Death is an ever-present fact in human life and it affects its life course. Stable form of funeral ritual is developed from the need for reconciliation with one's own mortality and loss of loved ones. Traditional funeral ceremony based on combination of lore and Christian ritual had changed due to changes in political and social life during the 20th century. Probably the biggest effect had the administration of communist party which lasted for 40 years and which used funeral ceremony as propaganda of its regime. The struggle with traditional Christian funeral was connected with an open fight with church as such and was caused by communist effort to dominate social life. Instead of traditional Christian funeral communism proclaimed cremation as an anticlerical burial option. Effects of communism then developed new funeral rituals. This text is motivated by the effort to identify perception of death and its changes in Czech republic in the second half of the 20th century, using literary and oral sources. It searches for an answer to the question of whether communist regime changed funeral ritual and tries to identify it in taped oral sources.

The thesis "Biblical Introduction in Jerome Hirnhaim's Theologia Universalis" contributes to a deeper understanding of the early modern thinking about the Holy Scripture. Theological compendium "Theologia universalis" was composed by Jerome Hirnhaim, abbot of the Premonstratensian monastery at Strahov, in the second half of the 17th century, and was used as a teaching aid for the monastic clergy. The thesis analyses the extracts from the Hirnhaim's compendium which are dedicated to the questions of relationship between Scripture and Tradition, biblical inspiration, interpretation of the biblical text and laity reading of Scripture. A comparison with Robert Bellarmine's "De Controversiis" shows that Hirnhaim's lectures were largely based on this Bellarmine's work. Numerous correspondences between the Hirnhaim's compendium and Gaspard Juénin's "Institutiones theologicae", a textbook compiled for use in the French seminaries in the nineties of the 17th century, shows a transnational character of early modern Catholic theology and teaching practice. Differences between the early modern and current view of Scripture can be observed in the area of pastoral practice.

This paper combines theoretical questions with empirical research to bring to light the vitality of folk processes in the urban modern world. The fieldwork focuses on participatory forms of traditional music. With the help of the interviews I conducted, this paper seeks (to explain) the participants' motivations for their enactment of folklore. We analyse the musicians' motivations, as well as the functions their practice of folklore fulfils, while putting the emphasis on the living dynamic and transformative creative processes of tradition. We concentrate more on the functions and forms of their enactment of folklore rather than on the aesthetic material or folklore itself. What needs do participatory forms of folklore express, especially in our urban modern world? KEYWORDS: Folklore, ethnomusicology, anthropology of music, tradition, authenticity

It is a project of a complex consisting of an apartment building for the elderly, supplemented by a commercial area of the restaurant and the adjoining park area with sports areas for children's, multipurpose, workout and for seniors focused playgrounds. In the immediate vicinity are new family houses and recreational objects of a garden character. The area is a transition between the historic center and the free outpost of the village. The proposed buildings reflect their tradition of folk architecture, preserving the "genius loci" of the village and beyond the edict of the monumental institute.

This thesis focuses on developing an architectural study modifications of selected localities in the urban reserve Kroměříže. The proposal respects the regulatory plan and conservation requirements. The selected street Vejvanovského function has been selected, addressed a formal operational connection with the immediate surroundings, including urban interior green. In addition an architectural study of three selected newly designed buildings with regard to the historical picture of the urban conservation area towns.

The thesis named "People with no religious affiliation as workers of diaconia - Current situation in Catholic and Protestant traditions" deals with stances of chosen Churches and diaconal organizations towards the employment of workers who are not members of any Church or not religiously defined. At the beginning the thesis deals with a definition of basic terms and their Biblical origins, then the thesis shortly describes important milestones in history of diaconia with closer look at the implementers. The main part of the thesis presents specific attitudes of the Roman Catholic Church, Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren and their diaconial organizations to cooperating with non denominational people and their employment. This part also presents these attitudes in the light of documents of Second Vatican Council. A chapter about spirituality and religiosity of the present time brings up a topic of the current situation in the field of employment of non denominational people in chosen church organization and fields which may appear problematic. Finally, the thesis concludes with opinions of current Czech and world theologians about what employment of non denominational people in Church organization might mean and where it might lead. There are also highlighted areas of discussion, especially these...

The aim of this thesis is to analyse the position of women in Nigerian family and to estimate the extent of their emancipation and/or dependence on men in Nigerian society, traditionally considered to be patriarchal. The analysis is based on the interpretation of the novels Purple Hibiscus and Half of a Yellow Sun and the short story collection The Thing around Your Neck, written by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, a prominent contemporary Nigerian author. The theoretical part focuses on political, social and economic representations of women in pre- colonial Nigeria and in colonial and modern, post-colonial Nigeria. An antidote to the stereotypical depiction of women in African literature, Adichie's work typically presents female characters who are educated, independent and emancipated. This stands to challenge the image of Nigerian women who are dominated and controlled by men.

In my work I deal with the personality of Clement of Rome and with the importance of his work. Firstly, I express my opinion about the date of Clement's activity, so I am able to put Clement into the historical context of early Christianity. Then, on the basis of both survey of the previous research and my own analysis I am trying to solve the question, who Clement was - with main interest in the question of his origin. The work also aims on classifying Clement's place in the development of Christian tradition. Thus I deal with the question of Clement's relationship to apostole Paul and his teaching and the problem of Clement's work and activity as the most important member of third generation of Christians. In the end, I am using the results to create a draft of the situation of Christianity in Clement's era and to propose questions suitable for future research.

The thesis examines the classical motifs in the works of Titian. The author focuses on a closed set of works inspired by classical motifs (i.e. motifs of classical mythology), which were created for the Spanish king Philippe II. The thesis deals with the question of possible literary or material sources which could have been at the painter's disposal or could have served as his inspiration. The set of works is defined by themes chosen from Ovid's Metamorphoses. The question is whether Titian based his compositions on their classical version or on a Renaissance adapted or commented translation, or whether he even inspired himself by other classical authors.

The thesis Influence of religion on the family background primarily with the practical implications of three basic beliefs of world religions - Jewish, Christian and Muslim - to a normal family life. Studying the various traditions and customs, practicing belief in everyday life and influence of a particular religion for the whole family. The theoretical part is focused on the requirements of that particular religion has on believers. The practical part describes the general way of life of Jews, Christians and Muslims, describes the specific application of faith in daily life. The research part of the thesis evaluates the questionnaires focused on the differences of attitudes, values and family life of Jews, Christians, Muslims and people with no religion.