Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1961. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--Brigham Young University. Dept. of Marriage and Family Therapy, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [54]-57).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, 1996. / Includes abstract and vita. "Annotated bibliography ... consulted to determine what are the major differences between Catholicism and biblical Christianity": (leaves 84-100). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 236-238).

Thesis (D. Min.)--Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, 1992. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 326-342).

Originally presented as the author's thesis--Universität Witten/Herdecke, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (v. 2, p. 775-856) and indexes.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 193-208).

No description available.

This thesis studied the experience of worship in Scotland in the first generations after the Scottish Protestant Reformation. It was inspired by the realisation that earlier historiography had been a denominational battle-ground whose dogmatism had obscured the view of worship in the parish. Aonghus MacKechnie’s phrase, ‘Dour-Mongers All?’ sums up the leading question; was Reformed worship as austere and colourless as its detractors and advocates suggested? Questions surrounding the key components of Reformed worship: architecture, liturgy, music and preaching have more recently been addressed with less sectarian interest, but these individual strands have tended to be studied in isolation. In terms of the experience of worship, they belong together. Traditionally, the period 1560-1638 has been used as the period defining the first phase of the Reformed Kirk, with the National Covenant of 1638 marking the end of what could be called the experimental phase of the new dispensation. However, 1559 was chosen as the starting point to recognise the significant changes to worship that began with the “cleansing” of the churches and friaries of Perth and St Andrews in that year. The terminal date of 1617 marked King James VI’s return to Scotland, during which worship at Holyrood Palace was conducted in the manner of the English court both in terms of liturgical materials, music, and the refurbishment of the Chapel Royal. This proved to be a portent of James’ vision for liturgical change by statute in the Five Articles of Perth that were a significant watershed for the Kirk. Whilst it took another 20 years for the full outworking of this policy under his son Charles I, after 1617 the vibrant and complex worship culture of the Scottish Kirk that had been developed since 1559 began to be squeezed. That culture became a victim of the polemicized battle between extreme Scottish and English Reformed models advocated in the growing controversy over the relationship between Church, Crown and State within the Three Kingdoms. By 1650, an austere new psalter and worship directory had been adopted by the victors and the diversity and richness of the earlier Scottish worship culture had been lost. The first part of the necessarily multi-disciplinary thesis explores the experience of worship by isolating its key components: church buildings and furnishings, liturgical material, and singing. It does this by analysing the surviving material culture and the written and visual documentary evidence of church buildings and interior furnishings used for worship after 1559; surveying the nature, extent and use of the liturgical material included within the Psalme Buiks, with particular focus on the Henrie Charteris edition of 1596; and exploring the development and impact of the new and popular phenomenon of metrical Psalm-singing. The second part assesses the contribution of four significant ministers: John Davidson, James Melville, William Cowper, and John Welch, examining their lives, writing and preaching and judging how their contribution enriched the experience of worship in their parishes. This evidence is used to reconstruct the experience of worship in this period and show that it was vibrant and compelling, influenced in its raw materials by much from outside Scotland but strongly developed in the diverse contexts of Scottish parishes.

Protestant church orders were a key tool for shaping belief and practice during the sixteenth century. These declarations of official religious policy were composed by both secular and ecclesiastical leaders, and reflected the shared interests of the church and state in managing evangelical reforms. Their constitutional nature and their role in articulating doctrine made them the most effective means for church building during the period. John a Lasco's Forma ac ratio was one of the most significant of these works. His text, which was published in 1555, provided a comprehensive blueprint for Protestant congregations. It also marked a pivotal point in the development of orders. Although the earlier documents varied widely in their form and scope, by the end of the century they had developed a common format and standard range of topics. The Forma ac ratio is one of the first to exhibit this trend, marking this crucial shift in the development of such works and setting the standard for the ordinances that followed. Although this text had much in common with other orders, it was distinguished by the reformer's unique vision for church organisation and ceremonies. The content reveals the various forces that shaped his ideas. For example, he modelled his ecclesiastical administration after the episcopacies found in the German lands. He added to this Zwingli's Eucharistic rite and Calvin's ecclesiastical discipline. This work also contained a Lasco's own innovative contributions including his emphasis on congregational authority. In addition, the ordinance included extensive commentary to explain, justify and defend the prescribed practices. This comprehensive nature set the Forma ac ratio apart from other orders. A Lasco's tome had a significant impact on Protestant congregations throughout Europe. Originally, he had written the work for the London Strangers' Church, which was comprised of religious refugees in England's capital city. These exiles played a key role in transmitting his ecclesiastical model, when they returned to the continent in the 1550s, they established new refugee congregations following the reformer's example. They later carried his innovative order to their native lands when they returned home in the subsequent decades. The Forma ac ratio's widespread impact across Europe makes it one of the key ordinances from the Reformation period. In addition, as this thesis demonstrates, it was these qualities - its function in church building, the innovative form, and the refugees' role in transmitting his model - that ensured its influence and significance in sixteenth-century Europe.

The problem addressed in this study pertained to the prevailing attitudes toward work and the relationship between religious orientation and work ethic dimensions. The study probed the most frequent or very common attitudes toward work among students in the Teacher Education Program at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, and explored whether religion affected the work ethic characteristics. Work ethic dimensions were referred to as Self-Reliance, Morality/Ethics, Hard Work, Leisure, Centrality to Work, Wasted time and Delay of Gratification. Religiosity was presented from the point of view of its expressions relating to human society and its members' practical life including occupation, economy and work rather than the essence of the religion. Results indicated that Teacher Education Program students who participated in this study portrayed a strong work ethic in dimensions of Morality/Ethics, Hard Work, Delay of gratification, and Centrality of work. Students reflected a weaker work ethic in regards to Wasted Time, Self-Reliance and Leisure (Anti-Leisure). In regards to religious relations to work ethic dimensions, the results piloted a proposal that religious orientation had an inconsequential relationship to the work ethic dimensions measured in this study. These associations remained stronger for the religious oriented rather than the non-religious oriented. This study was extremely descriptive and exploratory. As such, the prevailing work ethic dimensions and the relationship between religiosity and work ethic dimensions were extremely tentative and applicable only to the subjects involved in this study and revealed the need for further research.