The hermeneutics of F. August G. Tholuck: a study in the methods of biblical interpretation

Hermeneutics in these days is claiming much attention from Biblical, dogmatic and practical theologians. This is just as it should be, if true and obedient theology depends upon proper exegesis of the Bible, and if the whole life of the Church (the concern of practical theology especially) is to be governed by true and obedient theology. This means that hermeneutics, in a sense, is the connecting link between exegesis and theology, by providing theological rules to keep interpretation on the right track. If this happens, if exegesis is constantly correcting theology and hermeneutics is constantly guiding interpretation, then the practical life of the Church should be well ordered and disciplined. Preaching is important within the life of the Church. Preaching depends upon exegesis, and looks to theology for its rules of interpretation. It is here in preaching and in the congregation's study of the Bible that hermeneutics finds its most practical expression, and it is here also that the rules of hermeneutics are tested and corrected. That is why this discipline of Biblical interpretation is so significant for the life of the Church.This thesis enters the door to the study of hermeneutics by looking at the works of August Tholuck, a truly remarkable figure, as we shall see

Have a safe trip: An investigation of rituals and sanctions surrounding LSD use

There is little recent literature which identifies social controls operating among illicit drug users in Perth, Western Australia. This hinders understanding of the local illicit drug scene and makes the formulation of appropriate harm reduction strategies difficult. This study is a qualitative investigation of rituals and social sanctions which surround the use of Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD). The research describes these rituals and sanctions, and examines their various functions for eight experienced users. The research adopted elements of a phenomenological approach, using in-depth semi-structured interviews to elicit a description of users\u27 subjective experiences with LSD, and Colaizzi\u27s (1978) phenomenological analysis method to probe the data for typical structures and \u27essences\u27. Credibility and validity are achieved through the use of data triangulation, participant verification, and a clearly identifiable audit trail. The results suggest that rituals and sanctions surrounding informants\u27 use of LSD are intertwined and serve a number of important functions. These include governing use through the reduction of harms and risks associated with LSD use and the maximising of pleasurable and beneficial elements of the experience. Users achieve this through the imposition of order, which is learned and practised in the social setting. Rituals and sanctions are integrated into the life of the LSD-using peer group, and have social meaning. Results indicate that the array of social controls which govern participants\u27 use of LSD have varying degrees of success. A dialectical relationship between rituals and sanctions and the social setting exists, with both adapting to the presence and impact of the other. The outcome of this is that rituals and sanctions are modified, corrected and strengthened by their own outcomes. Results also challenge popular constructions of illicit drug users which dominate public discourse. The implications for harm reduction, drug education and future research are discussed

Digestive strategies in ruminants and nonruminants

Of the 176 species of ungulates in the world the great majority (146 species) are ruminants. The more recent ruminants probably have displaced the older nonruminants because of their superior digestive system in combination with the ruminantion mechanism leading to significant advantageous differences in important life history traits. Nonruminants like hippos, equids, elephants and tapirs reach sexual maturity at a later age and produce fewer young per year than ruminants, relative to body size.Within the ruminants three different adaptive syndromes in feeding style are distinguished and expected differences in digestive physiology between members of the various feeding styles were tested. Nonruminants are poorer fibre digesters than ruminants while the large bovid 'grass and roughage feeders' have superior capacity for digesting fibre.In some areas in the world, notably in East Africa, species-rich ungulate communities can be found. Various guilds of species occupying different habitats and feeding niches can be distinguished and the species belonging to different guilds are sufficiently dissimilar as not to compete with each other. Within guilds frequently groups of species of similar body weight and with similar ecology occur sympatrically. The apparent peaceful co-existence of these species yet has to be explained

The Hermeneutical Principles of Theodore Laetsch with a Focus on the Relationship Between the Old and the New Testaments

This dissertation will summarize the findings which resulted from an in-depth study of all the published works of Dr. Theodore Laetsch, professor of practical theology at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri. These writings include a commentary on Jeremiah and Lamentations, a commentary on the Minor Prophets, and eighty-six articles which appeared in the Concordia Theological Monthly. The study was undertaken with the specific goal of ascertaining the hermeneutical principles of Laetsch, particularly those principles that address the relationship between the Old and New Testaments. The phrase hermeneutical principles will be employed in this paper in the following sense: an exegete\u27s presuppositions or assumptions, spoken or otherwise, which govern his interpretation of individual passages. These principles may be theological or philosophical in nature, and they may cover a whole range of subjects, such as methodology of interpretation, Christology, prophecy-fulfillment, philosophy of history, theory of language, and even the personal characteristics of the interpreter. The task of determining Laetsch\u27s hermeneutical principles was eased somewhat by the fact that his writings provide an ample cross-section of his career as a teacher. His journal articles span a twenty-year period which roughly coincides with his seminary professorship, while his two commentaries were compiled and published during his retirement. Also there is in his writings an adequate sample of his treatment of Biblical texts: his commentaries, of course, deal with Old Testament books, whereas the majority of his journal articles discuss New Testament texts, primarily the Eisenach Epistles. Laetsch, perhaps due to a pastoral drive to reach theological conclusions and applications, often left unsaid his hermeneutical principles. Having in view the goal of edifying his readers, Laetsch kept his hermeneutics largely in the background, perhaps as part of the shoptalk that preceded his writings, but not often included in the writings themselves. This situation made the present investigation somewhat more difficult and shaped it into an inductive study, a reasoning from the particular to the general. In order to explain preliminarily the thesis of this dissertation a brief word of background explanation is in order. Within confessional churches the art of Biblical interpretation has often been described as the traversing of a hermeneutical circle which has upon it two reference points, the words of the Scriptures themselves and the doctrinal content of a church body\u27s confession. Lutheran systematicians are accustomed to referring to these two points as the formal and material principles respectively: the formal principle reminds the interpreter that the Scriptures are the sole source and norm of all doctrine, while the material principle directs the interpreter to make sure that all his work of interpretation is done in service of what is seen as the Scriptures\u27 own cardinal teaching, the Gospel of God\u27s grace in Jesus Christ. It is important that this hermeneutical circle remain intact and that a healthy balance between these two poles be maintained. On the one hand, the ignoring of the doctrinal pole entails the faulty assumption that a purely presupposition less, tabula rasa (clean slate) approach to the Scriptures is a possible option. On the other hand, an overemphasis on the doctrinal pole is also possible: where the interpreter, forgetting that his teachings came from the Scriptures in the first place, fails to check continually the Scriptures themselves to see whether or not his teachings are entirely accurate. At the very least, an overemphasis on doctrine can lead to a colorization of the Scriptures, where the Scriptures are no longer fully heard in their own right and according to their own terms and categories. In the history of The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod there has been a constant watchfulness to preserve the integrity of the hermeneutical circle. However, it appears that at various times in that history there has been an accentuating of one point on the circle over against the other. In particular, the doctrinal point has received increasing attention, especially when aberrant doctrines were encountered both outside and even within the framework of American Lutheranism. To be sure, the Scriptures have never been totally ignored; they have been appealed to unceasingly. But the real question here is concerning which point on the hermeneutical circle receives more emphasis and attention. Against this historical backdrop and as the result of a careful reading of all the writings of Theodore Laetsch a threefold thesis regarding the hermeneutics of Theodore Laetsch has emerged. First of all, Laetsch, this dissertation contends, is one of those exegetes in the Missouri Synod who emphasized the doctrinal point on the hermeneutical circle in the face of doctrinal opponents both within and without his church. Secondly, it is maintained that Laetsch\u27s chief hermeneutical mentor for this doctrinal emphasis was Ludwig Fuerbringer, at least in terms of direct, immediate influence. It was Fuerbringer who set down in writing a whole set of hermeneutical principles for use by Laetsch\u27s generation, although there remains the possibility that Fuerbringer was misunderstood at various points. The third sub point of the thesis flows from the first two as a practical outcome, of which mention has already been made: this concern over doctrine has the potential of creating an imbalance on the hermeneutical circle and of hampering the fresh and original, albeit confessional, exegesis of individual Scripture passages. The Scriptures may tend to be placed into a secondary position, where they merely provide aetiologies for doctrines that the interpreter already holds to be true; or even worse, out of doctrinal concern the interpreter may possibly push a Scripture passage beyond its original scope and intention. It is hoped that this dissertation will offer a meaningful contribution to Old Testament studies in the church and that it will serve as a catalyst for further discussion, particularly in the area of prophecy and fulfillment, a major focus of this paper

The Scriptural Doctrine of the Atonement with Special Reference to the False Theories of Atonement

It is a well known fact that the Lutheran, that is, the scriptural, doctrine of the atonement is being denied and even ridiculed throughout the theological world. Substitute theories have been set up, about whose banners theologians have rallied and continue to rally. Such is the situation which calls forth this study of the scriptural doctrine of the atonement, with special reference to the false theories of atonement