This thesis explores and analyzes Origen of Alexandria’s conviction that Scripture is itself the enfleshed Christ, or that “in the Scriptures the Word became flesh that he might tabernacle among us” (Philoc 15.19). For Origen, Scripture as the “Word of the Lord” is identical to the Word who was “with God,” and who “was God” in the Johannine Prologue. The Word assumes flesh not only in his birth, but also through the words and phrases of the patriarchs, prophets, and apostles. As a result, many scholars have noted the interesting “parallel” or “analogy” Origen draws between Scripture and the Incarnation, but this study provides the first comprehensive and focused treatment of Scripture as incarnate Word in Origen’s work. Ultimately, it demonstrates that for Origen, biblical interpretation is nothing less than a direct noetic encounter with the person of Christ, allowing the reader to know him in any time or place, to see him transfigured in the movement from the letter to the spirit, and even to consume his flesh and blood. Following an introductory chapter, the project consists of two parts. Part One (Chapters Two and Three) addresses the nature of “scriptural flesh” in Origen’s work. Chapter Two seeks to articulate what it means for the Word to become “flesh” in the first place, as well as what is required to “lift the veil” and perceive that flesh as divine. By examining the role of the cross in Origen’s Christology, it demonstrates that it is only in light of the Passion, through the lens of the crucified Christ, that the divinity of both man (Jesus) and text (Scripture) is made manifest. Chapter Three looks to define this scriptural “flesh” in Origen’s thought, specifically by relying on the doctrine of the epinoiai (the “aspects” or biblical titles of Christ). It is the epinoiai that clothe Christ and give him shape through the text. Part Two (Chapters Four and Five) addresses the theological and spiritual implications for the reader and interpreter of Scripture. Chapter Four examines the “coming of Christ” (parousia) as an individualized noetic phenomenon, brought about by the Christological reading of Scripture in any time or place. Finally, Chapter Five addresses the consumption of Christ through the Scriptures, which turns out to be much more about hermeneutics than about sacramental theology. A short conclusion follows, raising some of the broader implications for Origen studies as well as for the study of early Christian biblical exegesis.

Os Evangelhos canônicos de Mateus, Marcos, Lucas e João constituem o cerne do Novo Testamento bíblico e correspondem aos textos fundadores do mito cristão. Utilizando-se de estratégias de manipulação, convidam o leitor a crer na fé que apresentam, cujo centro de referência é a figura de Jesus. Ao narrarem suas ações e discursos, mobilizam o leitor a acreditar em seu teor e no conjunto de valores por eles transmitidos, os quais são tratados pela semântica discursiva como eufóricos, em detrimento dos valores a que são contrários e, por isto, disfóricos. Dentre estes, estão as estruturas constituídas de poder, tanto o religioso quanto o político, enquanto se constituem meios para tolher a liberdade humana e impedir a convivência pacífica e integral dos seres humanos entre si e com seu Criador. O leitor, uma vez inserido no universo de crenças proposto, é direcionado a realizar um programa narrativo a exemplo do programa realizado nos textos por Jesus: uma série de ações que culminam na conjunção da vida eterna como objeto de valor. A vida eterna é alcançada por Jesus, de acordo com os textos, após oferecer-se em sacrifício pela expiação dos pecados da Humanidade. Da mesma forma, ao leitor é proposto um sacrifício, não idêntico ao de Jesus, mas identificado como o abandono de valores prejudiciais à própria Humanidade, como a injustiça, a soberba e o orgulho. Tendo cumprido esta ação, da mesma forma lhe é dada a ressurreição e, com ela, a vida eterna. A ressurreição e a vida eterna correspondem, por sua vez, à realização, nos textos, em níveis mais profundos, do fazer emissivo e da continuidade da continuidade, equivale à síntese dialética, após a série de transformações por que passa o sujeito. O mito cristão, portanto, constantemente promove a mobilização do sujeito, levando-o a uma constante reavaliação do seu modo de vida e à transformação para que se adéquem aos valores propostos nos Evangelhos. Os cristãos católicos, ortodoxos e anglicanos, por sua vez, bem como alguns outros grupos, podem experimentar a ressurreição no sacramento da Eucaristia, o qual se apresenta como um microcosmo das narrativas dos Evangelhos. Esta vivência sacramental visa, ao lado da leitura das Escrituras, colocar os cristãos em contínua reflexão sobre suas ações para que possam verificar, ainda durante a realização de seu programa narrativo, a sanção que lhes seria dada pelo destinador figurativizado pela divindade. Este trabalho visa, portanto, analisar os textos dos Evangelhos canônicos acerca da paixão, morte e ressurreição de Jesus, conforme a tradução da Bíblia de Jerusalém (2002) numa perspectiva da Teoria Semiótica Greimasiana, como proposta no Dicionário de Semiótica (GREIMAS e COURTÉS, 2008) e seus posteriores desenvolvimentos realizados por Fontanille e Zilberberg (2001), Panier (2010) e Zilberberg (2006a, 2006b, 2011). As reflexões acerca do mito são dadas principalmente por Campbell (2002, 2008b), Eliade (2010) e Lévi-Strauss (1976, 1985). Por sua vez, as reflexões teológicas e exegéticas dos textos tem como base, principalmente, Boff (2012a, 2012b), Grün (2009, 2011a, 2011b, 2012a e 2012b) e Leloup (2000, 2007). / The canon of the New Testament, by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, constitutes the core of the biblical New Testament, and corresponds to the founding texts of the Christian myth. Utilizing manipulation strategies, these texts invite the reader to believe in the faith they present, whose referential center is the figure of Jesus. By narrating their actions and speeches, the texts mobilizes the reader to believe in their contents and in the set of values communicated by them, values that are treated as euphoric by the discursive semantics, to the detriment of opposite values which are, therefore, dysphoric. Among these values, there are the established power structures both religious and political , while they represent means to hamper human freedom and hinder thorough and peaceful coexistence of human beings with each other and their Creator. Once inserted in the presented universe of beliefs, the reader is directed to perform a narrative program, similar to that performed by Jesus in the texts: a series of actions that culminate in the conjunction of eternal life as a valuable object. Eternal life is reached by Jesus, according to the texts, after His self-sacrifice for the absolution of humanitys sins. Equally, a sacrifice is proposed to the reader; this sacrifice is not identical to Jesus, but it is identified as the abandonment of values that are harmful to humanity itself, as injustice, presumption and pride. Having completed this action, in the same form, the reader is given resurrection and, with it, eternal life. In the texts, resurrection and eternal life thus correspond to the accomplishment, in deeper levels, of emissive doing and of continuity of continuity, and equals to dialectic syntax, after a series of transformations which the subject suffers. The Christian myth, therefore, constantly promotes the mobilization of the subject, leading him/her to a constant revaluation of his/her lifestyle and to the transformation to meet the values proposed in the Gospels. The Catholic Christians, both Orthodox and Anglican, as well as some other groups, may experience resurrection in the sacramental rite of Eucharist, which presents itself as a microcosm of Gospels narratives. This sacramental experience, paired with the reading of the Gospels, aims at putting Christians into continuous reflection in order to verify, while still performing their narrative program, the sanction that would be given to them by the destinator represented by the deity. This research therefore aims to analyze the texts of the canonical Gospels on the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus, as the translation of the Jerusalem Bible (2002) perspective Greimasian Semiotics Theory, as proposed in Semiotics Dictionary (Greimas and Courtes, 2008) and its subsequent developments made by Fontanille and Zilberberg (2001), Panier (2010) and Zilberberg (2006a , 2006b, 2011). The reflections on the myth are mainly given by Campbell (2002, 2008b) , Eliade (2010) and Lévi- Strauss (1976, 1985). In turn, the theological and exegetical reflections of texts is based mainly Boff (2012a, 2012b ), Grün (2009, 2011a, 2011b, 2012a and 2012b) and Leloup (2000, 2007).

To Know Worship and Love is the religious instruction curriculum produced and mandated for use by the Archdiocese of Melbourne. The primary series comprises a Teaching Companion and Student Text for every level of education, Preparatory to Year 6. This study undertakes examination of the series to determine if biblical metaphors for God which contain a physical vehicle are used and presented within it in accord with the accepted exegetical practices of the Church. The study begins by examining Church documents that pertain to both religious instruction and Scripture to determine a set of principles which should guide the use of Scripture. Notable among the six principles elucidated is the expectation that the use of Scripture should reflect accepted exegetical practices of the Church. These are defined as those which enable a clear understanding of the literal sense of Scripture, as ascertained through use of the Historical-Critical method. In order to come to a sound understanding of the literal sense of metaphors, the study reviews how they work and what results from their use. Such a review is important for two reasons. First, in the finding that metaphors for God prompt the formation of a concept of God, the need for their valid interpretation in religious instruction is stressed. Second, it enables the articulation of eight specific requirements for the interpretation of biblical metaphors for God. Subsequent examination of the series against what is required reveals that of the eight requirements, only one is provided within the series. No unit or activity identifies the sixty-three biblical metaphors cited in the series and no unit teaches students how they work to communicate meaning. No unit provides information of the vehicles used within their historical setting and no unit explains the historical circumstances which gave rise to the dominance of certain metaphors. In order to explain why biblical metaphors for God are presented so poorly in To Know Worship and Love, the use of Scripture generally in the series is examined against the six principles drawn from Church documents. The finding that the series does not observe the principles which should guide the use of Scripture, in particular, the finding that the series does not use accepted exegetical practices of the Church, provides significant insight into the inadequate presentation of metaphors. The study concludes by making three recommendations. First, it recommends that a process of rewriting To Know Worship and Love must be undertaken immediately. Second, it recommends that the use and placement of Scripture in religious instruction programmes in the future adhere to the six principles of the Church outlined in this study. Third, it recommends that the clear and accurate teaching of what metaphors and how they work be made a priority in religious instruction programmes.

In traditional Islam, Adam is the first human created. Eve, or Hawa, was created to be his mate and she was made from Adam’s uppermost left rib. There has been a move to argue that Eve and Adam were created simultaneously. I will argue that, because of the negative patriarchal and misogynistic imagery that has been attached to Islam, some feminist Muslim thinkers are attempting to move Islam into a realm where they believe is revolutionary enough to make a new statement in the modern world. These feminist Muslims are making strides to make the Qur'an the sole authority in Islam, while simultaneously dismissing all traditional accounts that have historically been used to assist in interpreting the Qur’an. Although their conclusions are interesting, their methods will be the focus of my thesis. What these feminists are attempting is a method of interpretation that has never been widely accepted in Islam.

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Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:24:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2010-01-13Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:31:59Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 barbosa_g_me_rcla.pdf: 822152 bytes, checksum: da920714b1e5049412e0666e10a1de1f (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / O objetivo dessa pesquisa é participar da discussão acerca das diferentes concepções de Platão e Aristóteles a respeito da natureza e do estatuto ontológico dos entes matemáticos. Enquanto Platão situa o âmbito ontológico dos entes matemáticos entre dois mundos, o sensível e o inteligível, Aristóteles nega o caráter supra-sensível dos objetos matemáticos e oferece como resposta a sua filosofia empirista da matemática. Aristóteles teria dirigido duras críticas contra Platão e os acadêmicos nos dois últimos livros da Metafísica, M e N, respectivamente. Desde a antiguidade, vários autores sustentam que tais críticas referem-se às “doutrinas não-escritas” de Platão, que seriam cursos por ele ministrados na Academia, cujo teor ele não quis escrever por considerar que somente à dialética oral caberia o ensinamento dos primeiros princípios. Utilizando uma metodologia de pesquisa filosófica e também a história da filosofia e da matemática, foram abordados diversos textos, que vão desde livros e artigos atuais, até as próprias obras de Platão e Aristóteles relacionadas ao tema. Como parte das reflexões finais, o presente trabalho destaca a importância da exegese para uma correta interpretação das filosofias da matemática de Platão e Aristóteles e ainda das relações entre elas. / The research aim is the discussion about Plato and Aristotle’s different conceiving about the nature and the ontological status of mathematical entities. While Plato located the ontological scope of mathematical entities between two worlds, the sensible and the intelligible, Aristotle denies the character “super-sensible” of the mathematical entities and offers in response his own empiricist philosophy of mathematics. Aristotle would have direct harsh criticism to Plato and the academics in two last books of his Metaphysics, M and N, respectively. Since ancient times several authors argue that these criticism refer to “unwritten doctrines” of Plato, that they would be courses that he taught at the Academy, whose contents he did not want to write because he had believe that only oral dialectic should teach the first principles. Using a philosophical methodology of research and also the history of philosophy and mathematics several texts were discussed, like current books and articles as well as works of Plato and Aristotle about the theme. As part of final reflection, the present work highlights the exegesis importance for a correct interpretation of the mathematics philosophy from Plato and Aristotle and even the relationships between them.

The thesis collects and analyses the very first (2nd-5th century) clear quotations, references and interpretations of Acts 15:20.29 and Acts 21:25. It consists of three parts: Part I, which is introductory in nature, presents and comments upon the textual variants of these biblical verses. Part II catalogues and analyses all the relevant texts referring to and commenting on Acts 15:20.29 and Acts 21:25. The purpose is to discover each ancient author’s understanding of the Jerusalem Council’s prohibitions, enumerated in the above verses of Acts. The writers and their texts are divided into three groups depending on which main textual variant of Acts 15:20.29 and Acts 21:25 they referred or quote. Part III presents in its first two chapters a synthesis of the above analyses, juxtaposing and summarizing early authors’ views on the meaning and normativity of the prohibitions. Then, the last chapter examines the potential influence of a variant of Acts 15:20.29 and 21:25 quoted or referred to (or preferred if more variants were known to a given author) by the writers on their understanding of the prohibitions. The thesis shows that despite different textual variants used by the early writers, their interpretations of the prohibitions, although often superficially different, have in a number of cases and on a deeper level more in common than one would preliminarily surmise.

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Since the middle of the twentieth century, partly through the wide influence of Abraham Heschel’s work on the prophets and prophesy in Ancient Israel, an image of the prophet as an ‘outsider’ has emerged. This image contrasts, in critical ways, with an image of ‘the prophet’ that appears central in Spinoza’s Theologico-Political Treatise. Spinoza’s Treatise, however, is an inaugural text for the historical-critical study of prophesy in ancient Israel; and it casts a long shadow over Heschel’s view of prophesy. I identify three areas of tension between their images of prophets. The contrasts reveal that Heschel, and other twentieth century theorists of prophesy invest prophetic authority and authenticity in religious experience whose transformative power is a function of its ‘breaking through’ oppressive social/religious institutions and norms ‘from the outside.’ Spinoza, by contrast, accounts for prophetic authority via ‘immanence’: the location of prophets within a tradition of law and common ‘usage’ with the political institutions which they criticise and challenge. I argue, finally, that Spinoza’s image can accommodate the prophetic ‘outsider’ and rebel, and in a way that suggests that prophesy must now be conceived as encompassing social critique within the context of the arts.

Luther’s theological and ethical consideration of lying is founded on protecting the reputation and welfare of the neighbor. In sermons, prayer books, catechisms, lectures, letters, and table talks, Luther addresses lies and secrecy in varying contexts and continually returns to the same conclusion: a person’s speech should protect the neighbor’s reputation rather than harm it. Luther first develops his thoughts on lying in catechetical literature on the eighth commandment, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor,” which he interprets positively as a requirement to protect the neighbor’s reputation. Diverging from an idealized Augustinian ethic which condemns all lies as sinful, Luther’s emphasis on protection of the neighbor allows him to identify truths as sinful when they harm another and lies as sinless when they protect another. Luther does draw on Augustine’s framework of three types of lies—the harmful, the playful, and the dutiful—to distinguish among sinful, harmless, and beneficial lies. Luther maintains this focus on protection and the distinction among kinds of lies in his Lectures on Genesis, where he examines lies in many different contexts, commending some and condemning others. Luther’s interpretations expand to offer application and advice to his contemporaries, including advice on how to deceive others in an appropriate way. Luther’s consistent position on deception in his catechetical and exegetical writing provides his rationale for advising lying in the case of Philipp of Hesse’s bigamy despite the disastrous consequences for both Luther and Philipp. Combined with his theology of the seal of the confessional, Luther’s view of lying provides further protection for the neighbor, whether the neighbor is a rich influential ruler or the vulnerable woman next door. As others in the Wittenberg circle wrote their own catechisms, they drew heavily on Luther’s concern for protecting the neighbor and continue to excuse lies that prevent harm. Luther’s emphasis on protection and prevention of harm thus become an enduring focus in the Lutheran ethical tradition’s treatment of lying and deception. / 2025-07-26T00:00:00Z