Walter Rauschenbusch, a leading theologian in the uniquely North American social gospel movement, and Gustavo Gutierrez, a founding figure in the development of liberation theology, are two of the most ethically, socially challenging Christian theologians of the past century. They both rely heavily on the theological symbol of the Kingdom of God for the formation of ethical reflection. A comparison of Rauschenbusch and Gutierrez reveals that they have insufficiently eschatological understandings of the Kingdom and overly optimistic views of anthropology, history, and politics. At times, they appropriate cultural ideology into theology in a fashion that obscures the moral import of the Kingdom. The Kingdom's role as a guiding symbol for theological ethics is best understood as that of an eschatological reality that challenges persons and communities to live and act in a manner that is faithful to the always probing challenge of God's eschatological Reign.

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Attempting to provide a revision of the Christian doctrine of God, Wolfhart Pannenberg combines eschatological and trinitarian motifs to express God's transcendence and historical relatedness to the world. The result is what may be called "eschatological panentheism." The concept of God as the "future of the world," while a powerful metaphor for divine transcendence, fails ultimately to satisfy the demand of Christian faith for a God absolutely independent of the world for his full actuality. In Pannenberg's panentheism, God's deity is "at stake" in history and will only be fully realized in the eschatological consummation of the totality of reality. History is the process of the self-realization of God through anticipatory unities which represent the immanence of the future. Jesus Christ is the supreme anticipation of God's future in that in him the eschatological unity of God and man is proleptically realized. The Holy Spirit is the anticipatory self-transcendence of man toward his future unity with all reality and is therefore himself the presence of God's future. Since God's deity is his Kingdom, the unity of all reality, Jesus and the Spirit belong to God's eternal essence insofar as they are crucial actuality of God as a "negative moment." Pannenberg's ontology represents God as the "truly Infinite" which attains absoluteness through a dynamic, dialectical process of positing and overcoming finite reality in himself. The underlying structure of this concept of the God-world relation is Hegelian. From the standpoint of Christian theism, this fails to account for the transcendent freedom to God in creation and redemption of the world which depends on an irreducible distinction between them. Instead of an activity of grace, God's redemption is conceived as a speculative necessity within God himself. A major factor in this idea of God is Pannenberg's quantitative notion of infinity which needs to be corrected by a qualitative concept of finite and infinite being in order to allow for their mutual reality-indistinction.

Shortly before the close of World War II, the United Nations was established, stating as a central purpose the promotion and protection of a universal standard of human rights. Since that time, numerous other organizations and individuals have joined in promoting universal human rights. Particularly noteworthy are Amnesty International, founded in London in 1961, and the United States Congress and President Jimmy Carter in the 1970's. Despite their well-intentioned efforts, torture, terror, poverty, and starvation have increased rather than decreased over the past four decades. The question that arises, therefore, is "Why has the movement for universal human rights failed?" The reason for this failure is that Western and non-Western nations and cultures disagree as to the meaning of human rights and the means for promoting human rights from nation to nation and culture to culture. This disagreement is rooted in a more fundamental disagreement concerning what it means to be human. Christian theological anthropology suggests a via media between Western and non-Western points of view. Western liberals define humanity and human rights in individualistic, pneumatic terms. Many non-Western perspectives define humanity and human rights in communal and material terms. The integralist understanding of humanity as worked out in recent Roman Catholic social teaching, particularly that of Jacques Maritain, David Hollenbach, and the Vatican II documents, makes rapprochement possible. Non-Westerners complain that the human rights movement does not respect the sovereign rights of non-Western nations and the integrity of non-Western cultures. Westerners view humanity and human rights in abstract, universal terms while many non-Westerners view them in historical, cultural terms. The historical realist and historical contextualist understandings of humanity worked out by Protestants Reinhold Niebuhr, Max Stackhouse, and James Sellers suggest a means of reconciliation between Western and non-Western nations and cultures on the subject of human rights.

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The present study aims to expound the distinctive character of 16th-century Spanish Protestant theology, with special reference to the works of two exiled former monks from Seville, Casiodoro de Reina (c. 1520–1594) and Antonio del Corro (1527–1591), and thereby to shed light on a relatively neglected Reformation movement. A particular aim is to trace the ecclesiological significance of the Spaniards' distinctive image of the church as a persecuted people who share in Christ's sufferings in a very public way, with particular reference to standards of authority, formal ordinances, and mission in the world. In Chapter One we investigate the origins of Spanish Protestantism by considering the reforming impulse in the theology of the exiles' mentor, the Sevillian cathedral preacher Constantino Ponce de la Fuente (1502 – 1559). In Chapter Two we outline the orthodox (or 'Chalcedonian') Christological assumptions which undergird the Spanish Protestant view of salvation as participation in Christ's work as Prophet, Priest and King. In Chapter Three we examine the way in which Reina's and Corro's doctrine of the church's authority in relation to Scripture and their view of the church's whereabouts with reference to its marks of obedience, both illustrate and reinforce a nomadic theme in their theology. In Chapter Four we relate their concerns for Christian unity and holiness to their mediating approaches to disputes about the Lord's Supper. Here we give special attention to Reina's 'instrumental realism' in relation to religious signs, and to the centrality of the ministry of the Word in both reformers' sacramental theology. Finally, in Chapter Five we study the missiological aspect of Spanish Protestant ecclesiology, highlighting the way in which questions about human agency, personal holiness and religious tolerance shape a robust understanding of the church's witness in the world in general and to Muslims in particular. / La présente étude vise à exposer le caractère distinctif de la théologie protestante espagnole du XVIe siècle, notamment à travers des travaux de deux anciens moines exilés de Séville, Casiodoro de Reina (c. 1520 à 1594) et Antonio del Corro (1527-1591) et, partant, à faire la lumière sur un mouvement plutôt délaissé de la Réforme. Il s'agit en particulier de retracer l'importance ecclésiologique de l'image distinctive qu'entretiennent les Espagnols de l'Église en tant qu'un peuple persécuté qui partage les souffrances du Christ d'une façon très publique, avec l'accent sur les normes de l'autorité, les ordonnances officielles et leur mission dans le monde. Dans le premier chapitre, nous examinons les origines du protestantisme espagnol en tenant compte de l'élan réformateur retrouvé dans la théologie du conseiller des deux exilés, Constantino Ponce de la Fuente (1502-1559), prédicateur de la cathédrale de Séville. Au deuxième chapitre, nous traçons les grandes lignes des suppositions christologiques orthodoxes (ou « chalcédoniennes ») qui sous-tendent le point de vue protestant espagnol du salut comme étant la participation à l'œuvre du Christ Prêtre, Prophète, Roi. Au troisième chapitre, nous examinons la manière dont la doctrine de l'autorité de l'Église concernant l'Écriture Sainte, ainsi que l'opinion de la position de l'Église relative à ses marques d'obéissance, à la fois illustrent et renforcent un thème nomade dans leur théologie. Dans le quatrième chapitre, nous rattachons leurs préoccupations concernant l'unité et la sainteté chrétiennes à leurs approches médiatrices visant les querelles au sujet de la Cène du Seigneur. Nous portons une attention particulière au « réalisme instrumental » de Reina quant aux signes religieux et à la centralité du ministère de la Parole dans la théologie sacramentelle desdits deux réformateurs. Enfin, au chapitre cinq, nous étudions l'aspect missiologique de l'ecclésiologie protestante espagnole, soulignant la manière dont les questions concernant l'action humaine, la sainteté personnelle et la tolérance religieuse façonnent une compréhension solide du témoignage de l'Église dans le monde en général et aux musulmans en particulier.

Through engagement with the later writings of Luce Irigaray, and with select writings of Søren Kierkegaard, we develop a Kierkegaardian ethics of sexual difference – an account of intersubjectivity between man and woman that is indebted to the thought of each. In the third phase of her writings, Irigaray develops her vision of an ethical relationship between man and woman. She defines sexual difference in terms of the irreducibility of man and woman to each other and defines the ethics of sexual difference in terms of an acknowledgment of the mystery and difference of the sexuate other. This acknowledgment is expressed through wonder, through the caress, and through respect for the other's breath. These make it possible that the interval of difference might become a threshold of encounter. While Kierkegaard's writings are shaped by patriarchal convictions – woman is defined in terms of man and is elided as subject in her own right – we discern in these writings (specifically, in the letters of Judge William from 'Either/Or', Part II) a theory of human becoming that is amenable to Irigaray's account of the human as two. We argue that Judge William and Irigaray share an account of the self as a lived and imaginative tension between actual and ideal. Embracing Irigaray's account of the human as two within the Judge's framework of human becoming enables us to affirm the possibility of a Kierkegaardian theory of sexual difference. This provides the basis for a Kierkegaardian ethics of sexual difference. In 'Works of Love' Kierkegaard develops an account of love centred on God as the middle term – God as one who creates each person ex nihilo, who relates to each per / En argumentant à partir des derniers écrits de Luce Irigaray et d'écrits choisis de S. Kierkeggard, nous développons une éthique kierkegaardienne de la différence sexuelle – une prise en compte de l'intersubjectivité entre l'homme et la femme, redevable de la pensée de chacun d'eux. Dans la troisième phase de ses écrits, Irigaray développe sa vision de la relation éthique entre l'homme et la femme. Elle définit la différence sexuelle en termes d'irréductibilité propre de l'homme et de la femme et elle définit une éthique de la différence sexuelle en termes d'une reconnaisance du mystère et de la différence de l'autre sexué. Cette reconnaissance s'exprime par l'admiration, la caresse, et le respect du souffle de l'autre. Ceux-ci rendent possible le fait que l'intervalle de la différence puisse devenir le seuil de la rencontre. Tandis que les écrits de Kierkegaard sont façonnés par des convictions patriarcales – la femme est définie à partir de l'homme et est élidée en tant que sujet à part entière – nous décelons dans ses écrits (spécifiquement dans les lettres au juge William de 'Ou Bien…ou bien', seconde partie) – une théorie du devenir humain du ressort de la pensée d'Irigaray du caractère duel de l'humain. Nous argumentons que le juge William et Irigaray partagent la même vue du soi en tant que tension vécue et imaginative entre le réel et l'idéal. En associant la façon dont Irigaray rend compte de la dualité de l'humain à la théorie du devenir humain dans le Juge William, nous sommes à même d'affirmer la possibilité d'une théorie kierkegaardienne de la différence sexuelle. Celle-ci nous fournit la base d'

Calvin's "Theodicy" has been substantially ignored or simply negated until now on the assumption that the issues raised by the modern problem of evil and Calvin's discussion of providence and evil are different. The unspoken premise underlying this conviction is that theodicy would be a modern problem, since earlier formulations in no way attempted to justify God's actions. The goal of the present research decisively goes in the opposite direction. It aims to demonstrate that one of the most important reasons that prompted Calvin to preach for almost 2 years 159 Sermons on the Book of Job was to give an answer to the anguishing problem of human suffering and to "vindicate" God's justice. As if he were installed in a tribunal and with the enthusiasm of a lawyer Calvin made recourse to all the possible formal exceptions and substantive arguments, trying to persuade, convince, and exhort his contemporaries that God, in spite of all the charges made against Him, was not only blameless, but also just. The theologian, the minister, and the God's lawyer were merging within Calvin's person to the extent that very often it is not easy to understand who wrote: the theologian equipped with the instruments of law, or the lawyer armed with the instruments of biblical exegesis. His attempt found its more appropriate expression, when in the Sermons on Job he resorted to the concept of "double justice." The distinction between the "revealed" and the "hidden" justice of God enabled him to try to give a provisional answer to all those cases in which the divine justice was challenged. Nevertheless, Calvin's defence of God's justice reached its apex, when he conveyed the attention of the church to the definitive revelation of God's justice that wi / La théodicée de Calvin a été sensiblement ignorée ou simplement niée jusqu'à nos jours sur la base de l'assertion que les issues soulevées par le problème moderne du mal et la discussion de Calvin sur la providence et sur le mal seraient différentes. La prémisse sous entendue de cette conviction est que la théodicée serait un problème moderne, puisque les premières formulations n'ont nullement essayé de justifier les actions de Dieu. Le but de la recherche actuelle va décidément dans la direction opposée. Elle a l'intention de démontrer que un des motifs les plus importants qui a poussé Calvin à rédiger pendant presque 2 années les 159 Sermons sur Job était de donner une réponse au problème de la souffrance et de la douleur humaine et de défendre la justice de Dieu. Comme s'il était installé dans un tribunal et avec l'enthousiasme d'un avocat, Calvin a fait recours à toutes les exceptions formelles possibles et à tous les arguments substantiels essayant de persuader et de convaincre ses contemporains que Dieu, malgré tous les accuses faites contre lui, était non seulement irréprochable, mais également juste. Le théologien, le ministre, et l'avocat de Dieu fusionnaient chez la personne de Calvin au point que très souvent ce n'est pas facile de comprendre qui écrit : le théologien équipé des instruments de la loi, ou l'avocat armé des instruments de l'exégèse biblique. La tentative du Réformateur a trouvé son expression la plus appropriée, quand dans les Sermons sur Job il a utilisé le concept de la double justice. La distinction entre la justice "révélée" et la justice "cachée" de Dieu a permis à Calvin d'essayer de donner une réponse provisoire à tous ces cas dans lesquels

This study investigates the constitutive elements of a prototantric scripture, the Mahamayuri Vidya-rajni sutra (MMVR) in its Chinese translations. The Scripture of the Great Peahen, Queen Protectress consists of long lists of indian divinities, most of them non-Buddhist, followed by Sanskrit magical spells (dharaṇi) which were used in ritual to bring rain, conquer enemies, cure sickness, and eliminate a host of other obstacles. The language of the text is hermetic and describes a pantheon of gods and goddesses which were completely alien to the Chinese patrons who sponsored the performance of the rites of the MMVR by Buddhist specialists. Despite this, there were no less than six known Chinese translations, dating from the 4th to the 8th centuries, and Japanese historical chronicles testify to its continued use till the 13th century in Japan. This essay offers a complete translation of the Scripture, and explores the rationale of the text. It seeks to analyze the tradition of the Pali protection spells (paritta) and tries to understand the role of non-Buddhist divinities within the Buddhist context of magical protection and the Chinese traditions of invocation and propitiatory spells. By reviewing influential theories about the evolution of Buddhist esotericism, the author tries to ascertain the place and role of the Scripture and its central divinity, the Great Peahen (Mahamayuri), in the formation of Tantrism.

<p>The Vatican II document, <i>Lumen Gentium</i>, holds multiple images of the Church in tension and was greatly informed by two ecclesiological models: The Church as Sacrament and eucharistic ecclesiology. This thesis explores the Church as a community of theophany as a model that is not only in harmony with <i>Lumen Gentium</i>, but finds a helpful cohesion of its images. An early New Testament and patristic christology understood Jesus to be the ultimate theophany of God. The Church, as the body of Christ shares and perpetuates this embodied theophany into the world. Luke&rsquo;s Pentecost narrative has been read as the descent of the eschatological Temple in which the theophanic Spirit dwells. The Church is thus constituted by the theophany of the Holy Spirit. It is suggested, therefore, that the Church as a theophanic community is a synthesis of the Church&rsquo;s christological and pneumatological constitution. </p>