This dissertation places Wittgenstein and Nietzsche alongside one another in an attempt to deal with the question: "what is the role of the philosophy?" On the one hand Wittgenstein promotes a descriptive approach to philosophy, which insists that the philosopher should not meddle with practices but rather seek clarity and understanding as ends in themselves. On the other hand Nietzsche promotes a destructive and creative approach to philosophy, where the philosopher both dismantles values and offers a revaluation of values in their place. This work begins with a survey of remarks by the two philosophers and prominent interpretations of them on how best to conceive of and understand the philosopher and philosophy. In addition, the recent view of Nietzsche as a naturalist is responded to at length. If Nietzsche turns out to be offering substantive, naturalistic positions on human morality, the origins of religion, and so on, then he cannot be advocating a creative, spontaneous orientation towards perspectives. This work argues that while Nietzsche offers naturalized accounts of human practices, he does not mean these to be considered scientific hypothesis. After responding to this position, Nietzsche and Wittgenstein are looked at together, and what emerges is a shared goal: the creating and/or revealing of missed possibilities of human life. These existential possibilities are on the one hand always right in front of us, and yet they are seemingly out of reach and all too often passed over. Wittgenstein and Nietzsche, in their various ways, (re)open these possibilities. Finally, given this "hermeneutics of possibility," the final chapter argues that the way Wittgenstein and Nietzsche differ with respect to Christianity and religion is not primarily about their style of philosophy nor even about Wittgenstein's descriptive approach, but about the existential possibility that each has in mind to promote.

Within Judeo-Christianity there is a belief in an all perfect God who is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnibenevolent. However, in this world evil and suffering exists, so how is it possible that an all perfect God can exist? This is called the problem of evil. This thesis examines the problem of evil and how philosophers like Alvin Plantinga, John Hick, and Richard Swinburne attempt to solve the problem of evil through different theodicies. In this paper I argue that all three philosophers and their theodicies fail to solve the problem of evil. I then turn to the writings of Herman Melville, specifically Mardi: and a Voyage Thither and Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, and consider how he, as an author, struggled with the problem of evil and religion. While Melville may have struggled I argue that within his works we can find part of the solution to the problem of evil. Through these two novels Melville demonstrates that God is not good. My final chapter considers this fact that God is not good and also considers how God is not evil. In the end I argue that God is neither good nor evil which allows us to no longer have to face the problem of evil.

For years, critics and fans of C. S. Lewis have noted his curious attentiveness to descriptions of food and scenes of eating. Some attempts have been made to interpret Lewis's use of food, but never in a manner comprehensively unifying Lewis's culinary expressions with his own thought and beliefs. My study seeks to fill this void. The introduction demonstrates how Lewis's culinary language aggregates through elements of his life, his literary background, and his Judeo-Christian worldview. Using the grammar of his own culinary language, I examine Lewis's fiction for patterns found within his meals and analyze these patterns for theological allusions, grouping them according to major categories of systematic theology. Chapter two argues that ecclesiastical themes appear whenever Lewis's protagonists eat together. The ritualized meal progression, evangelistic discourse, and biographical menus create a unity that points to parallels between Lewis's body of protagonists and the church. Chapter three focuses on the sacrament of the Lord's Supper and charges that Lewis's meals which are eaten in the presence of the novel's Christ figure or which include bread and wine in the menu reliably align with the Anglo-Catholic doctrine of the Eucharist. Chapter four studies how sinful eating affects the spiritual states of Lewis's characters. The chapter first shows how Lewis's culinary language draws from Edenic sources, resonating with a very gastronomic Fall of Humanity, then examines how the progressively sinful eating of certain characters signifies a gradual alienation from the Divine. The fifth, and concluding, chapter argues that Lewis's portrayal of culinary desire and pleasure ultimately points to an eschatological theme. This theme culminates near the end of Lewis's novels either through individual characters expressing superlative delight in their food or through a unified congregation of protagonists eating a celebratory feast during the novel's denouement. I close the study by emphasizing how this approach to Lewis's meals offers a complete spiritual analysis of Lewis's main characters that also consistently supports Lewis's own theology.

The purpose of this dissertation is to analyze how four Southern Baptist scholars: E.Y. Mullins, John Newport, Richard Cunningham, and L. Russ Bush, understood--whether explicitly or implicitly--the nature of philosophy. Three issues will be explored as a result of their metaphilosophical views. First, what is the relationship between faith and reason? Second, is a Christian philosophy possible? And third, what role does philosophy serve in the life of the believer? Chapter 1 sets the historical context regarding the issue of metaphilosophy. Philosophy has been traditionally understood as the love of wisdom. However, since the Enlightenment and the dawning of modern Western philosophy, how thinkers understood the nature of philosophy changed dramatically. As the natural sciences progressed rapidly in the advancement of knowledge, thinkers increasingly viewed philosophy as being in need of change regarding its method and purpose. By the time of the twentieth century, philosophy's identity was in a state of confusion and uncertainty. Chapter 2 analyzes the metaphilosophy of E. Y. Mullins. For Mullins, philosophy investigated the foundational questions of human existence and operated autonomously from science and religion. The data of philosophy included all of life, including the findings of the various fields of knowledge, and sought to unify all truth into a cohesive unit. The value of philosophy is found in its ability to go beyond the descriptions of science in order to interpret the world in which one lives. Chapter 3 analyzes the metaphilosophy of John Newport. According to Newport, philosophy is identified with worldview--the structure of one's beliefs about the world. One's worldview affects how one lives and operates within the world. Philosophy includes not only the analytic task of critiquing and clarifying ideas and beliefs, but also the synthetic task of incorporating beliefs into a coherent structure. Philosophy also involves analyzing the key-principles that underlie one's belief structure--those principles that are basic to an individual. Philosophy, or worldview, is valuable to the individual by helping one to make sense of life and to avoid bad decisions. Chapter 4 focuses on the metaphilosophy of Richard Cunningham. Cunningham views philosophy as one's attempt to understand his experience in all its facets. It is a deliberate action on the part of the individual, one that leads to the development of his worldview. Philosophy involves the traditional tasks of analysis and synthesis, and its value is found in its ability to afford one to live more effectively. Chapter 5 presents the metaphilosophy of L. Russ Bush. Bush's definition of philosophy is methodological in nature as he views philosophy more as an activity than as a way of life. One employs the laws of logic and other philosophical tasks when analyzing one's own or competing worldviews in order to judge between their similarities or differences, and their strengths or weaknesses. In a day and age where many individuals lazily accept their beliefs without deep reflection, philosophy helps one to hold to beliefs that are more consistent and it helps one to better dialogue with others of differing worldviews. Chapter 6 concludes the dissertation by highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of the four thinkers presented in the preceding chapters. Suggestions are provided on how to strengthen a Baptist view of metaphilosophy in light of the weaknesses provided. Finally, the current state of philosophy in the Southern Baptist Convention is provided.

The Socratic Method has been an educational tool ever since Socrates himself turned the marketplace of Athens into a classroom, enticing his interlocutors into dialogue whereby they could have their assumptions questioned and learn to journey towards new conceptions of knowledge and understanding. This concept has been reflected recently in a current proposal by UNESCO for educators and philosophers to find ways in which philosophy and philosophical inquiry may be approached in current education practices to enhance democratic ways of life. I draw on the UNESCO idea of philosophy as a ‘school of freedom’ and contend that not only is dialogical inquiry useful to teaching and learning, but that it is necessary. Inquiry is viewed in this way as necessarily dialogical and I draw on both Charles Peirce’s and John Dewey’s views on inquiry as being situated within the community if it is to satisfy some of the aims of the UNESCO report. This dissertation proposes a framework for Socratic pedagogy, a collaborative inquiry-based approach to teaching and learning suitable not only for formal educational settings such as the school classroom but for all educational settings. The term is intended to capture a variety of philosophical approaches to classroom practice that could broadly be described as Socratic in form. I explore three models that, I argue, make a significant contribution to Socratic pedagogy: Matthew Lipman’s Community of Inquiry, Leonard Nelson’s Socratic Dialogue, and David Bohm’s Dialogue. I also draw on the metaphors used by each of the proponents because they give an additional insight into the theoretical underpinnings of their models of dialogue for the development of Socratic thinking. Socratic pedagogy is multi-dimensional, which I argue is underpinned by generative, evaluative, and connective thinking. These terms are better placed to describe Socratic pedagogy than creative, critical, and caring thinking, because they are defined by the function they perform. It is hoped that this dissertation offers some way to show how philosophy as inquiry can contribute to educational theory and practice, while also demonstrating how it can be an effective way to approach teaching and learning. This, I contend is foundational to Socratic pedagogy.

In spite of the rapid growth of evangelicalism there is a paucity of reflection on its theological method. The transition from modernity to postmodernity, with the accompanying call for a postfoundationalist rather than a foundationalist method, has provided additional challenges to evangelicalism. Canadian theologian Stanley J. Grenz has proposed a model for evangelical theological construction that utilizes scripture, tradition and culture as the sources for theology, and the Trinity, community and eschatology as its focal motifs. He supplements these with the belief that the Spirit guides the church, and that the community of faith will therefore be pneumatologically guided as it communally attempts to discern truth in a changed context. Grenz believes that his theological method moves beyond foundationalism as it appeals to a trio of interacting sources, rather than to the single source of scripture. In exploring and evaluating Grenz' theological method, this thesis tests the research proposition "that Stanley Grenz' theological method effectively revisions evangelical theology." To ascertain the validity of the proposition, it utilizes four evaluative questions which explore the originality, theological coherence, appropriateness and effectiveness of Grenz'method for evangelical theology. The application of his model in his text, Welcoming but Not Affirming, serves as a test case to determine the implications of his method. Concluding that Grenz' model makes only a modest contribution towards revisioning evangelical theological method, the concluding chapters of the research explore ways to supplement Grenz' model to allow a stronger affirmation of the research proposition. Utilizing Wolterstorff's concept of control beliefs, it proposes that Grenz' model would be more effective if he added a control belief to guide his theological construction, and motivates for adopting the control belief the gospel liberates.ln addition, it argues that Grenz' three focal motifs for theology need to be preceded by the gathering motif of the cross, arguing that if seen outside of this gathering motif, the motifs of Trinity, community and eschatology lack adequate substance. Noting the often acrimonious context in which theological revisioning takes place, the research ends with a plea for the empowerment of imagination in theological construction.

This thesis seeks to interpret Christology from the perspective of tribal people in Mizoram, northeast India, with an objective to help them and their churches to understand Jesus Christ in a way meaningful to them. In this study, historical and socio-theological analysis is used to show that Christology and culture are always related, and that different Christologies have been developed in different cultural contexts. This analysis in turn helps identify the issues that must be addressed in the construction of a contextual Christology for Mizoram context. In this study, Mizo culture and experience are taken into account as essential theological source. The first chapter discusses the need for a contextual Christology and examines the basic issues and methodological approaches surrounding the construction of contextual Christology. In the second chapter, the context of tribal people in Mizoram is analysed. Among the major issues that must be addressed in Christological construction, the thesis identifies the growing disparity between rich and poor within the state and the socio-economic alienation of Mizos from mainland India. The third chapter surveys the Christological tradition in Mizoram from its beginning to the present. It finds that the Christological heritage in Mizoram is largely irrelevant to Mizo people because of its uncritical application of Western theology to this very different historical and cultural context. The idea of Christ introduced into Mizoram is basically individualistic, otherworldly and dualistic. Neither missionaries nor native church leaders have taken the local culture seriously into account in doing Christology. The fourth chapter attempts to recover some major liberating cultural traditions of the Mizos as sources for Christology, including their concepts of pasaltha, humanity, land, God and spiritual beings, and life after death. The study reveals that, despite the Western overlay, there is a significant continuity and influence of traditional culture in Mizo Christianity. On the basis of these findings, the fifth chapter seeks to reinterpret the significance of Jesus Christ in the Mizoram context, using a Mizo conceptual framework. It argues that the idea of the pasaltha incorporates much of the New Testament portrait of the person and work of Christ, Jesus' self-giving life and ministry, incarnation, suffering and death on the cross, can all be seen as manifesting the principle of tlawmngaihna, which is an essential characteristic of the pasaltha. Jesus' resurrection and exaltation can be seen as God's response to Jesus' person and work precisely as pasaltha-tlawmngai. Similarly, the kingdom of God, which defined and summed up Jesus' message and mission, can be perceived in the Mizoram context as exhibiting the qualities of a communitarian society.

Whole document restricted at the request of the author / Significant changes have occurred in the Catholic practice and theology of mission since the second Vatican Council (1962-65). To appreciate better the extent of these changes, I have charted major shifts in the story of mission of the Sisters of Our Lady of the Missions, founded in Lyon in 1861. In particular, I have examined the various theologies that informed these shifts. This micro-study of one particular Catholic group offers an entry-point into a consideration of contemporary Catholic theologies of mission and missionary practice. Since Vatican II, there has been a growing awareness of the universal and salvific presence of the Spirit in creation and history. I will seek to show how this has affected Catholic missiological reflection through an examination of the work of selected Catholic theologians. These theologians direct attention to the mission of the Spirit, and to the relation between the Spirit and the Son in the mission of the Triune God. This pneumatological emphasis often has been overlooked in theologies of mission that are more overtly ecclesiological or christological in their orientation. I then examine selected New Testament texts in order to discern the legitimacy of such pneumatological emphases in emerging trinitarian theologies of mission. While New Testament texts indicate that the mission of the Spirit is both antecedent and consequent to the mission of Jesus, the examination of scriptural texts in this research concentrates on the antecedent mission of the Holy Spirit in selected Johannine, Matthean and Lukan texts. My research suggests that an emphasis on the mission of the Spirit permits an understanding of mission that can expand the parameters associated with ecclesiocentric and christocentric models of mission.

In spite of the rapid growth of evangelicalism there is a paucity of reflection on its theological method. The transition from modernity to postmodernity, with the accompanying call for a postfoundationalist rather than a foundationalist method, has provided additional challenges to evangelicalism. Canadian theologian Stanley J. Grenz has proposed a model for evangelical theological construction that utilizes scripture, tradition and culture as the sources for theology, and the Trinity, community and eschatology as its focal motifs. He supplements these with the belief that the Spirit guides the church, and that the community of faith will therefore be pneumatologically guided as it communally attempts to discern truth in a changed context. Grenz believes that his theological method moves beyond foundationalism as it appeals to a trio of interacting sources, rather than to the single source of scripture. In exploring and evaluating Grenz' theological method, this thesis tests the research proposition "that Stanley Grenz' theological method effectively revisions evangelical theology." To ascertain the validity of the proposition, it utilizes four evaluative questions which explore the originality, theological coherence, appropriateness and effectiveness of Grenz'method for evangelical theology. The application of his model in his text, Welcoming but Not Affirming, serves as a test case to determine the implications of his method. Concluding that Grenz' model makes only a modest contribution towards revisioning evangelical theological method, the concluding chapters of the research explore ways to supplement Grenz' model to allow a stronger affirmation of the research proposition. Utilizing Wolterstorff's concept of control beliefs, it proposes that Grenz' model would be more effective if he added a control belief to guide his theological construction, and motivates for adopting the control belief the gospel liberates.ln addition, it argues that Grenz' three focal motifs for theology need to be preceded by the gathering motif of the cross, arguing that if seen outside of this gathering motif, the motifs of Trinity, community and eschatology lack adequate substance. Noting the often acrimonious context in which theological revisioning takes place, the research ends with a plea for the empowerment of imagination in theological construction.

This thesis seeks to interpret Christology from the perspective of tribal people in Mizoram, northeast India, with an objective to help them and their churches to understand Jesus Christ in a way meaningful to them. In this study, historical and socio-theological analysis is used to show that Christology and culture are always related, and that different Christologies have been developed in different cultural contexts. This analysis in turn helps identify the issues that must be addressed in the construction of a contextual Christology for Mizoram context. In this study, Mizo culture and experience are taken into account as essential theological source. The first chapter discusses the need for a contextual Christology and examines the basic issues and methodological approaches surrounding the construction of contextual Christology. In the second chapter, the context of tribal people in Mizoram is analysed. Among the major issues that must be addressed in Christological construction, the thesis identifies the growing disparity between rich and poor within the state and the socio-economic alienation of Mizos from mainland India. The third chapter surveys the Christological tradition in Mizoram from its beginning to the present. It finds that the Christological heritage in Mizoram is largely irrelevant to Mizo people because of its uncritical application of Western theology to this very different historical and cultural context. The idea of Christ introduced into Mizoram is basically individualistic, otherworldly and dualistic. Neither missionaries nor native church leaders have taken the local culture seriously into account in doing Christology. The fourth chapter attempts to recover some major liberating cultural traditions of the Mizos as sources for Christology, including their concepts of pasaltha, humanity, land, God and spiritual beings, and life after death. The study reveals that, despite the Western overlay, there is a significant continuity and influence of traditional culture in Mizo Christianity. On the basis of these findings, the fifth chapter seeks to reinterpret the significance of Jesus Christ in the Mizoram context, using a Mizo conceptual framework. It argues that the idea of the pasaltha incorporates much of the New Testament portrait of the person and work of Christ, Jesus' self-giving life and ministry, incarnation, suffering and death on the cross, can all be seen as manifesting the principle of tlawmngaihna, which is an essential characteristic of the pasaltha. Jesus' resurrection and exaltation can be seen as God's response to Jesus' person and work precisely as pasaltha-tlawmngai. Similarly, the kingdom of God, which defined and summed up Jesus' message and mission, can be perceived in the Mizoram context as exhibiting the qualities of a communitarian society.