This study is a comparative exploration of the mystical spirituality of two 16th century women, Mirabai of Rajasthan and Teresa of Avila. However different their contexts, these two women shared many commonalities. They were born into well-educated families, and very early felt a calling to God and a religious life. Perhaps most profoundly, their journeys toward union with God was spirituality enacted as subversion of traditional societal roles ascribed for women of their generation and their places. To explore the mystical spirituality of these two women is to offer a lens through which to view the distinctive ways in which each and every religion has developed, precisely in a period when globalization threatens to homogenize all traditions. Moreover, to explore the spirituality of Mira and Teresa is to illumine ways in which diverse traditions may be in mutually enriching dialogue. It is also to affirm that the transformative possibilities embodied by these women in their own traditions can catalyze transformations in many generations and places. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2009.

This dissertation is an assessment of the response of Ubunye Free Methodist Church (UFMC) of Pietermaritzburg to domestic violence in light of the mission of the church in the world as missio Dei. It was undertaken because of the suspicion that the response of this church deals with consequences of domestic violence, but leaves aside its origin and causes, thus providing an incomplete solution to deal with the complex problem. This suspicion was nurtured by my observation of what the church was doing and the knowledge of the theology of the missio Dei, one of the current understandings of the mission of the church in the world. With missio Dei, the church is understood as not having its mission as such but as participating in God’s mission. As the situation to which the church was responding relates to women’s oppression, the model of accomplishing God’s mission during oppression was drawn from the reaction of the prophets in the Old Testament and Jesus Christ in the New Testament to the injustice and the oppression in the community. With regard to this, prophets’ and Jesus’ approach displays four main elements: envisioning a just community, standing with the oppressed, caring for the oppressed, and challenging oppressive structures. Therefore, the question this study sought to answer was: to what extent does the response of UFMC to domestic violence embody the fullness of these elements taken as characterising missio Dei? Through empirical research, these four elements have been used as yardsticks to analyse the goal, strategies and activities comprised in the UFMC’s response. Finally, the study revealed that this response fulfils three conditions as follows: envisioning a just community, standing with the oppressed, and caring for the oppressed. It falls short in the area of challenging oppressive structures. From these results, some lessons have been drawn and have served as basis to suggest how this response can be improved so as to reflect the fullness of missio Dei. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

The purpose of the study is to investigate and analyse the theological, hermeneutical and, to a lesser extent, the cultural reasoning behind the prevention of women being ordained in the Evangelical Church in Zambia. The study also seeks to propose a theology that is more inclusive than the one which the church currently propagates. While the government is trying its best to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women, the churches, in particular the Evangelical Church in Zambia (ECZ), are still subordinating women, using some biblical texts to defend their actions. Women in the ECZ are denied ordained ministry or prevented from living out their vocation to its fullest because of the Church‟s beliefs concerning women‟s humanity and their beliefs regarding the interpretation of Scripture. The study analyses the arguments for and against the ordination of women from the stance of Scripture and from the point of view church tradition. The study further looks at the ecclesiological and hermeneutical principles of the ECZ on which the ordained ministry to women is denied. The study establishes that the refusal of women‟s ordination is based on the creation story in Genesis and on Pauline teachings which indicate that women may not have authority over men and which demand their submission in life and in the church. The study also established that the arguments against the ordination of women from the church tradition are based on the secular pagan prejudice which considers women as inferior by nature, in a state of punishment and ritually unclean. The ECZ continues to follow this tradition. The conclusion emphasised the need for the ECZ to research the Scriptures and tradition for imagery of human wholeness. / Thesis (M.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2009.

This study is designed to assess the role of the Rwandan Presbyterian Church in women’s empowerment using a case study of the Agaseke Project in Ruyumba Parish. Women in Ruyumba area, like other parts of the country, have been affected by the genocide which happened in Rwanda in 1994. The country lost human and material resources. Today Rwanda is in the process of rebuilding. The majority of the population are women and more that 34 percent of families are headed by women. It is a challenge to the church that carries out God’s mission in the world. The Presbyterian Church as God’s agent had to take initiatives to empower women who live in vulnerable contexts due to the consequences of genocide. They are also oppressed by patriarchal culture. Through training in various seminars and workshops the Church has contributed to the social transformation of Ruyumba Parish in Rwanda. The research question of this study was to assess in what ways the Presbyterian Church in Rwanda has responded to women’s empowerment through the Agaseke Project in Ruyumba Parish. The methodology used in order to attempt to answer this question was sharing stories with women involved in Agaseke Project. Through discussions, it was discovered that women have the potential to improve their livelihoods. From what the study show, it can be said that women have natural gifts imparted to them by God. The gifts that women have can change the Church and society’s attitudes bounded by patriarchal biases against women, which considers women as second-class citizens in participating fully in developmental agendas of the society. In the conclusion of this study, it was argued that the Church needs to renew and transform its mission toward gender equality in order to change the hierarchy. This would lead to the formation of partnership between men and women as women are perceived as created equally in the image of God. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2009.

This study was a part of a baseline research within ARHAP on going studies into the relationship between religion and public health. It examined the nature and function of Religious Health Assets that were identified through the activities of Mission Aviation Fellowship- Lesotho; an FBO providing aircraft transport to the Lesotho Flying Doctor Services (LFDS). The basic finding was the critical role FBOs activities play in the provision of health care in Lesotho. The study drew from 6 open-ended narrative interviews by key informants who contributed to the Home Based Care Project (HBCP) facilitated by MAF and the fieldwork research of 3 one week stays in the remote mountain villages of Lesotho based at different Health Care Centres where MAF has HBCPs over a period of nine months. The analysis revealed that FBOs occupy a crucial role in the delivery of Health care in Lesotho. The networks that FBOs align themselves with can be trans-national, tapping into RHAs that beneficiaries would otherwise have no access to. The ubiquity of religion in African livelihoods was confirmed to be an important factor in how Basotho engage health provision and seeking strategies. The mobilisation of community members for voluntary participation in maintaining community well being drew the agency of some members which seems to tap into the altruistic values of ‘ubuntu’ and ‘sense of community’. The concepts encompassed in bophelo healthworlds offered us insights into the symbiotic strategies necessary to tackle the multi-faceted health challenges facing developing countries. An integrated approach that draws from the holistic constructs offered in indigenous conceptions of being can be utilised to significantly transform our praxis in religion and public health. The dissertation confirmed ARHAP’s notions that assets and capacities need alignment within and among the different stake holders to harness the various factors for maximum benefit. The development and maintenance of well being in developing countries has been critically deficient in the face of challenges posed by civil wars, bad governance and HIV and AIDS. Health care providers are thus called to not only effectively implement their planned programmes, but to re-visit the structures, policies and ideologies that influence them. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

Since the reformation, from the seventeenth century onwards, the christian church has evangelised through missionary activity. Church growth has been rapid in the second half of the twentieth century, particularly in third world countries. This phenomenon has given rise to the development of Missiology and the Study of Church growth as independerit; fields of theology. In this dissertation, the historically unpreledented growth of the Korean Church has been analyzed as singularly important model for Church Growth Theology. This study is concerned with the relationship between Church Growth and Shamanism as the traditional Korean Religion. It focuses on special elements of Korean Church Growth, including the translation of the Bible prior to the entry of missionaries, the astounding numerical growth of Church membership, and the prominence of Christians in social and political structures. The contribution of specific social conditions, pastoral zeal, and 'early prayer' and Bible study movements to Church growth are examined. More important, however, is the influence of elements of Shamanism in establishing Christianity as a popular religion. The affinities between Christian Doctrine and Shamanistic practices, in particular, the decisive role of Shaman, are explored, and both the positive and negative aspects of the melding of the two religions identified. While the increasing power and wealth of the Korean Church and the remarkable capacity for self-prorogation have been manifested in its extensive missionary programmes, the principle task confronting the church is how to dispel the compromising or damaging features of Shamanism from Korean Christianity. Since similar problems occur in other world Churches which encounter indigenous religions in the process of evangelism, it is hope that this hesitation will eliminate possible accommodations, between Christianity and traditional beliefs, and provide a basis for subsequent studies of Church Growth. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1993.

'Allamah Anwar Shah Kashmiri (d.1933) was one of the most distinguished Islamic scholars of the Indo-Pak Subcontinent. He was recognised as an authority on 'Ilm al-Hadith (the science of Hadith). His works on Hadith won him the title of Shaykh al- Hadith (an expert in the field of Hadith) and was also acclaimed as a Muhaddith (scholar of Hadith). Although 'Allamah Anwar Shah Kashmiri's speciality was primarily in the field of the science of Hadith, he was equally competent to teach and write in other relevant Islamic sciences such as, al-Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence) and 'Ulum al-Qur'an (Qur'anic Sciences), etc. His research and findings sometimes led to him engaging into intense intellectual debates with other Muslim scholars in various parts of India. He had a passion for Hadith and he spent all his life teaching the Sihah Sittah (The Six Authentic Collections of Hadith). Students used to flock to the institutions where he taught and it was considered an honour and privilege to study under him. 'Allamah Anwar Shah Kashmiri's contribution in the field of Hadith benefited and continue to benefit scholars and students alike to this day. To date no systematic study on the life and works of 'Allamah Anwar Shah Kashmiri has as yet been accomplished in the English language. Biographies on him exist in the Urdu language and they are mostly of a popular nature and have generally not discussed in detail his academic uniqueness and peculiarities. Thus, the objectives of this study will be to: 1. Discuss the evolution of the Islamic institutions of Islamic learning in India and what impact it had in moulding and shaping the intellectual pursuit of 'Allamah Anwar Shah Kashmiri. 2. Analyze his literary works and assess his contributions in the field of the science of Hadith and Hadith literature. 3. Examine his unique position and individual stance on matters pertaining to Tafsir al-Qur'an (Qur'anic Exegesis), 'Ilm al-Hadith (the Science of Hadith) and some Fiqhi (legal) issues. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2001.

Jay E Adams, who is Dean of the institute of Pastoral Studies and Director of Advanced Studies at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, has developed what he regards to be a distinctly biblical model of counselling. He calls his method nouthetic counselling. This term is derived from the Greek verb noutheteo, to admonish and the related noun, nouthesia, admonition. Adams has developed his counselling model against a background of a move to return the task of counselling and care to the church. Although it was traditionally accepted that the task of helping people with their personal problems, and particularly behaviour change, was the ministry of the church, through the increasing influence of the psychological sciences, this role was steadily usurped. Instead of turning to the church with their personal problems, people began to look even more to secular psychologists for assistance. In response to this, there was an attempt, from the late nineteen twenties, to integrate the findings of the psychological sciences with theology. These first attempts came from the more theologically liberal sectors of the church. Evangelicals, initially viewed this move with scepticism. However, over the past twenty to twenty-five years, there has been a substantial move towards an interfacing of theology and psychology among evangelicals. One evangelical who has been an opponent of any sort of integration has been Jay Adams. He is vehemently opposed to integrating psychology and theology. Adams rejects the findings of the psychological sciences. What sets nouthetic counselling apart is Adams' insistence that counselling is the distinct domain of Christians. On this basis he insists that counselling be the work of ordained pastors and not the work of psychologists and psychiatrists. Adams maintains that his theory of counselling is biblical. However, in this dissertation we attempt to show that nouthetic counselling is inadequate in two important respects. In the first place, it is maintained that Adams has an unbiblical understanding of human nature. We will show that Adams has ignored the inner, the deeper aspects of human nature, and in particular the serious effects of sin on the will of man. Because Adams has not understood human nature and human pathology, we believe the solution he proposes is inadequate in that he concentrates on outward behaviour. He assumes that outward behaviour change leads to deeper, inward change. In the second place, it will be argued that Adams has a limited understanding of the Holy Spirit's role in the process of behaviour change. Central to nouthetic counselling, is the place Adams claims to give to the Holy Spirit. He insists that the Holy Spirit is the counsellor, par excellence. He is adamant that nouthetic counselling focuses on radical behaviour change and that is what the Holy Spirit is concerned with. Adams equates nouthetic counselling with the application of the process of sanctification. It is Adams' understanding of the role of the Holy Spirit in counselling and behaviour change that is the main focus of this dissertation. In this connection we examine and evaluate Adams' theory of counselling from a pneumatological viewpoint within the context of Calvinistic theology. Nouthetic counselling is analysed with reference to Adams' understanding of the place of the Holy Spirit in the process of behaviour change. We have attempted to prove that Adams is inadequate because his counselling lacks a pneumatological dimension. What we mean is that Adams has a very limited understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit. Adams insists that the holy Spirit play the central role in the process of behaviour change. However, from a practical point of view, it is the Bible that has the central place. Adams believes that the Holy Spirit works through the Bible to bring a person to faith and to change that person. For Adams, then, the Bible is absolutely crucial. The Holy Spirit is mediated to the individual through the Bible. In other words, Adams places the Bible between the individual and the Holy Spirit. We will show that Adams imprisons the holy spirit in the Bible. He ignores the direct working of the Holy Spirit in the individual and the important part played by other means of grace in the process of change. We have attempted to show that as a result, Adams' counselling is individualistic and problem centred. What Adams needs is a corrective. This corrective is to understand that the Holy Spirit is not limited to the Bible. Although it is accepted that the Holy Spirit works through the Bible, an important means of grace to cause change is the community of believers. It is as people are brought by the Holy Spirit into community they experience radical change. This change comes through the mutual ministry of caring and love in that community. We believe this is the dimension that is missing not only from nouthetic counselling, but, largely, from most other models of counselling. It is argued that a truly biblical model of counselling takes seriously the place of the community of believers in the process of behaviour change. We have built on insights of Reformed theologians like Hendrikus Berkhof and George Hendry to develop a pneumatological corrective looking at the relationship of the Holy Spirit to the church, the individual and the kingdom. This is a corrective that we believe Adams needs to be truly biblical. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1995.

The title of this thesis serves as a summary of its major emphases. Its first concern is to help churches become relevant. Sadly, some churches have become irrelevant, because they do not reflect the church of the Bible. This thesis points out that when we take careful note of what the Scriptures teach about church life, and then diligently apply these teachings to a particular church, we will find such a church becoming relevant within its own cultural milieu. Because this study aspires to be relevant, it is at the same time a praxis. It is an expression of the practical outworkings of the theology of church life as taught by the Bible. In other words, it is an applied ecclesiology, because it extracts from the tenets of Practical Theology those aspects of church life needed to bring about quantity and quality growth in local church situations. This thesis focuses its attention upon the Evangelical Church in South Africa, a group of twenty-six churches, ministering mainly to the Indian people living in Natal and the Transvaal. After delineating the broad dimensions of church life taught by the Bible, it advocates and amplifies eight all-encompassing principles which the Evangelical Church in South Africa needs to apply to its local churches if it wishes to grow both numerically and spiritually. In fact, we may safely conclude that these principles are universally applicable to any church, and will lead to significant spiritual growth when they are diligently applied in various church settings. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1993.

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.