Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Views on ritual purity'

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2005.
Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 157-166). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2002
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: During the history of Israel the concept of "purity" had developed as a way in which God's people could honour his holiness and draw nearer to him, as a sanctified nation. By the time of Jesus, in Second Temple Judaism, the purity system had become restrictive. This had been influenced by political and social developments, including an increased desire to withdraw from Hellenistic and other factors which were seen as contaminating the integrity of Judaism. There were diverse perceptions regarding the achievement of the purity of Israel, including militaristic confrontation and expulsion of alien occupation forces, stricter adherence to the Law and, in some cases, total withdrawal from general society (such as at Qumran). It was, however, particularly the Pharisaic imposition of the supplementary oral tradition, supposed to clarify the written Law, which imposed hardship on those who, through illiteracy or inferior social status, were unable to meet all the minute provisions which would ensure ritual purity. The expansion of the Law of Moses by the commentary of the rabbis, which over time became the entrenched oral "tradition of the fathers", was originally intended to promote access to God by clarifying obscure points of the Law, in the pursuit of purity. However, this oral tradition had, in fact, become an instrument of alienation and separation of the ordinary people not only from the Pharisees, who considered themselves as the religious elite, but also from God. The common people, that is, a large section of the population, felt rejected and on the outside of both religious and social acceptance. On the material level they also suffered under a heavy tax burden, from both Temple and State, which aggravated their poverty. It was this situation which Jesus confronted in his mission to change the ideological climate and to reveal the Kingdom of God as being accessible to all who accepted the true Fatherhood of God, in penitence and humility. He denounced the hypocrisy which professed piety but which ignored the plight of those who were suffering. Hark 7 : 1-23 symbolizes the difference between the teaching and practice of Jesus and that of the Pharisees, and provides metaphorically a pattern of Christian engagement which is relevant in the South African situation today. The Christian challenge is to remove those barriers, both ideological and economic, which impede spiritual and material well-being within society. By active engagement, rather than by retreating to the purely ritualistic and individualistic practice of religion, the realization of the Kingdom of Heaven, as inaugurated by Jesus, will be advanced.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Gedurende die geskiedenis van Israel het die konsep van reinheid ontwikkel as 'n wyse waarin die die volk van God Sy heiligheid kan eer en tot Hom kan nader, as 'n geheiligde volk. Teen die tyd van Jesus, tydens Tweede Tempel Judaïsme, het die reinheid sisteem beperkend geword. Dit is beïnvloed deur politieke en sosiale ontwikkelinge, insluitende 'n toenemende drang om te onttrek van Hellenistiese en ander faktore, wat beskou is as 'n besoedeling van die integriteit van Judaïsme. Daar was diverse persepsies aangaande die uitvoering van die reinheid van Israel, insluitende militaristiese konfrontasie en die uitwerping van vreemde besettingsmagte, strenger onderhouding van die Wet en in sekere gevalle, totale onttreking van die algemene samelewing (soos by Qumran). Tog was dit in besonder die Fariseërs se oplegging van bykomende mondelinge tradisie, veronderstelom die geskrewe Wet te verhelder, wat ontbering veroorsaak het vir die wat as gevolg van ongeletterdheid of minderwaardige sosiale status nie in staat was om aan elke haarfyn bepaling, wat rituele reinheid sou verseker, te voldoen nie. Die uitbreiding van die wet van Moses deur die kommentaar van die rabbies, wat met verloop van tyd die ingegrawe mondelinge "tradisie van die vaders" geword het, was oorsproklik bedoel om toegang tot God te verseker, deur die verheldering van onduidelike aspekte van die wet, in die nastreef van reinheid. Hierdie mondelinge tradisie het egter 'n instrument van vervreemding geword en skeiding gebring tussen gewone mense en die Fariseers, sowel as die wat hulleself beskou het as die religieuse elite. Dit het egter ook skeiding gebring tussen mense en God. Die gewone mense, dit is die meerderheid van die bevolking, het verwerp gevoel en aan die buitekring van beide religieuse en sosiale aanvaarding. Op materiële vlak het hulle ook gelyonder die juk van swaar belasting, van beide die Tempel en die Staat, wat hulle toestand van armoede vererger het. Dit was hierdie situasie wat Jesus gekonfronteer het in sy strewe om die ideologiese klimaat te verander en om die Koninkryk van God te openbaar as toeganklik vir almal wat die ware Vaderskap van God aanvaar, in berou en in nederigheid. Hy het die skynheiligheid verwerp wat aanspraak maak op vroomheid, maar die toestand van die lydendes ignoreer. Markus 7:1-23 simboliseer die verskil tussen die onderrig en die praktyk van Jesus en dié van die Fariseërs en voorsien metafories 'n patroon van Christelike verbintenis, wat relevant is binne die eietydse Suid-Afrikaanse konteks. Die uitdaging aan die Christendom is om die skeidslyne te verwyder, beide ideologies en ekonomies, wat geestelike en materieële welsyn binne die gemeenskap belemmer. Deur aktiewe betrokkenheid, eerder as om bloot te onttrek tot die suiwer ritualistiese en individualistiese beoefening van religie, sal die realisering van die Koninkryk van die Hemel soos ingehuldig deur Jesus, bevorder word.

Over the last ten years, a newly created ritual called a Purity Ball has become increasingly popular in American evangelical communities. In much of the present literature, Purity Balls are assumed solely to address a daughter’s emerging sexuality in a ritual designed to counteract evolving American norms on sexuality; however, the ritual may carry additional latent sociological functions. While experienced explicitly by the individual participants as a celebration of father/daughter relationships and a means to address evolutionary sexual mating strategies, Purity Balls may implicitly regenerate existing social hierarchy. This ritual facilitates a sociological purpose by means of re-establishing the role of the male through halting the psychological development of sexual identity in the daughter, and these rituals are enacted in the ownership of the daughter by the father, who is responsible for maintaining the daughter’s purity, for “covering her with his protection.”

Whereas commentators frequently restrict the categories for purity language in James to either ritual or metaphorical (and uniformly conclude the language is a metaphor for personal morality) this is overly restrictive and ignores how purity language was used in the first-century. Current research of purity language in ancient Israel calls into question the rigid either/or categorization of purity language in James. Such descriptions are not only unjustifiably restrictive, but they also fail to account for the function or meaning of the purity language within the rhetorical goals of the composition. The central argument of this investigation is that purity language both articulates and constructs the composition's worldview and thus serves as an important theme in the text. Chapter two discusses the different methods of analysis of purity and offers a taxonomy of purity language. This taxonomy provides a more precise approach to understanding the function of purity language. Chapter three argues for several important aspects of the structure and strategy of the text. Specifically the three interdependent characteristics of 1) an epistolary structure; 2) a coherent rhetorical argument based on polar oppositions; 3) and the special function of James 1: 2-27 as an introduction are suggested. While attuned to the textual issues argued in chapter three, the categories developed in the taxonomy were applied as a heuristic guide to understand the function of purity and pollution in chapter four. This analysis demonstrated four specific things: 1) though purity language occurs relatively infrequently, it is used at crucial points of the composition (1: 26-27; 3: 6,17; 4: 8); 2) that the use of purity and pollution specifically functions within the overall strategy of contrasts which leads readers to a decision; 3) that the majority of the time purity language labeled the world (and by extension those associated with it) as set against the implicit purity of God; and therefore, 4) the readers of James must be separate from the impure world ("pure") in order to be wholehearted in devotion to God ("perfect"). Because the purity of the audience is directly related to their proximity to the world, chapter five asks what kind of separation is envisioned by the use of purity language. While purity is indeed boundary language, the cultural stance of James is complex. The author shows signs of acculturation, yet this acculturation is employed to call the audience to specific points of separation from surrounding culture, namely separation from patron-client relationships with the "rich" and use of inappropriate and deceitful speech. Thus the composition is not calling for sectarian separation from the surrounding culture, but rather is a complex document demonstrating cultural accommodation while calling forth specific socio-cultural boundaries between the readers and the world.

Submitted in partial requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of IsiZulu namaGugu in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Zululand, 2002.
Ukubaluleka kwenhlanzeko ekuphathweni komsebenzi wabadala wucwaningo olumpande zalo ziphuza emajukujukwini empilo yomuntu ongum-Afrika nesiko lakhe kanjalo futhi zibe zilunguza esikweni lomZulu phaqa. Ukulondolozwa kwamasiko omdabu yiwona mthambo ongumnyoluka wempilo noyinjulalwazi ngemvelaphi yomuntu nomuntu njengoba edaliwe wabekwa echosheni elithile lomhlaba ngoPhezukonke. Ukugudluka kwezinsika zokugcinwa kwamasiko omdabu ikakhulukazi ukubukelwa phansi kwephuzu lenhlanzeko lapho kuphathwa imisebenzi yasebalala yikhona kanye okususe usinga lokuba kwenziwe lolu cwaningo. Sekuhambe ibanga ukugcinwa kwamasiko kodwa le ngxenye yesiko ibinganakiwe ngokungako. Lolu cwaningo luyimizamo yokubuka ngeso elijulile ukubaluleka kwezinsika zokugcinwa ngokuyikho amasiko eSintu ngoba aphethe injulalwazi yempilo yomuntu emenza ehluke kwabanye kanjalo nomlando wakhe. Lolu cwaningo ngumkhombandlela ekugcinweni ngokuyikho komsebenzi wabadala ngenhloso yokuphephisa leyo nzika esasele njengoba izivunguvungu zokushabalalisa amasiko omdabu zilwa impi yansukuzonke. Esokuqala isahluko sethula indikimba ngalokho ucwaningo oluphokophelele ukukuhlaziya. Ngaphezu kwalokhu, isahluko siphinde siveze lokho okube yilahle eliyimbeleselane elisuse ugqozi lokuhlwaya ngalesi sihloko. Kuyavela futhi ukuthi lolu cwaningo lunemincele ngenxa yokuba ngudedangendlale kwesihloko salo yingakho nje lona lucubungule esingakubiza ngokuthi yiwona mongo walesi sihloko, inhlanzeko. Esokugcina sona siqoqa amaphuzu adingidiwe ngenhloso yokuphetha imbenge kanjalo nokuveza iZlncomo okungathi ngokulandelwa kwazo ngokuyalela kocwaningo kube khona izinguquko endleleni isiko elibukwa ngayo kanjalo nasendleleni abantu abagcina ngayo imisebenzi yabakubo asebalala. Indikimba yalolu cwaningo yona yakhiwa yizahluko eziyisithupha ezidingida izigaba zokukhula komuntu kusuka ezalwa, egana I eganwa kuze kube wendela koyisemkhulu. Isahluko sesibili siyinjulalwazi ngenkolo yomdabu ikakhulukazi kugxilwa kwinhlanzeko efundiswa abantwana lapho befika kulo mhlaba bese leyo mfundiso beyigwinya, bayiphile nokuyikona okubalungiselela ikusasa elifika nezingqinamba zalo. Isahluko sesithathu sona sibuka ukugcinwa kwamasiko endabuko ikakhulukazi lawo agcinelwa abantwana besebancane kuze kuyofika lapho bethomba khona. Ukubaluleka kwawo kanjalo nophawu oluhambisana nawo yikona olugcizelelweyo. Inhloso kuseyiyona leyo yokubuka ngeso elinzulu iphuzu lenhlanzeko njengesinongo-esingugo ekuphumeleliseni la masiko kanjalo' nokwedlulisela ngempumelelo umntwana emabangeni ahlukahlukene. Isahluko sesine sona sibheka umemulo nenhlanzeko egcizelelwa yileli siko. Lesi sahluko sibheka ubuntombi nto njengesizathu sokugcinelwa leli siko. Uphawu ngezinto ezisetshenziswayo lukhuluma buthule nezethameli kuleli siko. Lesi sahluko sandulela futhi sishanela amabala aleso sokuganana leso okuxoxwe ngaso kwisahluko sesihlanu. Ubumsulwa bentombi I bensizwa yibona obudlulisela ngesinono umuntu kuleli banga. Umlobokazi ukufakazela ngokufaka imvakazi lobu bumsula ngosuku lodwendwe. Isahluko sesithupha sibheka ibanga esingalibiza ngebanga eliyisiphetho sempilo yomuntu yakwamhlaba izinga lokufa. Lesi sahluko sicubungula injululwazi ngokufa qobo kanjalo namabanga ahanjwa ngumphefumulo womuntu, uhlanzwa ngemisebenzi egcinwayo enhlobonhlobo ukuze ubuye uzongena ebudlozini bekhaya. Isahluko sesikhombisa sibuka izinguquko ezikhona ekugcinweni kwawo wonke la masiko okuxoxwe ngawo ezahlukweni ezidlule. Izizathu ezidala izinguquko ekugcinweni kwala masiko zibekwe obala. Kuphawuliwe futhi kulesi sahluko ngobunjalo bamasiko kanjalo nokuhambelana kwawo nesikhathi okuphilwa kuso. Ubunjalo bezinguquko bushiyelwe umfundi ukuba kube nguyena owehlulelayo ngobuhle nobubi bazo. Umcwaningi ushiyele ofundayo ukwahlulela ngobuhle nobubi bezinguquko zesikhathi emasikweni endabuko. Isahluko sesishiyagalombili sona siqoqa amaphuzu okuxoxwe ngawo ezahlukweni ezingaphambi kwaso.Okubalulekile ngalesi sahluko wukuthi sithi siyiqoqa kanjalo futhi sibe siyinkombandlela yalokho okubukwa ngeso lomcwaningi ukuthi kungaholela ekugcinweni ngendlela eyamukelekileyo kwamasiko omdabu.
National Research Foundation (NRF)

The impetus for this thesis came from experience in the worlds of medicine, urgent and disturbing aspects of heath and people meeting to find ways through complex problems about them. The author facilitated policy making and dialogue between people from very different backgrounds for a number of years. The thesis is an engagement with ambiguous and contradictory human reactions to stress while being-in-the-middle of threat and differences of many kinds. These trigger both scapegoating and an urge to mate. The phenomenon is embodied in the symbol and ritual of the pharmakos. The aim of the thesis is to engage with the phenomenon of the pharmakos, in order to bring back its symbolism and practice to conscious attention in dealing with many demanding situations today.
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

abstract: Since the 1960’s and 1970’s, ethnographic research on Jewish menstrual rituals known as niddah, Taharat HaMishpacha, or Family Purity has associated their practices with religious behavior. Much of this research organizes around questions of women’s agency within ostensibly patriarchally constructed religious practices that carry the potential to oppress its women practitioners. This premise is built upon a number of implicit assumptions about the history of today’s niddah practices: that niddah is observed exclusively by Orthodox Jews; that increasing rates of niddah observance correlate exclusively with the trend toward stricter observance levels among the Orthodox since the 1960s; and that this increasingly strict observance itself reflects a reactionary trend among the Orthodox community (a.k.a. tradition versus modernity). All these assumptions currently circulate, in various degrees, among the American Jewish lay community and are shared by a significant number of congregational rabbis. Until the 1990s, no history of niddah existed to either support or refute these assumptions. I initially intended that this project would provide future ethnographers with a comprehensive history of niddah in America during the past one and a half centuries. I engaged Victor Turner’s theory of Social Drama as a framework for understanding this history as a socio-cultural process, rather than as a series of less than related events. However, this study h*as resulted in the identification of many more specific assumptions about the decline and revival of niddah observance in the twentieth century, which are not supported by the scant evidence available. These challenged assumptions beg new directions for research; a thorough reworking of the history of niddah in America; and a fresh look at the literature advocating niddah produced in the 1990’s and early 2000’s. This genealogy as Social Drama presents niddah in twentieth century America as undergoing periods of crisis, negotiation, and reintegration. This drama was triggered by late nineteenth century concepts of religion, body, and ritual that undermined and ruptured the integrity of niddah as a bodily religious ritual practice. Niddah’s twentieth century social drama culminated in fresh articulations of a unique Jewish sexuality and Jewish marital ethic.
Dissertation/Thesis
Masters Thesis Religious Studies 2015

Resumé This diplom work is devoted to the ritual purification of the Hebrew in mikva. Mikva is a Hebrew ritual bath which must fulfull certain religious regulations to be understood as properly religious. All the regulations and order regarding the functioning, construction and water, which is allowed to be used, are stated in Misna in the tractate Mikwa'ot. The basis for the ritual adequacy of mikva is water which should have inflow and outflow. Mikva serves to renew ritual cleanliness of a person who became ritually unclean. This ritual dates back to the times when Desater made a commandment to Sinaji. The first people who practiced the ritual were supposedly priests. Those were impurified after the contact with a dead body, carrion of an animal or a snake; after emission of semen or spermatorrhoea. During the times of the first Church the whole population including children cleaned themselves from different impurities. After the deconstruction of the Church the law regualting cleanliness and impurities changed. Today mikva is visited by women firstly before wedding, then after each menstruation period and after giving birth. Men are no longer obliged to practise the ritual after the deconstruction of the Church however even today orhodox Hebrew and chasids clean themselves before important Hebrew...

The impetus for this thesis came from experience in the worlds of medicine, urgent and disturbing aspects of heath and people meeting to find ways through complex problems about them. The author facilitated policy making and dialogue between people from very different backgrounds for a number of years. The thesis is an engagement with ambiguous and contradictory human reactions to stress while being-in-the-middle of threat and differences of many kinds. These trigger both scapegoating and an urge to mate. The phenomenon is embodied in the symbol and ritual of the pharmakos. The aim of the thesis is to engage with the phenomenon of the pharmakos, in order to bring back its symbolism and practice to conscious attention in dealing with many demanding situations today.

The diploma thesis: "Purity and Danger: The Perspective of Compliance with Ritual Purity in the Contemporary Roma House" deals with the boundary definitions of Roma groups and identities. This examination takes place via the narration of the Roma themselves and by observing the ritual practices in Roma households. The main tool that the Roma use in determining their group boundaries is the concept of cleanliness and impurity. It appears both in their narratives and in their ritual practice. This thesis describes the definition of a specific group of Roma women against many other groups of Roma and against the majority society. By doing so, we can examine their values, and the importance of the concept of purity in their lives and at the same time where their concept of purity comes from and how they work with it every day. Furthermore, it describes the environment, habits and clothes worn by women and their children, their hobbies and the way of their everyday life. Another important topic emerging at work is what roles men and women have in their group, and how the duties, or the spaces associated with their daily lives, are shared between the sexes. In conclusion, the thesis also answers the questions of what role the concept of purity plays in the life of particular studied families, how this...

This study examines carnival and ritual in Breyten Breytenbach's dramatic oeuvre and focuses on his Afrikaans drama texts Boklied (1998) and Die toneelstuk (2001). Seeing that these dramas had their debut performances at the Afrikaans national arts festival, the Afrikaans festival phenomenon, as well as Breytenbach's texts will be discussed as framed Events, within a carnival environment, as defined and described by Russian philosopher Bakhtin. The study evolves around three critical questions: 1. How does Bakhtin define the term "carnival" and could Afrikaans national arts festvals be seen as platforms for carnavalesque expression? 2. How does Professor Temple Hauptfleisch define an Event and why can the Afrikaans national arts festivals, as well as the drama texts under discussion, be seen as such Events? 3. How does Breyten Breytenbach's texts link up with Bakhtin's carnival theory and the ritual nature of the Dionysos festivals?
Afrikaans & Theory of Literature
M.A. (Afrikaans)