Ethics in Religion Commons^™

Spiritual Struggle And Gregory Of Nyssa’S Theory Of Perpetual Ascent: An Orthodox Christian Virtue Ethic, Stephen M. Meawad

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This project utilizes virtue ethics as an especially suitable lens by which to develop an Orthodox Christian ethical model generally. At the same time, virtue ethics carries with it some complexities that are in turn mitigated by the particulars of this Orthodox model—spiritual struggle and perpetual progress, or epektasis. Spiritual struggle in this project, which ultimately shifts the emphasis from virtue’s acquisition to its pursuit, is defined as the exertion of effort in all conceivable dimensions—physical, emotional, psychological, intellectual, and spiritual—with intent to attain a semblance of, knowledge of, and intimacy with Jesus Christ in community, for God …

Unpresentable Members: The Theology And Radical Phenomenology Of The Sexual Flesh, Justin Pearl

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Unpresentable Members begins with a wager: that a proper account of the flesh and its sexual character may not only prove philosophically fertile within its own limited domain, but may also provide insight into the theological question of the proper role and place of gender and sexual difference within communities, particularly Christian religious communities. In this regard, this dissertation has two distinct goals: one phenomenological and one theological. Phenomenologically, it offers an account of the manifestation of concrete sexual determinations not only as they objectively appear across the “body-object” (Körper, le corps) but with equal importance as …

Ideas To Disrupt: A Theology Of Ministry, Cindy Gonzalez

Obsculta

A theology for ministry grounded on the call towards Woman Wisdom found in the Old Testament. Wisdom, in accordance to the book of Proverbs, leads the faithful closer to God. This theology of ministry makes a case for how only Wisdom may lead the faithful towards recognition of the need for radical inclusion in a world where social injustice continues to prevail.

Monks And The Church’S Obligation For The Poor, Toan Phan

Obsculta

Examining aspects of contemplative life as a Cistercian monk, this paper looks at the intersection of the Rule of St. Benedict and raises the question of its compatibility and implications with Catholic Social Teachings focused on the Church’s teachings on maintaining a ‘preferential option for the poor.’

Who Shall Be Welcome In God’S Tent: Disrupting The Liturgical Legacies Of White Supremacy To Promote The Flourishing Of The Body Of Christ, Andrew Remick

Obsculta

No abstract provided.

Solidarity And Suffering: Liberation Christology From Black And Womanist Perspectives, Kelsi Watters

Obsculta

As an individual without sight, the author is committed to radical acceptance of and liberation for marginalized groups, as well as a commitment to deep solidarity with womanist theology. This piece focuses on a God whom we know, and love is actively, sacramentally, eternally present in Jesus Christ, whose self-emptying reflects radical solidarity with the oppressed. The author seeks to bring to light a Christological perspective that identifies with the marginalized Jesus – namely, black and womanist liberation theology. Black theology centralizes Jesus as Liberator of the oppressed. It is only in solidarity with the oppressed that we will ourselves …

From Accusation To Execution: A Case Study, Sophie Abber

Keck Undergraduate Humanities Research Fellows

This project centers on the question: how are dynamics present in the Salem Witch Trials related to contemporary religious issues surrounding gender and agency? An existential approach to studying the Salem Witch Trials is used, highlighting themes like agency and intersubjectivity to create a new understanding of these events (Jackson 2002; Arendt 1962). Not only has this not been done in previous scholarship, but existential analysis opens the door to making connections between the Salem Witch Trials and modern times. Women today are still constrained by social and religious norms and motivated by existential needs and questions. This will be …

Quaker Virtue Ethics: Religious Life Without Creeds, Dave Nagaji

Senior Theses

Beliefs are conventionally understood to guide people’s actions. Put another way, the actions which people take are understood to be products of what they believe. However, these claims are challenged by the fact that many Quakers hold that they do not have a creed. This feature of Quakerism creates a tension with the theory that actions must follow from beliefs. That tension prompts a question: How can Quakers make ethical decisions in a clear and decisive manner when they lack a creed? The answer to such a question is significant for two reasons. First, it provides insights into the specific …

Paper: Investigating The Work Of William Styron: The Perpetuation Of The Fantastic Hegemonic Imagination, William Sikich

Womanist Ethics

William Styron's Confessions of Nat Turner depicts a fictitious characterization of the historical Nat Turner. Styron, a white southerner, assumes Turner's perspective in order to tell a speculative story about his slave rebellion of 1831. Similarly, he tells the story of a fictional holocaust survivor in his novel, Sophie's Choice. The decision to take on these perspective evinces some arrogance on Styron's part, and the way in which he executes the narrative of each novel delivers their stories with varying levels of respect to their subjects: Styron's indirect telling of Sophie's story allows Styron some freedom to speculate, while …

Potentials, Actuals, And The Logical Problem Of Evil, Stephen Thomas Irby

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

J.L. Schellenberg has recently formulated a new logical problem of evil that is claimed to avoid Alvin Plantinga’s Free Will Defence. I begin my argument against this new formulation by analyzing the grounding for some of God’s maximal perfections. God’s maximal moral perfection, for example, is grounded in virtuous potentialities that are disposed to the actualization of virtuous actions. From this account, I argue that Schellenberg’s logical problem of evil fails due to one of the following two reasons. First, some good actualizations of good potentialities require evil but compose the best worlds. Second, both (1) good actualizations that require …

John's "Embryonic Stem Cell Research: Re-Explored Considering Scientific, Philosophical And Theological Understanding Of Human Life" (Book Review), Joseph Baumstarck Jr.

The Christian Librarian

No abstract provided.

Tarvainen's "Faith And Love In Ignatius Of Antioch" (Book Review), Paul Hartog

The Christian Librarian

No abstract provided.

Powe And Jacksons' "E. Stanley Jones & Sharing The Good News In A Pluralistic Society" (Book Review), Jaclyn Lee Parrott

The Christian Librarian

No abstract provided.

The Moral Argument, Existential Problems Of Evil, And A Non-Existential Alternative, Jonathan Smith

Senior Honors Theses

Within this paper, it is shown that certain ethical assumptions are implicit within the claim that certain kinds of evil exist. When taken in tandem with the moral argument for the existence of God, these assumptions can be arranged in such a way as to provide a contradiction. To avoid this contradiction, I posit a non-existential alternative to direct inductive arguments from evil, but the non-existential alternative gives rise to novel objections. When considering their respective ethical implications, both the existential and non-existential variations of direct inductive arguments fail. Since any direct inductive problem of evil must be either existential …

Introduction To Journal Of Moral Theology V.8 Special Issue #1, James F. Keenan, Matthew J. Gaudet

General Engineering

The overarching goal of this volume is to attend to the reality of contingency today in light of pertinent Catholic teachings on education, social structures, and economic justice. The essays in this volume will proceed in three parts. Part I is a single essay offered by Keenan that situates the issue of contingency within the broader field of university ethics. The task of Part II is to examine the intricate details and facets of the main subject. To this end, the five authors in this section each offer a snapshot of one of the most glaring concerns regarding contingency today …

Toward An Inclusive Faculty Community, Matthew J. Gaudet

General Engineering

Today nearly three quarters of all college professors work off of the tenure-track, and thus exist in a university structure that was not constructed with them in mind, does not take them seriously, and, ultimately, offers them little more than the most tenuous and temporary of connections. This is hardly the model of a Christian community that the Catholic university aspires to be. Thus, this paper first seeks to unpack the historical legacy of the past four decades of contingent faculty growth, and then, offers a response by drawing upon Catholic Social Teaching and Christian scripture to inform a new …

Theravāda “Missionary Activity”: Exploring The Secular Features Of Socio-Politics And Ethics, Christopher Scott Brugh

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this thesis is to comprehensively explore Theravāda missionary activity. The philological, textual, theoretical, and ethnographic methods used to investigate the historical, sociopolitical, religious, and ethical aspects of early Theravāda, the U.S. Vipassanā (Insight) meditation movement, and modern Burmese Theravāda revealed nuanced meanings in the descriptions of these adherents’ endeavors with respect to proselytizing, converting, and the concept of missionary religions. By exploring the secular features that contributed to their religious appearances, a more developed contextualization of Theravāda “activity” reshapes understandings of the larger concept of missionary religions. I argue that what has been maintained in the establishment …

Calvin Theological Journal (Vol 54 No 1 - April 2019), Calvin Theological Seminary

Calvin Theological Journal

From the Editor: Karin Maag - 9 / Articles: From Glory to Glory: 2 Corinthians 3:18 in Biblical-Theological Perspective by Dane C. Ortlund - 11 / The Grammar of Revival: The Legacy of Jonathan Edwards’s Teleological Language in Religious Affections (1746) by Obbie Tyler Todd - 35 / Religious Freedom and the Pancasila-Based State of Indonesia: A Neo-Calvinist Idea of Principled Pluralism by Benyamin F. Intan - 57 / Reprioritizing the Lord’s Supper among the Reformed by Jelmer Heeren and Maarten Wisse - 91 / Sermon: “A Sure Sign”—A Sermon on 1 Corinthians 11:17–34 and Exodus 24:1–11 by David Vroege …

Give Name To The Nameless So It Can Be Thought, Lalini Shanela Ranaraja

Audre Lorde Prize

No abstract provided.

Pastors And Politics: Considerations For Missional Church Leaders Addressing Political Matters, Matthew Stinson

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

We live in a politically divided time. Long-standing questions about the political role of the church have taken on a renewed interest for American Christians who see this political divide widening and have trouble reconciling their beliefs with the platforms of either major party. How ought Church leaders, seeking to lead missional congregations, speak to our current political context?

This paper lays out a framework for political engagement by missional Church leaders. It first offers a definition of a missional church and a missional church leader. Second, it surveys some of the various approaches to Church and State relations in …