Department of Theology and Religion
All items relating to the Department can be found under Theology and Religion*. They are also listed under their sub-discipline.
The Department is home to programmes in Theology and Religion and two research centres, the Centre for Theology and Public Issues, and the Centre for the Study of Islam and Muslim Cultures.
The Department has a strong record of research. It was the highest ranked department in Theology and Religious Studies in New Zealand, and the third highest across departments in all disciplines, in the most recent assessment of research quality in New Zealand.
Collections in Department of Theology and Religion
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Biblical Studies [14]
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Religious Studies [12]
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Theology and Religion* [146]
Recent Deposits
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Buddhist influences in Burmese political history
The primary question that this thesis looks at is to what extent and what manner of influence has Buddhism had on Burmese political history? Issues surrounding the difficulties and nuances of the relationship between ... -
Making a Difference: Faith-Based Organisations Contributing to Social Change in Aotearoa
This paper presents the findings of research conducted in 2013 for the Bishop’s Action Foundation (BAF) through the Centre for Theology and Public Issues, University of Otago. It explores how churches and faith-based ... -
Research briefing: Violence against women in Samoa
This research briefing provides information about the context of violence against women (VAW) in Samoa. It explores the social, cultural, and religious systems that serve to sustain the nation’s high rates of VAW, including ... -
Crucifixión, terrorismo de Estado y abuso sexual: Texto y Contexto
[From English version] A key principle in the work of Latin American liberation theologians has been a willingness to take their Latin American social context seriously as an aid for understanding biblical texts. This paper ... -
Recognising Jesus as a Victim of Sexual Abuse: Responses from Sodalicio Survivors in Peru
This report identifies a number of publicationsTombs (1999), Heath (2011), Gafney (2013), Trainor (2014)which have independently and explicitly identified Jesus as a victim of sexual abuse in published work. It also ... -
Christianity and Islam: The Mutual Understanding and the Development of their Early Relations till the End of the Umayyad Islamic Rule in the Middle East, with Special Focus on the Identity Formation of Both Communities
In this thesis I will explore how the religious identities of Christian churches and Muslim communities were formed in the socio-political and cultural context of the Middle East during the early period of Islamic rule. ... -
Marital Violence in Papua New Guinea: A Theological Critique and Response
Marital violence has been described as endemic in Papua New Guinea (PNG) and it is striking that the problem of marital violence is so severe in a country where Christian adherence has stabilised at around ninety-six percent ... -
Crucifixion, State Terror, and Sexual Abuse: Text and Context
A key principle in the work of Latin American liberation theologians has been a willingness to take their Latin American social context seriously as an aid for understanding biblical texts. This paper is intended to ... -
Hearing Galatians Today in Light of Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Theology of Freedom
In the epistle to the Galatians Paul tells the church, “For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another” ... -
Galileo and the Conflict between Religion and Science
For more than 30 years, historians have rejected what they call the ‘warfare thesis’ – the idea that there is an inevitable conflict between religion and science – insisting that scientists and believers can live in harmony. ... -
The Three Trials of Khruba Sriwichai
Scholars of contemporary Thailand refer to the Sangha reforms promulgated by the Cakri monarchs in the late-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as historical events that instantly created a new regime of Buddhism. ... -
Lead Us Not into Temptation: Christian Responses to Consumerism
Consumerism represents a way of structuring society and the economy that encourages and facilitates the ever-expanding acquisition of commodities. Consumption is now the principle aspiration and source of individual identity ... -
The Language and Theology of the Samoan Methodist Hymnbook: Circumscribing Hymnal Translation from a Postcolonial Perspective
This thesis offers a critical analysis of the biased and un-balanced theology in the lyrical-literary work that is the Samoan Methodist Hymn Book, and of the impact this biased theology has on the Christian community and ... -
The Son as God: the Theological Salience of Divine Christology in the Epistle to the Hebrews
This thesis investigates the divinity of the Son in the Epistle to Hebrews. In spite of a burgeoning interest in divine Christology in NT studies, the Son’s divinity in Hebrews has received little specific attention, being ... -
Prophet or Magician? : the debate surrounding Joseph Smith Jr.
Many authors have seen elements of Joseph Smith Jr.'s life, and early Mormonism in general to be of a magical nature. D. Michael Quinn, John L. Brooke and Lance Owens in particular have written much on the subject. There ... -
Seeing is Believing: Revelation, Emotion, and Film Images
One of the most theologically interesting aspects of cinema is its apparent capacity to mediate revelation. While the primary agent of revelation is God, without whom revelation cannot happen, certain films seem to elicit ... -
Love Does Not Seek Its Own: Augustine, Economic Division, and the Formation of a Common Life
This thesis arises out of contemporary concerns regarding the nature and formation of the church amidst economic inequality. What does it mean to be the church amidst an economically divided society? And how does God seek ... -
Anglicanism and the Ephesians 4 Gifts: Towards a Leadership Model that Disciples and Equips the Church for Mission
This research project has two aims; to look for evidence that Hirsch’s proposition that the five ministry gifts of Eph 4:11, the apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher are needed to transition an institutional ...