Spiritual mapping is an emerging trend within Evangelicalism which is affecting Christian mission globally. Spiritual mapping maintains that Satan has assigned territorial demons to every geo-political unit in the world. Territorial demons hold the people in their locality in spiritual bondage to sin, false religion or other evils.Spiritual mapping is the practice of identifying these territorial demons in order to loosen the influence of these demons by means of strategic level spiritual warfare (SLSW). SLSW refers to the practice of 'territorial exorcism' through identificational repentance, prayer walks, proclamation and other means. Spiritual mapping can be appreciated for its focus on liberating people and societies from evil. However, spiritual mapping and its underlying theology is defective from a biblical, historical and contextual perspective and is potentially harmful for church and mission in Africa. Further missiological reflection on a spiritual warfare dimension in mission is necessary within the global hermeneutical community. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / M.Th. (Missiology)

Spiritual mapping is an emerging trend within Evangelicalism which is affecting Christian mission globally. Spiritual mapping maintains that Satan has assigned territorial demons to every geo-political unit in the world. Territorial demons hold the people in their locality in spiritual bondage to sin, false religion or other evils.Spiritual mapping is the practice of identifying these territorial demons in order to loosen the influence of these demons by means of strategic level spiritual warfare (SLSW). SLSW refers to the practice of 'territorial exorcism' through identificational repentance, prayer walks, proclamation and other means. Spiritual mapping can be appreciated for its focus on liberating people and societies from evil. However, spiritual mapping and its underlying theology is defective from a biblical, historical and contextual perspective and is potentially harmful for church and mission in Africa. Further missiological reflection on a spiritual warfare dimension in mission is necessary within the global hermeneutical community. / Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / M.Th. (Missiology)

Strategic level spiritual warfare has been an emerging trend within Evangelical missiology ever since C. Peter Wagner published his Spiritual Power and Church Growth (1986). The distinctive doctrines of Wagner’s SLSW are 1. The doctrine of territorial spirits, which entails the belief that powerful demons control specific geographical territories and its human inhabitants. Through a variety of spiritual warfare techniques such demons can be overcome. 2. The doctrine of territorial defilement. The assumption here is that a territorial spirit can only hold people in a location in bondage if it has obtained the legal right to do so because of sins and evils committed in that locality in the past. Identificational repentance on behalf of the people living in such territories removes the legal right of the territorial spirits. 3. The doctrine of Strategic Level Spiritual Warfare prayer. The underlying assumption is that territorial spirits can only be removed by means of aggressive spiritual warfare in the form of a variety of prayer and exorcism methods for dealing with territorial spirits. (4) The doctrine of territorial commitment. This doctrine justifies the exercise of spiritual power and authority by modern apostles in their communities. Wagner’s missiology has been largely shaped by the church growth movement. In his quest for better techniques to bring about mass conversions Wagner, impressed by the Latin American Pentecostal churches, embraced Pentecostalism and developed SLSW. However, a thorough biblical study demonstrates that SLSW is mostly unbiblical. A study of SLSW in Church history also demonstrates that SLSW was never accepted in orthodox Christianity. From a contextual point of view SLSW turns out to be a North American missiology with nationalist and political biases. Finally, when looking at the potential effects of a SLSW style missiology in the context of Malawi it emerges that Wagner’s SLSW is likely to reinforce rather than diminish the prevalent witchcraft fears in the Malawian society. At the same time SLSW tends to ‘demonize’ other cultures and thus hinders genuine contextualization. In the final analysis SLSW turns out not to be a commendable strategy for Christian Mission in Malawi. / Christian Spirituality Church History and Missiology / D. Th. (Missiology)

The present work was written following a master thesis on the settlement and the shape of the early mediaeval agglomeration of Žatec in the 9th century. Subject of this dissertation is the processing of pottery from settlement features and from the 10th -century fortification. This enabled to study the development of the fortification system and changes of the settlement structure within individual settlement components. On the basis of excavations a relative chronology of the pottery and in accordance with the dendrochronological data a hypothesis on absolute dating has been presented. In view of this new chronology a new quantitative and qualitative analysis of information on the early mediaeval strongholds and hill-top settlements of the 9th and 10th century in the central and lower Ohře Region and in the Ore Mountain foothills was undertaken. A processing of the research on Drahúš stronghold has contributed substantially to this new perspective. The 1960s opinion on the affiliation of early mediaeval strongholds on the territory in question to the tribal territory of the Lučans, which should have been opposed to the Central Bohemian Přemyslid patrimony, based on the gathered information and its analysis could have been rejected. It was possible to comprise the evaluation of the excavation at...

Strategic level spiritual warfare has been an emerging trend within Evangelical missiology ever since C. Peter Wagner published his Spiritual Power and Church Growth (1986). The distinctive doctrines of Wagner’s SLSW are 1. The doctrine of territorial spirits, which entails the belief that powerful demons control specific geographical territories and its human inhabitants. Through a variety of spiritual warfare techniques such demons can be overcome. 2. The doctrine of territorial defilement. The assumption here is that a territorial spirit can only hold people in a location in bondage if it has obtained the legal right to do so because of sins and evils committed in that locality in the past. Identificational repentance on behalf of the people living in such territories removes the legal right of the territorial spirits. 3. The doctrine of Strategic Level Spiritual Warfare prayer. The underlying assumption is that territorial spirits can only be removed by means of aggressive spiritual warfare in the form of a variety of prayer and exorcism methods for dealing with territorial spirits. (4) The doctrine of territorial commitment. This doctrine justifies the exercise of spiritual power and authority by modern apostles in their communities. Wagner’s missiology has been largely shaped by the church growth movement. In his quest for better techniques to bring about mass conversions Wagner, impressed by the Latin American Pentecostal churches, embraced Pentecostalism and developed SLSW. However, a thorough biblical study demonstrates that SLSW is mostly unbiblical. A study of SLSW in Church history also demonstrates that SLSW was never accepted in orthodox Christianity. From a contextual point of view SLSW turns out to be a North American missiology with nationalist and political biases. Finally, when looking at the potential effects of a SLSW style missiology in the context of Malawi it emerges that Wagner’s SLSW is likely to reinforce rather than diminish the prevalent witchcraft fears in the Malawian society. At the same time SLSW tends to ‘demonize’ other cultures and thus hinders genuine contextualization. In the final analysis SLSW turns out not to be a commendable strategy for Christian Mission in Malawi. / Christian Spirituality Church History and Missiology / D. Th. (Missiology)

Les espaces fortifiés médiévaux du Velay (diocèse médiéval du Puy-en-Velay), sont analysés dans leur constitution et leur utilisation. L’enquête concerne un corpus de sites castraux, bourgs fortifiés, maisons fortes, prieurés et églises fortifiées de 145 communes situées en majorité dans le département de la Haute-Loire (France- Auvergne). Les changements que ces espaces fortifiés opèrent sur la période XIIIe-XVe s. sont mis en avant : morphologie spatiale et choix d’occupation des espaces, évolution de l’habitat individuel seigneurial et des enceintes en contexte rural et urbain. L’ensemble est documenté par des textes qui indique la nature des relations entre les différents groupes sociaux, acteurs de la construction du territoire fortifié : relations entre les seigneurs et l’évêque du Puy ou le roi, relations entre les seigneurs et les communautés urbaines ou rurales, émergence de nouveaux groupes sociaux (la petite noblesse). L’accent est mis sur l’articulation de ces espaces et le rapport social et symbolique que chacun des groupes sociaux entretient avec la fortification. Les intentions de dominations et les résistances de chacun des groupes sociaux sont ainsi mis en évidence par l’analyse du parcellaire, des édifices et de la forme de la fortification. / The fortified medieval areas of the Velay (medieval diocese of Puy-en-Velay) are analysed in their constitution and their use. The survey concerns a corpus of castle sites, fortified towns, fortified houses, priories and fortified churches in 145 communes, mostly in the department of Haute-Loire (France-Auvergne). The changes that these fortified spaces operate during the 13th-15th centuries are highlighted: spatial morphology and choices of occupancy of these areas, evolution of individual seigneurial habitats and enclosures in rural and urban context. The nature of the relations between the different social groups building this fortified territory is mainly documented by texts : relationships between the lords and the bishop of Le Puy or the king, relationships between the lords and the urban or rural communities, emergence of new social groups (the small gentry). The purpose focuses on the articulation of these areas and the social and symbolic relationships that each of the social groups has with fortifications. Thus, the intentions of domination and the resistance of each of the medieval social groups are revealed by analysing the plots, the buildings and the form of the fortification