The principal aim of this work is to ascertain a clear understanding of Clarke's moral theory, one which has suffered from neglect and misunderstanding. The assumption that his 'rational intuitionism' is given little if any epistemological grounding, is shown to be erroneous. This is done by drawing on his extensive work in the Letter to Dodwell and its Defenses. The secondary aim of this thesis is to show the relevance of Clarke's work to contemporary discussions in philosophy of mind, moral theory, and moral theology. The thesis has four parts. In Part I, the works of Clarke, relevant to his moral theory, are introduced. His influence in the eighteenth century is brought out, both in Britain and on the Continent. As regards his influence in moral theory, he is the likely goad that moved Hume to formulate 'Hume's Law,' that ought cannot be derived from is. Part II is an analysis of Clarke's philosophical work on the nature of the 'rational and moral agent.' His views are ascertained, clarified, and presented as the epistemological foundation of his moral theory. One conclusion that follows from this material is that the influential work of Clarke is sharply at odds with the 'historiographic orthodoxy' that views British thought about the problem of knowledge to be progressive refinements of Locke's anti-innatism. The Defences are directed to Anthony Collins, a deist and late disciple of Locke. There are also three major historical corrections that follow from the study of Clarke's work on the nature of mind. Two ideas that are usually attributed to Joseph Butler are actually Clarke's conceptions, e.g. the distinction between 'the strict' and 'the abstract'(or 'loose') concepts of personal identity, and the notion that memory does not constitute personal identity but rather presupposes and entails it. One other idea, usually attributed to Thomas Reid, is more properly credited to Clarke, namely, the theory of agent-causation. All three of these concepts are extremely important in contemporary philosophy of mind and theory of action. They constitute the epistemological ground of Clarke's moral theory. In Part III the moral epistemology uncovered in Part II is linked with Clarke's more well known views found in the Discourse. His usually nebulous concept of 'fitness' is assessed and defended against the major criticisms of Hume (in Treatise 3.1.1) and Hutcheson. His often degraded analogy between morals and mathematics is defended, and his views are distinguished from those of Thomas Burnet, another anti- Lockean writer. In Part IV, the moral theory proposed by Clarke argues for an employment of reason and revelation. It comes under sharp and extensive criticism from the deist Matthew Tindal. His criticisms, however, employ an either/or fallacy that is wholly inadequate as a refutation of Clarke's moral theology. A comparison of key ideas in the moral theologies (metaphysics) of Leibniz and Clarke is made, and the principle of imitation of the holiness of God is found to be the coherent and full expression of Clarke's moral theology.

Despite interest in the influence of religion on economic activity by early economists like Adam Smith, modern economists have done little research on the subject. In light of the apparent religious fervour in many parts of the global economy, economists' seeming lack of interest in studying how religious cultures enhance or retard the globalization of economic activity is especially surprising. In general, trade theories have given less weight towards the reason for trade explanation on demand side. As a contrary to H-O theory Linder had proposed a theoretically sound and empirically consistent trade theory with a new claim for the reasons why countries trade on the demand side. To fill this gap, I use international survey data on religiosity for a broad panel of countries trading with US to investigate the effects of church attendance and religious beliefs on trade. The beliefs are, in turn, the principal output of the religion sector, and the believer alignment to a specific denomination measures the inputs to this sector. Hence, I used an extended gravity model of international trade to control for a variety of factors that determine trade, and I used two regression methods, OLS and WLS, to exploit the model to its fullest. I find that the sharing of same religious cultures by people in different countries has a significantly positive influence on bilateral trade, all other things being equal. These results accord with a perspective in which religious beliefs influence individual traits that enhance trade and economic performance in general. And my attempt to magnify religion as a means to trade is only a derivation of Linder’s overlapping demand theory.

Thesis (M.A.)--Trinity International University, 1999. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 90-93).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Ashland Theological Seminary, 2007. / Abstract . Includes "An apologetic catechism for disciple development" in appendix. Description based on microfiche version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 129-131, 138-142).

Thesis (M.A.)--Trinity International University, 2000. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 121-122).

Thesis (M.C.S.)--Regent College, 2000. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 146-151).

Thesis (Th. M.)--St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, 2008. / Abstract. Description based on microfiche version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 144-145).

Thesis (Th. M.)--Regent College, Vancouver, BC, 2002. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 148-163).

This study examines Christian experientialist epistemology as articulated of late by Alvin Plantinga especially and also William Alston. It situates their approach to the epistemic status of Christian belief claims within the overall outlook they have respectively developed on what features generally legitimate beliefs as being rationally responsible or even qualify some true beliefs as constituting knowledge. First to be taken up is Plantinga's journey from considering the deontological justification for basic belief in God to making his own externalist proposal for warranted belief at large. Next up for consideration is Alston's accent on adequate grounds and reliable process, attending as well to his stance on perceptual immediacy and belief-forming or doxastic practices in general. The study then looks at his case for Christian mystical practice as a dependable perceptual doxastic habit. Also treated is Alston's support for the process of forming Christian beliefs on testimony and his contention that these practices are realist and partly amenable to evaluation drawing on standards used also outside them. Then comes extended analysis of Plantinga's recent lengthy claim that, courtesy of special divine provisions, core Christian convictions can enjoy warrant even in the face of frequently alleged defeaters. / While Alston's reliabilist epistemology is not as strong as Plantinga's package on appropriate proper function, his appreciation for the communal contribution to second-level knowledge is an important supplement. He offers more perspective on the status of Christian belief overall. Plantinga's model suffers from some internal tensions which admit better resolution than he has yet supplied. His response to religious pluralism is a solid one within his framework. Like Alston, Plantinga unabashedly appeals to theology to indicate doxastic propriety, but could do so in a way more sensitive to hermeneutical challenges. Yet Plantinga's and Alston's realism is an attempt to honor the distance between God's knowledge and that of believers.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Mobile, 2005. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 109-121).