Digital Commons Network^™

Full Issue Salubritas, Editors Salubritas

Salubritas: International Journal of Spirit-Empowered Counseling

No abstract provided.

Reason And All My Senses: Surveying The Post Enlightenment Frame Of Reason Through Contemporary Philosophy, Cognitive Psychology, And Cognitive Linguistics, Joshua T. Lowe Rev. Dr.

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

This dissertation argues that Christian theology and practice are aided and enriched by a more complete understanding of reason by surveying recent studies and views in theology, philosophy, cognitive psychology, and cognitive linguistics. Since the Enlightenment, Christian theology has assumed widely the Enlightenment model of human reason as ideally acontextual, that is, free from constraints of contexts, and therefore universal, that is, applicable in all contexts. Recent developments from a variety of perspectives challenge this model of rationality. Some challenge the acontextualism of the Enlightenment understanding by showing how it arose from and depends on a context, and that context …

Capturing The Intersection Of Black-American, Muslim Males And Education: Exploring Their Attitudes, Perceptions, And Lived Experiences Within An Islamic Consciousness, Kirk A. Talib-Deen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This dissertation explored the lived realities of Black-American, Muslim males and their attitudes, perceptions, histories, and endurances toward higher learning in America. It attempted to join and contribute to the more significant, historical, and extant conversations and literature on Black-American males and education, as well as their successes and failures. This dissertation adds to the dearth of literature on the intersection of Black-American, Muslim males, and education, and using jazz as an epistemological way of navigating and organizing the content, the research works to uncover, locate, and define an Islamic consciousness. While negating racist histories concomitant with the American narrative …

Sacral Glitch, Kareena Naresh Solanki

Masters Theses, 2020-current

Growing up in a multifaith environment in Mumbai, I witnessed many religious sites and people with diverse beliefs. My parents always remained open-minded to other faiths, and my house remained replete with idols of deities of different religions. I studied Nichiren Buddhism, particularly the Lotus Sutra, as my mother began practising it along with her faith in Hinduism. Philosophical studies became a part of my life at the age of nine. Catholic prayers turned into rituals in my convent school days, and Islamic prayers resonated from afar. I often reflect on the influence of multiple religions in shaping my approach …

The Only Thriller J.R.R. Tolkien (Never) Wrote: Jungian Shapes Of Evil In “The New Shadow”, Martin Hauberg-Lund Laugesen, Bo Kampmann Walther

Journal of Tolkien Research

J.R.R. Tolkien's The New Shadow, a fragment set in the Fourth Age of Middle-earth, offers a rich but often overlooked exploration of the psychological and cultural implications of peace following the defeat of Sauron. Although Tolkien abandoned the project, dismissing it as a mere “thriller”, the text presents significant insights into the dynamics of generational conflict, the origins of Evil, and the moral challenges of a post-heroic world. This paper examines The New Shadow through a dual lens: first, by contextualizing Tolkien’s depiction of good and evil within Christian ethical frameworks, and second, by applying Carl Gustav Jung’s psychological …

The Contribution Of Catholic Compromise Principles In Global Health, Scott N. Helstad

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Roman Catholic tradition has developed comprehensive ethical principles to address complex practical scenarios that encounter foundational value compromises. These are referred to as compromise principles and they have both a narrow and a broad focus. Narrowly, these compromise principles are critical for Catholic healthcare organizations in the United States with regard to the guidelines of the US Bishops in their Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services. More broadly, these compromise principles are relevant in the secular realm regarding global health. This dissertation examines these varying perspectives, hence its title, “The Contribution of Catholic Compromise Principles …

Hospital Organizations’ Obligation To Promote Spiritual Well-Being Among Nurses: Development Of A Normative Ethical Argument, Michael Jordan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation presents an innovative strategy to promote the support of nurses' spirituality within hospital organizations. By focusing on the spiritual well-being of nurses by hospital organizations, with a natural extension into nursing schools, the approach aims to enhance nurse’s ability to protect their own spirituality, provide comprehensive spiritual care to patients, and increase nurse moral resilience. By investing in nurses' spirituality and spiritual growth, hospitals can potentially increase job satisfaction among nursing staff, improve patient care outcomes, and create a more holistic healing environment for both nurses and patients. As the nursing shortage continues and the number of nurses …

The Ethical Imperative Of The Renewal Of Virtue Within The Moral Community Of Catholic Healthcare, Amanda Altobell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Catholic healthcare is one of the largest nonprofit organizations and providers in the United States, offering medical care to many diverse communities. The fundamental mission of Catholic healthcare is to bring about Christ’s healing ministry and live out the fundamental principle of caring for the vulnerable in pursuit of the common good. However, there have been many missteps, not only due to a more polarized and secular community but also to scandals and conflict due to previous hierarchical and rules-based anthropology that often misses the person's lived experience. Therefore, this dissertation will argue that for Catholic healthcare to survive the …

C. S. Lewis And The Process Of Sanctification: A Literary Analysis Of Till We Have Faces, Samantha Fullmer

Student Research

This article analyzes C. S. Lewis’s Till We Have Faces as a mythical representation of the Christian process of sanctification. Through the main character, Orual, and her transformation, Lewis portrays the Christian journey from pride to love through submission to divine intervention. This tale reveals how pride and self-deception can prevent humanity from recognizing the truth of the Divine. Orual’s story illustrates that the barriers between humanity and the Divine often come placed there by humanity themselves. By examining the process of transforming from hubris to love through sanctification, and by comparing this narrative to other works by Lewis, such …

Religious Trauma Healing Through Expressive Arts Therapy: A Literature Review, Abigail S. Whitman

Expressive Therapies Theses

This literature review discusses religion, spirituality, religious trauma, and mental health treatment through expressive arts therapy. The research highlights a prevalence of religious trauma within adults in the United States and a need for mental health care targeted toward the complexities of religious harm. Expressive arts therapy is an evidence-based and trauma-informed method of treating religious trauma. A somatic and well-rounded approach to processing religious trauma promotes self-regulation, building confidence, and finding affirming community. This research also outlines the interconnected systems of power that harm marginalized communities through religion: capitalism, white supremacy, and the patriarchy. Lastly, the literature review discusses …

Shepherds Of Loss: Religion And Grief In The Shenandoah Valley, Ewan Benjamin

Honors Projects

This study explores the relationship between faith leaders and religious communities with the human experience of grief, death, and loss. Inspired by the researcher's own experience, this paper argues that the United States has a generally uncomfortable relationship with death and hypothesizes that religious traditions can serve to assist with grief in a positive way. After interviewing six religious leaders in the Shenandoah Valley, two themes arose: the mystery of death and the concept of "making space" for the grieving, dying, and dead. In the paper's conclusion, the faith leaders make known their own concerns with death in the United …

Realistik Heaven, Alexa H. Senan

Theses and Dissertations

“Realistik Heaven” processes the traumas, forced transformations and the cannibalization of womanhood and culture as a result of colonization. Inspired by Oswald de Andrade’s Cannibalist Manifesto, Senan writes to evoke the literal meaning of Andrade’s description of the cannibalization of culture and having to become someone new cannibalizing themselves while still longing for the remains of the past.

Displaced Nostalgia, Nava Derakhshani

Theses and Dissertations

Exploring themes of identity, displacement, gender, and belonging, this paper examines the artist's work and her approach to her art. She covers the many influences that she has access to while unable to visit her ancestral homelands. Acknowledging the translation that comes from this removal, her art is in conversation with other diasporic, exiled, marginalised groups. She makes art with various materials such as clay, shadow, light, and paint, to work on the themes that she is pursuing.

Inherited Fervor: Maternal Archive, Maria Angela Talavera Tejeda

Theses and Dissertations

Inherited Fervor: Maternal Archive investigates the deconstruction of the non-verbal language of Catholic ecstasy rituals to develop a choreographic language. Through the piece Doves Don’t Fly at Night, it explores the expansion of dancers’ physical range, positioning the body as an archive that embodies memories and mirrors the audience’s humanity.

Raised Spirits The Visceral Journey Of Black Generational Female Trauma And The Transcendent Healing Power Of Spiritual Dance, Wendy Ann Powell

Theses and Dissertations

Black female bodies have endured sustained trauma globally since the transatlantic slave trade, and it continues into 2025. The collective consciousness has carried the generational burden and mobilized it within the womb. Powell uses this intergenerational knowledge to frame the basis for spiritual dance practices as a healing praxis.

Voice As Dual Striving: Spiritual Resonance And Psychological Negotiation In South Indian Musical Practices, Ramya Thiyagarajan

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the intricate dynamics of voice within South Indian musical traditions, examining it as both a spiritual medium resonating with the divine concept of Nāda-Brahman and a psychological instrument navigating modernity, identity, and cultural hybridity. Employing the Self-Rasa-Chakra framework, derived from Upanishadic and tantric philosophies, alongside autoethnographic narratives and case studies, it investigates how the voice serves as a site of striving. Through an interdisciplinary lens combining ethnomusicology, psychoanalysis, and sound studies, this research delves into the paradox of voice: its role in sacred surrender within Carnatic music, juxtaposed against its individualistic expression in contemporary independent music. Case …

Rhetoric Of Freedom: The Black Church And Jamal Bryant’S Sermon “Am I Ever Going To Get Out Of This?”, Konysha Wade

Sermon Studies

Homiletics is a branch of rhetoric and religion that is defined as the art of preaching. All too common in fields of academia, including Homiletics, is a lack of inclusivity of African Americans. This paper will extend research that integrates and further centralizes African American homiletics, focusing on the notion of freedom in Dr. Jamal Bryant’s sermon “Am I Ever Going to Get Out of This?”

A Case For Homiletical Aesthetics: The Adorned Rhetoric Of Martin Luther King Jr., Timothy Y. Rhee

Sermon Studies

Despite the growing support of aesthetics within the field of homiletics, undercurrents of suspicion remain, particularly in Western evangelical settings. The reasons for this suspicion are far-reaching, ranging from theological concerns to unmerited fears regarding the handling of Scripture. Given this background, the adorned rhetoric of Martin Luther King Jr. provides a compelling case study for the indispensability of homiletical aesthetics. This study briefly overviews King’s use of artful rhetoric, exploring its origins and sociotheological factors that compelled beauty and adornment in the pulpit. This paper will argue that aesthetics in Christian preaching should be considered essential, especially when addressing …

A Sacrifice On The Altar Of Unity: The Loss Of Black Identity In The Unification Of Kynett And Lagrange First Umc., Rebecca Sue Wishnevski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the 1996 merger of Kynett United Methodist Church, a historically Black church, and LaGrange First United Methodist Church, a traditionally White church in LaGrange, Kentucky. The study provides insight into nonurban Black churches, showing that while they may have smaller congregations in smaller towns, the Black church remains central to Black life and connection like its urban contemporaries. Methods for collecting primary source material relied heavily on oral histories performed by the researcher with Black and White individuals attending said churches and their experiences during the merger. The study reveals that although unification promised a modern building …

The Securing Of Divine Attachment: The Role Of Intergenerational Sharing In Attachment-Oriented Discipleship In Youth Ministry, Kristina Freed

Journal of Adventist Youth and Young Adult Ministries

Divine attachment styles, whether secure or insecure, are strongly influenced by intergenerational interactions and attachments. This paper considers the role of multiple generations on faith transmission with a view toward fostering and securing divine attachment in a way that leads to increased participation in vertical and horizontal discipleship relationships and activities. Specifically addressed are the significance of certain applications of theology and psychology to attachment processes, and how attachment styles and relationships influence faith development. Suggestions for fostering intergenerational ministry within the context of divine attachment relationships are made

Creating A Trauma-Informed Youth Ministry, Rodney Palmer

Journal of Adventist Youth and Young Adult Ministries

Trauma is an event or experience that surpasses an individual’s coping capacity, often manifesting in response to various situations such as abuse, neglect, violence, natural disasters, or loss. Trauma, especially during one’s formative years, can have long-lasting and far-reaching effects on an individual’s physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual well-being. Consequently, it is vital to provide a safe and supportive environment for youth who have experienced such trauma. This article provides a guide on creating a safe space, emphasizing key elements such as being welcoming and non-judgmental, using positive language, setting clear boundaries, promoting autonomy, addressing triggers, and fostering healthy relationships. …

An Exploration In Using Aesthetic Creative Modalities In Professional Supervision, Linda Young

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This project examines the integration of aesthetic and creative modalities into professional supervision, traditionally dominated by conversation-based methods. Drawing on over thirty years of experience in education, ministry, and supervision, it addresses the need for more creative, diverse, expressive, and reflective tools to be used in professional supervision practice. The study proposes a theoretically and theologically grounded curriculum to equip supervisors in postgraduate training with creative approaches that enrich learning, insight, and practice within the evolving landscape of professional supervision in Australia.

How Can The Enneagram Shed Light On Sin And Spiritual Abuse To Bring Healing To The Catholic Church?, Connie Burianek

Religious & Theological Studies Student Work

When critically approached and combined with modern understanding of brain function asymmetry, the Enneagram can shed much-needed light on how humanity attempts to evade a unique and intimate relationship with God through forms of self-deception, personally and collectively, regarding sins and virtues. The more profound understanding of personal human nature, which results from awareness of this self-deception, can shed light on the paradoxical truths of Christianity and what the universal call to holiness means for the world. Without this understanding, Christianity is often reduced to an ideology unable to match the challenges and realities of our modern world. This narrow …

Culturally Concordant Dbt Steps-A Intervention In Orthodox Jewish Schools, Arielle Hershkovich-Elgavi

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Existent research indicates that Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is an efficacious treatment for mental health issues in many adult and adolescent populations, yet there is little research on the effect of DBT on culturally diverse, underserved populations (Mercado, & Hinojosa, 2017). Orthodox Jews are a culturally diverse, understudied, and underserved population (Schnall et al., 2014), that contends with strong stigmas against mental health treatment (Gearing et al., 2022). Orthodox Jewish community teachings are governed by religious values and precepts with a resistance to secular influence (Freund & Band-Winterstein, 2017). The social-emotional learning that is occasionally taught in some community schools …

Sociological Understandings Of Entrepreneurial Action And Intention, Jeffrey Cavanaugh

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Entrepreneurship as a trend has emerged across many different disciplines, drawing on theory from psychology, economics, and sociology. Importantly, sociologic aspects of entrepreneurship remain hidden from scholarship, as existing topics are often vague or narrowly partitioned. In my dissertation, I utilize sociological understandings of human interactions which define entrepreneurial intention and action. Specifically, I explore how entrepreneurs’ religion, rurality, and social media use influences their behaviors. Throughout these three quantitative essays, I contribute to a better understanding of the social psychology of entrepreneurship, and why entrepreneurial pursuits are so intricately linked to every aspect of society. Throughout my research, which …

Presence Through Absence: The Ark Of The Covenant And The Aniconic Image Of God In Early Israelite Religious Art, Natalie Rivas

Theses

This thesis investigates the Ark of the Covenant as a paradoxical visual and theological artifact within early Israelite religious art. While the Israelite tradition has long been characterized as aniconic (eschewing anthropomorphic representations of the divine) the Ark occupied a central role in ritual, worship, and religious identity. Prior scholarship has focused either on the Ark’s narrative function in biblical texts or its formal attributes as a cultic object. However, limited attention has been given to how the Ark embodies divine presence through the visual strategy of absence. This study argues that the Ark does not merely avoid figural representation …

Populism And Religious Rhetoric In Spain's Right-Wing Vox Party, Ainsley Taylor

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

This thesis examines the intersection of populism and religious rhetoric in Spain’s right-wing political party, Vox. By analyzing Facebook posts from Vox’s national and regional accounts in the months leading up to the 2019 and 2023 national elections, as well as key regional elections in Andalusia and Cantabria, this study explores how the party strategically employs religious themes to shape its populist discourse. The findings indicate that Vox primarily uses religious rhetoric to construct an exclusive national identity, framing perceived external threats such as immigration, secularism, and leftist politics. While the party's use of religious rhetoric declined slightly between 2019 …

Reclaiming The Body: A Womanist Bioethics Approach To Christian Authoritarianism, Laron Bryant Dowdell

Yale Divinity School Theses

This paper uses womanist bioethics as a theoretical lens to explore how authoritarian leadership practices violate Black women's well-being and autonomy. Womanist bioethics uniquely centers Black women's lived experiences, integrating spiritual, historical, and social dimensions of justice that mainstream bioethics often ignores. The womanist bioethics framework is applied to critique religious authoritarianism and to propose alternative leadership models rooted in shared leadership and communal accountability. The discussion unfolds in four parts: (1) how womanist bioethics critiques the bodily and moral harm authoritarian leadership inflicts on Black women, (2) testimonials of Black women who resisted high-control church systems, (3) an exploration …

Divine Ecstasy And Erotic Submission: Pauline Réage’S Story Of O And The Medieval Mysticism Of Mechthild Of Magdeburg And Margery Kempe, Lauren A. Crawford

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the thematic and conceptual intersections between Pauline Réage’s Story of O and the medieval mystical writings of Mechthild of Magdeburg and Margery Kempe, focusing on the intertwined dynamics of divine ecstasy and erotic submission. By analyzing the textual representations of bodily suffering, erotic desire, and female submission, this study argues that Story of O—a modern work of literary erotica—engages with a mystical-erotic tradition that echoes the visions and devotional experiences of medieval women mystics. Through close readings, this project examines how both Réage’s protagonist and medieval mystics navigate the paradox of submission as a pathway to …

La Contextualización De Las Misiones Cristianas En Quito, Ecuador: Celebrar La Cultura Al Comunicar La Verdad, Sarah Huneycutt

Senior Honors Theses

Sin un conocimiento adecuado de cómo contextualizar su ministerio en contextos culturales únicos, los misioneros no podrán honrar a la gente local, llegar a sus corazones e invitar a todas naciones a la meta unida de glorificar a Dios. Aunque bien existen muchos recursos sobre regiones amplias o aun continentales, pocos existen que ofrezcan una comprensión de comunidades específicas. Para rellenar este vacío, la investigación actual intentó recopilar información sobre una región especifica—Quito, Ecuador—y examinar las implicaciones para misiones cristianas actuales en Quito.

Para contestar estas preguntas, se realizó un estudio etnográfico cualitativo mientras que la investigadora vivía en Quito. …