Unable to rationalize man's interpretation of God, Clemens took a different view of Satan. He wrote four minor pieces that illustrate his attitudes toward Satan. He began to act as a pen for the narrator, Satan. Clemens allowed his Satanic characters freedoms that he would not allow other characters, and opinions that he restrained from writing as his own. But an older Clemens tossed convention aside as he assumed Satan's identity and wrote imaginative and unrestrained ideas on God, Satan and man.

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This thesis aims to elucidate the nature of the references to Satan in the undisputed Pauline corpus. Although scholarship has frequently devoted attention to the various “powers of evil” in Paul’s letters—including principalities, rulers, demons, etc.—insufficient consideration has been given to the figure of Satan as an isolated subject matter. Moreover, scholarship on the individual references to Satan has often neglected Paul’s depiction of Satan’s activity vis-à-vis his apostolic calling. This raises the question, how and why does the Apostle Paul refer to the figure of Satan in his letters? In order to address this question, the thesis commences by examining two key areas of background material. First, Chapter Two investigates the various “images” of Satan in the Hebrew Bible and Second Temple Jewish texts. Instead of delineating a historical sketch of the development of Satan in Jewish thought, emphasis is placed on the various roles in which Satan functions within these writings. Second, Chapters Two and Three investigate two aspects of Paul’s theology which relate to his references to Satan. First, Satan’s place within Paul’s apocalyptic theology is explicated (Chapter Three). Second, the thesis considers Paul’s self-understanding as the Apostle to the Gentiles and, critically, the importance of Paul’s churches for his apostleship (Chapter Four). Chapters Five and Six then utilize the findings of the previous chapters in their examination of the ten clear references to Satan in the undisputed Pauline letters. Chapter Five focuses on the sole reference to Satan in Romans (16:20) and the two references in 1 Thessalonians (2:18; 3:5). Chapter Six then analyzes the several references to Satan in the Corinthian correspondence (1 Cor 5:5; 7:5; 2 Cor 2:11; 4:4; 6:15; 11:14; 12:7), including their collective significance. On the basis of the examination of the Pauline references to Satan, it is argued that Paul—while sharing the Jewish and early Christian understanding of Satan as an enemy and tempter of the people of God—fundamentally characterizes Satan in his letters as the apocalyptic adversary who opposes his apostolic labor (kopos). Paul does so, it is argued, because he believed that his apostleship was pivotal in spreading the gospel at a crucial point in salvation history. The final chapter then anticipates the implications of the study for further research.

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Despite the glut of literature focusing on numerous aspects of mainline American religious life, there is a surprising dearth of information regarding deviant religious practitioners. Importantly, there remains a lack of focus on the specificities of religious and spiritual deviance, and the accounts of those who engage in such practices. This exploratory study closely examines the members of one such religion; specifically, the Church of Satan. Despite the stigma associated with Satanism, individuals continue to willfully engage in such practices. Research uses face-toface, semi-structured interviews to better discern the rationale behind Satanic worship as understood by modern-day believers. Particular attention is given to the accounts of Satanists to examine motivations for engaging in such practices, as well as identity management techniques for dealing with potential stigma. Results of the analysis show that Satanists utilize a variety of accounts when speaking about their spiritual choices and the potential stigma that surrounds such choices. These results are discussed and directions for additional research are presented.

Cette étude propose l’analyse de la figure et des mécanismes de l’imposture dans l’oeuvre romanesque deGeorges Bernanos, dans son lien de contradiction ontologique et d’imitation factice avec la figure et lephénomène de la sainteté. Elle est conduite en trois axes. Le premier tente de dégager ce qui, dans sonitinéraire personnel, a déterminé Bernanos à faire de ces deux thèmes à la fois solidaires et contradictoiresun sujet de roman récurrent, sinon obsédant. Le second prolonge l’étude biographique par un commentairesur la genèse de l’oeuvre en lien intrinsèque avec les deux figures, autrement dit, sur l’élaborationprogressive des deux thèmes, telle qu’elle se dégage des premiers travaux d’écriture et d’inventionromanesques. Le troisième axe se penche plus manifestement sur la réalité et les mécanismes del’imposture, tels que les dévoilent les personnages bernanosiens, particulièrement celui de Mouchette dontle parcours dans Sous le soleil de Satan est typique, annonçant et préfigurant les autres parcoursd’imposteurs de l’oeuvre (particulièrement ceux de l’abbé Cénabre, du faux curé de Mégère et de M.Ouine), puis celui du diable lui-même, menteur et père du mensonge selon le verset de l’Evangile auquelle romancier se réfère, et dont la figuration dans son premier roman représente ce qui constitue finalement,à ses yeux, la seule imposture totale, surnaturelle. / This study offers an analysis of the fraud figure and mechanism in Georges Bernanos’ fiction as it islinked in both contradictory and imitative way with sanctity figure and phenomenon. It is handled by threeaxes. The first axe tries to highlight the reason why, through his personal career, Bernanos decides to usethese two themes, both interdependent and opposed, as a recurring if not obsessive fiction subject. Thesecond axe stretches the biography by a comment on the genesis of his works, essentially linked to the twofigures, in other words, on the development of these two themes, as it appears in his first written worksand fictions. The third axe favours fraud reality and mechanism as Bernanos characters may reveal, mostdistinctively Mouchette, whose path in Sous le soleil de Satan is characteristically announcing the otherimpostors’ paths : in particular those of Abbé Cénabre, the fake priest of Mégère and M. Ouine. Then, thepath of the devil himself, liar and father of lies, following the Gospel verse, which the author is referringto, and whose representation in his first fiction, appears to be the only total supernatural imposture.

The aim of this qualitative research study has been to investigate seven young adult Pentecostals conceptions about religious evil, that is Satan, demons and hell. The purpose has also been to analyze how these conceptualizations are formed. The method that has been used in this study is individual semi-structured interviews. The result of the study show that conceptions of Satan, demons and hell are strong in most of the individuals’ life but one. Berger & Luckmanns theories of socialization has been applied to the results and the discussion shows that conceptions about religious evil are formed in the primary socialization or the secondary socialization if the person goes through the process of alternation. Bultmanns argument that modern man can’t accept the world view that is presented in The New Testament has also been discussed and the discussion reveals that modern day people can believe in the New Testament worldview.

Jag arbetar med frodiga och pompösa skulpturer som är tillverkade i keramik. Projektet Black Mass har musikgenren BlackMetal som utgångspunkt. Här undersöker jag hur musikgenren Black Metal går att överföra till keramik. Den krock mellankeramik och Black Metal tar sin form i en fiktiv ritual där ambitionen varit att utgå från musiken som beskriver ondska, mörkeroch satanism. I min essä förklarar jag min bakgrund till musik genren och hur det kommer sig att jag valde Black Metal somutgångspunkt till mina keramiska verk. Jag beskriver mitt förhållande till leran och varför den blivit mitt huvudsakliga medium imin konstnärliga praktik. Sedan har jag försökt bena ut vad det är inom genren/subkulturen Black Metal som jag velat ta tillvarapå och införliva i min installation ”Black Mass”.

Satan or satan? Hebrew word שטן (satan) has been interpreted both as either a resistance or an opponent, but also as a name, Satan.   This essay deals with the interpretation and meaning of various texts by שטן to see how the representation of the character Satan emerged. The essay deals with why satan became Satan and how the character Satan became a malicious figure through an ambiguous interpretation of שטן. The result of the study shows that because of the definite article ה in front of שטן the word שטן should not be read as a name but as the opponent, the satan.

The prophet Zechariah was active during 520-518 BC, after the exile in Babylon and before the Second Temple was built. The Prophet's book carries clear eschatological features and conveys a message about the restoration of Jerusalem. A specific feature of Zechariah 3 is the presence of the angel of the Lord and Satan standing on his right side. During this time the Israelites had knowledge of Babylonian culture and religion, where the battle myth occurs and a dualistic view of God. Where the good and the evil are in conflict with each other. I therefore wonder if this awareness may have characterized Zechariah's night vision in chapter 3. In this essay, I will examine Chapter 3, where the reader meets the high priest Joshua, the angel of the Lord, and the Prosecutor. With the hope of being able to contribute to a deeper understanding of Zechariah 3's purpose and message.