The explosive growth of technology today is causing extensive speculation about the future. These ‘technological futurisms’—especially transhumanism—are often imbued with religious value by their adherents. How should Christians respond to the content of technological futurisms and also the way the future is constructed? In this thesis I argue that Christian eschatology has a more robust understanding of the future than technological futurism, as championed by transhumanism, and can allow for radical hope while also maintaining important humanistic virtues which are ultimately lost in transhumanism. Christian eschatology does not only depend on what is actual to create its future. Rather, it is open to the God of possibility and promise who can bring the radically new in the Kingdom of God. This dissertation is broken into three major sections with an introductory and concluding chapter. The first section provides a history of our technological imagination today by looking at visionary approaches to technology and the future in both technological utopias and science fiction. This history provides the conditions for understanding the proposed future of transhumanism. The second section orients the final response by assessing technology and the future in the eschatologies of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin and Jacques Ellul. Both Teilhard and Ellul agree that the technological future without appeal to the Christian God is dangerous. The final section looks at the theological and philosophical issues surrounding technology and the future. Heidegger’s works are used to sharpen themes related to technology and the future; in particular, how technology is related to ontology and how the future is related to possibility. The final chapters construct a Christian response to transhumanism around the themes of possibility and promise by utilising the works of Richard Kearney, Eberhard Jüngel and Jürgen Moltmann. A Christian notion of possibility allows for the radically new in a way transhumanism does not and the Christian idea of promise safeguards human virtues by emphasising the interpersonal as ultimate rather than self-transcendence as with transhumanism.

The publication of The Origin of Species in 1859 raised a host of theological issues. Chief amongst them is the question of how a good, loving, and powerful God could create through an evolutionary process that involved so much suffering, pain, and violence. The traditional Christian answers for suffering in the natural world are not plausible in an evolutionary world. We cannot blame natural evil on human sin, since earth history shows that non-human suffering long preceded humans. Nor can we say that God allows suffering because it allows opportunity for moral choice, spiritual closeness with God, and the development of virtue, as none of these apply to the non-human realm. A new approach is needed to address the question of suffering and violence amongst non-human animals. In this dissertation, I address the question of evolutionary suffering with a multi-disciplinary approach of biblical studies, philosophical theology, and systematic theology to build a compound theodicy. After a survey of the various scholarly contributions in this area, I begin with biblical considerations of the God-world relationship. I set aside, based on exegetical examinations of Genesis 1-9, notions of “fallenness” in the natural world. I therefore argue that evolution was God’s intended process of creation, and that we should not attribute it to any kind of corruption. The rest of the dissertation engages in the development of a compound theodicy rooted in a philosophical and theological definition of love. How does a God who loves creatures respond to their suffering? I argue that God’s action in creation is characterised by kenotic restraint, the giving of freedom, co-suffering with creatures, and the work of redemption.

Considerando as dificuldades relatadas na compreensão da teoria Evolutiva Biológica no ensino de Ciências, o presente estudo tem como objetivo mapear a atitude de aceitação/rejeição da teoria da Evolução Biológica de estudantes brasileiros do Ensino Médio e identificar possíveis influências das crenças pessoais religiosas destes na aceitação de tópicos da Evolução Biológica. A pesquisa foi realizada no âmbito do projeto cooperativo internacional The Relevance of Science Education (Rose) A Relevância do Ensino de Ciências, implementado no Brasil, por meio de uma amostra de representatividade nacional. O estudo foi desenhado por uma amostragem estratificada pelos 26 estados e o Distrito Federal, com alocação proporcional, tendo como universo a amostra do Programa Internacional de Avaliação de Estudantes (Pisa), no Brasil, no ano de 2009. A pesquisa, de natureza quantitativa, encontra-se no campo da avaliação educacional, e utilizou como instrumento de coleta de dados as Questões Nacionais do questionário Rose-Brasil, por meio de 23 itens cujas respostas são expressas em uma escala de Likert, de 4 pontos. Ao todo, 2.365 estudantes participaram da pesquisa, oriundos de 84 escolas localizadas em todos os estados brasileiros. Os resultados encontrados revelam que o alto índice de atitude positiva dos estudantes em relação à religiosidade ativa demonstra que a religião é valorizada pelos jovens pesquisados, que afirmaram serem pessoas religiosas e de fé, e terem compreensão e crença nas doutrinas religiosas. A religiosidade expressa dos jovens estudantes brasileiros participantes da pesquisa não os impede de acreditar na evolução biológica. Essa aceitação, principalmente por uma parcela de jovens cristãos evangélicos, foi um resultado surpreendente, já que muitos dos problemas detectados no ensino da evolução biológica se referem à influência das crenças religiosas na aceitação das ideias evolucionistas, especialmente do segmento evangélico, que tende a uma postura mais fundamentalista. Diante do grande número de jovens evangélicos participantes deste estudo e do aumento no número de evangélicos na população brasileira, poder-se-ia esperar maior rejeição desses estudantes em relação à teoria evolutiva biológica. A aceitação da evolução biológica por parte dos estudantes sem que, para tanto, tenham de abrir mão de suas crenças religiosas, indica uma visão de mundo que é compatível com a ciência. Esses resultados sugerem que, futuramente, podemos ter uma população mais flexível às interpretações das doutrinas religiosas e mais sensíveis às questões científicas. / Considering the reported difficulties in understanding the Biological Evolution Theory in the science education. Present study aims to map the attitude of acceptance / rejection of the theory of Biological Evolution of Brazilian students of High School and the possible influences of personal religious beliefs in the acceptance of these topics Biological Evolution. The research was conducted in the ambit of the international cooperative project The Relevance of Science Education (Rose) - The Relevance of Science Education, implemented in Brazil, through a nationally representative sample. The study sample was drawn through a stratified sampling by 26 states and the Federal District with proportional allocation, having as sampling universe the sample of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in Brazil in 2009. The research quantitative, lies within the field of educational assessment and used as a tool for data collection Questions National questionnaire Rose- Brazil by means of 23 items whose answers are expressed in a Likert scale of 4 points. In all, 2365 students participated in the survey, coming from 84 schools located in all Brazilian states. Results found reveal that the high rate of positive attitude of students in relation to active religiousness proves that religion is valued by young people researched affirmed that are religious people and faith, and have understanding and belief in religious doctrines. Expressed religiosity of young Brazilian students participating in the research does not prevent them to believe in biological evolution. This acceptance, especially for a share of young evangelical Christians, was a surprising result, since many of the problems detected in the teaching of biological evolution refer to influence of religious beliefs on the acceptance of evolutionist ideas, especially the evangelical segment, which tends to a fundamentalist posture. Before the large number of young evangelicals participating in this study and the increase in the number of evangelicals in the Brazilian population, it might be expected greater rejection of these students in relation to biological evolutionary theory. The acceptance of biological evolution by students without the have to relinquish their religious beliefs, indicates a worldview that is compatible with science. These results suggest that in the future we can have more flexible population ace interpretations of religious doctrines and most sensitive scientific issues.

Esta tese procura compreender o casamento misto na cidade de São Paulo, SP no período compreendido entre os anos de 1958 até 1978. O casamento misto ocorre quando um dos cônjuges é cristão, mas não pertence à Igreja Católica. Para os protestantes, o equivalente seria o chamado casamento ecumênico, onde basta que um dos cônjuges pertença a mesma denominação religiosa, luterana por exemplo, para que o casamento possa ser celebrado. O tema remete a leituras sobre o ecumenismo, o relativismo religioso, o papel da mulher nas Igrejas, podendo também servir de termômetro para a situação da família brasileira no séc. XXI, que nas últimas décadas sofreu profundas transformações, assim como transformações no perfil religioso do brasileiro, devido ao intenso movimento de conversão para novos movimentos religiosos de dentro ou de fora do cristianismo. / These theses try to understand the mixed marriage matrimony at Sao Paulo city, in the period of years 1958 till 1978. The mixed marriage is performed when one of married couple is Christian but not belongs to the Catholic Church. For the protestant the equivalent would be so called ecumenical marriage, in which the fact that one of married couple belongs to the same religious denomination for example Lutheran, is enough condition to celebrate the union. The subject calls for a reading about the ecumenism, religious relativism, the role of women in the churches, becoming also able to serve as a parameter for evaluation of Brazilian family situation in the XXI century, which in the last decades had suffered a very deep transformations, as well transformations in Brazilian religious profile, due to intense conversion effort to new religious movements inside or outside the Christianism.

Considerando as dificuldades relatadas na compreensão da teoria Evolutiva Biológica no ensino de Ciências, o presente estudo tem como objetivo mapear a atitude de aceitação/rejeição da teoria da Evolução Biológica de estudantes brasileiros do Ensino Médio e identificar possíveis influências das crenças pessoais religiosas destes na aceitação de tópicos da Evolução Biológica. A pesquisa foi realizada no âmbito do projeto cooperativo internacional The Relevance of Science Education (Rose) A Relevância do Ensino de Ciências, implementado no Brasil, por meio de uma amostra de representatividade nacional. O estudo foi desenhado por uma amostragem estratificada pelos 26 estados e o Distrito Federal, com alocação proporcional, tendo como universo a amostra do Programa Internacional de Avaliação de Estudantes (Pisa), no Brasil, no ano de 2009. A pesquisa, de natureza quantitativa, encontra-se no campo da avaliação educacional, e utilizou como instrumento de coleta de dados as Questões Nacionais do questionário Rose-Brasil, por meio de 23 itens cujas respostas são expressas em uma escala de Likert, de 4 pontos. Ao todo, 2.365 estudantes participaram da pesquisa, oriundos de 84 escolas localizadas em todos os estados brasileiros. Os resultados encontrados revelam que o alto índice de atitude positiva dos estudantes em relação à religiosidade ativa demonstra que a religião é valorizada pelos jovens pesquisados, que afirmaram serem pessoas religiosas e de fé, e terem compreensão e crença nas doutrinas religiosas. A religiosidade expressa dos jovens estudantes brasileiros participantes da pesquisa não os impede de acreditar na evolução biológica. Essa aceitação, principalmente por uma parcela de jovens cristãos evangélicos, foi um resultado surpreendente, já que muitos dos problemas detectados no ensino da evolução biológica se referem à influência das crenças religiosas na aceitação das ideias evolucionistas, especialmente do segmento evangélico, que tende a uma postura mais fundamentalista. Diante do grande número de jovens evangélicos participantes deste estudo e do aumento no número de evangélicos na população brasileira, poder-se-ia esperar maior rejeição desses estudantes em relação à teoria evolutiva biológica. A aceitação da evolução biológica por parte dos estudantes sem que, para tanto, tenham de abrir mão de suas crenças religiosas, indica uma visão de mundo que é compatível com a ciência. Esses resultados sugerem que, futuramente, podemos ter uma população mais flexível às interpretações das doutrinas religiosas e mais sensíveis às questões científicas. / Considering the reported difficulties in understanding the Biological Evolution Theory in the science education. Present study aims to map the attitude of acceptance / rejection of the theory of Biological Evolution of Brazilian students of High School and the possible influences of personal religious beliefs in the acceptance of these topics Biological Evolution. The research was conducted in the ambit of the international cooperative project The Relevance of Science Education (Rose) - The Relevance of Science Education, implemented in Brazil, through a nationally representative sample. The study sample was drawn through a stratified sampling by 26 states and the Federal District with proportional allocation, having as sampling universe the sample of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in Brazil in 2009. The research quantitative, lies within the field of educational assessment and used as a tool for data collection Questions National questionnaire Rose- Brazil by means of 23 items whose answers are expressed in a Likert scale of 4 points. In all, 2365 students participated in the survey, coming from 84 schools located in all Brazilian states. Results found reveal that the high rate of positive attitude of students in relation to active religiousness proves that religion is valued by young people researched affirmed that are religious people and faith, and have understanding and belief in religious doctrines. Expressed religiosity of young Brazilian students participating in the research does not prevent them to believe in biological evolution. This acceptance, especially for a share of young evangelical Christians, was a surprising result, since many of the problems detected in the teaching of biological evolution refer to influence of religious beliefs on the acceptance of evolutionist ideas, especially the evangelical segment, which tends to a fundamentalist posture. Before the large number of young evangelicals participating in this study and the increase in the number of evangelicals in the Brazilian population, it might be expected greater rejection of these students in relation to biological evolutionary theory. The acceptance of biological evolution by students without the have to relinquish their religious beliefs, indicates a worldview that is compatible with science. These results suggest that in the future we can have more flexible population ace interpretations of religious doctrines and most sensitive scientific issues.

Esta tese procura compreender o casamento misto na cidade de São Paulo, SP no período compreendido entre os anos de 1958 até 1978. O casamento misto ocorre quando um dos cônjuges é cristão, mas não pertence à Igreja Católica. Para os protestantes, o equivalente seria o chamado casamento ecumênico, onde basta que um dos cônjuges pertença a mesma denominação religiosa, luterana por exemplo, para que o casamento possa ser celebrado. O tema remete a leituras sobre o ecumenismo, o relativismo religioso, o papel da mulher nas Igrejas, podendo também servir de termômetro para a situação da família brasileira no séc. XXI, que nas últimas décadas sofreu profundas transformações, assim como transformações no perfil religioso do brasileiro, devido ao intenso movimento de conversão para novos movimentos religiosos de dentro ou de fora do cristianismo. / These theses try to understand the mixed marriage matrimony at Sao Paulo city, in the period of years 1958 till 1978. The mixed marriage is performed when one of married couple is Christian but not belongs to the Catholic Church. For the protestant the equivalent would be so called ecumenical marriage, in which the fact that one of married couple belongs to the same religious denomination for example Lutheran, is enough condition to celebrate the union. The subject calls for a reading about the ecumenism, religious relativism, the role of women in the churches, becoming also able to serve as a parameter for evaluation of Brazilian family situation in the XXI century, which in the last decades had suffered a very deep transformations, as well transformations in Brazilian religious profile, due to intense conversion effort to new religious movements inside or outside the Christianism.

Public acceptance of evolution remains low in the United States relative to other Western countries. Although advocates for the scientific community often highlight the need for improved education to change public opinion, analyses of data from a national sample of American adults indicate that the effects of educational attainment on attitudes toward evolution and creationism are uneven and contingent upon religious identity. Consequently, higher education will only shift public attitudes toward evolution and away from support for teaching creationism in public schools for those who take non-“literalist” interpretive stances on the Bible, or to the extent that it leads to fewer people with literalist religious identities.

Low public acceptance of evolution among Americans in general, and conservative Protestants specifically, has recently received increased attention among scholars of both religion and the public understanding of science. At the same time, members of another major religious tradition, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), reject evolution at rates similar to evangelical Christians, yet there remains a dearth of studies examining the lack of acceptance of evolution among Mormons. Using a nationally representative survey of Americans that contains an adequate number of LDS respondents for advanced statistical analyses, this study examines patterns of evolution acceptance or rejection among Mormons. Findings reveal a moderating relationship between political identity and education, such that educational attainment has a positive relationship with evolution acceptance among political moderates and liberals, but a negative association among political conservatives. These findings highlight the central role played by the politicization of evolution in low rates of evolution acceptance among American Mormons and emphasize the need to—where possible—examine relations between ‘science and religion’ within and across specific religious traditions.

Issues which faced Britain in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries include the effects of new scientific theories on traditional religious belief, the impact of technological innovation, the implications of mass literacy and the changing role of women. This thesis records how such issues are reflected in contemporary literature, focusing on the emergence of popular culture and the best seller, a term which conflates author and novel. The first English best seller was Marie Corelli and, by way of introduction, Part I offers a summary of her life and her novels and a critical overview of her work. Part II of the thesis examines how the theory of evolution undermined traditional religious belief and prompted the search for a new creed able to defy materialism and reconcile science and religion. Contemporary literature mirrors the consequent interest in spiritualism during the 1890s and the period immediately following the Great War, and critical readings of Corelli�s A Romance of Two Worlds and The Life Everlasting demonstrate that these novels - which form the nucleus of her personal theology, the Electric Creed - are based on selections from the New Testament, occultism and, in particular, science and spiritualism. Part III of the thesis looks at the emergence of �the woman question�, the corresponding backlash by conservatives and the ways in which these conflicting views are explored in the popular literature of the time. A critical examination of the novella, My Wonderful Wife, reveals how Corelli uses social Darwinism in an ambivalent critique of the New Woman. Several of Corelli�s essays are discussed, showing that her views about the role of women were complex. A critical analysis of The Secret Power engages with Corelli�s peculiar kind of feminism, which would deny women the vote but envisages female scientists inventing and operating airships in order to secure the future of the human race. Interest in Marie Corelli has re-emerged recently, particularly in occult and feminist circles. Corelli�s immense popularity also makes her an important figure in cultural studies. This thesis adds to the body of knowledge about Corelli in that it consciously endeavours to avoid spiritualist or feminist ideological frameworks, instead using contemporary science as a context for examining her work.

This study is an attempt to construct a new biblical creationism as solution to the problem of the relationship between religion and science. It examines the challenge of modern evolutionism and the churches' responses against it. The modern evolutionism as the acting hypothesis of many modern scientific disciplines helps the Church to re-examine its traditional doctrine of creation. There are two Christian responses against the challenge: individually, various positions are active, such as the theistic evolutionism, the recent special creationism, and the old earth creationism; collectively, the Christian churches have not given careful consideration to the challenge. This study examines the creation account in Genesis 1 according to the Kantian epistemology of the writer's Th. M dissertation, an examination of modern eschatology. It proposes a presentist understanding of creation as the tentative alternative to the traditional creationism. It suggests that: 1) In evolution debate both creationists and evolutionists seem to assume there is an examined scientific creationism. 2) Because the traditional divine report model is unverifiable, we need to construct a scientific model. 3) The account seems to follow the ancient clay tablet format. 4) This study proposes a 'new habitat orientation week' model: the assumed observer's report of daily recognition of the wonderful world. 5) It informs us both of the responsibility for the world and of the significance of communal life. 6) It may provide a balanced foundation both for the sound relationship between science and religion and for the positive Christian worldview. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Dogmatics))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.