This thesis is about the similarities of process between aesthetic experience and ethical judgement. I claim that in both cases the activity is best described as a type of play in which elements interact in mutual adjustment and transformation. This conception of play has its roots in Kant's aesthetic theory. Describing aesthetic experience as play results in emphasis on three central characteristics. These characteristics become the basis of constraints on judgement. In the case of ethical judgement these are important because they save from subjectivism a moral theory, particularism, which relies on individual judgement rather than moral rules. Seeing the activity of judgement as play suggests a conception of the outcome of judgement as picturing. This conception helps to make sense of reason-giving within the particularist model. A further analogy with the grounds of aesthetic qualities is used to illuminate the problem of justifying the values put into play. These values are ultimately defended in terms of their relationship to human flourishing. Perennial problems for theories based on human flourishing are avoided by my account because prescriptions for action are not derived from the characterisation of flourishing but from the process of individual judgement which values based on flourishing merely inform. One positive effect of adopting my model of judgement as play is the reduction of problems concerning the motivation to act on ethical judgements.

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Jacques de Vitry (†1240), a noted preacher in Brabant and Languedoc, served as canon regular of Saint-Nicholas d’Oignies (1211-16), bishop of Acre (1216-29) and auxiliary bishop of Liège (1226-29), and ultimately as cardinal-bishop of Tusculum (1229-1240). Whilst his letters, sermons, and the Historia Occidentalis have been extensively studied, the Historia Orientalis, Jacques’s encyclopedic work on the Holy Land, has so far escaped any such interest. Considered as yet another crusading history or pilgrimage guide drawing on previous writings, the few editions and brief studies of this work published since the nineteenth century are based neither on a detailed textual analysis nor on a complete investigation of the manuscript tradition. This thesis, therefore, addresses an important gap in the historiographical debate by providing a detailed analysis of the contents of the Historia Orientalis and its sources, in combination with an examination of the manuscript tradition up to the early fourteenth century. In it, I argue that the work is composed of different genres, each addressing a topic that served Jacques’s agenda and his activities as theologian, preacher, historian, pilgrim, and crusader. Moreover, by examining the rich manuscript tradition, I establish the book’s legacy and show that Jacques’s contemporaries perceived the text as an eclectic work. Jacques’s combination of different popular genres contributed to the influence of the text which is preserved in no fewer than 126 extant manuscripts. The thesis falls into three sections. In the first, I introduce my investigation and provide a long overdue revised biographical note and contextualisation of Jacques’s writings. In the four chapters of the second section, I analyse the text to see how Jacques combined the editing of existing source material with his personal knowledge into a work that served the reform and crusade agenda of the Fourth Lateran Council of 1215. The four chapters discuss the medieval genres that can be found in Jacques’s work: a history of the crusades, an account on Islam, a description of the Holy Land, and an ethnographical treatise. In the third section, using codicological research to discuss the text’s compilation, influence, readership, and legacy in the thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries, I argue that each genre found within the Historia was intended for and read by a different audience, thus explaining the wide appeal of the work as a whole. The sixth chapter focuses on the early manuscript tradition and dissemination of the Historia Orientalis while the seventh chapter addresses, on the one hand, the use of these manuscripts and the relationship to other texts in the same codex and, on the other hand, the authors who copied or used Jacques’s text in their own works. By combining a detailed textual analysis with extensive manuscript research, this investigation into the contents, readership and legacy of the Historia Orientalis sheds new light on the mechanisms behind the dissemination and influence of religious propaganda, as well as highlights Jacques’s seminal contribution to Church reform and the approach to crusading in the thirteenth century in accordance with the agenda set by the Fourth Lateran Council.

Sexual harassment against women represents aggressive behaviour that is often enacted instrumentally, in response to a threatened sense of masculinity and male identity (cf. Maass & Cadinu, 2006). To date, however, empirical and theoretical attention to the social-cognitive processes that regulate workplace harassment is scant. Drawing on Social Cognitive Theory (Bandura, 1986), the current thesis utilises the theoretical concept of moral disengagement in order to address this important gap in the literature. According to Bandura (1990, 1999), moral standards and self-sanctions (i.e., negative emotions of guilt or shame) can be selectively deactivated through various psychosocial mechanisms. The use of these moral disengagement strategies enables a person to violate their moral principles, and perpetrate injurious behaviour without incurring self-censure. This thesis investigates the general hypothesis that moral disengagement facilitates and perpetuates workplace sexual harassment. A new conceptual framework is presented, elucidating the self-regulatory role of moral disengagement mechanisms in sexual harassment perpetration at work. Eight empirical studies are reported in this thesis. Studies 1 to 3 present the development and preliminary validation of the Moral Disengagement in Sexual Harassment Scale (MDiSH); a self-report measure of moral disengagement in the context of hostile work environment harassment. These studies document the excellent psychometric properties of this new scale. The MDiSH exhibited positive correlations with sexual harassment myth acceptance, male gender identification, and hostile sexism. In Study 3, participants were exposed to a fictitious case of hostile work environment harassment. The MDiSH attenuated moral judgment, negative emotions (guilt, shame, and anger), sympathy, and endorsement of prosocial behavioural intentions (support for restitution) associated with the harassment case. Conversely, the MDiSH increased positive affect (happiness) about the harassment, endorsement of avoidant behavioural intentions, and attribution of blame to the female complainant. Using the amalgamated samples of Studies 1 and 2, the MDiSH was winnowed down to create a short form of the scale (MDiSH-S). The analyses reported in Chapter 3 attest to the strong psychometric properties of this measure. Study 4 explores the influence of social identification on the relationship between moral disengagement and judgments of hostile work environment harassment. U.S. participants were presented with a harassment case in which the perpetrators were described as being either in-group or out-group members. Moral disengagement (as measured using the MDiSH) neutralised judgments of the harassing behaviour. However, participants were not more inclined to justify and positively re-appraise harassment that was committed by in-group perpetrators. Study 5 reveals that moral disengagement leads people to make more favourable judgments about the perpetrators of hostile work environment harassment. The neutralising effects of moral disengagement on judgments of the harassing conduct were partially mediated by a positive evaluation of the harassers (but not social identification with them). The final three studies (Studies 6, 7, and 8) investigate the role of moral disengagement in accounting for men’s self-reported proclivity to commit quid pro quo harassment and hostile work environment harassment. These studies examine the causal pathway between moral disengagement and harassment proclivity, and the psychological mechanisms (emotions and moral judgment) that underlie this relationship. Taken together, the results suggest that moral disengagement mechanisms are important social cognitions that people use to deny, downplay, and justify workplace sexual harassment. The findings of this thesis also provide preliminary support for the notion that moral disengagement is a self-regulatory process in sexual harassment perpetration at work (cf. Page & Pina, 2015). The thesis concludes with a discussion of theoretical implications of the findings, methodological limitations, practical implications, and suggestions of future research avenues.

This thesis assesses two prominent evangelical models of worldview analysis and, in light of the findings, offers a constructive proposal. Chapter 1 describes evangelicalism's implementation of the worldview concept. It argues that apologetics must be carried out on the worldview level. Hence, there is a compelling need for rigorous worldview analysis of opposing positions. Chapters 2 and 3 delineate the elements of transcendental and abductive worldview analysis, respectively. Both chapters provide a brief historical sketch of the distinct methodologies. In addition, each methodology is explored in terms of its strategy, engagement with other worldviews, and strengths and weaknesses. This study concludes that transcendental analysis suffers from several crippling weaknesses. It is unable to bridge the gap from ontological to conceptual necessity and to overcome the possibility of hypothetical worldview competitors. Also, significant portions of the transcendental starting point, the biblical canon, fail to give self-attestation, thus requiring external validation. Transcendental analysis seems better suited for usage in scenarios where an opponent can be reduced to absurdity or for a proof of God's existence based on a common phenomenon of human experience. Overall, abductive analysis stands as the superior option. However, it was noted that it best operates within a framework that contains relevant background information for establishing common ground. This is the aim of the last chapter. Chapter 4 articulates a constructive proposal for evangelical abductive analysis. It argues that the proper framework for abductive analysis should follow the contours that Scripture lays down itself---the fundamental plot line of redemptive history. The best articulation of this plot line is the creation-fall-redemption matrix (CFR). This schema maintains cosmic significance, touching upon the core existential issues of humanity---human origins, predicament, and remedy. Thus, it offers the best opportunity of establishing contact with the background beliefs in hopes of demonstrating that the Christian worldview offers the best explanation to these pressing matters. Chapter 5 summarizes the essential points of the study and suggests areas for future research. / This item is only available to students and faculty of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. If you are not associated with SBTS, this dissertation may be purchased from <a href="http://disexpress.umi.com/dxweb">http://disexpress.umi.com/dxweb</a> or downloaded through ProQuest's Dissertation and Theses database if your institution subscribes to that service.

<p> According to Craig Keener there are hundreds of millions of people around the world who believe that they have experienced or witnessed a healing miracle. Unfortunately, the vast majority of these miracles (Special Divine Action) occur in the third world and lack medical and scientific documentation. However, in Craig Keener&rsquo;s text <i>Miracles: The Credibility of the New Testament Accounts</i> (2011), he details over one hundred modern medical miracles which have documentation from American doctors and scientists. In addition to Keener, the Vatican&rsquo;s <i>Medica Consulta</i> has also catalogued seventy cases of modern medical miracles originating from the shrine at Lourdes France which meet the Vatican&rsquo;s rigid documentation criteria. Finally, the Renewal linked <i>Global Medical Research Institute </i> (GMRI) has begun an extensive study to verify and document claims of personal medical miracles. Thus, there is strong scientific evidence for the occurrence of modern miracles. </p><p> While proving the occurrence of modern miracles is foundational in the development of a Renewal apologetic, the theological implications and meanings of the miraculous are the larger questions according to Polkinghorne, Richard Swinburne and others. What is ultimately needed in the development of a Renewal apologetic, is a comprehensive theology of the miraculous, which places modern miracles within the larger history of God&rsquo;s interaction with his creation, as a means for the expansion of his kingdom. This will be the focus of the second part of this paper, as modern miracles are shown to be an integral part of the Renewal and expansion of the Kingdom of God; and ultimately the development of a Renewal Apologetic.</p><p>

This study inquires into the institutional identity of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since its founding in 1830. The study takes a historical stance in discussing the relationship between American public perceptions and the Church's developing internal identity, tracing these changes through three distinct historical stages. Building on the works of historians and sociologists such as Jan Shipps, Armand Mauss, and Terryl Givens, this study hopes to contribute to the understanding of new religious movements and the progression from sect to church. The study finds that Mormon identity and American perceptions of Mormons have had an inter-influential relationship, each responding and re-forming in turn. The LDS Church has progressed from sect to church as tensions with the host society have lessened. Currently, the Church is at an optimum level of tension with the host society, maintaining a distinct identity while enjoying conventional acceptance.

The notion of ineffability (of that which is, in principle, resistant to conceptual formulation and therefore literal linguistic articulation) has been largely ignored by philosophers. The notion is clearly a central one in the Christian mystical tradition and in more recent apophatic theological developments. Mid-twentieth-century philosophical discussions of mysticism invoked the idea and a number of phenomenologists share a sense that the meaningful human world is answerable to some 'background' that is inarticulable and mysterious. But, despite this, the logical implications of the notion of ineffability for religious experience, language and practice have not been explicitly and systematically thought through. This thesis, restricted to a dual focus on twentieth-century and contemporary philosophy and on the Christian religion, attempts to address this neglect. After reviewing the philosophical, and some theological, literature on the notion of ineffability in religion, this thesis identifies a philosophical tension between the notions of 'ineffability' and 'answerability', between the idea that the ineffable is beyond conceptualization and that some kind of experience, language or practice connected with it is required if the notion is to be meaningfully invoked, let alone (as in a religious context) serve as the measure for the meaning of the human world. In this connexion, the meaning of the word 'God' is interpreted as a reference to the concept of ineffability. A recent philosophical defence of the concept is endorsed which, rooted in existential phenomenology and Heidegger's later philosophy, resolves this tension. The detail of theological attempts, by Paul Tillich and John Macquarrie, to accommodate this line of thought as directly inherited from the phenomenologists (especially Heidegger) is examined and criticized, as, eventually, is a more promising theological possibility represented by the neglected philosophy of Karl Jaspers. The rational status of existential phenomenology (its relation to discourse conditioned by the subject-object dichotomy) is examined more closely in the light of the latter criticism. It is concluded that phenomenology's specifically philosophical way of evoking the ineffable is necessarily that of a rationally-based dialectic. The final chapter points to spheres outside philosophy, aesthetic and ritual, which cultivate the experience of the ineffable without such dialectic. It offers an 'aesthetic account of ritual meaning' and concludes by showing how the Eucharistic rite can be philosophically understood as a vehicle for religious experience and expression - the evocation and invocation of the ineffable God.

Atonement theologies of salvation are problematic for suffering victims, which calls for a change in how we imagine God and view salvation today. A distorted image of God and God's salvation deprives those in distress of finding consolation, healing, and agency through their faith. I apply a feminist critical hermeneutic of liberation that reveals that the application of CDH can accommodate violence and other forms of evil against the marginalized, women, and the natural world. It is necessary to find metaphors for God that can offer spiritual sustenance to those who suffer and reimagine an alternate idea of God's salvation. Understanding God's deliverance as accompaniment, mediated through a loving community, is one pastoral approach to responding to the suffering in our world today.

Two paradoxical elements in Camus's work, both kept at a distance by the author, are the feminine and the sacred. The feminine is paradoxical in its patterns of speech and silence, and of partial or aspectual absence and presence. Whereas feminine speech and presence are abundant in Camus's theatre, absence, silence and fragmentation of the feminine characterize his narrative works, with the exception of the short story, "La femme adultere." The sense of the sacred, which permeates Camus's work, represents a philosophical paradox. Indeed, how to reconcile Camus's agnosticism and his philosophy of the absurd, which denies transcendance, with this sense of the sacred? How to explain the experience of "La femme adultere"? For it is in this text, after having intersected in the plays, that the paradoxes of the sacred and the feminine climactically come together and approach the metaphysical. A first critical approach sets the sacred in the context of Camus's time. Juxtaposing the early Camusian essays with certain writings of contemporary authors relative to religion and the sacred, it considers the sacred from philosophical, historical and sociological as well as religious perspectives. A second approach, psychoanalytic and feminist, explores Camus's narrative works and his drama. Referring mainly to the writings of Kristeva and taking up her notion of the "myth of the feminine" as the "last refuge of the sacred", it examines the absences and silences of the mother in the narrative works before concerning itself with the speech and presence of the female companion in the plays. This difference between the two genres is analyzed. Finally, the last part of the thesis, which focuses on "La femme adultere", examines the modalities of desire. It is this context of desire, linked to the Camusian concept of the absurd, that opens the feminine to the sacred. This double paradox is examined along with the possible meaning of the unexpected alliance of the feminine and the sacred in a corpus of work mostly perceived as masculine and agnostic.