Project (D. Min.)--Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University, 1973. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 105-107).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, 2006. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 84-86).

Thesis (Th. M.)--Dallas Theological Seminary, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [85]-92).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Duquesne University, 2007. / Title from document title page. Abstract included in electronic submission form. Includes bibliographical references (p. 263-274) and index.

No description available.

Thesis (D.W.S.)--Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies, 2008. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 233-238).

Thesis (D.W.S.)--Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies, 2008. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 192-199).

This thesis has two overarching aims. The first aim is to understand the origins and development of temperance and abstinence in British Methodism, particularly through the theology that informed what may broadly be called the Methodist teetotal movement in its period of greatest popularity from 1830 until 1919. The second is to consider the downfall of this movement in the period from 1945 until 1974, when the Methodist Connexion adopted the view that each Methodist “must consider his personal attitude to all drugs in relation to his Christian vocation”. The need for the study arises from the relative dearth of historical investigation regarding Methodism and abstinence. Representations of Methodism and abstinence tend either to be partisan or to lack wider understanding of the abstinence movement, or the theology of Methodism. Methodologically, this thesis attempts to hold together historical and theological considerations; it is important to consider both the socio-economic contexts in which diverse abstinence and teetotal movements arose and the theological motivations that drove British Methodist belief and practice. Regarding the origins and development of temperance and abstinence in British Methodism, it is proposed in this thesis that the Bible Christians were the first organised Methodist abstainers, and that their practice was likely to have been influenced by John Wesley's theologies of sanctification, holiness and Christian perfection. The thesis is an attempt to counter the Bible Christian’s diminished historical significance, as well as to investigate the likely impact of the theological underpinnings for their abstinence. Regarding the downfall of temperance and abstinence in British Methodism in the period from 1945 until 1974, this thesis will propose that a loss of focus upon holiness as a catalyst for abstinence was detrimental to the growth and continuation of the teetotal movement throughout Methodism after World War Two. It will highlight the general rejection of this focus on encouraged abstinence in the second half of the twentieth century, acknowledging the changes and disagreement within British Methodism to which this dismissal led. Concluding comments allude to the need for a renewed witness within British Methodism to societal and theological imperatives for both temperance and abstinence.

The United Methodist Hymnal includes many hymns which make use of ableist language. This paper sets forth an understanding of disability and ability so that the ableist language in United Methodist hymnody may be identified and, when needed, addressed through suggested revision or omission. Putting prominent themes of disability theology and hymnology into conversation with one another, this paper addresses the theological anthropology present in particular hymns with a particular focus on the difference between healing and curing, the metaphors of disability as sin, and images of disability in biblical texts.

The name James Cameron is not a familiar one. Despite being one of the missionary pioneers of Methodism in southern Africa, serving for more than forty-six years in various districts and being elected as chairman of two of these districts, very few people have ever heard of James Cameron. Barnabas Shaw says of Cameron that he "excelled in preaching the great truths of the gospel, and applying them to the heart of sinners".¹ Whiteside describes Cameron as a "remarkable man ... well read in most things".² W.B. Boyce pays Cameron an even greater tribute: In my day, as a preacher and as a theologian, he was unequalled in South Africa; and I do not think that he was second in these respects to any of his brethren in England.³ Notwithstanding the high esteem in which he was held by prominent peers, Cameron is mentioned only in passing in a few secondary sources, and to date has not been the subject of academic research. The reason for this is not clear. He was well educated, read and wrote extensively, and most of his correspondence has been preserved. Cameron's Journal is very well written, containing some beautiful poetic sections. It is a personal record of a missionary coping with peculiar and difficult circumstances, and a record of how determination, courage and faith enabled Cameron to overcome seemingly insurmountable difficulties. Cameron's recording of his struggles help fill out our understanding of missionaries and their tasks and problems in the nineteenth century. I believe that so important a figure in South African Methodism should be examined and deserves a definitive study. The aim of this thesis has been to provide a reference to his work in the western Cape, possibly to form a basis for closer historical scrutiny. ¹ Shaw 1840:232 ² Whiteside 1906:374 ³ Boyce 1874:179-80.