as a guideline for each believer as the SM presents God’s standard in a practical manner. Due to the social environment during the first century A.D., which could have had an influence on the manner in which the early believers used their material possessions to support the work of the Lord, a social scientific investigation of the first century A.D. is undertaken. The introduction to the research as well as an Old Testament (OT) background regarding the role possessions played in worshiping the deity is presented in the opening chapters. The conclusion reached was that money and possessions have always played a vital role in the relationship between the believer and the deity. It was also established that specific laws concerning “giving” developed over a period during OT times, which was meticulously followed by Israel. The New Testament (NT), however, takes on a new direction when it comes to giving, and this new standard of giving is investigated against the backdrop of the social and religious environment of the first century A.D. The question as proposed in the study is answered in chapter 5. Guidelines regarding “giving” are submitted in which I hope would free many believers from the legalism clearly evident in many teachings. Chapter 6 contains a critical evaluation of the two “giving” philosophies, presented by scholars. This study xiv reveals that much of what is being taught and practised among believers today with regard to giving to God, is based on the prescriptive patterns of the OT examples of giving. Most of these models or theories fail to provide specific guidelines for the believer to make the crucial distinction between autonomous choices and choices dictated by the Holy Spirit. Chapter 7 concludes with a synthesis of the entire study.

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2009. / Title from PDF title page (University of Texas Digital Repository, viewed on Sept. 9, 2009). Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

D.Litt. et Phil. / This study began with a premise that there is a need to guide the Christian community in Mozambique to know and put in practice biblical principles to address the scourge of corruption. This is motivated by the belief that the functional moral concerns should be shaped in accordance with the New Testament vision of Christian discipleship. The Church of the Nazarene in Mozambique serves as case study to understand the views and needs of the Christian community in the area of teaching and preaching on issues of material possessions. The intent was to come to exegetical answer on the question posed in this study of the meaning and function of metadidonai and related concepts in the Lukan corpus, not only in theological terms but also in a broader economical framework. There are many people who live in dire poverty in Africa, many through no fault of their own. Most of the poverty is the result of systematic and structural evils. These evils result from human policies designed to increase the profit and power to controlling individuals and corporate bodies. Corruption is one of the major setbacks for alleviation of poverty in Africa. There is no greater scourge that affects the proper functioning of any economic system than corruption. The effects of corruption also have legal ramifications, often undermining the rule of law. But fundamentally, corruption falls squarely in the moral realm because it is symptomatic of the original sin that marks the heart of every person (Gregg and Schenone 2003). I argue in this study that these systematic evils (greed and corruption) are the result of depravation of the heart. Therefore, to address these issues it is necessary to interpret the biblical text with the soteriological agenda. To accomplish this I contend that social scientific approach is vital because it allows the current read to access meaning of the text that can only be understood in light of social context of the original audience and the author of the text. However, beyond the unveiling of the meaning within its canonical context the current exegete must reinterpret the meaning for today. This will require not only the understanding of the meaning of the text in its original context but also the understanding of the current social systems that influence and impact the lives of the people in a particular community. Furthermore the interpreter must be true to his/her theological heritage. Thus, as a Nazarene with a Wesleyan theological heritage I sought to reinterpret metadidonai principle as found in Luke-Acts from a Wesleyan perspective. I emphasise in the study that human kind can not free themselves from depravation of the heart, but by God’s grace humanity has hope for deliverance from sin and from the power of sin (original sin). This is what Africa needs to be freed from corruption. In Luke-Acts text salvation is central motif for discipleship. The soteriological tone sets the frame within which the metadidonai is to be done.

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Previous theories have suggested that consumers will be happier if they spend their money on experiences such as travel as opposed to material possessions such as automobiles. I test this experience recommendation and show that it may be misleading in its general form. Valence of the outcome significantly moderates differences in respondents' reported retrospective happiness with material versus experiential purchases. For purchases that turned out positively, experiential purchases lead to more happiness than do material purchases, as the experience recommendation suggests. However, for purchases that turned out negatively, experiences have no benefit over (and, for some types of consumers, induce significantly less happiness than) material possessions. I provide evidence that this purchase type by valence interaction is driven by the fact that consumers adapt more slowly to experiential purchases than to material purchases, leading to both greater happiness and greater unhappiness for experiential purchases. Moreover, I show that this difference in hedonic adaptation rates for material and experiential purchases is being, at least partially, driven by a difference in memory for those types of purchases. I also show that individuals mispredict hedonic adaptation rates for material and experiential purchases. Finally, I discuss implications for consumer choice. / text

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis is a personal, poststructuralist study of the researcher’s mapping of the self. The researcher refers to her art practice as an action of research and at the same time, a process of reality production. The images that are created through the art making processes, feeds back into reality. The argument for the production of reality images, relies specifically on the non-representational ‘model’ of Deleuze and Guattari. The foundation of this study is based on a theoretical and practical study of the role of personal space and objects in this complex network of production. This thesis argues for the consideration of self as an ‘open’ map and to expand the fiction and idea of representation. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis is persoonlike, poststrukturalistiese ondersoek na die navorser se kartering van die self. Die navorser verwys veral na haar kunspraktyk as aksie van ondersoek en tergelykertyd ’n proses van werklikheidsproduksie. Die beelde wat deur die kunsmaakpraktyk/-proses geskep word, voer terug na die werklikheid. Die argument vir die produksie van werklikheidsbeelde steun veral op Deleuze en Guattari se nie-representasionele ‘model’. Teoretiese en praktiese studie van die rol van persoonlike ruimtes en objekte in hierdie komplekse produksienetwerk vorm die grondslag waaruit die studie voortspruit. In hierdie tesis word uiteindelik geargumenteer vir die beskouing van die self as ‘oop’ kaart ten einde die fiksie en idee van representasie oop te maak en uit te brei. kartering, objekte, roetes, versamelings, werklikheidsbeelde, poststrukturalisme, beelde, tekening