Abstracts Of Recent WTS Doctoral Dissertations -- By: Anonymous

Journal: Westminster Theological Journal
Volume: WTJ 71:2 (Fall 2009)
Article: Abstracts Of Recent WTS Doctoral Dissertations
Author: Anonymous


Abstracts Of Recent WTS Doctoral Dissertations

John’s Account Of The Two Witnesses And The Implications For Understanding John’s Depiction Of The People Of God And His Hortatory Intent

Rob Dalrymple

This research examines the account of the Two Witnesses in Rev 11 with the objectives of determining the nature of John’s portrait of the people of God and gaining insights into his hortatory intent. It is argued that John depicts the Two Witnesses, who I contend represent the entirety of the people of God, in accord with four themes: they are divinely protected, they are called as witnesses, they will suffer persecution, and they will ultimately be vindicated. A comparison with other pre-consummation accounts of the people of God suggests that John consistently depicts them in accord with these four themes. It is further argued that John’s depiction of the people of God derives from his christological conceptions. Finally, this analysis suggests that John’s hortatory intent included the desire to encourage his readers to persevere in faithful witnessing, in the face of impending persecution and possibly death, with the knowledge that they were under God’s divine protection and that in the end it will be they who are vindicated.

The Imago Dei As The Imago Trinitatis:
An Analysis Of Jürgen Moltmann’s Doctrine Of The Image Of God

Isaiah Gesa Nengean

One of the central affirmations of the Christian faith is the claim that human beings are created in the image of God. However, there are divergent views regarding elements that reflect God’s image in human beings. Theologians throughout church history have held different views on the character of the image of God in man. For instance, theologians such as St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, John Calvin, and Karl Barth, to name a few, display diverse understandings regarding the image of God. This dissertation examines the doctrine of the image of God in a contemporary theologian, Jürgen Moltmann. A Reformed theologian from Germany, Moltmann espouses the doctrine in a way that creates a blurring of the Creator–creature distinction.

This dissertation identifies the problem with Moltmann’s formulation of the doctrine of the image of God as stemming from Moltmann’s rejection of classical theism or monotheism. He replaces it with his notion of transcendental immanence, together with Trinitarian panentheism, accentuated by means of Hegelian dialectics in alignment with the Eastern Orthodox view of the Trinity. Moltmann, therefore, makes the Trinity the foundation of all...

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