This thesis primarily studies the relationship between Sinful Nature and Etiquette. In the past,thescholars asserted that "Sinful Nature" was the main thinking of Xun-Zi;however,some scholars have asserted "Etiquette" is his main thinking during this few years. This thesis tries to induce that Xun-Zi points out the "Sinful Nature" and "Etiquette" objectively. Theveful "Sinful Nature" and "Etiquette" mutually exist on the base of an objective point of view.

Edward Irving (1792-1834) exercised a profound effect on developments in nineteenth-century theology within the English-speaking world. He is especially known for his thought regarding the return of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and his pre-millennialism, including his belief in the imminent physical return of Jesus Christ. Indeed, Irving is generally remembered as a central figure in the movement of early nineteenth century premillennialism and as a fore-runner of the modern Pentecostal movement. Most scholarly interpretations of Irving have focused on particular aspects of his thought, such as the manifestation of the Holy Spirit, his millenarianism, or his understanding of Christology. This thesis provides a new interpretation of Irving’s contributions, examining the interrelationship of his theological ideas and exploring the development of them within the context of his life, including his childhood and youth within the Covenanting country of southwest Scotland, his education within the University of Edinburgh and his early teaching career, his assistantship to Thomas Chalmers in the celebrated St John’s experiment in urban ministry in Glasgow, his move to London in 1822 and his meteoric rise to fame as a preacher there, his personal trauma, including his unhappy affair with the future Jane Welsh Carlyle, the deaths of his children and the tragic accident at Kirkcaldy, his connections with Romantic intellectual and religious circles in the capital, and his growing involvement with the prophetic movement. Under the influence of the Romantic Movement, Irving’s religious sensibility had matured. This thesis argues that Irving’s theological views, including his views on the gifts of the Spirit and his millennialism, formed a coherent system, which focused on his doctrine of Christ, and more particularly on his belief that Christ had taken on a fully human nature, including the propensity to sin. Only by sharing fully in the human condition with its ‘sinful flesh’ concerning all temptations, Irving believed, could Christ become the true reconciler of God and humanity and a true exemplar of godly living for humankind. When we view Irving’s theology from the perspective of his idea of Christ’s genuine humanity, we can comprehend it more clearly; Irving’s understanding of the spiritual gifts and his apocalyptic visions of Christ’s return in glory had clear connections with his Christology. Irving’s distinctive ideas on Christ’s human nature and his eloquent descriptions of Christ’s ‘sinful flesh’ resulted in severe criticisms from the later 1820s, and finally led to his being deposed from the ministry of the established Church of Scotland in 1833. His belief that we encounter God through Christ’s sinful flesh reflected Irving’s Romantic emphases, including the striving to transcend human limits. The Romantic sensibilities of the age and Irving’s belief that the Church was locked in impotence and spiritual lethargy led him to expect a divine interruption, and to long for an ideal world through an eschatology that would bring glorification to the Church. Irving’s view of the person of Christ must be understood within this broader theological framework and historical context, in which he maintained that common believers could achieve union with Christ through both their sharing of Christ’s genuine humanity and the work of the Holy Spirit.

Investment decisions grounded in personal values and societal norms has seen a growth in the last decades, to a point where large institutional investors are abstaining from certain industries that share a specific characteristic altogether. The affiliation with sinful industries that promote human vice is not viewed as socially responsible in the eyes of the public, a reason why socially responsible investment funds that screen out these companies has experienced an increase in popularity. This study sets out to investigate the performance of American sin stocks in an attempt to increase the awareness of how these shunned industries has performed. While the existing literature provides evidence which proves sin stocks outperforms the market, we will provide further evidence concentrating on a mix of industries previously not focused on. Additionally we will extend the observation period beyond what has been done in the past. In this study, the definition of sin incorporates the industries of alcohol, defense, gambling and tobacco, and investigates the performance of a survivorship-free sample of 159 companies between July 1973 and June 2012. As performance measure, the four factor model is employed to capture any abnormal performance in relation to the market with three additional risk factors. In addition, we set out to investigate the performance of the different industries individually, to find if there is any that acts as a driver of the performance. Further, we look into the persistency of the performance over time. We find that the sample outperforms the market with 5.8% annually, and where the tobacco industry stands out with the highest abnormal return, the other industries grouped together still produce significant outperformance. The sinful index examined in this degree project has shown persistent performance, with no obvious trends of growth or decline. Unlike what has been found in previous research, the sample has shown a substantial difference in performance depending on the weighting scheme applied, not only individually for the industries, but also collectively.

This research focuses on the impact of the moral community (or social context) on the formation of conscience and its implication for moral responsibility. It is an interdisciplinary approach to theological reflection that is particularly attentive to psychological, philosophical, sociological, and neurobiological viewpoints showing how these have either distorted or broadened our understanding of conscience in its relation to community and social responsibility, or its formation in relationship to our moral development. It stresses reciprocity of conduct (for we are "responders") and the complementarities of internal and external sanctions. It insists that the influence of conscience on behavior is undermined by a fixation on its cognitive aspect at the detriment of the feeling aspect such that retrieving the latter will broaden our appreciation of its deep but subtle influence. While admitting the richness of African <italic>communalism<<</he basis for a healthy formative process, it also sees in it a perplexing paradox given the socio-political realities of venal leadership and systemic corruption that de-colors the African landscape. Focusing on Nigeria, it identifies "tribalism" as a socio-moral "pathology" (an institutionalized self-interest) that not only distorts the traditional process of moral formation but has evolved as a core driver of systemic corruption. It claims that globalization enables "external powers" to impact local moral orientation. It links "local tribalism" and "international tribalism" as "pathologies" based on kinship of disordered self-interest. It exposes how the latter influences local moral disorientation in a way analogous to how the local moral community impacts the malformation of individual conscience and thus influencing irresponsibility. Its recommendations include: a "glocalized" moral reform aimed at "updating" conscience formation process and overcoming tribalism; a paradigm shift in foreign policy agenda towards a new ethic; and a "three-stage-process" that focuses on deconstructing unhealthy belief systems and building "active" moral communities as part of a robust long-term strategy against systemic corruption and deeper socio-moral transformation. / McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts; / Theology / PhD; / Dissertation;

自宋明以降，儒學思想史脈絡中便獨尊孟學而將荀學屏除於外，這樣的傳統由當代新儒家所承接，在「道德形上學」的範疇內開展以孟學為核心的精深論述。然而，在多元現代性的脈絡下，如此權威、唯一而具排他性的道統觀是可以重新思考與理解，進而開出儒學的當代型態與價值。 也就是說，或許可以嘗試避免詮釋的單一進路，以「道德形上學」的典範批判荀子思想缺少內在心性理論，而走上性惡之歧途；而應該正視荀學是在孟學之外是另一儒學典範──一種不同於孟學的思考進路。亦即儒學的發展應該是動態的，而非以心性儒學的單一型態貫穿歷史。 宋明儒學建立的孔孟的典範，將孟子作為儒學道統的繼承者，並自我期許成為傳承孔孟道統的儒者；當代新儒家也隨順宋儒，將發揚孔孟道統作為理想與責任。在這樣的脈絡下，必然會把荀子這類談性惡、重師法的理路視為歧出，將其作為儒學中的他者。 當然，孟學將荀學作為他者這有其正當性與合理性，那是每個時代儒者在現實情境與自我追尋中的選擇與信仰；儒學本就是動態的繼承與發展，宋明以降，受到佛教理論的衝擊與影響，儒學中心性儒學的層面被強調並建構成一具有深刻內涵的價值體系，進而由當代新儒家將其建構發展為一系統縝密的「道德形上學」系統。這正顯示出儒學隨時代而新的動態性，也凸顯出儒學的時代價值。 但是同樣的，應該了解到，荀子作為儒學上的他者，並非本然如此，至少在漢唐以前，「孔孟」的道統必非理所當然；先秦以至兩漢，多以「孟荀」並稱，在道統的論述上也多以「周孔」而論而非「孔孟」。是以必須理解的是，孔子作為儒學的最重要源頭之一，這當然無庸置疑；但在孔子之後，儒學的發展卻是動態而多元的。 可以說，孟子在孔子之後，認為仁義作為孔子與儒家的核心思想是必要而正確的進路，是以從孔子思想中開展性善論與仁政的思想，是一特別強調主體道德與形上根源的思想體系。然而，在孟子之後，荀子亦以繼承孔門思想為職志，但他認為孟學強調形上根源的心性論系統太過幽隱而無法於現實中印證，是以荀子將孟子作為他者進行批判，企圖轉化孟學體系，回歸孔門真義。 荀子從孟子道德形上學轉向新的儒學型態，這可以說是一種回歸性轉向──透過轉向回溯孔門思想；而這樣的回歸，可以說是一種創造性回歸──以其所詮釋的孔子思維為核心，將其所認為的孔學創建為一套儒學系統與典範；相對於孟學以現代的語境可表述為「道德形上學」，而荀學的典範可以稱之為「倫理經濟學」。 由此必須正視儒學歷史的發展脈絡，了解到所謂的「道統」不是唯一的，在儒學史的進程中，始終呈現著複數真理；宋明以降將荀子作為儒學的他者進行批判與揚棄，當然有其時代意義與思想價值。但是同樣的不應該忽略在儒學的進程中，孟子也同樣曾被荀子作為他者進行批判與揚棄，這樣的儒學體系與脈絡亦有其時代意義與思想價值。 當然，這兩種體系與典範孰是孰非、何優何劣是可以進行論辯與選擇的，但在進行判教之前，必須先承認每一個典範其在歷史上的正當性意義與價值；唯有不以先入為主的態度去批判任何一個儒學典範，肯認其時代的脈絡與進程，那麼進一步的選擇與評價才有其合理性與正當性。也就是說，宋明以降的儒者可以不認同荀子，但不能夠繞過荀子。由此必須了解到，孔孟作為道統，道德形上學作為儒學的核心，不是本然如此、亦非想當然耳；今日所習以為常的儒學圖式，是宋明儒者的努力與建構──而此一典範也非儒學永恆不變的真理與形象。 是以可以說，今日所熟知的孟學典範是宋明儒者對於孔孟思想的創造性詮釋，「孔孟」的道統是以「道德形上學」的思維去建構起來的儒學典範；是以儘管孟子本身未必是有意識地將其理論作為「道德形上學」開展，但因為「孔孟」的概念是從宋明儒者與當代新儒家脈絡下所建構出的儒學圖式，因此有必要從孟學作為「道德形上學」的典範進行批判與反思，去回溯荀子將孟子視為他者的思維與企圖。 也就是說，本文企圖建立一個荀學視角──一個宋明以降被理所當然忽略與放棄的視角，去還原與重現荀子的時代脈絡與思考進路──為何荀子非要將孟子作為他者進行批判、轉化與回歸？唯有在釐清了作為他者的孟子之脈絡後，才能夠進一步將荀子作為他者進行批判與轉化，如此也才有其正當性──荀子不是不能被批判，但必須承認其存在的合理性後，這樣的批判才有根基與意義。 是以，荀子的「倫理經濟學」的建構就有其必要與合理性。所謂的「倫理經濟學」（ethical economics）是一個跨學科的概念，即是認為人原初皆為充滿欲望與衝動的「經濟人」（economic man），那是個沒有道德感與內在價值根源的「個體」；與孟子的「道德人」（moral man）是截然不同的典範預設。而荀子之所以由此將「自然人」定義為「經濟人」，是一個社會脈絡的考察與建構，與孟子的形上根源性思考的進路不同；也正因為如此，荀子之所以明言「性惡」，正是因為他的理論建基於社群中個體與個體的互動──因為每個欲望無窮的個體在資源稀少性的現實情境下，必然會形成「爭則亂、亂則窮」的結果，這也正是荀子用以論證性惡之所以成立的進路。 因此，荀子在戰國末年時代更加混亂，而私有制逐漸形成的脈絡中，批判孟子的「求放心」之自覺修養不可行且不切實際，是以有意識地對此進行批判，並由「經濟人」的理論預設，開展其重勸學、重禮法的修養論與政治論；可以說其目的即在於更有效率與效能地去達到治亂的可能。但荀子在追求效率的進路中，並沒有放棄倫理作為儒家的核心價值，是以可以說，他是在揚棄孟學形上學系統、吸納各家學說，將儒學開展出一個新的體系，結合今日所說的倫理學與經濟學的思維，所建構出用以回歸孔子以治亂世的「倫理經濟學」。

Bibliography: leaves 118-124 / Did Christ, in the incarnation, take a fallen or unfallen human nature? This question, in its various forms, has occupied the Christian Church for as long as it has existed. For the Seventh-day Adventist church, to which tradition I belong, the question centres on whether Christ as a human being had sinful tendencies or not. This question has divided the church into two main camps, with one camp saying he did, and the other saying he did not. And the debate goes on. It is from the Seventh-day Adventist church tradition that I picked up on this debate, following it up to mainstream Christianity and motivating this research. My research seeks to identify the causes of the debate. Its premise is that unless the specific causes of the debate are clearly identified and appropriately addressed, it is difficult, if not impossible, to conclude it. For a close analysis, two scholars, each representing one side, are picked and examined: Pannenberg, representing the fallen nature position, and Hatzidakis, representing the unfallen nature position. Their respective arguments are gleaned, compared and analysed; and their differences, causes and possible solutions are pointed out. The findings are then applied to the Seventh-day Adventist church debate and to Christianity at large. / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / M. Th. (Systematic Theology)