Bakalauro darbas „Protėvių aidas” atspindi šių dienų aktualijas, paliesdamas visuomenei svarbų klausimą apie mūsų senovės baltų kostiumą. Nagrinėjamos aprangos dalys ir fragmentai šių dienų aplinkoje, aiškinamasi kaip baltiškumo simboliai atsispindi drabužių kolekcijose. Analizė buvo atliekama siekiant geriau susipažinti su senovės baltų apranga ir suprojektuoti moteriškų drabužių kolekciją. Pirmame skyriuje analizuojami baltų aprangos istoriniai ypatumai, moterų drabužiai, papuošalų nešiojimas kaip pagrindinis dekoro elementas. Antrame darbo skyriuje nagrinėjami archeologų, filosofų, menininkų pagrindimai, argumentai apie baltų kultūros problemas. Argumentuojami dizainerių pasisakymai apie baltiško kostiumo interpretavimą šiandien. Trečiajame skyriuje pateikiamos įvairios baltų kostiumo refleksijos lietuvių kostiumo dizainerių kūryboje, menininkų kūrybinių darbų pavyzdžiai, bei įvairių autorių sukurtos drabužių kolekcijos. Ketvirtame skyriuje pristatomi lininių drabužių ansamblių vizualūs baltiško kostiumo meniniai ieškojimai, formų, faktūrų, simbolių, kolorito ypatumų analizė, siekiant tai interpretuoti drabužių kolekcijoje, pagrindžiama idėja, pateikiami eskizai, projektai, technologiniai mėginiai, aprašomas drabužių ansamblių kūrimo procesas – konstravimas, modeliavimas, siuvimas. Pateikiamos įvykdytų drabužių modelių fotografijos ir numatomas kolekcijos pristatymas. Penktame skyriuje aptariamos sukurtos drabužių kolekcijos realizavimo galimybės, pateikiama... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The Bachelor’s Work “The Echo of the Ancestors” reflects the urgent problems of recent time. It touches upon a subject of the ancient Baltic costume. The parts and the fragments of the clothes are analyzed in the modern surroundings. It is explained how the Baltic symbols are reflected in the collections of clothes. Analysis was made in order to find out more information about the ancient Baltic clothes and to design the collection of female clothes. Historic features of the Baltic female clothes, wearing jewelry as the main element of decoration are analyzed in the first chapter of this work. The main arguments about the problems of the Baltic culture given by archeologists, philosophers and artists are given in the second chapter of this work. The designers’ attitude towards the modern interpretation of the Baltic costume is also disclosed here. Different reflections of the Baltic costume in the creative works of Lithuanian costume designers, the examples of creative works and collections of different authors are described in the third chapter. Presentation of the linen collection of clothes by showing artistic search for Baltic costume is given in the fourth chapter. There is also analysis of peculiarities of form, texture, symbols and colors in order to interpret it in the clothes collection there is a well-founded idea. Sketches, projects and technological samples are presented. The process of creation of clothes ensemble (construction... [to full text]

The aim in this thesis is to determine whether African ancestor Christology, a contextual attempt to explicate the identity of Jesus within African theology, adequately correlates with and captures the identity of Jesus presented in the exordium of Hebrews 1:1-4. Ancestor Christology utilises the pre-existing notion of the traditional African ancestors as a frame of reference. Consequently, understanding the place and function of the ancestors is essential to this research. This research undertakes a critical and analytical review of ancestor Christology presented in the works of some of the proponents of the concept including Pobee (1979), Nyamiti (1984), Bujo (1992), Bediako (1980, 2004) and Nyende (2005), among others. Using a combination of historical-grammatical exegesis and theological interpretation, this dissertation undertakes an investigation of Hebrews 1:1-4 to evaluate ancestor Christology. 12:1 is examined to determine the place and function of the ancestors in Hebrews. Though this research noted the value of the ancestor Christology concept as a worthwhile attempt towards contextual Christology in Africa, the research argues that the concept is counterproductive because the failure of the concept to capture important aspects of Jesus‘ identity outlined in the exordium translates to presenting Him inadequately. This applies especially to his identity as the summation and perfection of mediation, whose scope of mediation is salvific and redemptive and whose mediation is without an end as signified by his linkage in Hebrews to the king-priest Melchizedek. Furthermore, conceptualising Jesus using ancestor categories has the potential of exasperating the perennial problem of belief in both Jesus and the ancestors as mediators between God and men. / MA (New Testament), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T14:27:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Antonio Alone Maia.pdf: 1544608 bytes, checksum: 1f7096be45b8738b8c3b55b9a59685c7 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-02-16 / ADVENIAT / During the period of colonization most African cultural practices were discouraged in the name of civilization. Nevertheless, the local knowledge is part of the culture and the culture is something alive and active that people carry inside themselves. The colonial regime changed, but its track and politics somehow remained commanding in the new local governments in the period of independence and post independence. But the people, who had suffered before because of the colonial situation, then by the civil war, never gave up living its culture the way they inherited from their ancestors in matters of knowledge, relationship and behavior. This research talks concretely about the Mozambican people. The aim of this research is to talk about Nyungwe s cultural etiologies of health, disease and cure from an anthropological and theological point of view: attendance, treatment and cure. Where do people find response for daily situations related to health? When a woman does not get pregnant, or a man does not manage to make a woman pregnant, how does biomedicine handle this issue? If the woman gets pregnant and does not manage to have the baby or if she has a spontaneous abortion during pregnancy period, how do the doctors from the hospital as well as the traditional doctor deal with this problem? The research aims as well to point out the role of the ancestors, traditional doctors within nyungwe s culture and from these categories to set a Christology reflection according to African and not Western ways / Durante o período colonial muitas práticas culturais dos povos africanos foram combatidas em nome da civilização. No entanto, os saberes locais fazem parte da cultura e a cultura é algo vivo e atuante que o povo carrega dentro de si. Mudou o regime colonial, mas seus rastos e suas políticas ficaram de alguma forma imperando nos novos governos locais nos períodos da independência e pós- independência. Mas o povo que antes sofrera com a situação colonial e depois com as guerras civis, nunca deixou de viver a sua cultura da forma como foi herdada dos seus antepassados em matéria de saberes, relacionamento e regras de conduta. É do povo moçambicano que a pesquisa está falando concretamente. A pesquisa pretende falar das etiologias de saúde, doença e cura na cultura Nyungwe, com um olhar antropológico-teológico: atendimento, tratamento e cura. Onde é que as pessoas encontram resposta para as situações quotidianas relacionadas à saúde? Quando uma mulher não consegue ficar grávida ou um homem não consegue engravidar uma mulher, como é que a biomedicina lida com essa situação? Se uma mulher fica grávida e não consegue ganhar o nenê ou quando ela tem abortos espontâneos no período da gravidez, como é que os médicos da medicina hospitalar assim como os médicos tradicionais lidam com esse problema? A pesquisa quer também trazer à tona o papel dos ancestrais, dos médicos tradicionais dentro da cultura Nyungwe e a partir destas categorias re-pensar a cristologia nos moldes africanos e não ocidentais

<p>This study entails a constructive contribution towards a contemporary reinterpretation, within the Akan context, of the classic Christian notion of Christ&rsquo / s person and work as Mediator between God and humanity. Specifically, I endeavour to reinterpret aspects of the Christian confession of faith as formulated by the Council of Chalcedon (451) that, Jesus Christ is &ldquo / truly God&rdquo / (vere Deus) as well as &ldquo / truly human&rdquo / (vere homo). I build on the notion that the relationship between these two claims may also be understood in terms of the one &ldquo / person&rdquo / and the two &ldquo / natures&rdquo / of Jesus Christ. The work of Christ is reinterpreted from this perspective. The thesis is divided into two main parts. The first part, which covers the first four chapters, entail reviews of some of the dominant African Christologies &ndash / with particular reference to divine conqueror and ancestor Christologies. In these chapters, the adequacy of the mentioned Christologies is assessed with reference to the Nicene/Chalcedonian confessional definition concerning the person of Christ. The conclusion reached is that these Christologies do not adequately express the person of Christ as truly divine as well as truly human as defined by the first four ecumenical councils. As a result, these Christologies also express the work of Christ, particularly his atonement in a less adequate way.</p>

<p>The issue of libation poses an important challenge to Christianity in Africa and, more specifically, among the Akan people in Ghana. Libation is traditionally a key ritual for the Akan as an ethnic group. However, the European missionaries who operated in West Africa condemned this ritual as idolatrous. Following the emergence of African Christian theology, especially within the Ghanaian context, various African theologians have contributed to a more systematic discussion of such libation practices. This thesis entails a critical comparison of the views of four Akan (in Ghana) theologians on Christian participation in libation practices. On this basis, the research problem in this thesis is stated in the following way: ―What are the points of divergence that lie beneath the different positions of Kwesi Sarpong, Kwesi Dickson, John Pobee and Kwame Bediako on the question of whether and in what forms Christian participation in libation practices in an Akan context in Ghana may be regarded as compatible with the Christian faith? This thesis describes analyses, compares and assesses the cultural and theological presuppositions of the views of these four Akan Ghanaian theologians on Christian participation in libation rituals. It shows how the views of these four theologians on libation are influenced by their views on the tatus which is attributed, both in Akan culture and in contemporary Christianity in Ghana, to abosom (lesser divinities) and nsamamfo (ancestors) in relation to Onyame (Supreme Being). The purpose of this thesis is therefore to clarify the cultural and theological assumptions underlying current debates on the observance of libation rituals by Christians in Ghana. The task is a description of the views of Sarpong, Dickson, Pobee and Bediako on the compatibility of Christian participation in libation practices in an Akan context with the Christian faith - just as they themselves understand its content and significance. In this thesis I approached the debate on libation in African Christian theology in two ways, namely following a direct and a thematic approach. In the direct approach the focus is explicitly on libation as a topic either in the context of African traditional religion and culture by itself or in its encounter with Christianity. In the thematic approach the focus is on libation within the context of its wider religious (with reference to God, the lesser divinities and ancestors) and cultural (the relationship between Christianity and African culture) contexts. The research indicates that the point of divergence amongst the four theologians mentioned above is almost always related to the invocation and petition of the lesser divinities and the ancestors. In addition to these major theological issues, ―ecclesiastical sanctions‖ also forms a major determining factor that influences the positions of these&nbsp / theologians. On their respective views, Sarpong asserts that libation in its present form is not incompatible with the Christian faith. By contrast, Bediako maintains that libation as is presently practiced among the Akan is not compatible with the Christian faith neither can it be adapted into the Christian faith. On the other hand, Dickson and Pobee maintain that libation rituals are not compatible with the Christian faith, but that it can be adopted and adapted into the Christian faith if the content of the accompanying prayer is made in consonance with Christian theology. The thesis is comprised of eight chapters and a postscript. In the postscript, I offer some personal views and argue that libation has to be adapted before it can be compatible with the Christian faith. I suggest that libation should be made only to God and to the ancestors. Petitions during libation rituals should be made only to God, while the presence of the ancestors should be recognized in a ―symbolic manner‖ by an invitation to join the living human beings to make such petitions.</p>

The essay deals with the hill-fort on the mountain Halleberg, Sweden, its wall design, functionality, dating and its possible function as a central location and a place of worship of the ancestors. The Halleberg hill-fort consists of a 1500 meters long at times cohesive stonewalls which together blocked the mountain from its surroundings. Hallberg's natural vertical scree and cliffs along with the masonry blocked the whole mountain from the surroundings. The hill-forts, with few exceptions are largely not investigated archaeologically and its functionality and role in the ancient society is based on outdated research on the subject. The current archaeological interpretation is that hill-forts served as temporary defense in times of unrest or served as center of power for a social elite. The prevailing view in the archaeological sphere is that the hill-forts had a variety of functions and that its functionality and role in ancient society has varied. Halleberg´s strongest wall sections are at the mountain's south-eastern part where the natural driveway, Storgårdsklev is located. Along with the massive masonry of the walls in Bokedalen Storgårdsklev functioned as the hill-forts main entrance. At places along the walls are the remains of what could be interpreted as stacked rocks and possible fire cracked stone. These structural features indicate that the walls were built during the early Iron Age. Very likely has its function like other hill-forts have been varied and changed based on the community, organization and internal and external disturbances. The essay's main interpretation is that the hill-fort served as a defensive fortress. Moreover it is possible that walls of the hill-fort had a symbolic role as a border between two separate rooms in the landscape. The fencing of Halleberg turned the whole mountain to a closed landscape, separated from the surroundings. It may have been a place where people worshiped their ancestors, a place where life's events, life and death was the focus point.

<p>This study entails a constructive contribution towards a contemporary reinterpretation, within the Akan context, of the classic Christian notion of Christ&rsquo / s person and work as Mediator between God and humanity. Specifically, I endeavour to reinterpret aspects of the Christian confession of faith as formulated by the Council of Chalcedon (451) that, Jesus Christ is &ldquo / truly God&rdquo / (vere Deus) as well as &ldquo / truly human&rdquo / (vere homo). I build on the notion that the relationship between these two claims may also be understood in terms of the one &ldquo / person&rdquo / and the two &ldquo / natures&rdquo / of Jesus Christ. The work of Christ is reinterpreted from this perspective. The thesis is divided into two main parts. The first part, which covers the first four chapters, entail reviews of some of the dominant African Christologies &ndash / with particular reference to divine conqueror and ancestor Christologies. In these chapters, the adequacy of the mentioned Christologies is assessed with reference to the Nicene/Chalcedonian confessional definition concerning the person of Christ. The conclusion reached is that these Christologies do not adequately express the person of Christ as truly divine as well as truly human as defined by the first four ecumenical councils. As a result, these Christologies also express the work of Christ, particularly his atonement in a less adequate way.</p>

<p>The issue of libation poses an important challenge to Christianity in Africa and, more specifically, among the Akan people in Ghana. Libation is traditionally a key ritual for the Akan as an ethnic group. However, the European missionaries who operated in West Africa condemned this ritual as idolatrous. Following the emergence of African Christian theology, especially within the Ghanaian context, various African theologians have contributed to a more systematic discussion of such libation practices. This thesis entails a critical comparison of the views of four Akan (in Ghana) theologians on Christian participation in libation practices. On this basis, the research problem in this thesis is stated in the following way: ―What are the points of divergence that lie beneath the different positions of Kwesi Sarpong, Kwesi Dickson, John Pobee and Kwame Bediako on the question of whether and in what forms Christian participation in libation practices in an Akan context in Ghana may be regarded as compatible with the Christian faith? This thesis describes analyses, compares and assesses the cultural and theological presuppositions of the views of these four Akan Ghanaian theologians on Christian participation in libation rituals. It shows how the views of these four theologians on libation are influenced by their views on the tatus which is attributed, both in Akan culture and in contemporary Christianity in Ghana, to abosom (lesser divinities) and nsamamfo (ancestors) in relation to Onyame (Supreme Being). The purpose of this thesis is therefore to clarify the cultural and theological assumptions underlying current debates on the observance of libation rituals by Christians in Ghana. The task is a description of the views of Sarpong, Dickson, Pobee and Bediako on the compatibility of Christian participation in libation practices in an Akan context with the Christian faith - just as they themselves understand its content and significance. In this thesis I approached the debate on libation in African Christian theology in two ways, namely following a direct and a thematic approach. In the direct approach the focus is explicitly on libation as a topic either in the context of African traditional religion and culture by itself or in its encounter with Christianity. In the thematic approach the focus is on libation within the context of its wider religious (with reference to God, the lesser divinities and ancestors) and cultural (the relationship between Christianity and African culture) contexts. The research indicates that the point of divergence amongst the four theologians mentioned above is almost always related to the invocation and petition of the lesser divinities and the ancestors. In addition to these major theological issues, ―ecclesiastical sanctions‖ also forms a major determining factor that influences the positions of these&nbsp / theologians. On their respective views, Sarpong asserts that libation in its present form is not incompatible with the Christian faith. By contrast, Bediako maintains that libation as is presently practiced among the Akan is not compatible with the Christian faith neither can it be adapted into the Christian faith. On the other hand, Dickson and Pobee maintain that libation rituals are not compatible with the Christian faith, but that it can be adopted and adapted into the Christian faith if the content of the accompanying prayer is made in consonance with Christian theology. The thesis is comprised of eight chapters and a postscript. In the postscript, I offer some personal views and argue that libation has to be adapted before it can be compatible with the Christian faith. I suggest that libation should be made only to God and to the ancestors. Petitions during libation rituals should be made only to God, while the presence of the ancestors should be recognized in a ―symbolic manner‖ by an invitation to join the living human beings to make such petitions.</p>

The aim in this thesis is to determine whether African ancestor Christology, a contextual attempt to explicate the identity of Jesus within African theology, adequately correlates with and captures the identity of Jesus presented in the exordium of Hebrews 1:1-4. Ancestor Christology utilises the pre-existing notion of the traditional African ancestors as a frame of reference. Consequently, understanding the place and function of the ancestors is essential to this research. This research undertakes a critical and analytical review of ancestor Christology presented in the works of some of the proponents of the concept including Pobee (1979), Nyamiti (1984), Bujo (1992), Bediako (1980, 2004) and Nyende (2005), among others. Using a combination of historical-grammatical exegesis and theological interpretation, this dissertation undertakes an investigation of Hebrews 1:1-4 to evaluate ancestor Christology. 12:1 is examined to determine the place and function of the ancestors in Hebrews. Though this research noted the value of the ancestor Christology concept as a worthwhile attempt towards contextual Christology in Africa, the research argues that the concept is counterproductive because the failure of the concept to capture important aspects of Jesus‘ identity outlined in the exordium translates to presenting Him inadequately. This applies especially to his identity as the summation and perfection of mediation, whose scope of mediation is salvific and redemptive and whose mediation is without an end as signified by his linkage in Hebrews to the king-priest Melchizedek. Furthermore, conceptualising Jesus using ancestor categories has the potential of exasperating the perennial problem of belief in both Jesus and the ancestors as mediators between God and men. / MA (New Testament), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This study entails a constructive contribution towards a contemporary reinterpretation, within the Akan context, of the classic Christian notion of Christ's person and work as Mediator between God and humanity. Specifically, I endeavour to reinterpret aspects of the Christian confession of faith as formulated by the Council of Chalcedon (451) that, Jesus Christ is “truly God” (vere Deus) as well as “truly human”(vere homo). I build on the notion that the relationship between these two claims may also be understood in terms of the one "person" and the two "natures" of Jesus Christ. The work of Christ is reinterpreted from this perspective. The thesis is divided into two main parts. The first part, which covers the first four chapters, entail reviews of some of the dominant African Christologies - with particular reference to divine conqueror and ancestor Christologies. In these chapters, the adequacy of the mentioned Christologies is assessed with reference to the Nicene/Chalcedonian confessional definition concerning the person of Christ. The conclusion reached is that these Christologies do not adequately express the person of Christ as truly divine as well as truly human as defined by the first four ecumenical councils. As a result, these Christologies also express the work of Christ, particularly his atonement in a less adequate way. / South Africa