Violence has always been conspicuously present in the American nation, its culture and literature. Considering the immoderate abundance of violence in current entertainment industry, it would seem natural for the emotions to be dulled and able to process any abhorrent excess of violence; the reactions that both Blood Meridian and The Road by the American author Cormac McCarthy have gathered are thus all the more surprising. Face to face with the novels' unspeakable evil, many readers do recoil in horror and the pervasive violence of McCarthy's writings has provoked a wide range of critical perception. The novels may differ significantly in the setting − Southwestern United States of the 19th century in Blood Meridian as opposed to post-apocalyptic future of The Road - but the apparent gulf between both groups of characters and mainly between them and the reader is only another ruse of McCarthy's scheme, whereby he unveils uncomfortable truths about humankind. Although his meticulous study of sources might support the inevitability, even a penchant for bloodshed and carnage in specific conditions, it would be erroneous and contrary to McCarthy's portrayal to imply that it is anomalous rather than representative. The hostility in the novels should not be understood as a feature of a particular region or...

This thesis examines Pieter Bruegel the Elder's Fortitude, 1560, a print from the Seven Virtues series. Fortitude stands out as an anomaly within the cycle because it contains several allusions to the Book of Revelation. The linkage of Fortitude to the writings of St. John is important because it challenges previous iconographic and iconological analyses of the composition. Analysis of Fortitude's compositional elements is provided, along with an examination of the virtue tradition. Additionally, an exploration of sixteenth-century apocalypticism is included, as well as an examination of the artistic influences that may have inspired Bruegel. This thesis concludes that Fortitude's apocalyptic allusions do not seem unusual for an artist familiar with St. John's prophecies, influenced by Hieronymus Bosch, and living in an age of apocalypticism.

Apocalypse is one of the major motifs of Jewish-Christian civilization. The Book of Daniel represents a vital status in understanding the Jewish apocalypse. After summarizing the scholarship on The Book of Daniel and Jewish Apocalypse, I adopt a "intertextual hypothesis" approach to connect the Book of Daniel, Jewish Apocalypse and modern films in order to expand the horizons of discussion and interpretation. / In the thesis I will introduce the current biblical scholarship on Bible and Film, and by using "intertextual hypothesis", I will interpret from different aspects the apocalyptic thoughts in the film entitled <the Second Renaissance>. I will arrive at several points of new understanding of both the theme of "dualism" in Dan.7 and the much discussed area of the origin of Jewish Apocalypse. / This thesis aims at discussing the effect modern films has on our understanding of Daniel 7 and Jewish apocalypse. The main argument of this thesis is that the ancient Jewish apocalyptic thoughts (especially those in Dan. 7) can obtain a richer interpretation by the participation of modern film arts. / 叶洛夫. / Adviser: Archie C. C. Lee. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 73-03, Section: A, page: . / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2010. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 91-112). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [201-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in Chinese and English. / Ye Luofu.

This thesis is a critical analysis of the theology and ethics of dispensationalist Christian Zionism in America. Chapter One introduces the thesis and its method, which draws constructively from history, sociology, and anthropology while remaining substantively theological. Chapter Two describes dispensationalism's origins in nineteenth-century Britain and its dissemination and development in America. Chapter Three moves from broad, historical description to the contemporary and particular through an introduction to Faith Bible Chapel (FBC), an American Christian Zionist congregation. This description arises from an academic term spent at FBC observing congregational life and conducting extensive interviews, as well as fieldwork undertaken in FBC's "adopted settlement" in the West Bank, including interviews with Israeli settlers about partnerships with American Christians. The remaining chapters move to more explicitly doctrinal analysis. Chapters Four through Six are shaped by William Cavanaugh's concept of 'theopolitics' (Theopolitical Imagination, 2002): a disciplined, community-gathering common imagination of time and space. Through the exploration of a key historical text (The Scofield Reference Bible, 1917) and its continuing legacies in the life and thought of FBC, these chapters examine the theopolitics of dispensationalist Christian Zionism, demonstrating that it is a complex system of convictions and practices in which the disciplines of biblicism and biblical literalism form an eschatology which subordinates ecclesiology and Christology, nurturing an imagination of the roles of Christ and the church in time and space which sever social ethics from necessary Christological and ecclesiological sources. John Howard Yoder's work is used to bring this system into relief, and to establish that eschatology per se is not inimical to Christian social ethics. Chapter Seven concludes the thesis with a summary of its findings, as well as a discussion of the positive functions of apocalyptic in Christian social ethics, pointing toward the possibility of alternative ecclesial enactments of apocalyptic theopolitics.

Submitted by admin tede (tede@pucgoias.edu.br) on 2018-04-11T14:04:36Z No. of bitstreams: 1 HAMILTON CASTRO DA SILVA.pdf: 1323368 bytes, checksum: 488dbbec295ae1d1acec471993abe009 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-04-11T14:04:36Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 HAMILTON CASTRO DA SILVA.pdf: 1323368 bytes, checksum: 488dbbec295ae1d1acec471993abe009 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-12-15 / This dissertation was carried out with the objective of presenting the sociohistorical environment of Palestine in the first century, in which Jesus of Nazareth lived, in order to perceive its impacts on the praxis of Jesus, specifically in relation to Roman taxation. We will observe the dominant elites, represented by the Roman Empire, by the family of Herod and by the high priests of the Temple in Jerusalem. These elites, through a system of patronage, exerted a strong economic domination by means of a high tax burden on the peasants. With this, they produced, within the peasantry environment, great indebtedness, loss of property and the destruction of the family. The research sought to demonstrate that historical Jesus is the result and a proposed solution to a situation of economic exploitation in rural villages and towns of Palestine in the first century. The dissertation seeks to present the reaction of Jesus of Nazareth to Roman taxes, analyzing the text of Mark 12: 13-17, specifically the saying of Jesus in v. 17, which states: "Return to Caesar the things of Caesar and to God the things of God." The research shows that this saying indicates that Jesus took a critical stance regarding the payment of taxes to the Romans in favor of the removal of the Roman Empire coins from the lands of Israel. The research shows that the attitude of the historical Jesus against Roman taxes is motivated by a nationalistic and scriptural zeal based on the biblical statement in Leviticus 25:23: "The land [Israel] is mine, says the Lord." In this way, Jesus of Nazareth, guided by this nationalistic zeal, presents an ethical proposal based on biblical and apocalyptic traditions, confronting the tyrannical control and abuse of power by the Roman Empire, that is: The ethics of presenting a praxis of option for the little ones, surpassing the regimes of oppression and tyranny. / Esta dissertação foi realizada com o objetivo de apresentar o ambiente sóciohistórico da Palestina no século I, no qual viveu Jesus de Nazaré, a fim de perceber seus impactos nas práxis de Jesus, especificamente em relação à tributação romana. Observaremos as elites dominantes, representadas pelo Império Romano, pela família de Herodes e pelos sumos sacerdotes do Templo em Jerusalém. Estas elites, mediante um sistema de patronagem, exerciam forte dominação econômica por meio de uma alta carga tributária sobre os camponeses. Com isto, produziam, dentro do ambiente do campesinato, grande endividamento, perda das propriedades e desestruturação da família. A pesquisa procurou demonstrar que Jesus histórico é o resultado e uma proposta de solução para uma situação de exploração econômica nas aldeias rurais e vilas da Palestina no século I. A dissertação procura apresentar a reação de Jesus de Nazaré aos impostos romanos, analisando a perícope de Marcos 12,13-17, especificamente o dito de Jesus no v.17, que afirma: “Devolvei a César o que é de César e a Deus o que é de Deus”. A pesquisa mostra que este dito indica que Jesus assumiu uma postura crítica em relação ao pagamento de impostos aos romanos, em favor da remoção das moedas do Império Romano das terras de Israel. A pesquisa apresenta que a atitude do Jesus histórico contra os impostos romanos é motivada por um zelo nacionalista e escriturístico, fundamentado na afirmação bíblica em Levítico 25,23: “ A terra [Israel] é minha: diz o Senhor”. Dessa maneira, Jesus de Nazaré, orientado por este zelo nacionalista, apresenta uma proposta ética pautada nas tradições bíblicas e na apocalíptica, confrontando o controle tirano e o abuso de poder por parte do Império Romano, ou seja: A ética de apresentar uma práxis de opção pelos pequenos, ultrapassando os regimes de opressão e tirania.

Background: This thesis aims to show that the narratives of the Nag Hammadi Apocalypse of Pauland First Apocalypse of James are written for a Valentinian audience. The purpose is to broaden the field of research on Valentinianism by showing how the authors and their implied readers composed and perceived the texts in question. Method: Comparing the mythological language of the two narratives and their description of a hero’s journey in a transcendent reality it is possible to disentangle the Valentinian material from the imaginative world of the reader, a world consisted of ancient Egyptian and Greek mythology as well as Jewish apocalypticism and early Christian legends and traditions. The texts are also compared with new research in the field, other related Valentinian scriptures, the New Testament, and Christian Apocrypha. Results: The texts are pseudepigraphic and written within a Jewish apocalyptic genre sometime during the late second or early third century. The symbolism and the diverse metaphors of the narratives indicate that the texts incorporate a specific soteriological message through embedded Valentinian mythology. The implied reader is to understand that the material world is an illusion and that the purpose of the initiate is to awaken the mind and acquire knowledge about the truth. By doing so the redemption of the believer’s spirit from its human body and soul leads to the spirits reunion with God. Conclusion: The analysis of the texts points toward the fact that the narratives could very well have been used for catechetical or other educational purposes within a Valentinian community. The language and form of the two narratives fit to serve this purpose. In many ways, the reader has to be initiated within a Valentinian context in order to grasp the intended message. / <p>Godkännande datum 2019-06-10</p>

<p>Thomas Pynchon’s <em>V.</em> is often criticized for its preoccupation with meaninglessness and the  inability to make sense of ‘who’ or ‘what’ <em>V</em>. is about. The failure to make sense of <em>V</em>. is thematized within the novel particularly during the sacred moments or epiphanies which critics describe as ‘bizarre’, ‘disturbing’ or ‘unsettling’. These sacred moments raise issues that cannot be answered by traditional tools. Yet, critics and readers have responded to the novel with readings that reinscribe conventional modes of making sense and show a resistance to the inadequacy of traditional tools. This dissertation examines how Pynchon undermines modernist notions of the sacred moment as “moments of vision” which yield a higher knowledge or revelation. I argue that the sacred moments in <em>V</em>. allude to George Bataille’s notion of waste within a restricted and general economy. The violence of the sacred moments in <em>V</em>. are examined in relation to waste, sacrifice, the erotic, the inanimate, sovereignty and laughter. I conclude that rather than bringing about death, entropy and apocalyptic endings, the epiphanies’ violence and wasteful expenditure reveal the power structures at work in the literary use of the sacred. Paradoxically, the necessary existence of wasteful expenditure increases sense-making and offers the critic/reader the possibility of confronting waste, “the accursed share”.</p>

The objective of this thesis is to explore the relationship between moralities and bioeconomies in post-apocalyptic dystopias from the Victorian era to contemporary Young Adult Fiction. In defining the terms bioeconomy and biopolitics, this works examines the ways in which literature uses food and energy systems to explore morality and immorality in social orders and systems, including capitalism and our modern techno-industrial landscapes. This work examines science fiction portrayals of apocalypses and dystopias, including After London: Or, Wild England and The Hunger Games, as well as their medieval and contextual influences. These works are analyzed in light of genre and contemporary influences, including the development of ecology and environmentalism. Ultimately, this thesis argues that authors are building a link between the types of behavior which are sustainable and morally acceptable and a person’s role in a bioeconomy; specifically, those who are moral in post-apocalyptic dystopias are providers of food and care, and do not seek to profit from aiding others. This work contends that the connection between morality and sustainable food and social systems are evidence of authorial belief that our current ways of life are damaging, and they must change in order to preserve our humanity and our world.

Thesis (M. Div.)--Emmanuel School of Religion, Johnson City, Tennessee, 2001. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 89-92).

Thesis (M. Div.)--Emmanuel School of Religion, Johnson City, Tennessee, 2001. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 89-92).