This study indicates that several common assumptions about Anglican pew-renting are unrealistic. Although many critics writing in the nineteenth century, and some historians since, believe that rented sittings in Anglican churches were filled by the very rich and the upper-middle class, the evidence strongly indicates that the primary renters were from the middle-middle and lower-middle classes, particularly small business owners. Also contrary to popular belief, pew-letting continued in many churches well into the twentieth century, in some instances into the 1950s and 1960s, and one Anglican church in the British Isles has continued to rent sittings into the twenty-first century. This is qualified, though, by the finding that those churches that rented sittings persisted in the practice for longer than was expected, but the number of new churches which instituted seat-letting systems dwindled, particularly in the last three decades of the nineteenth century. Pew-renting is also seen to have been most often practiced in large urban churches of low-church orientation. The findings further suggest that most churches abolished pew-rents in the late nineteenth or early twentieth century, not for philosophical or charitable reasons, but because profits diminished to the point at which the cost and trouble of administering a system of pew-rents could not economically justify the revenue produced. Finally, this study has uncovered some evidence both of private pew-renting in addition to proprietary chapels, and of informal pew-renting in the form of tips paid to pew-openers and other officials for preferred seating for a single church service. Examples of dishonest behaviour by church officials are also given.

This thesis asks what might be revealed from a Practical Theology conversation between historical texts and contemporary Christian Science experience about healing theologies and practices. Certain enduring theological ideas (God's goodness and omnipotence, the deceptiveness and impotence of evil, and a correlation between healing and salvation) explain these Christian healing practices. I investigate such ideas and practices using a Practical Theology methodology that accommodates an epistemological contrast and enables meaningful analysis of the ideas. This 'critical conversation' between the Secret Revelation of John, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, and myself as an autoethnographic 'text,' draws out comparisons and contrasting ideas of Christian healing. The three parts of the thesis reflect moments of 'conversation': (1) an overview of the conversation's structure and identification of its partners; (2) a detailed conversation between the two historical texts based on three key themes (the enduring theological ideas mentioned above), and (3) engaging my experience as a twenty-first-century 'text' in conversation with the same themes in epistemologically contrasting contexts. I conclude that understanding theological views from contrasting epistemologies is a constructive means for expanding mutual understanding of Christian healing practices with great potential benefit to scholarly and ecumenical audiences.

The purpose of the thesis is to design an evaluation model which could be used to improve the quality of Sunday schools in Korea. Various evaluation theories that are current outside the church were examined and evaluated to see whether they were amenable to modification to serve the church’s interest in Sunday Schools. The adapted theories were put into practice and tested to see whether the resultant model of evaluation was fit for practical use [or not] in a church setting by doing a number of case studies. Recently the church has had to face severe criticism from the wider Korean society. In order to overcome these problems, the thesis examines the purpose of Sunday school education, which is essentially based on the pursuit of faith conceived more holistically, and considers the improvement needed to deliver quality education in Sunday schools. For this purpose, it tries to devise an evaluation model that establishes a clear understanding of the present state of Sunday schools whilst also suggesting how these schools might change and develop the quality of their education. In order to achieve the quality improvement of Sunday schools, this thesis considers QM (Quality Management) as the main theoretical basis of an evaluation model, because both the kind of analysis and improvement which are used in QM, were shown to be suitable and applicable to a Sunday school setting whilst providing a basis for a continuous improvement in quality. The thesis demonstrates the suitability of this model with regard to its practical application in the field by testing it in individual Sunday schools, which together represent the range of Korean Sunday schools that one might encounter. Also, it critically considers those parts and processes of the evaluation model which should be changed in response to the issues that arose during the case studies.

Spiritual matters lie at the heart of a good dying. However, the shape and focus of spiritual care in palliative care has, I believe, shifted away from the original vision of hospice pioneers, such as Cicely Saunders. Assessing the value of spiritual care has become a priority to those who value a 'scientific' evidence-based practice. The issue this thesis addresses is whether there is a better 'artistic' way to evaluate the care given to dying people. This thesis describes the current landscape of care and then argues for spiritual artistry, as a way to reclaim 'inner space' and 'deep silences' as sites of sacred encounters. This radical move takes the focus of spiritual care away from both evaluative endeavours and also beyond the alternative meaning-making and narrative models, which are currently offered. I hope to shift the focus towards a relational spirituality in which greater attention is given to spiritual awakenings. Dying and grieving can both be viewed as the space of spiritual quests. The challenge is to discover a new way of seeing these complex and sometimes chaotic spiritual contexts in which important things occur which sometimes are beyond measurement and communication. An innovative methodology, spiritual autoethnography, which integrates creative arts, autoethnography and theology, is chosen to pursue this research. In the process of interrogating the silences enounterered in spiritual care at the end of life new insights and understandings are generated. I illustrate the deep silences that occur in times of trauma, shame, cognitive impairment, betrayal and grief, and how understanding these sheds light on marginalised areas rarely the focus of current models of spiritual care. However, the radically new insights gleaned from this research come from the construction of inner space and deep silences as a locus of the sacred. These heuristic constructs, offer a new framework to shape the role of hospice chaplain, and the delivery of spiritual care. In conclusion, spiritual artistry, founded on a poetics, is presented as enabling chaplains to inhabit 'inner space' and 'deep silences'; to say the unsayable and delight in the gifts that accompany griefs. This new understanding of the role of the hospice chaplain, and of the delivery of spiritual care, benefits all those confronting their mortality and their grief.

This thesis examines the nature and extent of the participation of women in the Catholic Church and attitudes towards this, from the Second Vatican Council to the present day in the Anglosphere nations. The originality of this contribution to knowledge derives from the analysis of earlier survey data on the subject authorised by the Catholic Bishops’ Conferences in Australia, New Zealand, the USA, Canada, England & Wales, Ireland, and Scotland. A comparative study is made of these findings with those of a parallel qualitative and quantitative study undertaken in 2013 in Scotland. The findings evidence analogous themes running through both the earlier research data and that from 2013. The duty to appreciate the diversity of Catholic women is a key factor. The dangers of a culture of clericalism are evidenced as a serious barrier to any lay participation. The need for education and formation of the laity is identified as crucial, as is the importance of Catholic social teaching in providing a conduit for increased dialogue and respect between women and men. The Church’s emphasis on unity and continuity is acknowledged as both a barrier to, and yet potentially a positive means for, future collaboration between men and women. Proposals are made about how this research could underpin future development in the Catholic Church, particularly in Scotland. These include utilising an oblique methodology and the implementation of a receptive feminism. The facilitation of dialogue would ensure there is true gender equality, allowing the gifts of both women and men to be engaged in meeting the needs of the Church and the world.

This thesis outlines the history of the distinctive diaconate within the Church of England, and the understanding of the diaconate contained with the Ordinal. It explores the experience of distinctive deacons within the Church of England today. It does so through interviews with a respondent cohort of sixteen distinctive deacons in active ministry. Secondly, this thesis explores the reasons why the distinctive diaconate has failed to grow and flourish. It does so by drawing attention to the ways in which the distinctive diaconate has been misused, and the inability of the Church hierarchy to act upon the recommendations of various reports that is has commissioned. It also explores the effect that collegial relationships, stipendiary status, and methods of deployment have had on this ministry. In its conclusion, this thesis presents an argument for the retention and development of the distinctive diaconate in the ministry of the Church of England.

The supervision of students for ministry is of primary importance for the Church today. In a context where religion is becoming increasingly privatised and the Church increasingly marginalised, not only are there fewer candidates presenting for ministry, and fewer ministers, the challenges facing these ministers become ever more complex. Although the study of theology is basic to the exercise of ministry, the skills for ministry are learned on placement, where a student engages in the practice of ministry supervised by an experienced and trained minister. It is from this supervisor that the trainee minister learns how to deal with the complexities of ministry today. It follows, therefore, that the training given to such supervisors must be developed to take account of the changing role of ministry. The Church of Scotland has an intensive training course for these supervisors whom I will refer to as ‘formational supervisors’. This thesis aims to evaluate this training to ascertain the extent to which it equips formational supervisors for the task. To do this, I interviewed six formational supervisors and the six probationer ministers on placement in their congregations to determine the extent to which supervisory practice was sharpened and enhanced by the Church of Scotland’s current training programme, where any weaknesses lay, and, therefore, whether the training was fit for purpose. The results of my research show that the training offered is very good but could be excellent. I outline the strengths and weaknesses of the training as it is currently configured and suggest areas for development. I make ten recommendations for improvements to the training. I also identify the characteristics of the formational supervisor which sets this type of supervision apart from pastoral or clinical supervision. This is significant in enabling appropriate training in formational supervision. The results of the research, while being of importance for the training of formational supervisors of ministry students in the Church of Scotland, have wider application. These results would also be helpful for reflecting on training in other churches and could be developed for the training of formational supervisors in any discipline.

From 1830 to 1960 the parish ministry of the clergy of the Church of England underwent a transformation, which was expressed in the gradual abandonment of the parson model and the adoption of the professional model. Staffordshire provides a good case-study area because of its wide variety of urban and rural parishes where this development can be assessed. Amongst the many causes of the change, the population size of the parishes and the sources of clerical funding are considered to be crucially important. The evidence suggests that where parishes exceeded 2000 people and where the worshiping community became the main provider of financial support, the parson model was increasingly difficult to operate. Out of necessity, and sometimes subconsciously, the clergy developed a model with significant professional features, even though the parson model continued to be promoted as the ideal. There was a narrowing of the remit of the clergy and within their local communities they were less involved and less influential. If as a consequence the incarnational aspect of local ministry has been eroded then there are far reaching implications. This study shows how practical circumstances, such as those that relate to geography and economics, although not always recognised, have an important effect upon the practice and the theology of ministry.

Thesis (Ph.D. (Pastoral))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.

Psychology has systematically entered and even taken possession of the field (sphere) of Biblical counselling. A number of studies have already been assumed regarding theology and psychology. The underlying problem remains: which theology is compared with which psychological paradigm. The reformed pastor finds his grounding in the five solae of the reformation as it is named in the formulae of unity. Four paradigms are recognized in psychology. Each has its own key figure. The doctrine and life of these key figures have been examined. The finding was that these people, inclusively, had above average exposure to Scripture and has yet denied it at the cost of a faith in the capability of the individual to work his own salvation. The result is that none of these paradigms is reconcilable with the reformed pastorate / Thesis (M.A. (Theology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2006.