Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Discipline
-
- Christianity (126)
- Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion (89)
- Social and Behavioral Sciences (75)
- Practical Theology (57)
- Biblical Studies (54)
-
- History (37)
- Catholic Studies (23)
- Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (22)
- History of Religion (20)
- Philosophy (20)
- Psychology (19)
- Christian Denominations and Sects (18)
- Education (18)
- Missions and World Christianity (18)
- Religious Education (17)
- Sociology (17)
- Other Religion (16)
- English Language and Literature (15)
- Ethics in Religion (15)
- Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies (15)
- Islamic Studies (14)
- Women's Studies (14)
- Medicine and Health Sciences (13)
- American Studies (12)
- Communication (12)
- Liturgy and Worship (11)
- History of Christianity (10)
- Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration (10)
- Institution
-
- George Fox University (40)
- Andrews University (23)
- Luther Seminary (18)
- Southeastern University (16)
- Concordia Seminary - Saint Louis (15)
-
- Santa Clara University (15)
- Bethel University (14)
- Claremont Colleges (14)
- City University of New York (CUNY) (11)
- Abilene Christian University (9)
- Harding University (9)
- College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University (8)
- Louisiana State University (7)
- Loyola Marymount University and Loyola Law School (7)
- Seattle University (6)
- Walden University (6)
- Marquette University (5)
- Universidad de La Salle (5)
- Duquesne University (4)
- East Tennessee State University (4)
- Portland State University (4)
- Seattle Pacific University (4)
- University of Arkansas, Fayetteville (4)
- University of Denver (4)
- University of Mississippi (4)
- Brigham Young University (3)
- Gardner-Webb University (3)
- Missouri State University (3)
- Southern Methodist University (3)
- St. Norbert College (3)
- Keyword
-
- Religion (25)
- Spirituality (12)
- Theology (12)
- Christianity (11)
- Preaching (10)
-
- Bible Criticism (9)
- Christian (8)
- Church (8)
- Seventh-day Adventist (7)
- Interpretation (6)
- Buddhism (5)
- Faith (5)
- Feminism (5)
- Islam (5)
- Lutheran (5)
- Mission of the Church (5)
- Resilience (5)
- Trinity (5)
- Assemblies of God (4)
- Bible (4)
- Christian Life (4)
- Church Leadership (4)
- Clergy (4)
- Death (4)
- God (4)
- Identity (4)
- Leadership (4)
- Missional Effectiveness (4)
- Revelation (4)
- Women (4)
- Publication
-
- Doctor of Ministry (35)
- Electronic Theses and Dissertations (20)
- Doctor of Ministry Theses (17)
- Honors Theses (16)
- Jesuit School of Theology Dissertations (15)
-
- All Electronic Theses and Dissertations (14)
- Dissertations (11)
- Dissertations and Theses (11)
- Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects (11)
- CGU Theses & Dissertations (10)
- Master's Theses (9)
- Professional Dissertations DMin (9)
- Doctor of Ministry (DMin) (8)
- School of Theology and Seminary Graduate Papers/Theses (8)
- LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations (7)
- Theses and Dissertations (7)
- Doctor of Ministry Doctoral Projects (6)
- Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation (6)
- Master of Art Theology Thesis (6)
- Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies (6)
- Honors Projects (5)
- Dissertations (1934 -) (4)
- Graduate Theses and Dissertations (4)
- Licenciatura en Educación Religiosa (4)
- Master of Theology Theses (4)
- Masters Theses (4)
- Business as Mission Theses and Dissertations (3)
- Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project (3)
- Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) (3)
- LSU Master's Theses (3)
Articles 1 - 30 of 368
Full-Text Articles in Religion
Contextualized Discipleship: A Catalyst System For The Xxi Century, David Rangel
Contextualized Discipleship: A Catalyst System For The Xxi Century, David Rangel
Doctor of Ministry Projects and Theses
The reality for the Christian churches in the U.S. is that congregations are declining in attendance. Local churches are being closed every year, and the people called Christians are decreasing in their discipleship practices more than in previous years. However, the reason for this disgraceful reality is not because people have stopped attending church; rather, it is because there are now fewer Christians. Unfortunately, churches in their effort to make disciples prefer to buy a curriculum that, in the end, does not reflect the needs and realities of their own context. More than ever, the Christian industry in the U.S. …
The Role Of The African Church In The 21st Century Global Mission: A Case Study Of The Eecmy Global Mission Venture And Economic Mindset, Wondimu M. Game
The Role Of The African Church In The 21st Century Global Mission: A Case Study Of The Eecmy Global Mission Venture And Economic Mindset, Wondimu M. Game
Master of Art Theology Thesis
Jesus Christ inaugurated and commissioned his church to be a missionary until the end of the world. Thus, the church is missionary by her very nature. The modern mission paradigm was from the West to the rest. But, in this 21st century, the mission has shifted from the global North to the global South; this massive shift has anchored the global South as the heartland of Christianity and the force of mission. This mission shift also demands the paradigm shift of both global north and south. Although the African church has played a pivotal role in the church history, …
“I Said, You Are Gods”: Pastoral Motives Manifest In Patristic Citations Of Psalm 82:6, Charles Schulz
“I Said, You Are Gods”: Pastoral Motives Manifest In Patristic Citations Of Psalm 82:6, Charles Schulz
Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation
The early church fathers frequently cited Ps. 82:6 (LXX 81:6), “I said, You are gods and all sons of the Most High,” a passage Jesus himself quoted (John 10:34) to defend his own title as the Son of God. Scholars agree that the patristic use of verse underwrote the developing doctrine of deification, which promised that Christians would become “gods” in some sense by bearing God’s image and likeness and participating in Christ and his saving work. In order to deepen and focus our understanding of the significance and role of this passage for patristic theology—and particularly for pastoral practice—this …
Parechesis In The Undisputed Pauline Epistles Definition, Identification, And Discovery, Kevin Gingrich
Parechesis In The Undisputed Pauline Epistles Definition, Identification, And Discovery, Kevin Gingrich
Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation
Throughout the undisputed Pauline epistles (UPE), the author employs ancient rhetorical figures of soundplay. In particular, this dissertation focuses on a stylistic device known since Homer and named, a century or so after Paul, “parechesis.” Parechesis is sophisticated alliteration and refers to similar sounding words of different lexical roots that lie in some collocation. The device is so pervasive in Paul as to be deemed a defining characteristic of Pauline style.
The Ethical Accountability Of Organizational Leadership To Communities Of Stakeholders In Healthcare, Lisa Martinelli
The Ethical Accountability Of Organizational Leadership To Communities Of Stakeholders In Healthcare, Lisa Martinelli
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
ABSTRACT
THE ETHICAL ACCOUNTABILITY OF ORGANIZATIONAL LEADERSHIP TO COMMUNITIES OF STAKEHOLDERS IN HEALTHCARE
By
Lisa A. Martinelli, JD, MA
October 2020
Dissertation supervised by Professor Gerard Magill
While much is written on organizational ethics in healthcare, this dissertation uniquely links organizational ethics and stakeholder theory to the ethical accountability of leadership to their distinct, vulnerable stakeholder communities. It does so by examining the healthcare organization’s moral agency in relation to stakeholder theory and applies those considerations to three major stakeholder categories: confidentiality and privacy of healthcare information, research and attention to specific pediatric populations, and ethics of care concerning the …
Examining The Intersectionality Of Religious Faith, Spirituality, And Healthcare Communication, Felix Okeke
Examining The Intersectionality Of Religious Faith, Spirituality, And Healthcare Communication, Felix Okeke
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This dissertation is my own contribution in responding to the concern raised by certain communication scholars. Their concern was that little research and few publications have been done in the communication field by communication scholars that trace the relationship among religious faith, spirituality, and healthcare communication. While Parrott (2004) describes this apparent neglect as “collective amnesia,” others label it “religion blindness.” Thus, in trying to trace this relationship, this project uses Christian, biblical, and bioethics backgrounds to establish the value, sacredness, and dignity of human life, since these concepts make healthcare and healthcare communication necessary in the first place. These …
Edhi Graveyard: Unknown In Death, Yusra Salim
Edhi Graveyard: Unknown In Death, Yusra Salim
MSJ Capstone Projects
The Edhi foundation continues to serve as the largest and only morgue in Karachi. They are burying bodies since 1960’s and they have a system for fingerprints of dead to help families identify. The record helps when families come searching for their missing loved ones. It also holds information about the burial and the final resting place.
To Reach The Unreachable Stars: Reexamining The Shared Arthurian Vision Of C. S. Lewis's Science Fiction Trilogy And Raymond Chandler's Marlowe Novels, Hollis Thompson
To Reach The Unreachable Stars: Reexamining The Shared Arthurian Vision Of C. S. Lewis's Science Fiction Trilogy And Raymond Chandler's Marlowe Novels, Hollis Thompson
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Although Raymond Chandler and C. S. Lewis seem to be a rather strange pairing, the ways in which they both borrow from Arthurian literature and use the myth to speak to their cultural moment are strikingly similar. Following T. S. Eliot’s use of the Grail quest in The Waste Land (which set a standard for the use of such material in Modern literature), these authors use Arthurian elements as a means of exposing hidden connections between the fragments of the literary past and the present within Chandler’s Marlowe novels and Lewis’s science fiction trilogy. Both men present Western identity as …
Burned Out But Barely Begun: A Qualitative Study On Newer Clergy And Communication Surrounding Emotional Labor And Personal Well-Being In South Mississippi, Lauren Noll
Master's Theses
This study provides an overview of the concepts surrounding clergy burnout,
organizational culture, and emotional labor theory. Furthermore, it explains the need
for clearer understanding of clergy perceptions of their own personal
experiences with burnout and their emotional wellbeing in relation to their organizational environment and careers as clergy members. The methodology of qualitative interviews sought to understand the narratives and experiences of clergy members from their own words and worldviews rather than from a statistical basis or analysis.
This research found answers to key questions involving communication about burnout in the context of organizational culture and emotional labor, including …
Formulating A Communal Covenant For The Elders And Ministers Of South Fork Church Of Christ, Drew Baker
Formulating A Communal Covenant For The Elders And Ministers Of South Fork Church Of Christ, Drew Baker
Doctor of Ministry Theses
This project addressed the lack of a communal covenant for the elders and ministers of South Fork Church of Christ. The purpose of the project was to formulate a covenant that would promote the spiritual discernment and leadership of the elders and ministers. For the theological framework, I relied upon Mark’s portrait of Jesus. I looked at Jesus’s lived example as well as his teachings to discern values and practices that defined his leadership and should therefore be normative for Christian leaders. These values and practices were analyzed according to three relational categories—relationship with God, with each other, and with …
Let Me Serve Your Majesty: Psalm 8, Matthew Fredrickson
Let Me Serve Your Majesty: Psalm 8, Matthew Fredrickson
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The speaker in Ps 8 proclaims a desire to serve Yahweh’s heavenly power/victory by appealing to humanity’s status as God’s images (Gen 1:27) and accepting the role of Yahweh’s new servant (Isa 55:3), as a priest/minister of God (Isa 61:1-6; cf Isa 42:1). This thesis translates אשר תנה as one word in verse 2b (אשרתנה), rendered, “May I serve your heavenly power/victory!” This is illustrated (in part) by two participles in Ps 8, ינקם (v. 3) and עבר (v. 9), which refer to cosmic foes of Yahweh—“the ones who nurse” (the goodly gods in CAT 1.23) and the “one …
Billion-Dollar Bride: Book 1—Godric's Academy For Young Ladies, Kaylin N. Stickley
Billion-Dollar Bride: Book 1—Godric's Academy For Young Ladies, Kaylin N. Stickley
MSU Graduate Theses
This thesis contains the first five chapters of a young adult romance novel featuring a young woman named Theadosia Lee. The plot is heavily influenced by Cinderella, and the biblical braiding technique is heavily influenced by that of Kiera Cass and C. S. Lewis. The piece was inspired by my desire to create more young adult romance novels that contain the biblical values that are sorely lacking in most modern young adult literature. I seek to write a love story that is based on mutual respect, a strong foundation of friendship, and an intentional decision to avoid sexual activities …
Assessing The Quality Of Proactive Congregational Care For The College Avenue Church Of Christ, Kent M. Jobe
Assessing The Quality Of Proactive Congregational Care For The College Avenue Church Of Christ, Kent M. Jobe
Dissertations and Theses
No abstract provided.
Experiences Of Divine Grace Among Christian Friends, Kyle T. Webster
Experiences Of Divine Grace Among Christian Friends, Kyle T. Webster
Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)
Though topics of prayer, forgiveness, and gratitude have received attention in the psychology of religion, there is sparse literature regarding the concept of grace. This study explored how Christians who identify as Friends (Quakers) experience grace from God. Thirty interviews were conducted with Friends in the Pacific Northwest, using a standardized semistructured interview developed for a larger study of how Christians from various denominations experience grace. Four organizing themes were derived from the interview questions and then grounded theory was used to uncover associated sub-themes within each organizing theme. The organizing themes include the nature of God, the nature of …
The Context And Enactment Of Faith-Based Social Entrepreneurship, Bruce R. Borquist
The Context And Enactment Of Faith-Based Social Entrepreneurship, Bruce R. Borquist
Business as Mission Theses and Dissertations
Faith-based organisations have been at the forefront of efforts to meet human need and effect positive social change for centuries, and they continue to make significant contributions to social welfare. However, a paucity of empirical research into the nature of faith-based social entrepreneurship limits knowledge and theory development and hinders the effectiveness of faith-based initiatives. In response, this thesis explores how a religious worldview intersects with values, gender and institutional logics to influence social entrepreneurial activity. The thesis thereby aims to develop new theoretical insights into the contextual embeddedness of the process of social entrepreneurship.
Qualitative, interpretive research based on …
Warfare In Christianity And Islam: Unveiling Secular Justifications And Motivations Behind So-Called Religious Violence, Onur Korkmaz
Warfare In Christianity And Islam: Unveiling Secular Justifications And Motivations Behind So-Called Religious Violence, Onur Korkmaz
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
The phenomenology of religion has received the most attention in social science because it has shaped society on social, political, and economic levels throughout history. Religion can be an organization that brings people together and develops a sense of identification, while also acting as a divisive structure for those of other faiths or nonbelievers. And so, we have witnessed the rise of both religious tendencies and violent acts for the last two decades, occasionally intertwined. Various belief systems have increasingly become a factor that politicians, intellectuals, and the mainstream media associate with violence-based modern warfare. However, scholars and analysts who …
Does Christian Faith Impact Loneliness?, Jeffrey M. Kelly
Does Christian Faith Impact Loneliness?, Jeffrey M. Kelly
Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)
Loneliness is on the rise within the United States, particularly within younger adults ages 18-37 (Bruce et al 2019). Although much is known about the negative dimensions of loneliness, and some about protective factors to help ease loneliness, the potential impact of religious and spiritual beliefs and behaviors on loneliness remains largely unexplored. This study focused on the relationship between a committed religious faith and perceived feelings of loneliness among university students. Participants include 1,182 undergraduate students from George Fox University who participated in the National College Health Assessment (NCHA). Religious commitment was evaluated using a supplemental 6-item self-report measure …
Improving Upon Traditional American Premarital Counseling Methods: Teaching A Foundational Theology For A Marriage Of Servanthood, Gregory D. Milewski
Improving Upon Traditional American Premarital Counseling Methods: Teaching A Foundational Theology For A Marriage Of Servanthood, Gregory D. Milewski
Masters of Theological Studies
The intention of this thesis is to stir up marriage counselors into taking a fresh look at their methods for preparing and educating American couples for marriage, as the research will show that couples need much more than mere test results and analytics. Couples need more than a diagnosis; they need the prognosis of the path for healing. The programs developed by Christian therapists that are used in many churches in America do a great job at showing areas where couples are strong and where they need work, but too little is done to address their core beliefs about marriage …
Evaluation Of Church Plant Training Methods Within The Assemblies Of God, Bethlehem Backes
Evaluation Of Church Plant Training Methods Within The Assemblies Of God, Bethlehem Backes
Doctor of Education (Ed.D)
The steady decline of churches in America is a cause of great concern among spiritual leaders (Stetzer & Im, 2016). Missiologists agree that church planting is vital to presenting the gospel to unreached people groups. If church planting is the vehicle to deliver the life-giving message of Jesus to the world, church planters are the drivers who actively accomplish the purpose of healthy multiplication. Recent data on the health of church planters indicates many of them are not adequately prepared and desire long-term support to be successful. The Assemblies of God denomination has tasked the Church Multiplication Network with leading …
God Does Not Show Favoritism: The Intentional Inclusion Of Minorities In Pentecostal Leadership, Terrell Robert Raburn
God Does Not Show Favoritism: The Intentional Inclusion Of Minorities In Pentecostal Leadership, Terrell Robert Raburn
Doctor of Ministry (DMin)
Although the Azusa Street Revival, known for launching the modern Pentecostal Movement, was initially characterized by minority diversity in regard to leadership, it quickly splintered into three classic Pentecostal fellowships formed along racial lines. The research presented herein examines the racially segregated history of the Pentecostal Church in North America—acknowledging the need for the implementation of a biblically based theology of racial integration—and presents a four-step process in which minority leadership within individual Pentecostal churches is promoted, combatting the unbiblical ideology of a segregated body of Christ. The four steps include (1) the necessity for a strong visionary leader; (2) …
Women In Pastoral Leadership Within The Assemblies Of God: How Can The Numbers Advance?, Carolyne D. Butler
Women In Pastoral Leadership Within The Assemblies Of God: How Can The Numbers Advance?, Carolyne D. Butler
Selected Honors Theses
The number of women in pastoral leadership within the Assemblies of God grows by the addition of credentialed women. While the numbers seem increasingly exponential, their validity in credentialed growth of women is staggered, lacking true egalitarian equality. It is questioned how many credentialed women are actually in an active, executive role of leadership within the A.G. Data from the A.G. examines the increase in female credentialing and ministry status over a fifteen-year span and its contribution to the total number of female ministers. Biblical theology and historical examples enhance the credibility and authority of female leadership while gender roles …
The Diminished Experience Of Liturgy In A Pandemic, Joseph Torti
The Diminished Experience Of Liturgy In A Pandemic, Joseph Torti
LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations
This paper considers the pastoral challenge of a diminished experience of liturgy and worship during the Covid-19 pandemic. It explores the ubiquity of the digital realm and a pervasive culture of consumerism as factors in addition to the pandemic contributing to the challenge. We then reflect on the challenge through the theological perspective of Scripture, sacramental theology, Vatican II teaching and liturgical theology before proposing a pastoral plan.
Cathedrals Of The Mind: Theological Method And Speculative Renewal In Trinitarian Theology, Ryan Hemmer
Cathedrals Of The Mind: Theological Method And Speculative Renewal In Trinitarian Theology, Ryan Hemmer
Dissertations (1934 -)
The aim of this work is twofold. First, it labors to retrieve from the past a normative account of speculative theological method, in protest of the anti-speculative fashions and attitudes that have prevailed among theologians since the Second Vatican Council. Second, and in tension with the first aim, this study outlines the respects in which conciliar and post-conciliar developments in history, anthropology, philosophy, and cultural analysis—the same developments that led to speculative theology’s fall from favor—are the means by which speculative theology might be renewed and made useful in theology today. The second chapter squares up to speculative theology’s critics …
Original Free Will Baptist Clergy Role Stress: A Definition And Its Emotional Consequences, Dustin R. Bannister
Original Free Will Baptist Clergy Role Stress: A Definition And Its Emotional Consequences, Dustin R. Bannister
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The role of a clergyperson is often understood as one that creates a connection between the human and the divine, faith and God. However, such a vast role is typically executed in specific ways, such as leading Bible studies, visiting the sick, leading worship, and the act of preaching. At times, such a role demands even more nuanced behaviors based upon the context, population, and time. As this study posited, the problem is that such a multiplicity of clergy expectations inevitably create role stress, as understood through the constructs of role ambiguity and role conflict. In particular, how one might …
Engaging Gen Z: Toward A Paracletic Leadership Framework, Demario Hood
Engaging Gen Z: Toward A Paracletic Leadership Framework, Demario Hood
Doctor of Ministry
Today’s church faces a difficult reality: its effectiveness in reaching Generation Z is declining, while prospects of the group’s disaffiliation from the church are rising. In proposing a framework for effective engagement with Generation Z in a post-Christian, postmodern context, this dissertation argues that the generation’s desire for relational and identity-transforming leadership renders current growth- and success-driven leadership models ineffective and invites a new, theologically based, actionable/practical paracletic leadership paradigm.
Chapter 1 outlines the challenges and opportunities facing leaders where Gen Z is concerned. Chapter 2 examines Gen Z’s identity as revealed in its spiritual and social cultures and its …
Education, Religious Experience, And Conversion : On Pedagogy And The Possibility Of Critical Communities Of Religious Praxis, Yu-Ming Stanley Goh
Education, Religious Experience, And Conversion : On Pedagogy And The Possibility Of Critical Communities Of Religious Praxis, Yu-Ming Stanley Goh
Jesuit School of Theology Dissertations
Religious experience and conversion, terms associated more with religion than with education, have the potential to transform the way we approach teaching and learning, bringing the transcendental reality of our lives to the fore as we seek to understand the world and ourselves. This thesis will argue for the significance, relevance and use of religious experience as pedagogical category and will suggest that the formation of what I term Critical Communities of Religious Praxis as means of fostering conversion towards religious experience can be an effective means of incorporating both into classroom processes. Critical Communities of Religious Praxis are learning …
Living A Good Death Or Dying For A Life Well Lived: Theological Understanding And Pastoral Applications On Issues Regarding Death And Afterlife Issues Among Vietnamese-American Catholics, Tuan Ngo
Jesuit School of Theology Dissertations
In this thesis, I contend that living a good death demands dying for a life well-examined and well-lived. I will approach this study from the historical, theological, and interreligious perspective. Historically, I will examine how the traditional Vietnamese understanding of life after death and its relationship with loved ones is influenced by Buddhist and Confucian elements. Theologically, I will analyze how life after death is understood through Christian history. As noted above, theologically I will make specific use of St. Francis de Sales’ attachment to “Jesus Christ crucified”.
Why We Fail To Enact The Change We Need: A Framework For Adaptive Change At Large Churches, Beau J. Johnson
Why We Fail To Enact The Change We Need: A Framework For Adaptive Change At Large Churches, Beau J. Johnson
Doctor of Ministry
It is difficult for leaders at large churches to make changes to their ministry models. As culture rapidly evolves, large, attractional churches look to adapt their approach to reaching the unchurched. Attendance and participation in large churches continues to decline, despite the breadth of suggestions for what and how to change. These suggestions for change are often top-down, leader-centric, and rarely grounded in the academic research about change management. This paper seeks to address a comprehensive model for leading adaptive changes at large, established churches. Chapter One describes the problem, describing trends in cultural change and the impact on church …
Digital Occult Library, Alexis Brandkamp
Digital Occult Library, Alexis Brandkamp
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
This capstone project is a website, titled Digital Occult Library, hosted by the CUNY Commons and built with WordPress. The site address is:
digitaloccultlibrary.commons.gc.cuny.edu
It features (in this iteration) twenty-five unique pages with information on and discussion of occult and esoteric topics. It also hosts a forum that can be accessed and utilized by anyone, not just those registered on the Commons. The purpose of the site is to inform three types of interested parties on the highlighted topics: a general audience with no current knowledge of the occult, practitioners of esoteric traditions, and academics. Not only is the …
Landscape And Lore: River Acheron And The Oracle Of The Dead, Lashante St. Fleur
Landscape And Lore: River Acheron And The Oracle Of The Dead, Lashante St. Fleur
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
In order to explore the cultural relationships between people, landscape, memory and ritual, this master’s thesis focuses on the Acheron River in Epirus, Greece, long believed to harbor an entrance into Hades, the Greek underworld. Various entrances into the chthonic, or subterranean land of the dead, are peppered throughout Greece, with each tied to their own local myths, legends, folklore and cults. According to those traditions, Hades could be accessed from several terrestrial rivers thought to be connected to Oceanus, the primordial world-encompassing river surrounding all of creation. Flowing forth from River Ocean were all above- and underground rivers and …