A number of articles in books and newspapers have been written on the life and work of Nicholas Bhengu, in the past four decades. However, to date no focused academic research had been devoted to his life, his mission, his message and his influence in South Africa as well as beyond the borders of South Africa. The different chapters in the thesis focus on Bhengu’s life, his call to ministry and the role he played in South Africa, in rest of Africa, and beyond the borders of our continent. Although Bhengu did not overtly address political issues by supporting either the liberation movements nor the Nationalist Government, the impact of his work was felt by both to the extent that liberation movements such as ANC criticised him for not lending his public support to the struggle they waged against apartheid. On the other hand, the South African government also tried to co-opt him as an ally of their socio-political ideology. The government disappointed by Bhengu’s lack of support for its political programme, became suspicious of his intentions and set the Special Branch of the South African Police to monitor his movements, teaching and preaching. Bhengu ministered during a tumultuous period in the history of South Africa which called for people as well as the faith communities to take sides for or against the system of apartheid. Bhengu’s teaching and preaching had a great impact on the social and political psyche of the people in South Africa. Through his Back to God Crusade he, with great effectiveness, called people to return to God. Thousands devoted their lives to God. Wherever Bhengu conducted his crusades, crime went down significantly, with criminals turning in their weapons of trade and returning stolen goods to the police. He also performed spectacular healings and miracles. Apart from his evangelistic campaigns, Bhengu planted churches, established a formidable women’s ministry that to this day continues to raise millions of Rand to fund the Back to God Crusade. The Youth Ministry provides bursaries for young people to study in any field of their choice. Bhengu’s goal for providing these bursaries was to empower a new generation to contribute to the development of their country. He also established self-governing, self-supporting and self-propagating churches, at a time when Black Churches were dependent on handouts from missionary sending agencies. The study finally evaluates the contribution and lasting legacy of Bhengu: his example, his missionary endeavours, his preaching and church planting efforts, his socio-political involvement, and his leadership. The strategies that he employed to building a cohesive and successful movement – the Back to God/Assemblies of God Movement – receive special attention. The impact of the movement is still felt in South Africa and the neighbouring countries, Swaziland, Namibia, Lesotho, Botswana, Mozambique and Zimbabwe, twenty five years after his death. There is every reason to consider Nicholas Bhengu to be the Billy Graham of Africa. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Science of Religion and Missiology / unrestricted

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Ce mémoire explore les rivalités entre les missionnaires jésuites, récollets et sulpiciens en Nouvelle-France au XVIIe siècle. Plus précisément, il porte sur le discours polémique à propos des missionnaires, qu’il provienne de concurrents religieux ou de membres de l’administration coloniale. Même si ces missionnaires participaient tous à un projet apostolique commun, les sources nous révèlent que différents réseaux luttaient à cette époque pour que certains missionnaires puissent jouir d’un monopole sur les âmes de la colonie, tandis que les autres étaient relégués au second plan. Dans cette Église naissante, plusieurs désaccords sévissent entre ces trois familles religieuses et permettent d’expliquer les tensions que l’on retrouve dans leurs écrits. Il s’agit principalement de la francisation des Premières Nations et de la fondation de l’évêché de Québec. En outre, les rivalités entre les Jésuites, les Récollets et les Sulpiciens dépassent largement le cadre spirituel et débouchent régulièrement sur des questions de nature commerciale. Certains missionnaires, les Jésuites en particulier, seront accusés tout au long du siècle par divers acteurs de s’enrichir de différentes manières et notamment de se livrer au trafic des fourrures. Plutôt que de s’intéresser à la véracité de ces attaques, ce mémoire propose de les analyser et de chercher à comprendre leur origine ainsi que leur fonction. Ces accusations doivent également être mises en relation avec les rivalités auxquelles les missionnaires devaient faire face dans leurs autres missions à la même époque. / This thesis explores the rivalries between Jesuit, Recollect and Sulpician missionaries in the 17th century in New France. Specifically, it examines the polemical discourse about the missionaries, whether it came from religious competitors or from members of the colonial administration. Although these missionaries were all part of a common apostolic project, the sources reveal that different networks were struggling at the time so that some missionaries could enjoy a monopoly over the souls of the colony, while others were relegated to the background. In this nascent Church, several disagreements that raged between these three religious families can help to explain the tensions that we find in their writings. The main issues were the francization of the First Nations and the founding of the bishopric of Quebec. Furthermore, the rivalries between the Jesuits, the Recollects and the Sulpicians went far beyond the spiritual framework and regularly led to commercial issues. Certain missionaries, the Jesuits in particular, were accused throughout the century by various actors of enriching themselves in various ways, and of engaging in the fur trade. Rather than focusing on the veracity of these attacks, this thesis proposes to analyze them and to try to understand their origin and function. These accusations must also be put in relation to the rivalries that the missionaries had to face in their other missions during the same period.

In 1840, apostle missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints compiled, printed, and began distributing a hymnbook that eventually would become the basis for all subsequent LDS hymnbooks published in English in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This thesis, as a contribution to the literature of communication, book history, and hymnology, as well as the intellectual and cultural history of the early years of the LDS Church, focuses on analyzing the poetry of the 1840 Mormon Manchester hymnbook. Using qualitative root-metaphor analysis, the author identified and analyzed expressions, supporting an emergent journey root-metaphor. He then divided the expressions into eight categories, each describing important and distinct aspects of the Journey. These categories include the following: 1) the travelers, 2) the activities on the journey, 3) the way, 4) the destination, 5) the guide, 6) the invitation to come, 7) the motivations, and 8) the lost wanderers. This thesis is based on the assumption that cultures and religions can be understood through the stories they tell. The story of the journey as told through the poetry of the 1840 Manchester hymnbook illuminates one aspect of the religious experience of early members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Taken together, the eight aspects of the journey root-metaphor identified in this thesis tell a story about LDS members as travelers on a journey home, who walk on a straight and narrow path, away from a dark and fallen world, through snares, darkness, and other dangers, toward a glorious destination where rest, joy, and other rewards await them. Ultimately the travelers must rise above this world and follow Christ to a place where they may live with God to serve and praise him ever more.

This thesis seeks to answer the question of how Joseph Smith—History found in The Pearl of Great Price developed into a part of the canon of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. When the prophet Joseph Smith first dictated the text to his scribes it seems he had not intended for the work to become scripture, but simply to follow the Lord's divine mandate to keep a record. Additionally he provided the purpose in his document to "disabuse the public mind, and put all inquirers after truth in possession of the facts, as they transpired." The format he proposed for the Manuscript History illustrates how it was originally not purposed for scripture. The compiling of that history took the efforts of many men and women and spanned the length of almost twenty years to complete. Joseph Smith had begun the dictation to his scribe George Robinson in 1838, but it was unfinished. Joseph later began the dictation anew to his scribe James Mulholland, first having the man rewrite what he had told to Robinson and then picking up the dictation from there. While the prophet had started and stopped histories before, this particular dictation began the enduring effort. The Manuscript History was developed from the original 59 pages that were scribed by Mulholland. By the efforts of other scribes, but mostly Willard Richards, the history was completed. The official statement of Brigham Young and Orson Pratt upon its completion said nothing of extracting portions for canon. But Mulholland's work seemed destined for a different purpose than the rest of the Manuscript History. It was printed serially in the Times and Seasons, and a few apostles seemed to catch a vision of what the manuscript could do for potential converts and members of the Church. Orson Pratt was especially a proponent of communicating certain key events as illustrated in his missionary tract "Remarkable Visions." A later apostle, Franklin D. Richards, would see the benefit of using the official history to distribute the history of the restoration of the Church to others. He extracted portions from Mulholland's text that covered certain main events in Joseph's life and printed them in his missionary tract The Pearl of Great Price. This pamphlet would eventually be canonized by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1880. Joseph Smith-History's inclusion in the reclamation of revelation that occurred in 1880 was deserved. This is evidenced by examining the process of canonization and the guiding principles of canonization employed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was canonized at the same time as many other revelations and at a General Conference saturated with many important events. Consequently it is difficult to gauge the reaction to its inclusion in canon, except in how it has been used since its canonization. After its inclusion into scripture the text has become a foundational piece of literature for the Church. The impact the text has had can be seen in the culture, missionary work, and doctrine of the Church. The focus of this thesis is to map the text's journey from birth to canonization.

Zadok's membership in the church directed the course of his life, and he contributed to the success of those movements of the church in which he participated.

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