Dissertations / Theses: 'Social sciences -> religion -> christianity'

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Alexandersson, Mikaela, and Josephine Henrohn. "Från religiös undervisning till religionsundervisning. : En historisk jämförelse om religionernas framställning i läroplaner och läromedel mellan år 1969 och 2011." Thesis, Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för kulturvetenskaper (KV), 2019. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-85354.

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The aim of the study is to investigate the presentation of Christianity in relation to the other world religions in curricula and teaching materials from 1969 and 2011, as well as to investigate what influenced the development of these from previous researches. From a comparative method and self-formulated analytical categories, the results have been analyzed. As far as the curricula are concerned, it emerged that Christianity has had and still have a special position towards other world religions. As far as the teaching materials are concerned, a clear difference emerged as to which perspective it is based on. In the teaching material from year 1969, the non-Christian religions are highlighted as something strange and odd at the same time as in the teaching medium from 2011 they are highlighted neutral. Christianity is still a starting point in both curricula and teaching materials. The reason why curricula and teaching materials look like they do can, according to the study, be a result of the increased migration in the country but also a result of the religious freedom law. The school faces a dilemma where the school on the one hand will be based on Christian traditions and on the other hand be factual and impartial. The question we ask after our analysis is what really is the most important - to ensure the best of the country and the cultural heritage or to take into consideration the different cultural heritage of the students. Conclusions from our study are that other religions have gained more space in today's curriculum and teaching materials than before. It is also more neutrally formulated, however, it is a long way to go to a non-confessional education in religious knowledge. We stand with one foot in tradition and one foot in the renewal and are about to take a step over to the last one.

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Olsén, Anna. "Religionsundervisning eller religiös undervisning? : En undersökning av kristendomens plats i religionskunskapen utifrån läromedel." Thesis, Kristianstad University, School of Teacher Education, 2010. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hkr:diva-6691.

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I den här uppsatsen kommer jag att undersöka vilken roll kristendomen innehar i religionskunskapen, jämfört med de andra världsreligionerna. Jag kommer att utgå från hermeneutiken för att tolka olika aspekter i tre olika läroböcker som används i religionskunskapsundervisning idag. Jag kommer först att titta på kristendomens inflytande över läroplanen från tidigt 1800-tal. Efter detta går jag igenom innehållet i de tre läroböckerna innan jag diskuterar resultaten. I en jämförelse där jag tittar på textomfång, urval av information konstaterar jag att kristendomen framställs annorlunda jämfört med de andra religioner. Vissa uttryck liksom urval och komplexitet i framställningen antyder att kristendomen värderas högre än övriga världsreligioner i de utvalda läroböckerna.

In this essay I will investigate what role Christianity plays in religious studies, compared to other world religions. I will use hermeneutics to interpret different aspects of three textbooks, used in religious studies today. I will look at the Christian influence in the curriculum, dating back to the early 1800’s. After this I describe and summarize the textbooks’ main content, before I discuss my results. When comparing the volume and selection of information about Christianity versus other religions, I find that in the textbooks Christianity is portrayed somewhat different. Some expressions, as well as the selections of information and grades of complexity, implies that Christianity is valued higher than the other world religions in the selected textbooks.

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Harris, Margaret. "The work and organisation of local churches and synagogues : four English congregations in the 1990s." Thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London), 1994. http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/101/.

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This thesis is about the work and organisation of local religious congregations in England. It focuses on the congregation of two religions- Christianity and Judaism; that is, on 'churches' and 'synagogues'. In Chapter One, the study is positioned within the academic field of social policy and administration. Chapters Two, Three and Four review literature on the historical and societal context within which churches and synagogues operate, the role of religious functionaries and organisational features of congregations. Four organisational themes cutting across denominational and religious boundaries are identified: purposes and goals; roles and role relationships; organisational change; and denominational institutions. Chapter Five develops an approach for an empirical study and gives an account of fieldwork in an inner-city Roman Catholic church; a black-led Pentecostal church in an industrial town; an Anglican church on a housing estate; and a suburban Reform synagogue. Organisational features of the four case congregations are presented in Chapter Six. In the following four chapters the organisational issues which arise in the Congregations are described and analysed. Chapter Seven presents the perceived Issues in congregations around setting and implementing goals. Chapter Eight looks at clerical roles and Chapter Nine at the roles of lay employees and volunteers. Chapter Ten discusses organisational change, the links between congregations and their denominational institutions, and organisational structures. Finally, in Chapter Eleven, the study findings are drawn together and re-examined in the light of the earlier literature. The way in which the case studies elucidate and develop knowledge about the work and organisation of congregations is discussed. It is suggested that further progress towards the development of theory on congregation organisation could be made by conceptualising congregations as voluntary organisations.

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Clines, Jeremy Mark Sebastian. "Earthing common worship : an ecotheological critique of the Common Worship texts of the Church of England." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2011. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/2838/.

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This thesis undertakes an interdisciplinary analysis of new Church of England liturgies (Common Worship) from an ecotheological point of view: making use of reader response theory, literary analysis, a social scientific survey, liberation theology, environmental and political ethics and liturgical theology. Chapter 1 considers the theological, political and sociological influences on liturgical reform, which include, inculturation, the expression of ethics in the prayer of the Church, liberation theologies, technology, and agrarianism. Chapter 2 considers methods of liturgical change and the scope for making creation visible in liturgy. Chapter 3 finds justification in reader response theory for determining ecotheological priorities for critiquing liturgy. Analysis of Common Worship texts occurs: in Chapter 4, using literary analysis; in Chapter 5 via social scientific survey of clergy using Common Worship; Chapter 6 looks in details at Collects and Post Communions and undertakes an ecotheological rewriting of 9 sample texts. Chapter 7 identifies lessons for liturgical revision in general and for eco-liturgical reform in particular, paying particular attention to the dissonant creation theologies unearthed in Common Worship, the necessity for future revisions, and the importance and implication of technological change for liturgical writers and commentators.

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Stuart-Buttle, Tim. "Classicism, Christianity and Ciceronian academic scepticism from Locke to Hume, c.1660-c.1760." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2013. http://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:a181f810-9637-4b70-a147-ea9444a54cd5.

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This study explores the rediscovery and development of a tradition of Ciceronian academic scepticism in British philosophy between c.1660-c.1760. It considers this tradition alongside two others, recently recovered by scholars, which were recognised by contemporaries to offer opposing visions of man, God and the origins of society: the Augustinian-Epicurean, and the neo-Stoic. It presents John Locke, Conyers Middleton and David Hume as the leading figures in the revival of the tradition of academic scepticism. It considers their works in relation to those of Anthony Ashley Cooper, third earl of Shaftesbury, and Bernard Mandeville, whose writings refashioned respectively the neo-Stoic and Augustinian-Epicurean traditions in influential ways. These five individuals explicitly identified themselves with these late Hellenistic philosophical traditions, and sought to contest and redefine conventional estimations of their meaning and significance. This thesis recovers this debate, which illuminates our understanding of the development of the ‘science of man’ in Britain. Cicero was a central figure in Locke’s attempt to explain, against Hobbes, the origins of society and moral consensus independent of political authority. Locke was a theorist of societies, religious and civil. He provided a naturalistic explanation of moral motivation and sociability which, drawing heavily from Cicero, emphasised the importance of men’s concern for the opinions of others. Locke set this within a Christian divine teleology. It was Locke’s theologically-grounded treatment of moral obligation, and his attack on Stoic moral philosophy, that led to Shaftesbury’s attempt to vindicate Stoicism. This was met by Mandeville’s profoundly Epicurean response. The consequences of the neo-Epicurean and neo-Stoic traditions for Christianity were explored by Middleton, who argued that only academic scepticism was consistent with Christian belief. Hume explored the relationship between morality and religion with continual reference to Cicero. He did so, in contrast to Locke or Middleton, to banish entirely moral theology from philosophy.

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Najle, Maxine. "Atheists, devils, and communists cognitive mapping of attitudes and stereotypes of atheists." Honors in the Major Thesis, University of Central Florida, 2012. http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ETH/id/593.

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Negative attitudes towards atheists are hardly a new trend in our society. However, given the pervasiveness of the prejudices and the lack of foundation for them, it seems warranted to explore the underlying elements of these attitudes. Identifying these constitutive elements may help pick apart the different contributing factors and perhaps mitigate or at least understand them in the future. The present study was designed to identify which myths or stereotypes about atheists are most influential in these attitudes. A Lexical Decision Task was utilized to identify which words related to popular stereotypes are most related to the label atheists. The labels Atheists, Christians, and Students were compared to positive words, negatives words, words or interests, neutral words, and non-word strings. Analyses revealed no significant differences among the participants' reaction times in these various comparisons, regardless of religion, level of belief in god, level of spirituality, or being acquainted with atheists. Possible explanations for these results are discussed in this thesis.
B.S.
Bachelors
Sciences
Psychology

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Huffman, David M. "The promise of righteousness : a fantasy theme analysis of the Promise Keepers." Scholarly Commons, 1999. https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/uop_etds/522.

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This thesis investigates the seven promises of the Promise Keepers movement using the rhetorical criticism method of fantasy theme analysis. In order to understand this movement, four research questions guided the study: ( 1) What common themes are embedded in the rhetoric of the Promise Keepers? (2) What is the rhetorical vision promoted by the Promise Keepers movement? (3) What makes the vision of the Promise Keepers movement so persuasive to so many Christian men in America? (4) Based on an examination of the rhetoric of the Promise Keepers movement, what can be ascertained about the motives of the movement?" In order to answer these questions, a rhetorical analysis was conducted on the primary literature of the movement. The analysis indicated that the Promise Keepers are trying to transform America into a Christian nation. The Promise Keepers believe that change can be brought about if men follow the movement's seven promises for Christian living. Through these promises, the movement emphasizes a patriarchal view of men in society. In addition, the analysis of the movement's rhetoric suggests that the Promise Keepers are not interested in political change, but moral change through the lives of individual men.

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Scheidler, Monika. "Interkulturelles Lernen in der Gemeinde : Analysen und Orientierungen zur Katechese unter Bedingungen kultureller Differenz /." Ostfildern : Schwabenverlag, 2002. http://bvbr.bib-bvb.de:8991/F?func=service&doc_library=BVB01&doc_number=009947516&line_number=0001&func_code=DB_RECORDS&service_type=MEDIA.

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Paterson, J. L. C. "Liverpool religion, a bane or a boon? : a social study of religion in Liverpool, 1845-2000." Thesis, University of Liverpool, 2001. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.250629.

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Stenbäck, Tomas. "Swedish Belief and Swedish Tradition : The Role of Religion in Sweden Democrat Nationalism." Thesis, Högskolan i Gävle, Religionsvetenskap, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hig:diva-33345.

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In the context of Western, European, Nordic, and Swedish radical nationalism, this study is an analysis of the various ways the political party the Sweden Democrats talks about religion; primarily about Swedish Evangelical-Lutheran Christianity and the Church of Sweden. The study investigates the party expressions on religion and nationalism, using theoretical models of interpretation, constructed for this specific purpose, out of hermeneutic methodology. The purpose has been to analyse the different functions of the various ways the Sweden Democrats talk about religion, and to investigate how the references to religion legitimize the ideology of nationalism, with the aim to answer the following questions: How do the Sweden Democrats’ talk on religion function as an identity marker? In what way is it possible to distinguish an aspiration for cultural purity in the Sweden Democrats’ talk on religion? Is it possible to distinguish neo-racism in the Sweden Democrats’ talk on religion? In which ways can the Sweden Democrats’ talk on religion be regarded as political strategy? The results demonstrate in which ways the Sweden Democrats apply religion to promote the party perceptions of nationalism, as well as to legitimize the party conceptions of the Swedish nation and the Swedish people: Swedish Christianity and the Church of Sweden are used to identify Swedish culture and to identify contrasting foreign culture. Swedish Christianity is used as the determining factor between the good Swedish people and the bad other people. Swedish Christianity is used as the determining factor between the right Swedish values and the wrong values of the other. Swedish Christian values are used as dividing criteria between the culturally pure Swedish people and the culturally impure other people. The degeneration of the Church of Sweden mirrors the degeneration of the Swedish society. Swedish Christian homogeneity will guarantee security for the Swedish people and the Swedish nation within the Swedish nation-state. Elements of religion and culture sort different peoples into different categories in the hierarchical view of humanity. Swedish Christianity and Swedish culture identify and define the Swedish people as innocent to the current precarious situation of the Swedish nation, and Swedish Christianity and Swedish culture identify and define the people of the other, which is to blame for this situation. The Swedish people is superior, to the non-Swedish people, because of superior Swedish religion and superior Swedish culture. Swedish Christianity is used to promote anti-democratic political positions. Swedish Christianity is used to legitimize coercion and force in the enforcement of Swedishness.

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Scott, John Brian. ""Responding to the social crisis": The Baptist Union of Western Canada and social Christianity, 1908-1922." Thesis, University of Ottawa (Canada), 1989. http://hdl.handle.net/10393/6012.

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Gellrich, Arne L. "...And Reconcile Us With Evil : A Critical Investigation of the Imagery of Good and Evil in Western Religion, Film and Politics." Thesis, Uppsala universitet, Teologiska institutionen, 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-311275.

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With an eye on the current social and political situation in Europe, and with regards to the so-termed refugee crisis, this study aims to map the discourse on assumed good and evil shared among Western cultures, as represented by Sweden, Germany and the United States. The thesis takes its point of departure from essayistic reflections of the philosophical tradition and theological and religious analytical positions respectively. These are then followed by two investigative main chapters, designed along the lines of Norman Fairclough’s approach to critical discourse analysis (CDA). The first of these chapters studies the narratives of good and evil employed in the mainstream cinema of the past ten years in the mentioned countries. The second analysis is made up of three case studies, in turn looking at similar narratives in the campaigns of the two main competitors in the 2016 presidential race, a German protest movement against free trade agreements, and the everyday political communication of Swedish Facebook users. In a final chapter, findings from all four preceding chapters are brought together in an attempt to sketch an image of the congruences and discrepancies of narratives on good and evil in the overall discursive field. The thesis finds that the discursive field shared by the three investigated societies is largely homogenous, with certain imagery permeating all analysed orders of discourse. Many of the reoccurring images are however likely rooted in the human psyche and therefore less dependent on discourse practice. Furthermore, certain principles are agreed upon in theory while not reproduced in social practice. Themes assigned to either good or evil often seem to take on secondary functions next to assumed fixed identities of in- and out-groups. Being a qualitative study, this thesis aims at giving an overview and delivering a base for further investigations rather than providing definitive answers.

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Calvert, Samantha Jane. "Eden's diet : Christianity and vegetarianism 1809-2009." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2013. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/4575/.

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The vegetarian teachings of the Salvation Army, Quakers, the Seventh Day Adventists and other Christian groups have been largely neglected by academics. This study takes a prosopographical approach to the development of modern Christian vegetarianism across a number of Christian vegetarian sects, and some more mainstream traditions, over a period of two centuries. The method allows for important points of similarity and difference to be noted among these groups’ founders and members. This research contributes particularly to radical Christian groups’ place in the vegetarian movement’s modern history. This study demonstrates how and why Christian vegetarianism developed in the nineteenth century and to what extent it influenced the secular vegetarian movement and wider society. It contextualizes nineteenth-century Christian vegetarianism in the wider movement of temperance, and considers why vegetarianism never made inroads into mainstream churches in the way that the temperance movement did. Finally, the study considers the pattern of Christian vegetarianism’s development in four distinct periods (1809-1847, 1848-1889, 1890-1959 and 1960-2009) as well as the many principles and behaviours these sectarian groups shared such as a desire for a return to Eden or the Golden Age, dualism, purity and biblical vegetarianism.

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Lampe, Frederick P. "Right rites, faith and the corporate good Anglican Christianity and social change in Western Kenya /." Related electronic resource: Current Research at SU : database of SU dissertations, recent titles available full text, 2006. http://proquest.umi.com/login?COPT=REJTPTU0NWQmSU5UPTAmVkVSPTI=&clientId=3739.

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Hinze, Wesley Martin Tolbert Charles M. "Social trust, trust in Muslims, and American religion." Waco, Tex. : Baylor University, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/2104/5131.

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Mosse, C. D. F. "Caste, Christianity and Hinduism : A study of social organisation and religion in rural Ramnad." Thesis, University of Oxford, 1986. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.336962.

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Foster, Hiram S. "Functions of Mentoring as Christian Discipleship." Ohio University Honors Tutorial College / OhioLINK, 2014. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ouhonors1402510631.

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Counsell, Fiona Ann. "Domestic religion in seventeenth century English Gentry Households." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2017. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/7875/.

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This research focuses on domestic religion: those activities through which everyday devotion and the worship of God were performed. It encompasses both the daily communal practices of family religion (prayer, psalm singing, catechising and sermon repetition) and the personal devotions of individuals (prayer, mediation and self-examination) in domestic space. It also considers the extraordinary religious practices of preparation for communion, days of fasting and humiliation, and the experience of sickness and death. The textuality of domestic religion is highlighted in a chapter on reading and writing. The published prescriptive advice is related to the reality of lived experience as revealed through the archives of seventeenth century families, most significantly those of the Harleys of Brampton Bryan in Herefordshire. Domestic religion was a highly complex contiguous cycle of enmeshed interrelated practices. The links were not only between domestic practices but also with public worship. A related theme challenges the supposed interiority of Protestant, and more particularly Puritan, piety, as it highlights the sociable nature of domestic religion. Domestic religion provides a useful lens throughout to explore consensus and division in seventeenth century religious politics and culture. The domestic religion was vital in the construction and projection of family identity.

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Naumescu, Vlad. "Modes of religiosity in eastern Christianity : religious processes and social change in Ukraine." Berlin ; Münster Lit, 2007. http://deposit.d-nb.de/cgi-bin/dokserv?id=3063504&prov=M&dokv̲ar=1&doke̲xt=htm.

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Jeremiah, Anderson Harris Mithra. "Lived religion among the rural Paraiyar Christians of South India : an ethnographic study of the social and religious worldviews in Thulasigramam." Thesis, University of Edinburgh, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/1842/5797.

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This thesis seeks to present a study of one particular rural Paraiyar Christian community in Tamil Nadu, focusing on their religious identity and theological expressions. Such people, more commonly known as Dalits, or Untouchables are a largely socially marginalised group living within a dynamic and complex social matrix dominated by the caste system and its social and religious implications. They are heavily reliant on their landlords (the high caste Hindus) for their wages, food, and access to resources. The village has two Paraiyar communities, one of which is Hindu and other Christian, with intermarriage occurring frequently between them. With one exception, all of the thirty-one Christian families in the village were once Hindu Paraiyars before converting to Christianity. The first convert to Christianity was in the beginning of 20th century as the result of the American Arcot Mission. Fieldwork highlighted various tensions and areas of creativity regarding how Paraiyar Christians negotiate their lives within a marginalised and oppressed hierarchical system. Although the study focuses on the Christian community, it can only do so by examining their wider social context, which is dominated by religious and caste structures, ascribed and achieved identity, symbols, ritual, and boundaries. Recent writing within Dalit Theology naturally discusses Paraiyar Christians, but it is a contention of this thesis that much ‘Dalit Theology’ ignores the social, ritual and basis of rural Dalit life and thought, an omission which this thesis redresses. The main body of the thesis is divided in to three parts. The first part presents a review and discussion of written works on missionary encounters with the caste system in the church history of south India, as well as Dalit Theological writings. The second section concentrates on the ethnographic information gathered from eight months’ fieldwork and analysed under four different themes: understanding Paraiyar identity, Yesusami and the religious worldview of Paraiyar Christians, the utilisation of religious symbols and performances to advance social change, and, finally, the reproduction of social hierarchies among Paraiyar Christians. The final section attempts to articulate a relevant theological understanding of Dalit Christology using Gillian Rose’s concept of ‘Broken Middle’. This thesis does not set out to provide a comprehensive ethnography of this Paraiyar Christian community, nor does it propose a completely new theological system. Rather, it attempts to allow for the research subjects themselves to articulate their own perspectives and opinions regarding what it means to be Christians and Paraiyars simultaneously. This work allows for flexibility and volatility between the two identities combined within the Paraiyar Christian community. I argue that this is only made possible by their fluidity, being able to balance their individual and communal religious identities - creatively living in the middle of their multiple belongings.

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Isaksson, Elin, and Petronella Grune. "Klimatfasta: Att avstå för skapelsens skull : En fallstudie av Equmeniakyrkans miljökampanj Klimatfastan." Thesis, Högskolan för lärande och kommunikation, Jönköping University, HLK, Globala studier, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-49423.

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Denna studie är en fallstudie av Equmeniakyrkans kampanj Klimatfastan, där de under 40 dagar uppmanade medarbetare och medlemmar att se över sitt klimatavtryck och göra beteendeförändringar utifrån detta. Tidigare forskning visar att religiösa miljöaktioner skiljer sig från sekulära miljöaktioner gällande metoder, fokus och budskap. Studien ämnaratt undersöka hur Klimatfastan genomfördes, vilka effekter kampanjen hade påmedlemmars miljömedvetna beteende samt vilka svårigheter och framgångsfaktorer som kunde identifieras. För attkunna dra slutsatser utifrån ett bredare perspektiv, undersöktes den nationella organisationen och en lokal församling i Equmeniakyrkan. Materialet som användes för att besvara studiens frågeställningar bestod av tre intervjuer med Equmeniakyrkans personal, en enkät riktad till en lokal församling och ett internt dokument. Resultatet visar att Equmeniakyrkansanvändning av resurser förstärktes genom användning av vad Bomberg och Hague (2018) definierar som andliga resursergenom hela processen. Detta identifierades som en framgångsfaktor för kampanjen. En skillnad mellan den nationella organisationen och den lokala församlingen var möjligheten att förutse och hantera hinder för medlemmarnas deltagande i kampanjen.
This is acase study that examines the UnitingChurch in Sweden ́s (UCS) campaign “Klimatfastan” (Climate Fasting), during which members were encouraged to examine their carbon footprints and make lifestyle changes accordingly for40 days. Previous research shows that religious environmental groups differ from secular groups when it comes to methods, focus areas and messages. The aim of this study was to examine how the Climate Fastingwas implemented, which effects the campaign had on members’ pro-environmental behaviour,and which strengths and weaknesses the campaign had. To be able to draw conclusions based on a wider perspective, the campaign was examined through the lens of the national organisation and a local congregation. The material used to answer the study’s research questions consisted of three interviews with staff at UCS, a survey answered bymembers of a local congregation,and an internal document. The results show that UCS ́s use of resources was enhanced by the use of what Bomberg and Hague (2018) define asspiritual resourcesthroughout the campaign. This was identified as a strength. A difference between the national organisation and the local congregation was the ability to identify and counteract barriers for members’ participation in the campaign.

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Edvardsson, Linda. "Religion som ett maktmedel i USA." Thesis, Kristianstad University College, Department of Behavioural Sciences, 2005. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hkr:diva-3457.

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Religion som ett maktmedel är en aktuell företeelse i USA, där människor utnyttjas och vilseleds med manipulerande och religiösa guider som gärna visare dem deras väg till det religiösa livet och dess belöningar. Men vägen dit kostar, både människoliv och pengar. I den religiösa maktutövningen påverkas ett helt folkslag, amerikanarna, eftersom de lever i en värld där kapitalism, politik och det sociala blir till ett och influerar alla samhällskikt, till att till slut bli ett särdrag i USA. Syftet är att framställa detta med hjälp av frågeställningen;

hur används religionen som ett maktmedel i USA?

Det kommer att belysas; hur man använder sig av medel som rädsla, tradition, politik, meningssökande med mera för att rekrytera amerikanen till att bli religiös, för att skapa sig en egen förmögenhet eller sitt egna religiösa imperium. Med en tillräckligt god retorisk förmåga och en karismatisk utstrålning kan auktoritära personer i USA påverka och influera - personer, samhället och grupperingar - med hjälp av religionen, för egennyttiga ändamål. Detta är enkelt för kritikern att se, men tyvärr inte för den religiöse amerikanen som lever mitt i det.

Vidare finner man att detta grundas i en inbyggd religiös mentalitet som härleds från gamla tider och att det amerikanska samhället är uppbyggt på detta, vilket sedan kan användas som ett maktmedel. Man kan konstatera att VI och DE fenomenet är en avsevärd och viktig komponent i detta maktspelet och är även amerikanens rädsla, mer eller mindre. Individen vill inte hamna utanför samhället som det socialiserats in i och är därför präglad av detta och kan därmed identifiera sig utefter det. Detta blir således ett tillstånd i vilket amerikanen finner sin trygghet, vilket oftast är en religiös sådan.

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Van, der Walt Charlene. "Ideologie en mag in Bybelinterpretasie : op weg na 'n kommunale lees van 2 Samuel 13." Thesis, Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/4019.

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Thesis (DTh (Old and New Testament))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie ondersoek die rol wat mag en ideologie speel in die konkrete interkulturele gespreksruimte wat tot stand kom as individue vanuit diverse kontekste mekaar ontmoet rondom Bybeltekste. Die interkulturele gespreksruimte word teoreties gefundeer vanuit die gesamentlike uitgangspunte van die Feminisme en 'n Afrika-hermeneutiek. Die kommunale ruimte bied hiervolgens teoreties die ruimte waarbinne individue vanuit diverse kontekste tot hulle reg kan kom in die kollektief. In Hoofstuk 2 van hierdie studie word die hermeneutiese raamwerk waaruit die studie sy vertrekpunte vind, omskryf wanneer die uitgangspunte van beide die Feminisme en 'n Afrika-hermeneutiek bespreek word. Die Feminisme beklemtoon die belang van die kontekstuele stem van die individu en Afrika-hermeneutiek stel die kommunale ruimte voor waarin die stemme tot hulle reg kan kom. Die interkulturele gesprek wat in hierdie studie ondersoek word, vind plaas met 2 Samuel 13:1-22 as gespreksdokument. In Hoofstuk 3 word 'n multidimensionele eksegetiese raamwerk beskryf wat gebruik word ten einde ‘n deurdagte interpretasie van 2 Samuel 13:1-22 te bied. ‘n In-diepte lesing van die teks word gedoen, sowel as ideologies(retories)-kritiese en leserrespons-kritiese analises. Ten slotte word in dié hoofstuk verwys na die interpretasiegeskiedenis van die teks vanuit ‘n dominant Westerse perspektief asook vanuit die Feminisme en ‘n Afrika-hermeneutiese konteks. Met die tweeledige hermeneutiese raamwerk as uitganspunt, en 2 Samuel 13:1-22 as gespreksdokument, word die empiriese komponent van die studie dan in die volgende hoofstukke beskryf. In die empiriese studie word die teoreties-geformuleerde interkulturele ruimte dan ‘n konkrete realiteit as kultureel-diverse vroue mekaar ontmoet in gesprek rondom die Tamar-verhaal van 2 Samuel 13. Die ontwerp van die empiriese studie wat in Hoofstuk 5 bespreek word, word in die vorige hoofstuk, Hoofstuk 4, gefundeer deur aandag te gee aan, onder andere, die omskrywing van sleutelterme soos kultuur, ideologie en mag. Die kwalitatiewe data wat ingewin is tydens die konkrete interkulturele gesprekke, word daarna geanaliseer en bespreek in Hoofstuk 6. Al die data wat ingewin is tydens die studie word as Bylae tot die proefskrif beskikbaar gestel in ‘n aparte meegaande bundel ten einde die lees-envergelyk- proses te vergemaklik. Die gevolgtrekking van die studie, in Hoofstuk 7, bring al die diverse besprekings soos dit in die argument hanteer is, bymekaar en poog om ‘n sinvolle interpretasie te bied van hoe mag en ideologie funksioneer in die interkulturele Bybelleesproses. Die teoretiese interkulturele ruimte wat deur die Feminisme en 'n Afrikahermeneutiek as oogmerk gestel word, word dus in die studie geproblematiseer deur te vra na die funksionering van mag en ideologie in daardie ruimte. Vanuit 'n kwalitatiewe analise van die data wat ingewin is tydens die empiriese komponent van die studie, word dit duidelik dat die interkulturele ruimte ‘n besondere spasie bied waarin individue tot hulle reg kom en waarin verandering gefasiliteer kan word. Dit wil egter verder blyk dat hierdie ruimte nie sonder uitdaging is nie aangesien die interkulturele ruimte nie die invloed van die magsdinamika vryspring nie. Daar is bevind dat die interkulturele gespreksruimte ‘n besondere instrument is wat ingespan kan word ten einde sosiale transformasie te fasiliteer, maar dit moet met groot omsigtigheid hanteer word.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study examines the role of power and ideology in a concrete intercultural conversation space which is established when individuals from diverse contexts meet one another to discuss Biblical texts. The intercultural conversation space is theoretically based on the joint presuppositions of Feminism and an African hermeneutics. The communal space provides a theoretical space in which individuals from diverse contexts are given an opportunity to express themselves in the collective. The hermenetical framework of the study is discussed in chapter 2 where the fundamental presuppositions of both Feminism and African hermeunetics are explored. Feminism emphasises the importance of the contextual voice of the individual, whereas African hermeneutics highlights the communal space where individual voices are given expression. The intercultural conversation in this study is conducted with 2 Samuel 13:1-22 as conversation document. Chapter 3 discusses a multidimensional exegetical framework that is applied in order to offer a reflective interpretation of 2 Samuel 13:1-22. A close reading of the text, as well as ideological (rhetorical) critical and reader response critical analyses, are conducted. A reference to the interpretation history of the text concludes this chapter. The dominant Western perspective is discussed and is supplemented with Feminist and African hermeneutical readings of the text. The empirical component of this study is discussed in the chapters that follow, based on the two-tiered hermeunetical framework and 2 Samuel 13:1-22 as conversation document. The theoretically formulated intercultural space becomes a concrete reality as culturally diverse women meet one another to discuss the story of Tamar as found in 2 Samuel 13. Chapter 5 explains the research design of the empirical study based on key terms such as culture, ideology and power. These are illuminated in Chapter 4. The data that is collected in the concrete intercultural conversation is then analised qualitatively and in Chapter 6. The collected data is presented as a separate Appendix to the dissertation in order to assist the reader in the read and compare process. In the conclusion to this study, as presented in Chapter 7, all the diverse discussions converge and an attempt is offered towards a reflective interpretation of how power and ideology function in the intercultural Bible reading process.

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Long, Derry Stace. "Succeeding in empowering others : social factors that assist in creating and sustaining empowering organizational environments." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2012. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/3826/.

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This research rises out of the perceived gap between rhetoric and reality in the congregational life of the church in the United States. Using the research tools of autoethnography and case study, it investigates the life settings of the researcher and the interior organizational dynamics of three cases, a for-profit, a nonprofit and a church organization. The research considers how organizational pre-conditions and traits and processes, leadership behavior and perspectives and the perceived benefits of an empowering environment, impacts the ability of the organization to implement and sustain an empowering environment. Three pre-conditions, namely, a flexibility in organizational behaviours, the total commitment of the primary leader, and a particular view of people were found to be essential. Four relational traits of voice, trust, authentication, and connectivity were discovered to generate a relational environment that was conducive to an empowering culture. No particular leadership style was found to be essential, only that the style could embrace the elements enumerated above. Personal and organizational benefits were outside the normative expectations of profit or other numerical measurements and closer to aspects of relationally and energy. There appeasers to be no significant difference between church and other organizational types in how empowerment functions. I conclude by reflecting on practical aspects and how the research journey impacted the researcher.

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Jiang, Zhan. "Socialization in Chinese Academic Immigrants' Conversion to Christianity." TopSCHOLAR®, 2009. http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/137/.

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Fredriksson, Madelene. "Doktrinen som religion – En undersökning om doktrinens kvalitet." Thesis, Försvarshögskolan, 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:fhs:diva-6211.

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There is an ongoing discussion about what purpose doctrines should serve in military organizations. For this reason, it becomes difficult to identify by what standards doctrines should be evaluated. This paper is based on Jan Ångström and Jerker Widén’s theory that suggest that the doctrine should be understood as a religion or in other words - a set of beliefs. Using this constructivist interpretation, one can easier identify criteria of a good doctrine, thus making it easier to evaluate it. Following this understanding, Ångström and Widén have developed a set of quality standards that are used in this survey to measure the quality of the Swedish Military doctrine. A questionnaire was sent out to Swedish officers in order to answer the question of how good the quality of the Swedish doctrine is. By using this quantitative method, the results indicate that the Swedish doctrine fulfils some of these quality standards, while other qualities are not met. To draw more definitive conclusions, further research is needed. Nevertheless, the result of this study indicates that although there are diverse opinions, there are parts of the doctrine that exhibit good quality.
Doktrin, Religion, Kvalitet, Kvalitetstandarder, Ångström, Widén

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Roos, Beverley. "Women and the Word : issues of power, control and language in social and religious life." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 1988. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16636.

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Bibliography: pages 151-157.
The intention of this thesis is to offer a perspective on the current debate over women's place in Western religious institutions, i.e. the Judaeo-Christian tradition; and to provide a way of thinking about those issues which will lead to a positive, progressive and realistic vision of co-humanity, and a method of achieving it. The thorny battleground of the "women's debate", as it is inaccurately named, was not my original choice of thesis topic. A lifelong commitment to feminist principles has been matched with an equally lengthy wariness regarding society's attitude towards such matters. Also, the understandable obsession of South African religious studies departments, and journals, with the issue of racism has had the inevitable result of trivializing the related issue of sexism as secondary. The narrowness of such thinking has led to strange distortions, including the belief that evil can somehow be 'ranked' and that there can be a 'hierarchy' of oppression. My intentions changed during a search of religious publications and journals while completing a post-graduate assignment. It was abundantly apparent that the scale of the debate on women's place in religion was fast outstripping most other debates. However, it was not an area which had been treated locally with seriousness. It had unfolded into a comprehensive and highly contentious debate in North American and British campuses and religious institutions, and the proliferation of books and articles on the subject by not only theologians but also sociologists, anthropologists and linguists had greatly extended the platform and the level on which the debate was to be fought. It appeared that women working in many fields were laying claim to religion, and were engaging issues which had previously been left to the handful of articulate women working at least nominally within orthodox structures.

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McCrory, Victor Keith. "Social studies educators' perceptions of and beliefs about the inclusion of religion in textbooks." unrestricted, 2008. http://etd.gsu.edu/theses/available/etd-07082008-114344/.

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--Georgia State University, 2008.
Title from file title page. Chara Bohan, committee chair; Lori Elliot, Joseph Feinberg, Caroline Sullivan, committee members. Description based on contents viewed Oct. 14, 2009. Includes bibliographical references p. 170-184).

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Kryger, Kristina, and Petra Landerberg. "”Man vet ju aldrig…” Om religion och religiositet i dagens Sverige." Thesis, Kristianstad University College, Department of Behavioural Sciences, 2005. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hkr:diva-3605.

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Uppsatsens syfte har varit att belysa religionens funktion i avreligioniserade människors liv och dessutom att försöka utröna huruvida religionen i dessa människors liv har ersatts och hur de eventuella religionsersättarna i så fall ser ut. Vi har fokuserat på Sverige och Svenska Lutheranska Kyrkan med dess kontinuerligt reducerande medlemsantal. Den empiriska undersökningen har utgjorts av kvalitativa intervjuer med icke aktiva medlemmar och med präster i Svenska Kyrkan. En litteraturstudie har också genomförts. Resultatet av studien indikerar att religionsersättare finns och att de i viss mån ersätter religion i människors vardag. Indikationer finns också på att religiositeten hos människor inte längre är bunden till den traditionella religionen, men att den i sig inte har ersatts.

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Rawlings-Way, Olivia M. F. "Religious interbeing : Buddhist pluralism and Thich Nhat Hanh." Thesis, Department of Indian Sub-Continental Studies, Faculty of Arts, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/2123/13156.

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Pulinska, Sylwia. "Tre undervisningssituationer i ämnet Religion i åk 5." Thesis, Malmö högskola, Lärarutbildningen (LUT), 2005. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-34876.

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Syftet med mitt examensarbete är att få insikt i hur eleverna lär sig under olika undervisningssituationer och vad de lär sig i ämnet religion. Samtidigt få veta om barnen reflekterar över och har tankar kring deras inlärning och kunskap och vad som påverkar dessa.Min huvudfrågeställning är: Hur uppfattar elever i åk 5 att de lär sig vid olika undervisningssituationer i ämnet Religion. Mina underfrågor är: ·Vad beskriver eleverna att de lär sig?·Hur beskriver eleverna att de lär sig?Jag har använt mig av aktionsforskning, observation samt av kvalitativa intervjuer och fotografier. Jag planerade och genomförde undervisningspassen och samtidigt observerade eleverna d.v.s. var en deltagande observatör. Jag fotograferade även eleverna under undervissningspassen och använde mig av dessa under intervjuerna som genomfördes efter varje pass. Utifrån mina frågeställningar visar resultatet att:·Eleverna lär sig kunskap de själva på något sätt kan mäta; känna eller se t.ex. genom ett prov eller användning av det. På vilket sätt eleverna kunde mäta det de hade lärt sig berodde på undervisningstillfällena och vad de lärt sig. ·Eleverna lär genom att se, höra och göra, med andra ord, genom det visuella, auditiva och kinestetiska sättet. Förekomsten av dessa beror på individen men även på undervisningssituationen, vilket betyder att eleven kan anpassa inlärningssättet till situationen. Lustfullt lärande var viktigt för eleverna och med pauser påverkade deras arbete och lärande mycket positivt, fastän de själva inte alltid var medvetna om det.

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Ask, Herman, and Sebastian Väpnargård. "Religion och vetenskap i undervisningen." Thesis, Malmö högskola, Fakulteten för lärande och samhälle (LS), 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-30557.

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I föreliggande arbete har vi undersökt problematiken med att arbeta med religion och vetenskap inom skolvärlden. Ämnesområdet är av många uppfattat som svårarbetat och komplicerat. Därför har vi haft som syfte att undersöka hur det kan göras och vilka bakomliggande faktorer som kan finnas för den förmodade problematiken. Vi har genomfört en kvalitativ intervjustudie med sju olika lärare och analyserat deras svar med hjälp av tidigare forskning om religionskunskapens kursplan och forskning om relationen mellan religion och vetenskap. Resultatet visar att lärare arbetar på olika sätt med kursmålet, vissa med bättre förkunskaper än andra. En gemensam nämnare är att en konfliktorienterad undervisning om relationen är dominerande, och att det finns en underliggande problematik och frågeställning om kursmålets existens i kursplanen för religionskunskap.

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Baker, Terry Hunter Hankins Barry. "Christianity, secularism, and America an exploration and critique of the historical, legal, social, and philosophical implications of secularism from an American perspective /." Waco, Tex. : Baylor University, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/2104/5134.

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Halman, Loek, Josja Rokven, and Inge Sieben. "Religion." Universität Potsdam, 2012. http://opus.kobv.de/ubp/volltexte/2013/6575/.

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1. Eastern Europe: the case of Czech Republic and Slovakia 2. Turkey 3. The EVE Curriculum Framework - Developments on the second phase (Clare Brooks) 4. Evaluations 5. Main changes to the curriculum Framework 6. Looking Forwards

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35

Park, Jung Chul. "Reconfiguring and transforming Christianity in a post-postmodern paradigm of theology and the social sciences." Thesis, King's College London (University of London), 2016. https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/reconfiguring-and-transforming-christianity-in-a-postpostmodern-paradigm-of-theology-and-the-social-sciences(a9403a66-9a96-4a95-8b9f-79c51cc8e7b7).html.

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Contrary to the proposition of "secularization theory", Christianity has neither disappeared, nor retreated into the private realm. Rather, it has transformed iteself into new forms with new characteristics, and continues to play a significant role in the public sphere, by engaging in society through new ways, a development thaqt unleashes its potential as a reflexive agent for individuals, society, and the global community. The objective of this research is to revisit and re-articulate the sustainability and potential, the substantial value of Christianity, by examining the trajectories of a morphological transformation of Christianity in the latest modern world through a new post-secular approach beyond both the discourse of "seculatization" and that of "religious resurgence", and the public presence of Christianity based on the socio-political engagement of Christianity in the public sphere in both empirical and normative aspects; and to reconstruct the substantial meaning of Christianity as a reflexive agent by examining its potential through discussion of how the Christian faith can inspire and impact on the formation of human being in today's global capitalist society on the one hand, and establishing a foothold to overcome its intrinsic defects as a religion through radical reflection in the post-modern paradigm on the other. The central argument of the thesis is that neither modern nor postmodern approaches and neither secular not anti-secular positions are conceptually ale to penetrate the ambiguities of the presence of religion in contemporary society. Going for a post-secular and post-postmoden approach does not meant to apply linear thinking. The suggestion is rather to think of a way that does not deny both but tries to think beyond them ("re-moden"). In doing so, the study delves deeper into a sociology of religious meaning in society rather than a society of religion, and socio-philosophical theology rather than philosophy of religion.

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Ramos, Nancy, and Jessica Chavez. "FACTORS OF RESISTANCE: SPIRITUALITY AND RELIGION IN SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2019. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd/870.

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The discussion of spirituality and religion (S/R) in social work is a prevalent topic within the field. Literature suggests that social workers do not feel competent or comfortable discussing or utilizing S/R in practice. This study focused on identifying factors that may be causing resistance in social workers from the Inland Empire of Southern California towards addressing S/R with their clients. The researchers interviewed eight social workers from diverse areas of practice via telephone and in-person. Data was collected via audio-recording and later transcribed for thematic analysis. Participants were asked an array of questions including their own experience with their spirituality and current comfort level with asking their clients about S/R. Through the findings, it appears that social workers’ comfort level stems from various aspects including a sense of unease regarding their knowledge on various belief systems. The results indicated that once clients are asked about their spiritual and/or religious beliefs, clients are able to engage in a discussion about their definition of their own beliefs and determine the direction of the topic.

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Nellist, Christine. "Towards an animal theology in Eastern Orthodox Christianity." Thesis, University of Winchester, 2017. http://repository.winchester.ac.uk/682/.

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My thesis advances the overarching hypothesis that the Eastern Orthodox Church has sufficient teachings to develop a theology which tackles the difficult subject of animal suffering. However, during the review of theological academic literature I identified a gap between what might be termed Orthodox theory and its practice. In essence the overarching hypothesis is broken down into three component parts: i) That Eastern Orthodox teachings allow for the formulation of an ‘Animal Theology’ of the Eastern Orthodox Church; ii) That there is a gap between Orthodox theory and practice on this theme both at academic and pastoral level; iii) That the abuse and exploitation of animals has negative soteriological consequences for those who indulge in such practices; those who know but are indifferent to animal suffering and those who know and are concerned but fail to act in order to reduce or prevent that suffering. Different methodologies were used for the different areas of research which range from biblical exegesis and neo-patristic synthesis, to the formulation of new empirical research collected via questionnaires to animal protectionists in Cyprus and interviews with Orthodox theologians in Cyprus and the UK. In the final two chapters contemporary Eastern Orthodox voices are brought into play in order to advance theological reflection on the sin and evil inherent in animal suffering and the soteriological implications for those who abuse and exploit the non-human creation. Academic theology can often be abstract in nature and viewed by many as irrelevant to contemporary life. I do not believe this is the case and throughout this thesis I have provided examples of how Orthodox teachings can be applied to contemporary animal suffering issues. In addition I have provided an outline for a seminary project which focuses on a) the spiritual and ontological interconnectedness of God’s Creation; b) the seminarian’s role as Icon of Christ and c) how these two elements should dictate the priest’s treatment and relationship with animals and the environment. I have also provided frameworks for a Master’s Dissertation on the theme and an Eastern Orthodox Animal Protection group. Finally, it is worth noting the impact of this research thus far, which has resulted in the first Master’s Dissertation on the theme by an Eastern Orthodox priest; a public statement by the Holy Synod of Cyprus; the establishment of an Eastern Orthodox Animal Protection group in Cyprus and an academic paper presented at an international conference on Religion and Animal Protection by one of Orthodoxy’s leading theologians, Metropolitan Kallistos Ware. Leading Orthodox theologians are aware of this thesis and are supportive of its vision; as a result I believe the previously identified gap between the theory and the practice will reduce in the foreseeable future.

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Mason-Wilkes, Will. "Science as religion? : science communication and elective modernism." Thesis, Cardiff University, 2018. http://orca.cf.ac.uk/109735/.

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My central concern in this thesis is how science should be understood by the public. I argue that science should be understood, and valued for, the formative aspirations of the scientific community. The formative aspirations of the scientific community are the values members try to uphold as members of the group, even when this is not always possible. These aspirations are constitutive of the scientific ‘form of life’. I argue that science and religion are distinct forms of life, and through their formative aspirations can be differentiated from one another. Drawing on the theory of Elective Modernism (Collins and Evans 2017), I argue that the formative aspirations of science overlap with democratic values. Media representations of science shape public understanding. Non-fiction television is a ubiquitous and trusted medium for the communication of science. Non-fiction science television programme makers were interviewed to understand the process of science television production: the pressures, tensions and constraints inherent to this process. I analyse representations of science in British non-fiction television programmes and argue that a ‘religious’ portrayal of science can be identified in some programmes. I identify a contrasting ‘secular’ portrayal of science in other programmes. The religious portrayal presents science as providing a definitive creation narrative. In this portrayal scientific knowledge is presented as a set of certain and immutable truths which are revealed by nature with little or no human intervention. In this portrayal science is presented as providing meaning. The secular portrayal’s representation aligns more closely with a sociological understanding of science. In this portrayal scientific knowledge is represented as requiring human skill to produce and as being subject to change, revision and debate. Science in this portrayal is represented as producing both positive and negative outcomes for society. From the perspective of Elective Modernism, if citizens are to properly understand, engage with and value science they need an understanding informed by sociological conceptions of science which emphasise science’s formative aspirations as its defining characteristic. The requirements for the production of an ‘elective modernist’ portrayal of science, one which foregrounds the formative aspirations of science, are discussed. The problematic consequences of the religious portrayal of science are laid out. Presenting science as a religion disguises its formative aspirations. This provides an inaccurate picture of how science works and a widespread (mis)understanding of science as a religion would undermine democratic society.

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Angelova, Iliyana. "Baptist Christianity and the politics of identity among the Sumi Naga of Nagaland, northeast India." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2015. https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:653e1bad-b11b-42be-994c-b4e7c396d12c.

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This doctoral thesis explores the entanglement of religion and identity politics in the Indo-Burma borderlands and the indigenisation of Christianity there through grassroots processes of cultural revivalism. The ethnographic focus is on the Sumi Naga from the state of Nagaland in Northeast India. While the Sumi started converting to Baptist Christianity at the beginning of the twentieth century, conversion rates accelerated especially in the 1950s and again in the 1970s when two evangelical revivals swept across the lands of the Sumi and resulted in their conversion en masse. Significantly, these Great Revivals coincided in time with the most turbulent political history of this borderland region, as the Sumi, alongside all other Naga, were waging an armed struggle against the Indian nation-state for their right to self-determination and independence. While this struggle is now largely being fought with political rather than military means, it remains ideologically motivated by Naga perceptions of their distinct ethnic identity, history and culture compared to the rest of India. Baptist Christianity has played a central role in shaping and sustaining these perceptions. Over the past several decades following the Second Great Revival in the 1970s there has been a movement from within Sumi society to reconstruct and redefine their identity by drawing heavily on both their contemporary religion (Baptist Christianity) and their 'good' pre-Christian culture, which had been demonised and rejected in the course of earlier conversions. Discourses have been circulating in public space on the urgent need to reconceptualise collective Sumi identity by reviving, or preserving, those aspects of pre-Christian Sumi culture that are perceived as 'good' and constitutive of Sumi-ness but are currently 'under threat' of being gradually lost to modernity and foreign influences. These discourses are directly linked to processes of cultural revivalism across Nagaland, which have been motivated by a sense of the perceived loss of 'good' cultural heritage and cultural roots. This thesis is an ethnographic study of these processes of identity (re)construction within a Sumi Naga community. It sets out to examine the ways in which Baptist Christianity is central to everyday life in a Sumi village and how it plays an important role in forging group cohesion and solidarity through ritual practice and various forms of fellowship. The thesis then proceeds to study the phenomenon of cultural revivalism in both its discursive and practical manifestations. The thesis argues that the cultural revival has not reduced the centrality of Baptist Christianity to Sumi self-ascriptions and perceptions of identity, but is rather thought to have enriched it and given it a stronger cultural foundation. Hence, a Sumi Naga Christianity is being created which is perceived as unique, indigenous and distinct in its own right. The thesis attempts to explore the essence of this vernacular Christianity against the backdrop of its specific historical, economic, political and spiritual context and the all-encompassing Naga struggle against the Indian nation-state. In pursuing these issues, the thesis locates itself within debates on the intersection between religion and identity politics, which prevail in many contemporary contributions to the anthropology of Christianity.

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Gustafsson, Carina. "Religion till salu! En studie om försäljning av indiansk andlighet inom New Age-rörelsen." Thesis, Kristianstad University College, Department of Behavioural Sciences, 2007. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hkr:diva-3949.

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Syftet med uppsatsen är att belysa de problem som har uppstått då indiansk andlighet har blivit en vara som produceras och konsumeras inom New Age rörelsen. Studien har genom-förts genom att tillämpa kvalitativ textanalys på insamlat material mestadels från Internet. Det insamlade materialet består av annonser där man säljer olika former av indiansk andlig-het. Material som berör indianernas motstånd mot försäljningen av deras andlighet har också insamlats från Internet. Analysen av texterna visar att det framkommer stereotyper i annonse-ringen inom New Age, vilket blir ett problem för indianerna i form av tillskriven identitet. Det framkommer också av texterna att försäljningen av indiansk andlighet inte bara är ett problem inom New Age utan att det även finns indianer som säljer religion.

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Larguèche, Aladin. "Vers une histoire des intellectuels norvégiens : pratiques littéraires, nationalisme et sécularisation à Christiania (1811-1869)." Phd thesis, Université Toulouse le Mirail - Toulouse II, 2013. http://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-00877258.

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Le présent texte propose de questionner le postulat couramment admis selon lequel l'émergence des intellectuels nationalistes au XIXe siècle est parallèle à une déchristianisation de la vie sociale et culturelle, en se focalisant sur l'ensemble des littérateurs norvégiens publiant dans la période 1811-1869. C'est plus spécifiquement les rapports entre Belles-lettres, construction nationale et sécularisation qui constituent le cœur de cette enquête, avec une attention portée sur la principale arène de la vie scientifique norvégienne : l'université de Christiania. Après avoir recensé les contraintes matérielles, politiques et religieuses qui conditionnent le développement de la vie culturelle dans la capitale du jeune royaume, l'auteur propose une analyse socio-historique systématique de tous les littérateurs norvégiens, ainsi qu'un échantillonnage des auteurs les plus productifs afin de déterminer l'évolution des rapports des écrivains, amateurs de Belles-lettres, nationalistes ou scandinavistes, avec le fait religieux et l'Église d'État norvégienne. La notion de "pratique littéraire" permet d'aborder la littérature comme un phénomène social multiforme, au croisement entre l'histoire de l'éducation, histoire des idées, histoire religieuse et sociologie de la littérature, et permet de comprendre les mutations essentielles et les ambigüités indépassables de l'identité sociale des intellectuels contemporains

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Arblaster, Wes J. "Mysterious exchange religious economy and the economics of religion /." Online full text .pdf document, available to Fuller patrons only, 2003. http://www.tren.com.

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Bolin, Hanna. "Att undervisa om religion och sexualitet." Thesis, Malmö högskola, Fakulteten för lärande och samhälle (LS), 2011. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-27832.

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Studien syftar till att undersöka lärares attityder till den nya kursplanen (lgr11) utifrån sexualitet som centralt innehåll för att på så sätt synliggöra möjligheter och svårigheter för lärarna. Utgångspunkten är de nya skrivningarna om sexualitet i kursplanen för religionsämnet där en del av det centrala innehållet ska vara att behandla hur olika religioner och religiösa riktningar ser på frågor som rör sexualitet. Genom teori och tidigare studier om undervisning om sex och samlevnad i skolan har en intervjuguide utformats och fem lärare i religionskunskap på högstadiet har vid intervju fått delge sina tankar och åsikter om den nya kursplanen utifrån sina egna erfarenheter. Resultatet visar att lärarna är positiva till att undervisa om sexualitet i religionsämnet då de ser ett stort behov från eleverna att få samtala kring detta i skolan med någon vuxen på grund av att eleverna ständigt möter sexualitet i olika former i dagens samhälle. Genom de tydliga formuleringarna i den nya kursplanen känner lärarna att de lättare kan motivera sin undervisning för elever, föräldrar och kollegor. Lärarna ser även stora möjligheter genom kursplanen att i större utsträckning jobba ämnesövergripande än vad de har gjort utifrån lpo94. Men lärarna ser även en del svårigheter med den nya kursplanen. Sexualitet ska behandlas utifrån religionernas syn och lärarna upplever detta som en didaktisk svårighet då religioner är heterogena i sin syn. Lärarna ser även svårigheter med elever och föräldrar med religiösa och kulturella bakgrunder där samtal om sexualitet inte är accepterat.

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Grant, Andrea Mariko. "Living under "quiet insecurity" : religion and popular culture in post-genocide Rwanda." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2015. http://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:83b2b3d3-f08e-4556-8d20-e832345fa25d.

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This thesis explores religion and popular culture in post-genocide Rwanda. In particular, I examine the rise of the new Pentecostal churches – the abarokore ("the saved ones") – and the reconstruction of the "modern" music industry after the genocide. I argue that contemporary social life in Rwanda is defined by "quiet insecurity" and "temporal dissonance". I employ these concepts to take seriously how young people in Rwanda create alternative pasts, presents, and futures for themselves within an authoritarian political context. While the government attempts to control the historical narrative and impose a particular developmentalist "vision" of the future onto its citizens, young people articulate and perform their hopes, fears, dreams, and anxieties within the realms of religion and popular culture, creating "unofficial" narratives that both converge with and contest those of the state. Against the prevailing academic consensus of Kigali as silent, I instead reposition the capital as a site of creativity wherein noisy debates take place about Rwandan identity and culture. I examine the new abarokore churches as important affective spaces that allow for healing and the keeping of secrets. Yet the fact that these same churches tend to be mono-ethnic suggests the limits of the born-again project. Conversely, the community imagined within popular culture, particularly through hip hop songs, is more inclusive, with identity forged through the mutual experience of pain and suffering. I pay particular attention to gender, and consider how patriarchal tendencies in the new churches and popular culture undermine the country's "progressive" gender policies. By examining Pentecostal services, conversion testimonies, song lyrics, the Kinyarwanda-language entertainment media, and discourses of musical corruption, I explore how young people respond to a context of quiet insecurity through quiet agency – they actively seek to transform and resolve their life circumstances, however modest or temporary their transformations or resolutions prove to be.

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Vickers, Roy. "The gospel of social discontent : religious language and the narrative of Christian election in the Chartist poetry of Thomas Cooper, Ernest Jones and William James Linton." Thesis, Liverpool John Moores University, 2004. http://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/5774/.

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Jensen, Jeppe Sinding. "The study of religion in a new key : theoretical and philosophical soundings in the comparative and general study of religion /." Århus : Aarhus Univ. Press, 2003. http://www.loc.gov/catdir/toc/fy0704/2003107084.html.

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Sezenler, Olcay. "Religion In International Relations And Interfaith Dialogue." Master's thesis, METU, 2010. http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/3/12611683/index.pdf.

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Religion was regarded as a marginal factor by scholars of International Relations for a long time. The main reason for this ignorance is that the discipline of International Relations has followed the major paradigm - secularization thesis - in social sciences until recently. This resulted in ignorance of religion as an explanatory factor in International Relations. However, this situation has recently started to change. Beginning from 1990s, the role of religion in international relations has started to be reexamined
and secularization theory has started to be criticized. On the other hand, religion has started to be regarded as a tool for peacebuilding, at the same time. In addition to its contribution to conflicts and wars, religion is increasingly seen as a potential tool for peaceful cooperation
and inter-religious dialogue is becoming a part of diplomacy and conflict resolution policies. Within this context, interfaith dialogue is a case which shows the extent of the change in the discipline of IR regarding the role of religion. This thesis aims to make a comprehensive discussion on the historical and contemporary relation between religion and international relations by focusing on the role of interfaith dialogue, specifically dialogue initiatives within the EU and the UN. The dialogue projects of these institutions and their relation with security-driven policies are examined. Thus, the main concern of this study is to raise a question about the role of interfaith dialogue, especially the one proposed by the institutions above, in transforming the role of religion in international relations.

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Alexander, Jeannie Malena. "Liberation Gospel: A Study of Contemporary Radical Liberal Theology and Practice in the Southern United States." Digital Archive @ GSU, 2007. http://digitalarchive.gsu.edu/rs_theses/8.

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This thesis examines current radical liberal Christian activism in the Southern United States through focusing upon a particular intentional community located in Atlanta, Georgia, The Open Door Community. Through praxis and reflection, this community has developed its own unique practice and theology that I have termed “Liberation Gospel.” This thesis analyzes and describes a unique community in order to understand where the community succeeds, and where it does not, in putting its theological beliefs into practice. This very liberal community does not distinguish between their politics and their theology.

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Batts, Sara. "Informing, inviting or ignoring? : understanding how English Christian churches use the internet." Thesis, Loughborough University, 2012. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/11799.

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This thesis investigates how English Christian leaders and churches use the internet for personal and corporate communication, and looks for evidence of challenges to traditional understandings of authority arising from online communication. Early studies in this area suggested that online religion would cause enormous change but more recent studies reflect less polarised opinions. Religious people tend to use the internet to augment rather than replace practice of their faith, holding true for different religions globally. Leaders use the internet for a wide variety of religious information tasks. The project uses a longitudinal website census, quantitative content analysis and semi-structured interviews. 400 churches in four English denominations (Baptist, Methodist, Anglican and Catholic) were surveyed over a three year period to establish if they published a website. 147 churches from the same four denominations, located in an area equivalent to Chelmsford Diocese, were assessed on 75 categories of information and their hyperlinks analysed. Interviews with church leaders and interested parties helped foster understanding of why and how sites were created, and explored the leaders personal use of the internet. The percentage of churches with a website increased over the survey period for all denominations. Content analysis showed that currency, extent and accessibility of information on websites varied, with some being out of date, others showing no contact details and few having specific information for newcomers to church. Interview findings revealed perceptions of email overload, varying degrees of governance and control of websites by church leaders, and leaders own use of the internet and social media. Interactivity was rare on church websites. Different levels of expertise are mooted as reasons why control and governance varies between leaders. Perceptions of the internet may be influenced by moral panic. The influence of the age of congregations on adoption of social media, and the impact of volunteer webmasters are examined. Recommendations for churches planning to revisit or review their sites are included, limitations are noted and suggestions for further research made

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Gibson, Ian. "Suffering and Christianity : conversion and ethical change among the Newars of Bhaktapur." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2015. http://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:3eea0dc1-3f8e-4564-887f-f7aae26de57f.

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This thesis argues that conversion to Christianity in the Nepali city of Bhaktapur is closely connected with ethical attitudes towards suffering in Bhaktapurian churches. This argument is situated within broader debates in the anthropology of Christianity. Anthropologists have debated the extent to which Christianity is a force for cultural discontinuity, and have often connected it with modernity and individualism. I contribute to these discussions by showing how distinctively Christian conceptions of suffering may promote cultural change by stimulating new understandings of selfhood and ethics. The first three chapters explore the social life of Bhaktapur's Hindu majority. I describe how the last fifty years have seen a process of cultural unsettlement in Bhaktapur; one aspect of this unsettlement has been a disruption of traditional norms of care and deference. It is in this context that the distinctive ethics of Christianity have proved attractive to some. Those who convert have typically experienced a significant episode of suffering, and have felt themselves to be failed by those around them. They find in churches a framework that emphasises the moral significance of inner experience (I call this 'inwardness') and addresses affliction more in terms of ethics than ritual. I describe these ethics in terms of 'care': they stress presence with the afflicted person, engagement with their experience, and appeal to God in prayer. After two chapters describing Christianity in Nepal and Bhaktapur in general terms, I devote four chapters to examining different categories of Bhaktapurian Christians: those who have experienced healing, women, leaders, and youth. I focus on four conversion narratives, and relate these narratives both to other ethnographic materials and to broader trends in Bhaktapurian and global Christianity. I highlight the significance of the values of inwardness and care, and of narrative itself, in the life-worlds of Bhaktapurian Christians.

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Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Social sciences -> religion -> christianity'

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