God is at the centre of an, often inarticulate, innate human desire and pursuit to enjoy and reflect the divine image in which every human being was created. The purpose of this research project is to affirm that human elemental pursuit as God‘s intent to fulfill this created, intrinsic human desire in the now or, what is referred to in this doctoral thesis as, proleptic spiritual transformation (PrōST). It seems that the world, and the extent, of spiritual transformation range from an etiolated theology to experiential fullness. Considered herein is God‘s heart, in relationship, and its implication toward an image-bearing human spiritually and how the Edenic fall interrupted this intent. From this is considered God‘s active interest in recovery of his fully-expressed image in humanity especially as experienced in PrōST. To corroborate this purpose, the means and methods of God‘s revelation in unveiling his heart, truth, and intents toward creation and humanity in particular toward spiritual recovery and PrōST, is examined. Moreover, the transformative and soteriological implications of proleptic spiritual transformation (PrōST) are investigated and whether a unified theory regarding PrōST emerges. The primary aim of this work investigates whether individuals must wait for the afterlife to have purification and spiritual transformation fully or largely "worked out", This thesis investigate the provisions of God‘s economy to include a present enjoyment of the imago Dei (image of God) in transformation as inclusive of the existential life of Christ as the imago Christi, reflected and represented by humans in relation to God and creation. That is, this study demonstrates that PrōST, an experience of transformation usually reserved for heaven in eternity, is greatly available today. The central theoretical argument of this study, as set out, is that humans were created in the image of God; however, the enjoyment and expression of this imago Dei, not its essence, has been greatly blemished, marred, and damaged by a God-defying wilfulness of humanity. Despite this rebellion, God desired a full restoration of the enjoyment and expression of his image. God has not forgotten or abandoned this intent. Moreover, the imago Dei now carries something more—the God-man (imago Christi). God‘s image in Jesus now carries the existential realities of his incarnate life toward which PrōST drives. This study re-examines the conventional partitioning of the "now" and "not yet" for a new balance and paradigm in expressed PrōST toward imago Dei. / PhD (Dogmatics), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus in co-operation with Greenwich School of Theology, United Kingdom, 2014

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Thesis advisor: James F. Keenan, SJ / Why should any society acknowledge and address recognition as a vital human need? This dissertation primarily sets out to offer a theological ethical response to this opportune and critical question. Fundamentally, it does not attempt to develop a new theory of recognition or, even, correct the existing ones. Rather, in agreement with the Aristotelian eudemonistic principle that the end of ethics is virtuous action and drawing on major theories of recognition, it highlights the necessity of acting virtuously in a manner that properly addresses the human need for due recognition. Its ultimate goal is to highlight the ethical significance of recognition as a vital human need. This goal is premised on the central thesis that all human beings need to be duly recognized and consistently treated as subjects with inherent dignity and fundamental rights; and, that failure to address the need for recognition leads to a catch-22 situation in human society. Therefore, it argues that doing a proper social ethics, especially Catholic Social Ethics, practically demands that we duly address the human need for recognition and explore how to integrate the habit of mutual recognition into the moral schemas of our societies so as to create a thriving culture of recognition – one that normalizes, prioritizes, and sustains mutual recognition as a common ground for negotiating the common good in modern multicultural and pluralistic societies. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2023. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Theology.

Thesis advisor: Hosffman Ospino / This work disrupts and re-envisions normative or traditional theological scenes of instruction anchored around imago Dei, dignity, and hope. These elements comprise “sanitized scenes of instruction” that are unable to adequately and creatively respond to the complex epistemes that have shaped and continue to guide contemporary death-dealing atmospheres of violence as manifested in necropolitics, biopower, and intensified precarity in the Anthropocene. The result is theological reflection, social analysis, and education that is out of touch with the perpetual dark night of the soul that we all experience but that is especially felt by those bodies considered disposable or as fodder for Orwellian visions of societal homeostasis (biopower) on an increasingly precarious Earth. Instead of providing easy chimeras or a quick way out, this work invites readers to rethink imago Dei, dignity, and hope without escaping the dark night (the atmospheres of violence). It does so by juxtaposing scenes, unsanitized ones, with traditional theological accounts on imago Dei, dignity, and hope––challenging them in the process. The hope is that such juxtapositions will jolt imaginations into considering other possible scenes of theological instruction that go beyond, but that do not discard, the normative ones. This work ends by offering some contours for a rhizomatic theological imagination and pedagogy that can perhaps facilitate an “active” sitting in the dark: one that still manages to move in all directions and that envisions infinite possibilities within states of suspension. The penultimate chapter hones in on the centrality of a theological hermeneutics that embraces plurality and ambiguity––crucial to any theological project that seeks to respond to complex contemporary concerns. The final chapter tentatively concludes with some possible fragments of scenes for consideration in developing future theological scenes of instruction. It models the pedagogy that I currently find most useful in my writing and teaching, namely a rhizomatic and pluriversal one. Rather than end the work with yet another system or scene of instruction, I offer the fragments as an exercise for the reader to think through his/her/their own experiences with theology and the precariousness that we all, to different extents, share. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2024. / Submitted to: Boston College. School of Theology and Ministry. / Discipline: Theology and Education.

Le but de cette thèse est d’examiner comment les artistes de la Renaissance, dits humanistes, ont proposé des interprétations nouvelles de la vision du monde au moment où les découvertes récentes de la cosmologie ont lieu, et également dans quelle mesure la force suggestive des images va de pair avec les conceptions de l’univers, lequel est d’ailleurs considéré par E. Panofsky, historiquement et logiquement comme la première œuvre d’art et le prototype de toutes. C’est pourquoi il importe de reconstituer, sous l’angle d’un certain prisme spéculatif, les fluctuations de la configuration spatiale dans les peintures de la Renaissance européennes. / The aim of this study is to examine how the artists of the Renaissance, known as the humanists, have proposed some news interpretations of the vision of the world when the recent discoveries oh the cosmology have happened, and equally how much the suggestive force of images go hand in hand with the conceptions of the universe, which is moreover considered by E. Panofsky, historically and logically as the primary work of art and the prototype of all. It is therefore important to reconstitute, in terms of a certain speculative prism, the fluctuations of the spatial configuration in artistic picture of the European Renaissance.

The purpose of the present study is to discuss which relationships and images of God exist between the Lovers in the Song of Songs. Theologian Sallie McFague's thoughts on the image of God as lover from Models of God: Theology for an Ecological, Nuclear Age form the framework from which I conduct my analysis. Since my primary material is of a biblical historical nature, my method is to read the texts with both modern idea-analytical methods, but also to read the narrative with a dialogic interpretation of history that enables a conversation with our contemporaries. Being that the Song of Song is a poetic text; questions of form and content are also applied as they are suitable for analyzing poetic philosophical texts. To nuance my discussion, I also bring in the feminist theologians Janet Soskice and Marcella Althaus-Reid as interlocutors. My essay shows that the relationships between the Lovers are egalitarian and poignantly sexual and include God in a triad of love. It also shows how images of God can become bigger if we dare to mirror both bodily and spiritual love not only horizontally towards each other, but also vertically towards God. This gives us the opportunity not to reduce or limit God, and neither ourselves as beings in reflection of Imago Dei.

C.G. Jung et ses proches collaborateurs ont souligné l’importance de l’imago maternelle aussi bien pour les individus que pour les groupes et les sociétés. Si cette thématique n’a guère été développée dans l’œuvre de Freud, cela n’est pas la cas pour les psychanalystes freudiens des générations suivantes, citons à cet égard Mélanie Klein ou D.W. Winnicott par exemple. Il revient tout particulièrement aux travaux des psychanalystes français Didier Anzieu et René Kaës d’avoir tenté d’articuler l’individuel et le collectif dans leurs travaux sur les groupes, et d’avoir confirmé l’équivalence du groupe et du complexe ou de l’imago maternels.1 Dans cette thèse j’ai souhaité examiner et évaluer l’importance de cette représentation maternelle dans la vie politique française tout au long de ce qui constitue une période fondatrice pour la vie politique française contemporaine, de la Révolution à la Première guerre mondiale. J’ai choisi de procéder à cette étude à partir des métaphores et allégories maternelles que l’on trouve dans les discours publics, ceux-ci incluant aussi bien les discours politiques proprement dits que les discours prononcés lors de distribution de prix à l’école, par exemple. Je ne procède pas, ou très peu, à des interprétations psychanalytiques, sauf lorsque cela me semble évident. Le cadre de référence actualisé de ma thèse est constitué par la recherche historique, mais la psychanalyse en représente « le cadre fantôme ou complémentaire», pour reprendre l’heureuse expression de René Kaës. A la suite de cette recherche, force est de constater l’emploi généralisé des métaphores et allégories maternelles dans la plupart des discours publics de cette période, sous des formes multiples : citons par exemple la Nature pendant la Révolution, la Jérusalem céleste puis la Vierge Marie dans le camp conservateur et d’autres représentations créés par les premiers socialistes, dont la Communauté (Etienne Cabet), ou bien encore la France maternelle et messianique de Michelet, la patrie des Républicains, la religion de l’Humanité du positivisme,celle de la Terre et des Morts de Barrès, etc.. La métaphore et l’allégorie maternelle constituent alors la promesse d’un idéal et/ou la demande de soumission. Ces figures maternelles ont des enfants, et dans les discours publics principalement des fils. Cette thèse constate l’importance de la relation privilégiée entre la mère et ses fils au niveau politique. Le « premier » de ces fils se pose le plus souvent en tant que porte-parole ou interprète de la métaphore à laquelle il se réfère : Robespierre, Napoléon Ier et Gambetta en sont quelques exemples. Dans le contexte imaginaire et idéologique induit par ces métaphores et allégories maternelles, l’individu et la femme en tant que tels, n’existent guère, la relation entre la Mère et son Fils constitue le principal modèle d’identification proposé. / C.G. Jung and his followers have emphazised the importance of the maternal imago forindivuals, groups and societies. This topic was barely developped by Freud, which is not thecase for Freudian analysts of the following generations ; one might cite for example MelanieKlein or D.W. Winnicott. Didier Anzieu and René Kaës, both French psychoanalysts, havemade an attempt to articulate the individual and the collective in their studies about groups andhave confirmed the equivalence of the group and the maternal imago. In this doctoral thesis, Ihave attempted to examine and assess the importance of this maternal representation in Frenchpolitical life during this formative period for French politics which lasts from the Revolution toWWI. I have chosen to study this issue through maternal metaphors and allegories in publicdiscourses, which include political speeches and other discourses, like award speeches at school,for example. I do not give psychoanalytical interpretation, unless it seems obvious. Thereference framework of this thesis is historical research, but psychoanalysis is itscomplementary or shadow framework. The results of the research show that maternalmetaphors and allegories were widely used in most public speeches of that time, in manydifferent forms. Nature (during the Revolution), heavenly Jerusalem or Virgin Mary in theconservative camp, and other maternal representations which were created by the early socialists– among which the “Community” (Etienne Cabet) – as well as Michelet’s maternal andmessianic France. The Republicans’ father - or rather motherland, the religion of Humanity asseen by Auguste Comte and the positivists, the religion of the Earth and the Dead (MauriceBarrès) are some examples... Maternal metaphors and allegories constitute a promise ofhappiness, an ideal and/or a submission request. These mother figures have children, mainlysons. This doctoral thesis confirms the importance of the privileged relationship between motherand son on the political level. Very often the “first” of these sons establishes himself as thespokesman or the interpreter of this metaphor or allegory. Robespierre, Napoléon, the first emperor of France, or Gambetta are some examples. In the ideological or fictional contextwhich these metaphors and allegories induce, there is hardly any room for the individual or forthe woman as such, the relationship between Mother and Son is the main identification modelwhich is proposed.

This paper uses a psychoanalytical framework to analyze women's mourning with regard to procreation and sterility. The psychodynamic factors related to this topic are described and illustrated with the presentation of a clinical case. This case was assessed with interviews and the Rorschach Inkblot Test according to the French system (de Tychey, 1994). The analysis of the data allows the discussion of the theoretical concepts and addresses the importance of the variety of conflicts that interfere with the desire of procreating. The findings are also discussed from an ethical point of view regarding the role that the clinician plays when he has to face these types of severe cases. / Se investiga sobre el trabajo en duelo de la procreación y en la esterilidad femenina dentro de un marco referencial psicoanalítico. Se describen desde el punto de vista teórico los factores psicodinámicos y se ejemplifica través de la presentación de un caso clínico evaluado con entrevistas y el test de Rorschach siguiendo el sistema francés (de Tychey 1994 ). Los resultados permiten discutir los conceptos teóricos y plantear la importancia de la variedad de conflictos que interfieren en el deseo de procrear. Se discuten los hallazgos desde un punto de vista ético en relación con la función del clínico para ayudar al cliente a enfrentar su severa problemática.

Synthetic biology is a relatively new discipline within the field of biotechnologies. In essence it is the artificial creation of microorganisms. Though similar in principle, it differs from genetic engineering because it creates an organism from scratch, rather than cutting and pasting DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) between existing organisms. This study investigates the ethical aspects (both rational and theological) concerned with synthetic biology through the use of a literature analysis. The study starts by investigating and describing the origins, pioneers, science and uses of synthetic biology. Secondly, it describes and ethically assesses the rational arguments for and against synthetic biology by comparing its benefits and risks. Lastly, the study describes and ethically assesses synthetic biology within the Reformed tradition, mainly by using the creational perspective of Christian ethical evaluations (including concepts such as creatio ex nihilio; creatio continua and imago Dei) and secondary the re-creational and eschatological perspectives. The final conclusion reached shows that synthetic biology is acceptable from a Reformed theological-ethical perspective, because humans as the image of God can create, just as God constantly creates new things and created a new universe from nothing. The rational arguments state that the potential benefits of synthetic biology surpass the risks it poses. Hence, it supports the idea that synthetic biology can be used to fulfil God’s commandment to love one’s neighbour, by improving his circumstances and activating hope. Nevertheless, Christians should always stay vigilant about motives and possible uses when dealing with new technologies. How and for what synthetic biology is used should in the future be constantly reviewed. In this way Christian scientists can still inquire about their work: Does it glorify God? / MA (Ethics), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Synthetic biology is a relatively new discipline within the field of biotechnologies. In essence it is the artificial creation of microorganisms. Though similar in principle, it differs from genetic engineering because it creates an organism from scratch, rather than cutting and pasting DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) between existing organisms. This study investigates the ethical aspects (both rational and theological) concerned with synthetic biology through the use of a literature analysis. The study starts by investigating and describing the origins, pioneers, science and uses of synthetic biology. Secondly, it describes and ethically assesses the rational arguments for and against synthetic biology by comparing its benefits and risks. Lastly, the study describes and ethically assesses synthetic biology within the Reformed tradition, mainly by using the creational perspective of Christian ethical evaluations (including concepts such as creatio ex nihilio; creatio continua and imago Dei) and secondary the re-creational and eschatological perspectives. The final conclusion reached shows that synthetic biology is acceptable from a Reformed theological-ethical perspective, because humans as the image of God can create, just as God constantly creates new things and created a new universe from nothing. The rational arguments state that the potential benefits of synthetic biology surpass the risks it poses. Hence, it supports the idea that synthetic biology can be used to fulfil God’s commandment to love one’s neighbour, by improving his circumstances and activating hope. Nevertheless, Christians should always stay vigilant about motives and possible uses when dealing with new technologies. How and for what synthetic biology is used should in the future be constantly reviewed. In this way Christian scientists can still inquire about their work: Does it glorify God? / MA (Ethics), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015