This thesis examines the proposition that there is a correspondence between the concept of human self-transcendence and the concept of the deification of man in that both are concerned with the bringing of human nature to its fulfilment by a process of 'redemption'. The first issue addressed is what it means to speak of man participating in divinity, and this notion is then traced through the religion and philosophy of the ancient classical world and the later Graeco-Roman world as the background against which early Christian doctrine emerged. Some modern interpretations of the notion of transcendence as it relates to the human existent are then reviewed, with particular attention being given to the suggestion that it is legitimate to speak of man rather than God as the 'locus' of transcendence by virtue of the inherent openness of human nature to the transcendence of being that meets it in its ex-sisting in being. The second, third and fourth chapters examine the development of the concept of deification as a way of speaking of humanity being brought to a resemblance to God, partaking of the divine nature, and thereby being enabled to realize the image of God in which man was originally created. The fifth chapter investigates the contributions of a selection of contemporary thinkers on the notion of man's quest for fulfilment by the process of self-transcendence, that process of overcoming the aspects of being human which compromise and threaten actual human existence. The final chapter shows how the insights of contemporary thought on the concept of self-transcendence can illuminate for us the patristic concept of deification as a way of speaking about the nature and destiny of human existence and the thesis concludes with a suggestion of three areas of contemporary investigation to which this study might be related.

Rules of engagement, ethics of war, and codes of chivalry are all phrases which remind one of human attempts to rein in and regulate what is perhaps the most anarchic and illogical of all human activities: organized war. The role of the great religions of the world both in propagating war through crusades and jihads as well as their attempts at transcending its savagery through images of miles Christianus or the pious ghazi has also been much discussed. The aim of this thesis is to study the ethics of war in the context of Islamic societies in the Early Middle Ages from several complementary perspectives. Our sources for the period vary greatly from decade to decade and from region to region. This has often led historians of ideas and mentalities to concentrate on one aspect to the exclusion of others. This is particularly so in the case of ethics of war where most of the argument seems to concentrate on a few passages from the Qur'an, supplemented by some quotations from manuals of ḥadith and commentaries on them in the legal textbooks of the different religious schools. That all these are crucial for an understanding of Muslim attitudes and reactions to war throughout centuries is beyond dispute. But it remains, nevertheless, a lop-sided view: neglecting large areas of debate and speculation in literature, philosophy, and mystical meditations, presented as fully-fledged arguments or as occasional remarks and observations embedded in the extant texts from the period. By evaluating these scattered sources and listening to the different voices heard through them, I hope to show some of the different attitudes and responses to the ethics of war and avoid the monolithic and doggedly timeless approach which, at its worst and most extreme, envisages a non-existing consensus among the Muslims from the rise of Islam to the beginning of this new century and neglects the evidence of regional traditions and innovative thinkers by relying solely on a handful of quotes.

The importance and richness of 1 Peter�s soteriological language is generally acknowledged by commentators. However, apart from a few scattered and sporadic remarks in commentaries and in articles no full-scale study of 1 Peter�s soteriology has been carried out. This thesis seeks to fill that gap by conducting a detailed theological-critical study of the concept of salvation in the first letter of Peter. Part one of this thesis outlines the presuppositions and approach to theological-critical exegesis taken here. Basic to a theological exegesis of Scripture, it will be noted, is the recognition of its dual authorship as a divine and human communicative action embodied in written discourse. This means that the interpreter must be oriented primarily toward the subject matter of the biblical text and be committed to discerning the meaning placed there by the divine and human authors. This is another way of saying that the theological interpreter must take seriously the literal sense of the text. To do this, I will suggest, involves three things (each of which will be discussed): (1) literal sense exegesis; (2) intercanonical conversation; (2) intercatholic conversation. Part two contains a detailed theological-critical analysis of those passages in 1 Peter that treat the topic of salvation: 1:1-2; 2:4-10 (election); 1:18-21; 2:21-25; 3:18 (atonement); 1:3, 23-25 (regeneration); 1:3-12; 3:18-4:6 (eschatological salvation). We will see that 1 Peter�s soteriological outlook exhibits a salvation-historical framework which locates the initiative for salvation in God�s eternal, sovereign and gracious electing purpose (1:1-2; 2:4-19), decisively inaugurated in the death (1:10-12, 18-21; 2:21-25; 3:18) and subsequent resurrection, ascension, exaltation and vindication of Christ (1:3, 11, 21; 2:4d, 7d; 3:18e, 19, 21d-22; 4:13; 5:1, 4, 10), existentially realized through the proclamation of the message of salvation (1:12, 23) and the experience of the new birth (1:3, 23), and finally consummated at the return of Christ when suffering and death will give way to life, victory and vindication (1:3-12; 3:18-4:6). Peter�s unique presentation of the believers� eschatological salvation in terms of future victory and vindication is designed to engender hope amongst a small minority of believers facing the onslaught of a hostile world against their faith. In part three I seek to bring the results of my exegesis into dialogue with a variety of theological traditions (e.g., Reformed, Neo-orthodox, Lutheran, Arminian, Pelagian, Wesleyan) in order to allow 1 Peter to make its own distinctive contribution to the ongoing discussion (both between the traditions and between the bible and theology) but also to allow that dialogue to shape and sharpen our own understanding of salvation in 1 Peter. Because of the confines of space the discussion here is limited to the doctrines of election, atonement and regeneration. While at a conceptual level this thesis is an investigation of the concepts and presentation of salvation in the first letter of Peter, at a methodological level it further seeks to overcome the present and unfortunate segregation of biblical studies and theological studies and hopes further to open up the way for a more fruitful dialogue between the two.

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The thesis explores the subject of purgatory and its relative value for modern people. It summarises: 1. The manner in which biblical texts used to underpin the doctrine; 2. The history of the doctrine within the Roman Catholic Church and the reaction to it during the Reformation and beyond; and 3. Contemporary formulations of purgatory and purgatory-like ideas. The thesis argues, from several perspectives, that a modern formulation of the doctrine is: 1. Reasonable; 2. Biblically consistent; 3. Meets the criteria of an established Tradition at practice within the Church; and 4. Is capable of assisting people in understanding and appreciating the existential questions of death and the after life. The thesis is approached from the angle of a Legal Counsel presenting an argument for acceptance of the thesis. / SYS THEOLOGY and THEOL ETHICS / MTH (SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY)

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This thesis identifies in the Relations des Jésuites de la Nouvelle-France (Relations), written between 1632 and 1650, a comprehensive rhetoric of total selfoffering to Jesus Christ, a rhetoric of martyrdom, rooted in their authors' particular experience of the Christian tradition, their praying with the Spiritual Exercises (1548) of Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556), their encounters with the spirituality of the French Jesuit Louis Lallemant (1578-1635), and their exposure to various forms of Jesuit mission literature from around the world. Published annually, these Relations were the only consistent account of the unfolding French colonial project in Nouvelle- France, and a popular read among the noblesse, ecclesiastics, and pious Christians of the kingdom. Today they form an essential collection of primary sources that continue to provide a doorway into the earliest days of Canada's history. Identifying this rhetoric throughout the narratives, this study endeavours to provide a deeper historical understanding of these Relations by contextualising their content within the particular all-encompassing religious worldview of the authors who wrote them. The religious imaginations of these Jesuit authors, Paul Le Jeune (1591-1664), Jean de Brébeuf (1593-1649), Françoise-Joseph Le Mercier (1604-90), Barthélemy Vimont (1594-1667), Jérôme Lalemant (1593-1673), Isaac Jogues (1607-1673) and Paul Ragueneau (1608-1680), thus gives birth to a rhetoric in the Relations that presents Nouvelle-France as a land filled with Amerindian peoples who would only truly embrace Christianity if all of the missionaries lovingly offer their lives to Jesus Christ; just as He had done for the salvation of the entire world from sin and evil. They do so by placing their efforts on a metaphysical plane. There, the missionaries are presented as having been invited by God to join Christ crucified on a mission into a land filled with suffering and death. Where the Amerindians they evangelise must choose between a barbarous life of selfish material interest that is thought to imbue their traditions and a more human life of self-offering modelled on the Christian God. At the same time Satan, the devil, labours hard not to lose his grip on a part of the world that was as yet unaware of its true divine origins. The 'divine', the 'missionary', 'Satan', and the 'Amerindians', locked in this cosmic battle for souls that can only be won through a self-sacrificing union with Jesus Christ, combine to form the rhetoric of martyrdom in the narratives that reaches its summit as the authors describe the murders of eight of their fallen comrades, tortured and killed by some of the very people they had come to evangelise. This rhetoric, present throughout the narratives, has yet to be acknowledged, analysed, and interpreted by historians. In doing so, it is hoped that this study will deepen any reading of the Relations, advancing our understanding of their full import for both the early modern and the present-day reader.