Religion Commons^™

Renaming Abraham's Children: Election, Ethnicity And The Interpretation Of Scripture In Romans 9, Robert Bruce Foster

Dissertations (1934 -)

In this study, I attempt to reconstruct Paul's pre-epistolary exegesis of Genesis that I hypothesize lies beneath Rom 9. This exegesis goes beyond the discussion of the patriarchs in Rom 9:6-13 and supports the reconfiguration of God's family in Rom 9:24-29. It enables Paul to view Israel as simultaneously chosen and rejected by God.

Adopting a method from Carol Stockhausen, I offer several criteria to establish this project's legitimacy. The Pauline exegesis that I propose is plausible to the extent that (1) it is rooted in his text; (2) it is historically credible; (3) it illuminates the argument in Rom …

Early Christian Sex Change. The Ascetical Context Of "Being Made Male" In Early Christianity, Jennifer Lynne Henery

Dissertations (1934 -)

This dissertation shows that in the second and third century Christian stories containing transformational imagery of being made male, the vision of the eschaton motivates individuals to lives of enkrateia and martyrdom. Individuals who choose encratic lives or the life of martyrdom become holy and are described in imagery reflective of the eschaton. The eschatological vision in these texts is the product of Biblical tradition and Second Temple Judaism; visions of the eschaton explain the future state as a return to prelapsarian Eden, as participation in the heavenly temple, and as victory in the eschatological battle. This vision is the …

Mercy, Justice, And Politics: John Paul Ii On Capital Punishment, Kevin E. Miller

Dissertations (1934 -)

Pope John Paul II's 1995 Evangelium Vitae teaches that capital punishment ought not be used "except ... when it would not be possible otherwise to defend society." Several interpretations of this teaching have been proposed. Through a close reading of the encyclical in itself, in light of John Paul's other writings on the human person and morality, especially the 1980 Dives in Misericordia, and also in the context of such important influences upon him as Thomas Aquinas and Henri de Lubac, I dispute, on the one hand, the interpretation according to which John Paul is pointing toward possible acceptance of …

The Way To God Or God's Way To Us: The Theologies Of Edward Farley And James Mcclendon In Critical Dialogue, Thomas W. Harrington

Dissertations (1934 -)

A lively theological debate in recent decades has been the dispute over theological method between "revisionist" and "narrativist" theologians. To explore and evaluate this debate I consider the work of "revisionist" theologian Edward Farley and of "narrativist" theologian James William McClendon, Jr. Farley's method calls, first, for an attempt to uncover faith realities that can be directly perceived, such as the faith community's efforts to remove ethnic boundaries, and, second, for an endeavor to examine how such realities indirectly demonstrate the existence of additional faith realities, such as the character of God. In contrast, McClendon's method calls for an attempt …

The Assumption Of All Humanity In Saint Hilary Of Poitiers' Tractatus Super Psalmos, Ellen Scully

Dissertations (1934 -)

In this dissertation, I focus on the soteriological understanding of the fourth-century theologian Hilary of Poitiers as manifested in his underappreciated Tractatus super Psalmos. Hilary offers an understanding of salvation in which Christ saves humanity by assuming every single person into his body in the incarnation. My dissertation contributes to scholarship on Hilary in two ways.

First, I demonstrate that Hilary's teaching concerning Christ's assumption of all humanity is a unique development of Latin sources. Because of his understanding of Christ's assumption of all humanity, Hilary, along with several Greek fathers, has been accused of heterodoxy resulting from Greek Platonic …

"Poor Maggot-Sack That I Am": The Human Body In The Theology Of Martin Luther, Charles Lloyd Cortright

Dissertations (1934 -)

This dissertation represents research into the writings of Martin Luther [1483-1546] reflecting his understanding of the human body in his theology. Chapter one reviews the history of the body in the theology of the western Christian church, 300- 1500. Chapters two through five examine Luther's thinking about various <“>body topics,<”> such as the body as the good creation of God; sexuality and procreation; and the body in illness, death, and resurrection. Chapter six presents conclusions.

Luther's thinking is examined on the basis of consultation of the Weimarer Ausgabe and the <“>American Edition<”> of Luther's works. Special attention is given to …

Intersex And Imago: Sex, Gender, And Sexuality In Postmodern Theological Anthropology, Megan K. Defranza

Dissertations (1934 -)

Christian theologians regularly assume a binary model of human sex differentiation based on the creation narratives found in Genesis. Recent work in theological anthropology has grounded theological concepts such as the social view of the image of God, human personhood, and human relationality on the creation of humans as male and female in heterosexual marital relation. While these anthropologies have merit--particularly in correcting older versions of the imago Dei which privileged the male-- they are inadequate for addressing the phenomena of intersex.

Intersex is a broad term used for persons whose bodies display some physical characteristics of both sexes--historically labeled …

Lex Orandi, Lex Legendi: A Correlation Of The Roman Canon And The Fourfold Sense Of Scripture, Matthew Thomas Gerlach

Dissertations (1934 -)

While the correlation between the liturgy and the Bible was vital in the patristic-medieval period, a dichotomy grew up between them in modern times. Starting with the assumption that a fuller retrieval of the correlation today requires forms of engaging texts which are not exclusively linear or historico-critical, the dissertation argues that the dichotomy between liturgy and Bible is overcome within a correlation of the Eucharist and spiritual exegesis that retrieves a typological reading of Scripture and that attends to the liturgical relationships memorial, presence, and anticipation. The structure of reading the Bible parallels the structure of praying within the …

Renewing A Catholic Theology Of Marriage Through A Common Way Of Life: Consonance With Vowed Religious Life-In-Community, Kent Lasnoski

Dissertations (1934 -)

Beginning with Vatican II's call for constant renewal, in light of the council's universal call to holiness, I analyze and critique modern theologies of Christian marriage, especially those identifying marriage as a relationship or as practice. Herein, need emerges for a new, ecclesial, trinitarian, and christological paradigm to identify purposes, ends, and goods of Christian marriage. The dissertation's body develops the foundation and framework of this new paradigm: a Common Way in Christ. I find this paradigm by putting marriage in dialogue with an ecclesial practice already the subject of rich trinitarian, christological, ecclesial theological development: consecrated religious life.

Chapter …

Qoheleth: An Anti-Apocalyptic Genre For A Message Of Joy, Jerome Douglas

Dissertations (1934 -)

How is the interpreter to approach Ecclesiastes? What is the message of the author? What is the genre of the book? Many scholars have posited varying interpretations concerning the message of Ecclesiastes and have observed the number of statements that appear to be conflicting or, at least, in tension with one another. Discussions about the argument and genre label(s) of/ or in Ecclesiastes have not fully considered the author's polemics against the apocalyptic beliefs of his day, 200 B.C.E. This dissertation will propose that the author of Ecclesiastes utilizes a hybrid genre in his work. He, in part, employs an …

The Trinitarian Theology Of Irenaeus Of Lyons, Jackson Jay Lashier

Dissertations (1934 -)

This dissertation is a study of the Trinitarian theology of Irenaeus of Lyons. With the exception of two recent studies, Irenaeus' Trinitarian theology, particularly in its immanent manifestation, has been devalued by scholarship due to his early dates and his stated purpose of avoiding speculative theology. In contrast to this majority opinion, I argue that Irenaeus' works show a mature understanding of the Trinity, in both its immanent and economic manifestations, which is occasioned by Valentinianism. Moreover, his Trinitarian theology represents a significant advancement upon that of his sources, the so- called apologists, whose understanding of the divine nature converges …

Full, Conscious, And Active Participation: The Laity As Ecclesial Subjects In An Ecclesiology Informed By Bernard Lonergan, Mary Utzerath

Dissertations (1934 -)

Unresolved problems and tensions regarding the status and role of the laity persist nearly a half-century following Vatican II. While the magisterium focuses on issues related to the appropriateness or ability of lay persons to carry out roles in the Church that have traditionally belonged to the ordained, sociological surveys indicate that the experience of lay members of the Church in the United States and in much of the Western world includes inadequate formation, confused Catholic identity, marginalization, low levels of commitment in young Catholics, and the steady exodus of Catholics. These problems of the laity are symptomatic of problems …