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Settling And Laying Down: A Cultural History Of Quakers In Savannah And Statesboro, Georgia, Jonathan Hoyt Harwell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This descriptive cultural history follows a hybrid methodology often applied to ethno-histories. This approach combines archival research, oral history, and ethnography, with reflexive aspects. I explore some similarities and differences between two Quaker meetings in Southeast Georgia, the small but growing urban meeting in Savannah and a discontinued rural one in the small college town of Statesboro (that sometimes met in the village of Guyton). These case studies of local and personal histories, combined with my observations as a participant in the life of the community, are designed to illuminate fine details of Quaker culture in the recent Deep South.

Heart's Blood: A Biography Of Lemuel Whitley Diggs, Richard Harold Nollan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the career of Lemuel Whitley Diggs, who joined the faculty in 1929 at the University of Tennessee Medical Units in Memphis. As a white doctor, he spent his career seeking more effective therapies for patients afflicted with sickle cell anemia, which was considered a black disease, a racial marker, and a sign of black inferiority. His most insightful contributions to understanding sickle cell occurred in the 1930s and 1940s while he was relatively unknown except to a handful of sickle cell researchers nationwide. By the late 1940s, storing blood for later transfusion became a practical reality, enabling …

On The Right Side Of History: How Lesbian And Gay Activists Galvanized Culture And Politics To Make Massachusetts The First State With Legal Same-Sex Marriage, Jaime Mccauley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In November 2003 the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court sent issued a controversial ruling in favour of same-sex marriage in Goodridge v. Massachusetts Department of Public Health. In the decade preceding the Goodridge decision, the majority of US states had passed Defense of Marriage Act statutes, barring recognition of same sex marriage, and in the years following Goodridge many states passed constitutional amendments to define marriage between one man and one woman. What sets Massachusetts apart from the rest of the United States on this issue? Through the analysis of Massachusetts newspaper reports, archival material, and interviews with lesbian and gay …

Growing Health: Community Gardens And Their Effects On Diet, Physical And Mental Health And Community, Brittany Minnick Hanson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Recently, research on community gardens and their benefits to health and community has become very popular. However, this influx of research has failed to investigate challenges to successful community gardening. Some articles examine issues between community gardeners and the land owners, but other than these conflicts community garden challenges, like lack of participation and quality leadership, have not been discussed in the literature (Draper and Freedman, 2010). To allow future gardens to be as successful as possible it is important to identify potential obstacles. Additionally, it is just as important to continue to examine possible benefits, for example, physical activity …

From Bootleggers To An Obey The Law Campus: An Analysis Of The Alcohol Policies At The University Of Mississippi, Scott Thomas Wallace

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

College drinking is one of the most prevailing problems on college campuses today. To navigate the issues surrounding college drinking, institutions of higher learning spend countless hours and monetary resources putting together educational pieces, developing governing policies, and implementing stringent sanctioning practices. At the University of Mississippi, a Two-Strike policy was implemented in 2006. The policy is rooted in educational motives and interventional philosophies, but since its implementation the question posed by many is, "Does it work?" Additionally, the University of Mississippi, in an effort to gain clarity and better educate students about the dangers of illegal and abusive drinking, …

The Persistence Of "Dr. Watts" In The Core Culture African American Churches In The Memphis Area, Brent Virgil Buhler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the mid-eighteenth century, Rev. Samuel Davies introduces slaves to an now archaic form of English Hymnody,which became known as "Dr. Watts." Isaac Watts, Charles and John Wesley, John Newton,and Horatius Bonar, among others wrote many of these hymns. Nearly three hundred years later "Dr. Watts" continues atweekly worship services as an essential component in stabilizing, strengthening, and bringing peace and comfort to many core culture African Americans. The traditionis under-studied inmuch of theUnited States, especially in the Memphia Area. The purpose of this thesis is to confirm the musical characteristics, performance practices, and examine some of the motivations that …

Santo Toribio: The Rise Of A Saint, Thomas G. Evans

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Santo Toribio (1900-28) was canonized by the Roman Catholic Church in 2000 as a martyr of Mexico's bloody Cristero Rebellion. He enjoyed a modest local following for decades after the Rebellion as many of the other Cristero martyr-saints did. However, around the time of his canonization, a new identity began to emerge different from that of martyr; he became the patron saint of immigration. For believers, Santo Toribio helps mitigate the criminal nature of this act by showing God's approval and blessing. He places the pain and social distortion of Border crossing in Roman Catholic contexts of holiness and divine …

An Archaeological Examination Of A Family Cemetery In The South Carolina Low Country, Brian Mitchell Milner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the past eleven years excavations have been conducted at nineteenth century rice plantation near Coosawhatchie, South Carolina. This site has yielded an amazing assortment of artifacts as well as multiple structures associated with plantation life in the Antebellum South. It was during the course of this work that a long forgotten family cemetery was relocated. This paper details the process of excavation and locating of the cemetery, analysis of artifacts recovered, and the determination of the use of the area as that of a place of interment.

Spiritual Direction With Women Who Have Autoimmune Diseases: A Model Of Psychospiritual Care, Kelly Renee Arora

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), multiple sclerosis (MS), and systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus) are incurable autoimmune diseases affecting a growing number of people in the U.S. Women typically receive medical care for the physical effects of these diseases, but psychospiritual dimensions of illness experiences are often neglected. Common autoimmune illness experiences include delayed diagnosis; chronic pain, fatigue, depression; and liminality (being neither healthy nor sick). Women with RA, MS, and lupus also experience ongoing losses (which may be disenfranchised), such as losses of identity, relationships, self-agency, and spiritual beliefs and practices. As a result of ongoing experiences of suffering and loss, women …

Religion And Sex A Look At Sexual Frequency As It Relates To Religious Affiliation, Religious Attendance, And Subjective Religiosity, Doris Elaine Stanley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research addresses the relationship between sexual activity and religion. In particular, the analysis focuses on the impact of religious affiliation, religious public participation and subjective religiosity on the frequency of sexual activity. Religious categories are operationalized as conservative Protestants, moderate Protestants, liberal Protestants, black Protestants, Catholics, Jews, non-affiliates, no religious preference, and other Protestants. The results of the analysis indicate that conservative Protestants and black Protestants are more sexually active than other religious categories. Attendance at religious services has a negative effect on the frequency of sex activity. Subjective religiosity is not related to sexual frequency. Conclusions and directions …

Critiquing The Soul Of White Supremacy And The Spiritualities Of Whiteness: Narrative And Everyday Praxis, Dean J. Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation argues that whiteness and the oppressive structures it creates are maintained, managed, and justified by the religio-cultural tools of white Christians in greater Fort Wayne, IN. This dissertation studies the relationship among the repertoires of white Christians, racism, and white privilege by analyzing the life narratives of selfidentified white Christians. I have divided this work into two parts. Part one, comprising Chapters One and Two, outlines the frameworks, theories, and methods I use to analyze the life narratives of the white Christians that I interviewed. In Chapter One I focus on how my research builds on and contributes …

Preparing Music Pre-Service Teachers To Enhance Language Arts Reading Skills In The Elementary Music Classroom: A Degree Program And Course Content Analysis, Suzanne Natallia Hall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine how NASM accredited music education degree programs from public and private universities throughout the United States address reading literacy (language arts) integration within the elementary music classroom.Accordingly, the following research questions guided the study: (1) What, if any, reading course is currently included in the undergraduate music education degree program?(2) What are the attitudes and perceptions of music education professors towards music andreading integration within the music teacher preparation programs?(3) What “philosophical lens” is used to develop a reading integrated curriculum for pre-service music teachers and how is it interpreted in practice?(4) …

Re-Conceptualizing The Bible Belt : Southern Spirituality In The Novels Of James Wilcox., Ashton Moats

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The following paper is a discussion of religions themes in the novels of James Wilcox, a contemporary Southern author. Through closely examining four of Wilcox's nine novels (along with excerpts from a few others), this project explores the ways in which Wilcox displays the postmodern state of contemporary Southern culture and its effects upon the religious climate of this region. Incorporating a number of literary and religious scholars, in addition to observing some of the ties between Wilcox and Flannery O'Connor, this thesis serves as both an introduction to an author who has not received a great deal of scholarly …

Insiders Or Outsiders? : The Rhetoric Of Compromise In Post-Reconstruction Institutionally-Sponsored African American Literacy., Anne Lawson Whites Heintzman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the history of Berea College in Kentucky. Founded before the Civil War, it was a small, private southern college that educated blacks, whites, women and men equally, an early model of cooperation and social harmony. Its rigorous college curriculum was modeled after northern elite institutions, and black graduates before 1904 held a variety of positions: professors, principals and superintendents, ministers, attorneys, physicians, and civil engineers. However, in 1904 Kentucky passed legislation requiring blacks and whites to be educated separately. Berea College set aside funding and established the all-black Lincoln Institute near Louisville. While Lincoln Institute was presented …

National Ideology And The Making Of A Nation: Simion Barnutiu And The Romanian Revolution Of 1848-1849 In Transylvania, Cristian Daniel Ivanes

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is a case study: the emergence of liberal nationalism in the mid–nineteenth century Transylvania, one of the poorest parts of the Habsburg monarchy. Even in a still agrarian society it was yet possible for the Romanians to articulate a national program and to fight for self–determination. Simion Brnuiu was the mastermind of the revolutionary program of the Transylvanian Romanians in 1848, the visionary who gave the movement its sense and strategy. The course of his life unfolded along an interesting and often tragic path. Simion Brnuiu graduated from the Uniate Theological Seminary in Blaj. It is fair to …

A Higher Public Spirit And A Better Social Order: The Civic Club Of Allegheny County, 1895-1930, Aaron Matthew Gallogly

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Civic Club of Allegheny County was an organization created in the Progressive era that confronted urban issues that plagued early twentieth century Pittsburgh. Although the club's origins were part of a long tradition of women's reform groups, this organization was a mixed-gender organization, different than most cities in the United States. The membership and leadership of the organization shifted from the active, club female to the professional male. Professionalism appealed to the members of the Civic Club because it limited decision-making to those who possessed certain qualifications. This belief helped facilitate the shift, as professionals became important to both …

Student Perceptions Of The Integration Of Faith And Learning In A College Foreign Language Course, Patricia Tinkey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative case study investigated how students perceive that the integration of faith occurs in the foreign language classroom. Research questions included:

1. What factors and conditions of faith-learning integration do students identify throughout the course? 2. How do these students define integration of faith and learning? 3. Is there consensus among students as to whether or not faith and learning is being integrated in the course? How did the integration of faith and learning impact the students?

The non-probability convenience sample included 77 Elementary Spanish students at a small Christian liberal arts college. Data collection consisted of focus group …

Religiosity, Beliefs About Mental Illness, And Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Among Protestant Christians., Juan Michael Thompson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Researchers have long been interested in the relationship among the separate fields of psychology and religion. This dissertation seeks to explore the differences in the way protestant Christians with various religious orientations view mental illness and how these views relate to their attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help. A total of 540 individuals from church congregations representing ten different denominations completed measures of religiosity, beliefs about mental illness, and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help. Scores on these measures were analyzed to observe group differences between religious orientations and correlations among the orientations and dependent variables of belief about mental …

Religiosity And Subjective Interpretations Of Personal Wealth, Andrew Lash

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Historically, research has connected religiosity to many economic concepts in the United States. Religiosity can be a primary factor in the development of attitudes and values regarding financial issues and personal wealth. This study further expands the sociology of religion and economics by examining how differences in religious affiliation, attendance, and sociodemographic factors affect attitudes regarding personal wealth and financial behaviors. Previous studies have concentrated on religious differences in income, education, and life course achievement; however, few studies, if any, have directly measured religiosity and subjective attitudes toward personal wealth. Using the PEW Research Center's Economy Survey from February 2008, …

Discerning Redeeming Communities: Rita Nakashima Brock And Elizabeth A. Johnson In Dialogue, Alison Downie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Rita Nakashima Brock's Journeys by Heart: A Christology of Erotic Power and Elizabeth A. Johnson's Friends of God and Prophets: A Feminist Theological Reading of the Communion of Saints offer resources for reflecting upon what redemptive community is, how it functions, and how women, in particular, experience redemption.

With deep roots in Trinitarian creation theology and a strong trunk of feminist theological anthropology, the branches of Christian feminist reconstructionist theology produce rich soteriological fruits. Without rootedness in creation theology, theological anthropology is anthropocentric, not sufficiently holistic or ecologically aware. Similarly, without development of a feminist theological anthropology, soteriology inevitably reflects …

The Lived Experiences Of Evangelical Christian Men Who Self-Identify As Sexual Addicts, Kailla Edger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Issues of sexual addiction have swept the evangelical movement, and ongoing concerns in the evangelical community are evidenced by its self-help literature, men's movements, and sex manuals. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the lived experiences of evangelical Christian men who self-identify as sexual addicts. This qualitative method was existential-phenomenological and focused on the lived experiences of this population. Individual interviews and follow-up individual interviews of six self-identified evangelical male sexual addicts were analyzed. The results of the study indicated that the male evangelical self-identified sexual addict lives through compartmentalized worlds: the religious or spiritual world, the committed …

The Effects Of Religious Affiliation And Participation On Racial Discrimination, Jason Levine

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the relationship between religious affiliation and racially discriminatory attitudes. Several investigations have been conducted on the topic, yet they did not choose national representative samples. My research examines four decades of NORC General Social Surveys to analyze how religious affiliation and attendance affect the outcome of a survey question which tests the level of discriminatory attitudes among respondents.

A Sociological Study Of Atheism And Naturalism As Minority Identities In Appalachia., Kelly E. Church-Hearl

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study aims to provide a sociological understanding of people who hold minority beliefs about spirituality and religion and to improve our sociological and social-psychological understanding of a-religious and alternatively religious people. Data were collected through indepth interviews with 10 atheist and 11 naturalist respondents. The study examines the religious histories of the respondents, how they left mainstream religion, how they adopted a minority identity with regard to religion/spirituality, and their personal experiences living in a predominately Christian area. I hypothesized that atheists and naturalists would hold minority identities and feel subordinated or oppressed by the dominant group: Christians. …

From Teacher To Teller: How Applied Storytelling Informs Autobiographical Instruction., Peggy Rosann Kent

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis uses autobiographical inquiry to "re-member" how I came to understand that applied storytelling was a valid teaching tool in facilitating autobiographical expression in mature learners. It is an examination of how story sharing and story listening can transform a continuing education classroom into a learning community. Applied storytelling can help elders reframe their negative mental models about the value of their stories, memory, and mythology and create opportunities for positive story sharing experiences. I selected highlights of my journey that best represented my experience and use of applied storytelling techniques. Each chapter includes an exercise and reflection as …

John And Charles Wesleys' "Hymns On The Lord's Supper" (1745): Their Meaning For Methodist Ecclesial Identity And Ecumenical Dialogue, Aaron Kerr

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the historical context, theological relevance and ecumenical potential of a body of theological poetry, hymn lyrics about the central Christian ritual, the Eucharist. The research is undertaken in the interest of the Roman Catholic-Methodist dialogue, a decades long conversation in which these 166 hymns have gained mutual recognition. There are three inter-connected areas explored: history, textual formation and the theological shape of lyrical poetry about the Lord's Supper. These three dimensions are brought to bear on the question of Methodist ecclesial identity and ecumenical dialogue. The study explores the significance of the relationships derived from the synthesis …

An Investigation Of The Relationship Between Graduate Counseling Students' Perceptions Of Spirituality And Counselor Self-Ef, Sandra Pollock

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Counseling and psychology have experienced a conflicted relationship with the issue of spirituality over the last century. Spirituality is a construct that has been receiving more attention in counseling over the last fifteen to twenty years. More counselors and educators are affirming its place and value in the counseling relationship. Yet, there is a disparity between this and what counselors-in-training are being taught regarding spirituality, its value to clients and counselors, and its role in the counseling relationship. Very little research has been done examining spirituality and its relationship to counseling students level of confidence and competence in their work--their …

Samuel Taylor Coleridge And Opium., Donald John Marotta

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Coleridge's usual use of opium was through laudanum, a mixture of opium and alcohol. This thesis presents the history of and criticism regarding the poet's use of laudanum and the physical and emotional consequences the drug held for him and his writing career.

Reasons For Living And Suicidal Ideation Among College Students With Varying Levels Of Risk For Alcohol Related Problems., Dorian A. Lamis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Every year in the United States approximately 30,000 people commit suicide including approximately 1,100 college students. Furthermore, heavy alcohol consumption is prevalent on many college campuses and has been linked to suicidal behavior. The present study was conducted to examine suicidal ideation and reasons for living in college students with varying levels of risk for alcohol related problems. Undergraduate students (n = 161) were administered a survey to assess demographics, suicide ideation status, reasons for living, and the participant's level of risk for alcohol related problems. Results indicated that suicide ideators are significantly more likely than non-ideators to be at …

From Transcendentalism To Progressivism: The Making Of An American Reformer, Abby Morton Diaz (1821-1904)., Ann B. Cro

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Author and activist Abby Morton Diaz (1821-1904) was a member of the Brook Farm Transcendental community from 1842 until it folded in 1847. Although critics have long recognized that Brook Farm played a role in Diaz's intellectual preparation, they have not attempted to demonstrate its influence through a study of her writings.

In this study I will examine in detail two of Diaz's novels and two long essays, with passing references to other works, that reveal how the utopian socialism practiced at Brook Farm influenced Diaz as a writer and reformer. In all her writings Diaz emphasized the importance of …

Right Reverend Stephen Elliott: Political Influence And The Protestant Episcopal Church In Georgia, 1840-1866, Paulette S. Thompson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

By the late 1840's, the South's religious and political convictions upheld slaveholders' social and economic views. These convictions permeated worship services in Georgia via the ministries. At the onset of the Civil War, spirituality provided an essential source of Southern strength in both victory and defeat. As fortitude subsided, religion also played a prodigious role in perpetuating the Confederate experience. For a generation, its theology had endorsed the South's social arrangement, asserted the morality of slavery, expunged Southern sins, and recruited the populace as God's devout guardians of the institution. Sustained by the belief that they were God's chosen people, …