The thesis poses a question derived from an unlikely nexus of two prominent figures of the Renaissance and the Reformation: the artist whose creative abilities ostensibly dominate the Vatican and religious art, juxtaposed with the rebel who splintered the dominance of Roman Catholicism. Michelangelo's program of artistic and religious reform in the second quarter of the sixteenth century strikes a chord similar to Martin Luther's theological perspectives set forth in the Reformation. Through the influence of the artist's friendship with the noblewoman, Vittoria Colonna, and subsequent involvement with an elite and cultured Italian reform group called the Spirituali, his later works of art and poetry reflect a deepening spirituality with unmistakable affinities to Protestant doctrine. The thesis first discusses the revolutionary stream of religious thought by providing a brief background of the intellectual, social, political, and ecclesiastical currents conducive to religious reform in Germany and Italy. Second, it explores the pathway leading to Michelangelo's later spiritual and doctrinal formation and the manner in which it parallels Luther's in several crucial aspects. The point of divergence, however, manifests itself through the parameters of personal experience in communicating their respective visions. Whereas Luther combined piety with spiritual autonomy and freedom, directing his efforts toward proclaiming a simple, democratic gospel the masses could comprehend, Michelangelo wedded piety with beauty and mystery, communicating through a nuanced language of art and poetry shrouded in allegory, myth, and allusion. Lastly, the paper comments upon possible reasons for Michelangelo's and the Spirituali's failure of reform strategies in contrast to Luther's success. Michelangelo's ties to Luther are predicated upon an evaluation of certain of the artist's poems and The Last Judgment fresco as expounded in the thesis. However, the final determination of whether Michelangelo can be viewed as a "secret Luther" rests with the reader and his/her commitment to imagination, intellectual involvement, and a personal quest for truth. The thesis challenges the astute reader to assume the role of an authentic truth-seeker who must delve below the surface of superficiality to discern the message of the divine artist/poet who deems truth too precious to unveil to the mindless throng.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-27T13:48:41Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 MISAEL JUVENIL VIEIRA.pdf: 1728207 bytes, checksum: 46dea74149209becbd55ec9bda64b0d3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-02-12 / The Romans 5.12 to 21 text is revisited from the general context of the Charter. Are peripheral issues and intentions that hide behind the texts that help to outline the central theme of the Charter, which is grace, as God s gift, which results in justification by faith. The Letter to the Romans shows Paul as a person plural and with strong collective sense. The Romans 5.15 to 21 text display goes against the idea of a wrathful Paulo, resentful, sad and melancholy. In this passage we see the flow of an overflowing joy, which he wants to pass on to the communities that are still tied to the concept of salvation gained from the works of the law. The sin, which results in death , is only remembrance for those who reach the kingdom entrance life. This is why Paul should not be read as the author of the theology of death, but of life. The struggle to attain the fullness of grace and justification by faith is a struggle for freedom, quite appropriate topic to deal with the Roman imperial oppression. This joy transcends the individual and expands the community and social sphere. Receiving the grace of God for man allows this serve and love the Lord by choice and not by institutional constraints. The deeper symptom of freedom manifests that serving with joy. Paul does not prioritize individuals in their theology, but a free society. A company achieved the freedom of grace and righteousness of God s justice, certainly, is a society ready to live the reality of social justice. / O texto de Rm 5,12-21 é revisitado a partir do contexto geral da Carta. São os temas periféricos e as intencionalidades que se escondem por detrás dos textos que ajudam a delinear o tema central da Carta, que é a graça, como dom de Deus, da qual resulta a justificação pela fé. A Carta aos Romanos mostra Paulo como uma pessoa pluralizada e com forte noção coletiva. A exposição do texto de Rm 5,15-21 contraria a ideia de um Paulo iracundo, ressentido, triste e melancólico. Nessa passagem vemos o fluir de uma alegria transbordante, a qual ele deseja repassar às comunidades que ainda se vinculavam ao conceito da salvação adquirida através das obras da Lei. O pecado, do qual resulta a morte, é apenas lembrança, para os que alcançam a entrada do reino da vida. Por isto Paulo não deve ser lido como autor da teologia da morte, mas da vida. A luta para alcançar a plenitude da graça e da justificação pela fé é uma luta pela liberdade, tema bastante apropriado para fazer frente à opressão imperial romana. Essa alegria transcende o indivíduo e se expande à esfera comunitária e social. O recebimento da graça de Deus pelo homem permite que este sirva e ame ao Senhor por opção própria e não por imposições institucionais. O sintoma mais profundo de liberdade se manifesta naquele que serve com alegria. Paulo não prioriza indivíduos na sua teologia e sim uma sociedade livre. Uma sociedade alcançada pela liberdade da graça e da retidão da justiça de Deus, certamente, é uma sociedade pronta para viver a realidade da justiça social.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-03T12:19:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 MarcosJE.pdf: 726089 bytes, checksum: 9d0fd78b1960e70ac9618dc7ba9c52a1 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-03-06 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The justification by faith alone, in a context of fear, anguish and pastoral practices based on merit, of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, presented itself as a liberating enunciation. It gave new meaning to theological concepts. It showed the direction to a new way of Christian life, having salvation as its principal, not its objective. It formed, in this way, a foundation of a way to live: a justified way of living. A way that defines the integrity of being, that defines personal and communitarian acts. A way that, dogmatized over the years, imposed itself like a doctrine, to the detriment of vivid experience. The purpose of this research is to point out the relevance of justification by faith in the context of the 16th century, highlight aspects that formed the foundation of a new way of life of a person justified by faith, and confirm justification by faith as a foundation of a way of life that resists the hegemonic system of the market society of the 21st century. / A Justificação pela Fé no contexto da Reforma protestante do século XVI apresentou-se como um enunciado libertador das práticas pastorais meritórias. Ressignificou conceitos teológicos. Apontou para uma nova forma de vida cristã tendo a salvação como seu princípio, não seu objetivo. Formatou, desta forma, o fundamento de um modo de vida: o modo justificado de viver. Um modo que define a integralidade do ser. Modo que, dogmatizado com o passar dos anos, impôs-se como doutrina em detrimento da vivência. Esta pesquisa se propõe a apontar para a relevância da Justificação pela Fé no contexto do século XVI, assinalar aspectos que fundamentam e moldam o novo modo de vida da pessoa justificada pela fé e afirma a Justificação pela Fé como o fundamento de um modo de vida resistente ao sistema hegemônico da sociedade de mercado do século XXI.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-03-15T19:48:37Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Mario Sergio Batista.pdf: 720915 bytes, checksum: 988df68cb07cdee44ee8754d08f28bb4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-08-13 / Fundo Mackenzie de Pesquisa / The aim of this thesis is analyzing the theme: The doctrine of justification by faith in John Calvin and in St. Bernard of Clairvaux: an approach from the perspective of Speech Analysis. It is based on principles of Speech Analysis and Argumentative Semantics as well, according to their principal theoretic thinkers, e.g., Dominique Maingueneau, Eni P. Orlandi, Ingedore G. Villaça Koch and José Luiz Fiorin. The main text used is John Calvin s Institutes of the Christian Religion, specially the Book III, where Calvin speaks about Justification by Faith. The point of this research was to discover the meaning and the effects of sense which come from the construction and reconstruction of argumentative force in the use of St. Bernard of Clairvaux s quotations made by John Calvin in his texts, acknowledging that in doing so, Calvin was trying to validate his teachings to his addressers. In order to get this point I ve worked with the discursive formation expressing the ideology of the speaker and the ideas of places of both the speaker and the addresser as well. / Este trabalho pretende analisar o tema: A doutrina da justificação pela fé em João Calvino e São Bernardo de Claraval: uma abordagem na perspectiva da Análise do Discurso, baseando-se nos princípios metodológicos da Análise do Discurso e aspectos da Semântica Argumentativa, de acordo com alguns teóricos da área, como: Dominique Maingueneau, Eni P. Orlandi, Ingedore G. Villaça Koch, e José Luiz Fiorin. Os textos que serviram de base estão registrados na obra Institutas da Religião Cristã, de João Calvino, especificamente no Livro III, com destaque à doutrina da justificação pela fé. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi o de descobrir a significação e os efeitos de sentido que surgem a partir da construção e reconstrução da força argumentativa no uso das citações que João Calvino faz de São Bernardo de Claraval em seus textos, reconhecendo que ao recorrer a tal prática a intenção argumentativa de Calvino era a de validar o seu ensino diante dos seus enunciatários. Por isso, se trabalhou com a formação discursiva que expressa à ideologia do falante e as idéias de lugares tanto do sujeito-enunciador como do enunciatário.

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 & THEOL ETHICS / MTH (SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY)

This thesis categorises some characteristic features in the 20th century Lutheran theology, in order to create a picture of the Lutheran theology and Lutheran pre-understanding of life which leave its marks on Selma Lagerlöf as well as on other contemporary expressions of faith and worldviews. Four Lutheran figures of thought are examined as undercurrents in the discourse of the writings of Selma Lagerlöf. They are a) The understanding of Word and Faith, which includes the understanding of justification by faith. b) Faith in God as Creator and in his providence. c) The doctrine of vocatio and God's two regiments. d) The theology of the Cross that emphasises the descent of God and God's taking part in the human life. This investigation has shown that the epic of Lagerlöf can be read in terms of Lutheran theology. The religious roots of Selma Lagerlöf are often described as ”a nothing” - a traditional background, a friendly non-doctrinal piety, and so forth. But this inconspicuous and unconscious religious background has a content, namely the Lutheran faith in the culture and society in which she grew up. Some of the great novels such as The story of Gösta Berlings saga, Jerusalem and The wonderful adventures of Nils and some stories, sagas and legends are investigated. The study shows how the Lutheran understanding of life is expressed in these texts and their interpretation of the reality.

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)

This thesis focuses on the legacy of Jonathan Edwards on the Particular Baptists by way of apprehending theories held by their congregations during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In particular, special attention is directed to the Edwardsean legacy as manifested in the theology of Andrew Fuller. The thesis positions itself between Edwards and Fuller in the transatlantic, early modern period and attempts by the two theologians to express a coherent understanding of traditional dogma within the context of the Enlightenment. The scope of the research traces Fuller’s theological indebtedness by way of historical reconstruction, textual expositions, and theological and philosophical implications of the following works: Freedom of the Will, Religious Affections, Humble Attempt, and Justification by Faith Alone et al. It identifies unique Edwardsean ideas as the basis for investigating whether such concepts permeate Fuller’s intellectual and spiritual life. In that process, the study establishes whether Fuller read and interpreted Edwards correctly or otherwise. This dissertation, therefore, endeavors to determine the extent of Edwards’s impact upon Fuller over and above such other influential factors, which could also have been considered influential in his works. An attempt to determine the parameters of such factors is the basis for the ensuing discussion.

My dissertation explores Shakespeare’s negotiation of Reformation controversy about theories of salvation. While twentieth century literary criticism tended to regard Shakespeare as a harbinger of secularism, the so-called “turn to religion” in early modern studies has given renewed attention to the religious elements in Shakespeare and his contemporaries. Yet in spite of the current popularity of early modern religion studies, there remains an aura of uncertainty regarding some of the doctrinal or liturgical specificities of the period. This historical gap is especially felt with respect to theories of salvation, or soteriology. Such ambiguity, however, calls for further inquiry into historical theology. As one of the “hot-button” issues of the Reformation, salvation was fiercely contested in Shakespeare’s day, making it essential for scholarship to differentiate between conformist (Church of England), godly (puritan), and recusant (Catholic) strains of soteriology in Shakespearean plays. I explore how the language and concepts of faith, grace, charity, the sacraments, election, free will, justification, sanctification, and atonement find expression in Shakespeare’s plays. In doing so, I contribute to the recovery of a greater understanding of the relationship between early modern religion and Shakespearean drama. While I share Kastan’s reluctance to attribute particular religious convictions to Shakespeare (A Will to Believe 143), in some cases such critical guardedness has diverted attention from the religious topography of Shakespeare’s plays. My first chapter explores the tension in The Merchant of Venice between Protestant notions of justification by faith and a Catholic insistence upon works of mercy. The infamous trial scene, in particular, deconstructs cherished Protestant ideology by refuting the efficacy of faith when it is divorced from ethical behaviour. The second chapter situates Hamlet in the stream of Lancelot Andrewes’s “avant-garde conformity” (to use Peter Lake’s coinage), thereby explaining why Claudius’s prayer in the definitive text of the second quarto has intimations of soteriological agency that are lacking in the first quarto. The third chapter argues that Hamlet undermines the ghost’s association of violence and religion, thus implicitly critiquing the proliferation of religious violence on both sides of the Reformation divide. The fourth chapter argues that Calvin’s theory of the vicarious atonement of Christ, expounded so eloquently by Isabella in Measure for Measure, meets substantial resistance, especially when the Duke and others attempt to apply the soteriological principle of substitution to the domains of sexuality and law. The ethical failures that result from an over-realized soteriology indicate that the play corroborates Luther’s idea that a distinction must be maintained between the sacred and secular realms. The fifth chapter examines controversies in the English church about the (il)legitimacy of exorcising demons, a practice favoured by Jesuits but generally frowned upon by Calvinists. Shakespeare cleverly negotiates satirical source material by metaphorizing exorcisms in King Lear in a way that seems to acknowledge Calvinist scepticism, yet honour Jesuit compassion. Throughout this study, my hermeneutic is to read Shakespeare through the lens of contemporary theological controversy and to read contemporary theology through the lens of Shakespeare. / Graduate / 2023-11-20