CU Dissertations

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CU Dissertations

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CU Dissertations contains all the electronic dissertations since October of 2009 Graduation. Some dissertations can be accessed by Catholic University users only.

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: An Analysis of Intelligible Species in the Doctrine of Knowledge in a Manuscript Attributed to Antonius Andreas; An Analysis of Intelligible Species in the Doctrine of Knowledge in a Manuscript Attributed to Antonius AndreasPaul L. Dudzinski, PhDDirector: Timothy B. Noone, PhD Intelligible species were enshrined in the cognitive theories of medieval thinkers as part of the narrative which explained the genesis of an act of understanding. However these thinkers did not all regard intelligible species in the same way. While some, like St. Thomas Aquinas, stressed the need for these species to serve as the means to an act of understanding, others such as Henry of Ghent rejected the need for them on those grounds. This historical setting serves as the backdrop of the dissertation which is a commentary of Aristotle’s De Anima which is attributed to Antonius Andreas; the commentary, we are told, was copied in the early part of the fall semester in 1448 at the University of Prague by the scribe who copied it, Hilary of Lithonicum. Antonius Andreas was a Franciscan friar from the Kingdom of Aragon who studied at the University of Paris at the same time that Blessed John Duns Scotus was teaching there. The influence of the Doctor Subtilis on Antonius is manifest primarily in his own commentary on Aristotle’s Metaphysics in which he espouses Scotus’s signature teaching on common nature and haecceitas. Antonius Andreas discusses the role of intelligible species in cognition in this commentary and in his Scriptum Artem Veterem Aristotelis. The anonymous author also discusses the role of intelligible species in his commentary on the De Anima. The main focus of this dissertation is to examine whether the doctrine of intelligible species of the anonymous author is consistent with the doctrine Antonius Andreas. In the background of this discussion is how faithful both Antonius Andreas and this anonymous author are to the doctrine of Duns Scotus, and whether the appellation of Scotellus correctly belongs to Antonius Andreas as well as to this anonymous author., Philosophy, Medieval history, Philosophy, Degree Awarded: Ph.D. Philosophy. The Catholic University of America

: An Analysis of School Nurse Delegation of Medication Administration To Unlicensed Assistive Personnel; Degree awarded: D.N.P. Nursing. The Catholic University of America, Before February 8, 2015, this dissertation can be viewed by CUA users only. [24 months embargo], This capstone project focuses on one aspect of the school nurse role - the delegation of the task of medication administration to unlicensed assistive personnel (UAPs). It examines the safety and regulatory issues surrounding nurse delegation of medication administration to UAPs in the school setting. The primary goals of this project are to (1) identify resources to assist nurses and UAPs with the safe administration of medications in the school setting, (2) examine similarities and differences between states on the issue of school nurse delegation of medication administration in order to define potential system problems, and (3) make recommendations for a uniform approach to improve school nurse delegation of medication administration and monitor medication errors made by UAPs., Made available in DSpace on 2013-02-08T16:06:03Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ONeill_cua_0043A_10392display.pdf: 1057914 bytes, checksum: e6cfdabe0934d10feaa88c86989a3e14 (MD5)

: An Analysis of the Influence of Non-Priestly Ritual Performance on Covenant Theology

: An Analysis of the Portrayal of Catholicism on Prime-Time Network Entertainment Television, 1950-1980; Degree awarded: Ph.D. History. The Catholic University of America, ABSTRACTAn Analysis of the Portrayal of Catholicism on Prime-Time Network Entertainment Television, 1950-1980Christopher Gildemeister, Ph.D. Director: Leslie W. Tentler, Ph.D. Representations in popular culture entertainment both reflect popular thought about various subjects, and simultaneously influence perceptions of those same subjects. This dissertation proposes a twofold thesis: firstly, that the representation of the Catholic priest in American popular culture - particularly film and prime-time broadcast network entertainment television - was shaped by various real-life individual priests; and secondly, that such representations fell into a number of identifiable and frequently repeated tropes, which themselves served to influence later representations. With the rise of mass popular culture in the 1920s (largely originated by the increasing influence of film and the rapid and widespread adoption of radio broadcasting), the image of the Catholic priest in America shifted from that of the effeminate, licentious, and sexually depraved predator which was widespread during the nation's era of domination by traditionally anti-Catholic Protestants to that of the "heroic priest": a tough, dynamic, manly individual dedicated to social reform, particularly involving battles against entrenched civic corruption and crime. The major model for the "heroic priest" was the famed "radio priest," Father Charles Coughlin, who in the early years of his fame was a far more populist and reform-minded individual than he was to become subsequently. Several other real-life priests, such as Boys Town founder Father Edward Flanagan and World War I chaplain Father Duffy also contributed to the image of the "heroic priest," which was reflected in such films as Angels with Dirty Faces, Boys Town, and others. Post-World War II, the image of the "heroic priest" acquired a heavily anti-Communist cast, influenced by such real-life resistance to tyranny as that offered by Hungarian Cardinal Joszef Mindszenty, which was reflected throughout the television programming of the era, from the early Studio One to programs like Mission: Impossible and The Outer Limits. The image also softened somewhat into that of the "man of piety," dedicated priests who continued their devotion to social uplift though in less obstreperous ways, seen on programs ranging from Dragnet to The Loretta Young Show. The 1962-63 ABC television series Going My Way (based on the famed 1944 movie) offered a unique picture of Catholic clergy and the Church on the eve of the Second Vatican Council. While overtly reflecting an older, traditionalist portrait of the "Catholic ghetto" of the 1930s, in its subtext the series uneasily confronted the Church's internal tensions over such issues as marriage, atheism, ecumenism, and race. Finally, influenced by such real-life radical priests as Philip and Daniel Berrigan, media began portraying priests as radical reformers in such programs as The Mod Squad. This image soon softened into a portrait of Catholic clergy as "fully human," well-meaning but possessed of the full range of human foibles, as reflected on such television portrayals of priests as Father Francis Mulcahy on M*A*S*H and comedian Don Novello's humorous character Father Guido Sarducci - thus tracing a perceptual arc of the Catholic priest from depraved to heroic to fully human., Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-20T16:21:51Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Gildemeister_cua_0043A_10504display.pdf: 2508103 bytes, checksum: 9bfc2ac1e8008299109f0a7f6f12561a (MD5)

: An Analytical Model and Protocol for Optimizing Quality of Experience in Real-Time Communications; Degree Awarded: Ph.D. Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. The Catholic University of America, This dissertation evaluates the analytical correlations between the quantitative quality of service parameters and qualitative quality of experience; and defines the desired quality of experience and realized quality of experience, to aid in optimizing the quality of experience. Next, this dissertation proposes a cloud-enabled wireless access network architecture that implements software defined networking for control and optimization. And lastly, this dissertation evaluates the benefits of the proposed architecture, utilizing the desired quality of experience. The proliferation of mobile devices and broadband applications has placed tremendous demands on wireless network services. Demands for network accessible multimedia content, especially video, has been growing at a rapid pace. When accessedusing mobile devices via wireless or mobile networks, a high demand is placed on these resource constrained dynamic environments. Optimizing the performance of wireless edge networks to ensure a high quality of experience for all connected users requires employing new capabilities on the edge network. This dissertation introduces the concepts of desired and realized quality of experience, which can be used to normalize the quality that users perceive in order to make more accurate comparisons across a wide range of devices and scenarios.The trend of combining advanced communications and information technologies has created unprecedented opportunities for innovation in network-centric services. The rapid growth in cloud computing and middle box deployment is an outcome of such integration. A similar level of success should be expected if this paradigm is adopted by access networks. This dissertation presents a computation-capable and programmable wireless access network architecture to enable more efficient and robust content delivery.The proposed architecture integrates cloud computing technology to support in-network processing and caching, and software defined networking for flexible management and control of network resources. Finally, this dissertation proposes the framework and algorithms for optimizing the quality of experience of multiple video streams in real-time, subject to wireless transmission capacity and in-network computational power constraints. The framework and algorithms address the multiple resource management challenges that arise in exploiting such integration. The evaluation results show the proposed algorithms significantly improve the average quality of experience of wireless users, especially in congested environments.

: Analytics for Rehabilitative Motion Sensing of Impaired Upper Limbs

: Ancient and Medieval Interpretation of the Complaints of Jeremiah; Degree awarded: Ph.D. Semitic and Egyptian Languages and Literatures. The Catholic University of America, Ancient and Medieval Interpretation of the Complaints of JeremiahSusan G. Sullivan, Ph.D.Director, Edward M. Cook, Ph.D. Poem prayers in the book of Jeremiah use strong, sometimes accusatory, language, in the first person, in speaking to God. They stand out from the rest of the book, with little or no connection to preceding and following sections. The traditional list includes Jeremiah 11:18-20, 12:1-6, 15:10-11, 15:15-18, 17:14-18, 18:18-23, 20:7-10, and 20:14-18. Modern interpreters call them "confessions," "laments," or "complaints," noting similarities between these and Gunkel's "laments of the individual," though most do not include all elements of the lament genre. "Complaint" best describes their strong emotional content, addressed to God, connected with specific misery that does not resolve into praise. This dissertation considers ancient and medieval interpretation of these complaints, with particular focus on Jeremiah's harsh language. It looks at the traditional list of complaints, plus Jeremiah 4:10, an accusatory sentence; first in the Masoretic Text, then in the ancient versions: Septuagint, Targum, Vulgate, and Peshitta. It considers the meaning of the words of the complaints and how these were transmitted. It then considers a representative sample of interpretation in Greek, Latin, Hebrew, and Syriac. It includes Greek and Latin patristic; Latin medieval; Jewish ancient, rabbinic, and medieval; and Syriac ancient and medieval interpreters. It examines their choice of words, content and mode of interpretation, and methods of dealing with Jeremiah's strong complaints and accusations. Reverent interpretation by ancient and medieval interpreters transmitted these texts very carefully, with few emendations, including some slight softening of Jeremiah's harsh language. The texts were handed down in "streams of tradition" in language groups. Interpreters found meaning for the texts in the details of Jeremiah's life, but did not limit understanding to this original meaning. They considered theological questions raised by his complaints and related them to communities of their own day. Their conviction that these texts would reveal useful insights about God and God's work with, and expectations of, humanity, was shown in practices valuable for our own day: carefully transmitting each text, paying close attention to its details, seeking connections between these texts and the rest of Scripture, and considering theological implications and applications to communities., Made available in DSpace on 2013-02-08T16:06:04Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Sullivan_cua_0043A_10382display.pdf: 1639357 bytes, checksum: d78891c9547302927437207ebcb04faf (MD5)

: The Animal at Unease with Itself; Death Anxiety and the Human-Animal Boundary in Genesis 2-3; Although some fields in the humanities have already experienced the “cognitive turn,” the insights from research in cognition are little used by biblical scholars. I suggest that this research has a lot to offer biblical scholars and I attempt to utilize their work in studying death anxiety and the animal-human boundary in order to better understand the role of clothing in Genesis 2-3.Humans have an advantage over all other animal species because our intelligence allows us to anticipate far into the future. This has a downside, however, in that we are the only species that can ruminate on our own death. Humans can experience the terror of oncoming death even in the absence of danger. Based on the work of Ernest Becker, terror management theory asserts that humans have overcome this potentially debilitating death anxiety by creating cultural systems that allow us to participate meaningfully in an eternal structure, giving the sense of immortality and keeping death anxiety at bay. Research in support of terror management theory shows that death anxiety leads us to emphasize a boundary between humans and other animals.The Hebrew Bible is filled with stories, laws, and reflections on the human body, animals, and death, and participates in the maintenance of the animal-human boundary through societal norms regarding grooming and clothing. Theorists working in clothing have long recognized the meaningfulness of clothing, but it appears that biblical scholars have not. Biblical commentators have generally viewed the clothing of Genesis 2-3 to be etiological or symbolic with regard to sexuality, sin, and shame. The research in support of terror management theory demonstrates a web of connections between death, the human body, and animals. Creation narratives, which tend to contain all these elements, might very well be concerned with upholding the animal-human boundary.When read with this conclusion in mind, we can easily see how clothing in Gen 2-3 functions as a reinforcement of this boundary. As the only animal whose body brings the discomfort of death anxiety, the humans distinguish themselves through the wearing of clothes., Biblical studies, Animals, clothing, cognitive science of religion, creation accounts, Genesis, terror management theory, Biblical Studies, Degree Awarded: Ph.D. Biblical Studies. The Catholic University of America

: Antagonistic expression of Miz1 and Zeb1 driven by c-Myc expression in high-grade human hepatocholangio-carcinomas with chromosome 8q24 amplification; Antagonistic expression of Miz1 and Zeb1 driven by c-Myc expression in high-grade human hepatocholangio-carcinomas with chromosome 8q24 amplificationJoeffrey ChahineDirector: Pamela L. Tuma, Ph.D.Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC), the sixth most common type of cancer, and the third most common cause of cancer death with about 9.2% of all deaths, and Intra-Hepatic Cholangiocarcinoma (ICC), the second most common primary hepatic tumor, are two cancers with a high number of approximately 820,000 newly diagnosed cases each year worldwide. Uncovering the factors promoting these two cancers and understanding the relative mechanisms is a leading research topic at the basic science and translational levels. In most cases, HCC and ICC are multistage diseases, and their increasing occurrences are mainly due to infection with hepatitis B/C viruses, cirrhosis, and lifestyle factors such as alcohol consumption. Also, genomic instability and chromosomal 8q24 amplification have been documented in several epithelial cell-derived cancers, including HCC and ICC. More than 80% of human cancers are derived from polarized epithelial cells. As the invasive phenotype is acquired, cells undergo an epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT). With EMT being linked to drug resistance and metastasis, it is critical to fully understand malignant transformation to predict and treat the disease. The c-Myc oncogene itself resides on amplified 8q24 (at 8q24.21), and high c-Myc levels are found in most alcohol-induced HCC cases. Also, it is broadly accepted that c-Myc overexpression leads to the transcription of countless genes that further promote transformation and cell proliferation. Overexpressed c-Myc also can also promote the repression of other transcription factors involved in tumor suppression further enhancing cancer progression. One such transcription factor is Miz1. In normal cells, c-Myc levels are low with the Myc-Max dimers activating their selected targets, while Miz1 at its core promoter is-bound to p300 and nucleophosmin (npm) activating genes involved in adhesion, autophagy, apoptosis, polarity, and tumor suppression. In contrast, in cancer cells high c-Myc levels, the c-Myc-Max dimers displace p300 and npm and bind Miz1 thereby repressing Miz1 transcriptional activity leading to decreased apoptosis, autophagy, and polarity. Moreover, high c-Myc expression has been linked to activation of transcription factors that promote EMT, including Zeb1. Importantly, Zeb1 expression is associated with aggressive behavior in many tumor types and chemotherapeutic drug resistance. This thesis is focused on understanding chromosome 8q24 amplification that is observed more frequently in patients with alcohol-induced HCC and ICC, by evaluating the temporal expression patterns of c-Myc, Miz1, Ki-67 and Zeb1 in a cohort of 147 HCC, and 146 CC cases with the latter including 114 ICC and 32 c-HCC-CC (combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma) cases. The formalin fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissue sections of these resected cases were examined by immunohistochemistry (IHC) using Miz-1 (ZBTB17), Zeb1 (OT13G6), c-Myc (Y69), and Ki-67 (Mib-1) monoclonal antibodies. Decreased Miz1 expression was observed in all grades whereas c-Myc and Zeb1 labeling along with Ki-67 peaked in high-grade cases. Also, high-grade HCC, ICC, including c-CC-HCC cases with high c-Myc expression levels showed relatively a high correlation with c-Myc gene amplification using Fluorescent In-Situ Hybridization (FISH). But more importantly, 12 HCC, 10 ICC, and 10 c-HCC-CC high-grade cases showed Miz1 loss of cytoplasmic expression with Miz1 only nuclear expression, in addition to high c-Myc expression and amplification, Ki-67 and Zeb1 expression. Strikingly, these same cases when correlated with clinicopathologic variables, they all presented with histories of hepatitis, alcohol consumption, cirrhosis, and metastasis. In conclusion, by linking the assessed expressions and amplification data to clinical parameters, this project suggests the exciting possibilities and gateways for establishing therapeutic interventions and could uncover novel treatment strategies for HCC and ICC with specific patterns and inclusion criteria., Cellular biology, Oncology, Anatomical Pathology, Cholangiocarcinoma, Clinical Laboratory Sciences, Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Translational Research, Tumor Biology, Biology, Degree Awarded: Ph.D. Biology. The Catholic University of America

: Anxiety, Sleep, and Functional Impairment among Clinically Anxious Youth and Healthy Controls; Degree awarded: Ph.D. Psychology. The Catholic University of America, Childhood anxiety disorders are characterized by non-transient excessive fear or worry that often affects various domains of life, including academic performance and social relationships (Albano & Detweiler, 2001; Langley, Bergman, McCracken, & Piacentini, 2004). A particular concern for children with anxiety disorders are sleep disturbances (Alfano, Ginsburg, & Kingery, 2007; Gregory, Eley, O'Connor, Rijsdijk, & Plomin, 2005). Without sufficient sleep, children experience functional impairments such as increased anxiety severity, academic problems, and behavior problems at school or home. Interestingly, the impairments of sleep deprivation are similar to those of anxiety in children (Crabtree & Witcher, 2008; Sadeh, Gruber, & Raviv, 2002). Although sleep problems are common in children with an anxiety disorder, the relationship between sleep difficulties and anxiety disorders in youth has been minimally studied (Alfano & Lewin, 2008). Moreover, whether children with a comorbid anxiety disorder and sleep difficulties experience greater functional impairment than do children with an anxiety disorder alone has not been empirically examined. The current study examined 60 non-depressed clinically anxious youth (ages 7-18) and 30 healthy controls. All participants underwent a diagnostic assessment and completed the parent/child Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED), Life Events Scale (LES), Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS), and Family Risk Factor Checklist - Parent (FRFC-P) at baseline. Findings indicate that sleep functioning did not significantly differ between groups when controlling for age. Rather, sleep functioning was significantly related to life event stressors. In contrast, group differences were revealed in social functioning. Notably, greater social functional impairment was best predicted by anxiety symptom severity rather than sleep functioning. Together, these findings lend support to the necessary examination of compounded anxiety symptom severity and sleep functioning in an effort to better understand impairments associated with youth anxiety disorders, particularly social functioning. The results of this investigation can be used to inform the assessment and treatment of youth with anxiety disorders in an effort to minimize the development, maintenance, and impairments of anxiety associated with sleep problems (Alfano & Lewin, 2008)., Made available in DSpace on 2014-02-11T18:35:55Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Cumba_cua_0043A_10473display.pdf: 518963 bytes, checksum: d857e70e8c22bc9487950c08f33f69d3 (MD5)

: Apocalyptic Expectation and Recognition in Shakespeare's Early Jacobean Plays; Scholars have long noted the prevalence of references to the apocalypse in Shakespeare’s plays from the early Jacobean period, but there are few sustained studies centered on the topic. In this work I will offer an extended treatment of Shakespeare’s use of the apocalypse in Measure for Measure, King Lear, Macbeth, and Antony and Cleopatra. This work attends to the historical understanding of the apocalypse available to Shakespeare as I seek to gain a fuller appreciation of how the material functions thematically and formally within the plays. These apocalyptic elements give weight and form to the expectations that direct the audience’s attention to the end to come, and then, undermine that expectation with an experience of recognition that mirrors the apocalyptic end. In Measure for Measure, the long, much-anticipated final scene upends judgment based merely on what is due, leading through the tribulating experience of self-knowledge to the challenge to extend and accept mercy, thereby making all things new. In Macbeth, the “vaulting ambition” that leads Macbeth to “jump the life to come” leaves him in a “restless ecstasy” that is hell on earth (1.7.27, 1.4.7, 3.2.24). In King Lear, patterns of “nothing” create an expectation of an apocalyptic unfolding of the ultimate abyss, or at least the “image of that horror” (5.3.262). Containing the most allusions to the Book of Revelation of any of his plays, Antony and Cleopatra translates the whole goal of the Aeneid, the future Golden Age of Rome, using only pre-Christian mythical elements, to portend the Golden Age of the Christian vision: “new heavens, new earth” (1.1.18). Allusions from the Book of Revelation cue the audience to recognize the beginnings of their own epoch prefigured in the seeking for more than Octavius’ Rome can offer, an age that Shakespeare’s audience knows did not last, as divinely foretold by Jupiter, sine fine dedi (Aeneid 1.279). In these plays, Shakespeare confronts the often complacent providentialism of his contemporaries with images of the true beauty and the horror of the Christian apocalypse, creating four of the most compelling artistic enactments of “the promised end” (King Lear 5.3.251)., English literature, Literature, Antony and Cleopatra, apocalypse, King Lear, Macbeth, Measure for Measure, Shakespeare, English Language and Literature, Degree Awarded: Ph.D. English Language and Literature. The Catholic University of America

: The Apophthegmata Patrum and the Greek Philosophical Tradition; Degree Awarded: Ph.D. Early Christian Studies. The Catholic University of America, This dissertation traces the influence of the ancient philosophical schools upon the practices of the early Christian monastic communities that produced the Apophthegmata Patrum. Both ancient philosophy and early Christianity, especially in its monastic form, were complex social movements defined by their doctrines, but also by their distinctive community structures, pedagogy, and practices. Where studies of the relationship between Christianity and philosophy have tended to focus primarily on doctrinal questions, this project aims to explore various areas in order to develop a more subtle understanding. Both philosophy and monasticism represent elite spiritual groups within larger religious traditions, requiring a conversion in order to set out on the path. These conversions represented the crossing of a bright line, leaving behind an old life in order to adopt a new and fundamentally different identity. This required a measure of withdrawal from society at large, including stepping aside from common political and religious concerns, and, particularly in the monastic case, living in a separate community. It also entailed entering a personal relationship with a teacher, who would guide the convert in the new way of life. This mentorship was characterized by a therapeutic orientation, a desire not merely to teach the disciple new beliefs, but to treat the maladies of the soul. Achieving this therapeutic goal required a radical degree of openness on the part of the disciple, which allowed the teacher to understand all the unique elements of the individual case, and thus to address the disciple's errors frankly. A key element of the content of this teaching was the spiritual exercises, practiced in all the philosophical schools, and later adopted by the monks as well. The practitioner of either spiritual path would regularly examine their conscience in order to evaluate how successfully they were living up to their ideals. They would also memorize and reflect upon striking sayings from the leading lights of their communities (and, in the monastic case, upon the Christian scriptures). Additionally, they would reflect upon their inevitable mortality. These three practices combined to help form an attitude of focused attention to the present moment known as "vigilance" or "watchfulness". In this state of vigilance, the philosopher and the monk would be able to instantiate the commitments of their chosen path at every moment of life. While these practices were inflected differently in the different communities that employed them, the similarities are systematic and consistent. It is clear that the monks of the Apophthegmata Patrum were building deliberately and creatively upon philosophical precedents.

: The Approbation of Religious Institutes; by Clement Raymond Orth., Vita., Thesis (J.C.D.) -- Catholic University of America, 1931., Includes bibliographical references (p. [159]-161)

: Aquinas and the Kantian Principle of Treating Persons as Ends in Themselves; Degree awarded: Ph.D. Philosophy. The Catholic University of America, This dissertation addresses the question of whether and on what terms Aquinas would accept Kant's principle that one must always treat all persons as ends in themselves, and never merely as means. This question is of considerable interest given the wide contemporary acceptance of Kant's principle and yet it has, to my knowledge, never received as sustained a consideration as I will give it. To answer this question I make a distinction between a finis cuius and finis cui. A finis cuius is an end in the sense of a value that is to be attained, and a finis cui is an end in the sense of someone for whom a value is to be attained. Aquinas holds that one must treat persons as ends in both of these senses. Nevertheless, no created person is a supreme finis cui or an ultimate finis cuius. For Aquinas, God is the end of the natural law and all of the moral life is ordered towards Him. "Love God with all your heart" is the primary precept of the natural law. Aquinas does not mean that the whole moral life is ordered towards one's own personal happiness with God. Such a view would involve always using other persons as mere means. Rather, God is to be loved as both the supreme finis cui and the ultimate finis cuius. God offers Himself to man as a common good and must be loved as such. This means that one must love other persons as fellow participants in the common good and as those for whom the common good is intended. This is to say that one must treat his neighbor as a finis cui. Aquinas further holds that one must love one's neighbor as oneself, that is to say, with the love of friendship. This requires valuing the other person as a finis cuius--thus wanting to be in community with him--in addition to willing his good as a finis cui. Such love perfects a natural tendency purposefully implanted in man by God and is necessary if the community is to flourish., Made available in DSpace on 2012-06-01T16:44:27Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Shields_cua_0043A_10341display.pdf: 1686078 bytes, checksum: d551d18b267f0ad6ff9395b4674896e5 (MD5)

: Aquinas on Israel and the Church: A Study of the Question of Supersessionism in the Theology of Thomas Aquinas; Degree awarded: Ph.D. Moral Theology/Ethics. The Catholic University of America, During the last decade, the discussion over whether Thomas Aquinas's theology is supersessionist--the idea that God abolishes Jewish observance of circumcision and Torah and replaces Israel with the Church--has elicited deep disagreement among scholars. With the exception of a few studies on Aquinas's commentary on Romans, scholars in the discussion over whether Aquinas's theology is supersessionist have overlooked his commentaries on Paul's epistles to the Galatians, Hebrews, and Ephesians, which include some of Aquinas's most extended reflections on the subjects of Israel and the Gentile Church and on Jewish observance of the ceremonial Mosaic Law after the passion of Christ. The neglect of Aquinas's commentaries on Paul's epistles represents a significant gap in the current scholarship on the question of supersessionism in Aquinas's theology. This dissertation adjudicates conflicting claims in the discussion over whether Aquinas's theology is supersessionist by examining Aquinas's view of the ceremonial Mosaic Law after the passion of Christ in his neglected commentaries on Paul's epistles. My dissertation demonstrates that throughout Aquinas's commentaries on Paul's epistles there exist tensions and contradictions in his views of the theological status of the ceremonial Mosaic Law after the passion of Christ. In his Galatians lectura and in his Hebrews lectura, Aquinas argues that the observance of the ceremonial Mosaic Law after the passion of Christ is a mortal sin. Yet in Aquinas's lectures on Ephesians and Romans, Aquinas leaves this teaching out of his discussion of the ceremonial Mosaic Law after the passion of Christ. In his lectures on Galatians and Hebrews, Aquinas argues that circumcision is superfluous for all. Yet in the Romans lectura, Aquinas argues circumcision is a present spiritual benefit for the Jewish people after the passion of Christ. This dissertation illuminates the scholarly discussion over whether Aquinas's theology is supersessionist by demonstrating that Aquinas's thought, as revealed in his commentaries on Paul's epistles, contains economically supersessionist views of the Jewish people alongside and in tension with significant post-supersessionist resources., Made available in DSpace on 2012-06-01T16:44:29Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Tapie_cua_0043A_10357display.pdf: 3124799 bytes, checksum: de0bb20c12e88846d37ef90b28a548b4 (MD5)

: Aquinas on Moral Responsibility without Deliberation; In this dissertation, I clarify Aquinas’s doctrine ofresponsibility by examining atypical cases of responsibility in hiswork. Aquinas frequently suggests deliberation, i.e., the processof considering how best to act in a given situation, is essential toresponsibility. However, he also attributes responsibility to several cases in which the agent does not deliberate. In thisdissertation, I investigate this apparent contradiction. I begin byoutlining Aquinas’s theory of moral responsibility in ordinarycases in order to establish his typical criteria for responsibility.Then, I investigate four cases that fall short of the typical criteriaat a minimum because the agent does not deliberate: sudden actsdone from habit; negligent omissions, i.e., omissions in which theagent does not intentionally shirk a required act, but simply failsto perform it; first movements, i.e., spontaneous movements ofthe passions that occur before reason can intervene; and immoraldreams. From the examination of these cases, I conclude thatdeliberation is not in fact essential to responsibility. It followsfrom this claim that the agent can make good, rational decisionsinstantaneously in certain situations, and I describe how this ispossible given Aquinas’s premises. However, I argue Aquinasdoes attribute responsibility to agents in other cases that do lack acriterion he typically holds to be necessary for responsibility. Forexample, he attributes responsibility to negligent omissions, which lack a practical judgment, and to firstmovements, in which the agent lacks the ability toavoid sin. I argue that he handles such cases by locating themissing criterion for responsibility in a prior act of the agent thatbears a causal relationship to the act under consideration., Philosophy, Aquinas, Deliberation, Dreams, Habit, Omissions, Responsibility, Philosophy, Degree Awarded: Ph.D. Philosophy. The Catholic University of America

: The Arabic Letters of the Byzantine Emperor Leo III to the Caliph 'Umar Ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz: An Edition, Translation and Commentary; This study explores the tradition of the epistolary exchange between the two famous figures, the Byzantine emperor Leo III and the ‘Umayyad caliph, ‘Umar ibn ‘Abd al-‘Azīz. Several Christian and Muslim authors have over the centuries provided accounts of the tradition that ‘Umar sent a letter to Leo to inquire about Christian doctrines and practices and that Leo replied to him. In addition to these accounts, copies of letter purporting to have been written by Leo and ‘Umar have come down to us in the manuscript tradition in Arabic, Armenian, Latin and Aljamiado. There have been studies concerning the authorship and provenance of these letters.This study continues the scholarly discussion on this tradition based on the newly available manuscript, which contains two letters in Arabic attributed to Leo. The manuscript is among so-called ‘new finds’ in the library of St. Catherine Monastery at Mt. Sinai. This study presents the first edition of these Arabic texts, with English translation and commentary. Based on the examination of the new source, this study sheds new light on the correspondence between Leo and ‘Umar. The content and style of the Arabic letters of Leo show that they were written by an anonymous Christian author living in the second half of the eighth century. These texts seem to have been composed by a Melkite author, probably living either in the monastery of Mar Sabas or Mar Chariton in Judean desert. They show how the Christian author wrote the defense of Christian doctrines and practices such as divinity of Christ, the Eucharist and the veneration of the cross. Arabic was a new language for Christian writers in this era; the author used many expressions found in the Qur’ān. The purpose of the composition of these texts is to provide Christian audiences with ready replies to objections to their faith coming from Muslim polemicists, in order to encourage them to keep their Christian faith. Additionally, a close analysis of the first Arabic letter of Leo in comparison with the Latin version of the letter ascribed to Leo shows that both letters are from the same earlier text, written in Arabic. This anti-Muslim polemical text was not only read by Christians in the East, but also known to the Christian in the West through Latin translation., Middle Eastern literature, Christian Arabic, Christian-Muslim polemics, Correspondence, Leo III, Melkites, 'Umar II, Semitic and Egyptian Languages and Literatures, Degree Awarded: Ph.D. Semitic and Egyptian Languages and Literatures. The Catholic University of America

: Arachnopoetics: Spiders and Webs in the American Literary Imagination; Degree Awarded: Ph.D. English Language and Literature. The Catholic University of America, Spider and web imagery abounds in American literature from the colonial era through the present, appearing in the work of writers ranging from beloved children's authors (e.g., L. Frank Baum, E. B. White, Shel Silverstein) to revered poets (e.g., Edward Taylor, Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost) and canonical novelists (e.g., Mark Twain, Vladimir Nabokov, Toni Morrison) to genre superstars (e.g., Ray Bradbury, Stephen King, Neil Gaiman). There is a great deal of variety in the nature of that imagery among different texts, where the spider is cast in opposite roles - predator and prey, creator and destroyer, hero and villain - and possesses incompatible characteristics: intelligence and foolishness, wildness and domesticity, kindness and cruelty. Arachnopoetics investigates spiders and webs in dozens of primary sources to determine the range of functions spiders perform in American literature as well as the correspondingly varied tones the texts adopt toward them. The method of close reading employed incorporates techniques from traditional poetics and contemporary stylistics. This study argues that the spider is a flexible figure in the American literary imagination, capable of embodying the wonders and horrors of both the unknowable other and the intimate self. Unlike other commonly feared creatures, the spider offers a combination of the sublime and beautiful: its alien physical form provokes terror and disgust even as its ability to spin delicate webs inspires admiration and awe. In an examination of spiders across genres, variations of particular types emerge. For instance, the spider appears as a monster in cautionary tales for young readers, frequently inflated to a gigantic size, and these giant spiders also populate the adult genres of horror and science fiction, while in literary fiction and poetry, predatory spiders (literal and metaphorical) are often used to help establish character and theme. Through an analysis of diverse passages and poems, this study demonstrates the peculiar status of the spider within American literature as a creature of powerful contradictions. The chapters are as follows: Introduction; 1: Children's Literature; 2: Poetry; 3: Literary Fiction; 4: Popular Fiction; and Conclusion.

: Aramaic Poetry in Qumran; Degree awarded: Ph.D. Semitic and Egyptian Languages and Literatures. The Catholic University of America, Aramaic Poetry in QumranPeter Y. LeeDirector: Edward M. Cook, Ph.D.The often fragmentary Aramaic texts preserved by the Qumran community represent a large collection of well edited texts, whose publications have triggered numerous contributions that have brought a significantly clearer understanding of them. Little attention, however, has been devoted to the poetic structure of these Aramaic texts, much less on Aramaic literature as a whole. This study presents a model for the analysis of Aramaic poetic texts as well as a detailed poetic discussion of six Aramaic texts within the Qumran collection. These texts are: 1) 4Q246, "The Son of God" text; 2) 4QLevia, a portion of the wisdom poem in the Aramaic Levi Document; 3) 4Q534, "The Elect of God" text; 4) 4Q542, The Testament of Qahat; 5) 4Q541, two fragments from the Apocryphon of Levi; 6) 1QapGen, the beauty of Sarai in the Genesis Apocryphon. Three have been previously identified as poetic, namely 4Q246, the wisdom poem in ALD, and the beauty of Sarai. The poetic nature of the remaining three has not. Also included are the eight poetic passages from the Aramaic portions of the Book of Daniel: 2:20-23 (=4QDana), 3:33-4:2; 4:7b-14; 4:31-32; 6:27b-28; 7:9-10; 7: 13-14; 7:23-27. Combined, this study examines over 124 lines of poetry. These texts use literary features and devices that are characteristic of poetic texts, specifically parallelism and terseness. It is the interrelationship between these two particular poetic devices that is the hallmark characteristic of Aramaic poetry. In addition to these is the use of imagery, strophic formations, and sound repetitions. The application of all these various techniques within any given text is what identifies it as poetic. It is what makes Aramaic poetry poetic., Made available in DSpace on 2011-06-24T17:12:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Lee_cua_0043A_10214display.pdf: 1578676 bytes, checksum: 4be882fbecaa640cc079c81322c0f963 (MD5)

: Arcadian Exile: The Imaginative Tension in Henry David Thoreau's Political Thought; Degree Awarded: Ph.D. Politics. The Catholic University of America, The purpose of this dissertation is to correct oversimplified readings of Henry David Thoreau's political thought by elucidating a tension within his imagination. Drawing on the work of Claes Ryn, imagination is here conceived as a form of consciousness that is creative and constitutive of our most basic sense of reality. The imagination both shapes and is shaped by will/desire and is capable of a broad and qualitatively diverse range of intuition which varies depending on one's orientation of will. The criterion for determining the quality of the orientation of will and imagination is experiential reality of a certain kind. The moral and philosophical life constantly involves a struggle between an attunement or will to reality and a revolt against, or an evasion of, reality. The former characterizes the higher will and the corresponding moral imagination, while the revolt or evasion distinguishes the lower will and the idyllic imagination. This study outlines a theory of imagination and applies it to an analysis of the moral-idyllic tension in Thoreau's political thought. Thoreau's preference for an abstract, ahistorical "higher law," his radical concept of autonomy, and his frustration with government and community foster an impractical political thought characteristic of the idyllic imagination. Nevertheless, Thoreau demonstrates a moral imagination by emphasizing the inescapable relationship between the moral order of individuals and the order of political communities. This study further applies the theory of imagination to Thoreau's view of nature and the non-human world. On the idyllic side is the Thoreau who longs for an escape from human community and social obligations by withdrawing to nature, and by idealizing the non-human world as a perfect companion and as divine. On the moral side is the Thoreau that awakens others to the underappreciated sanctity, beauty, mystery and value of nature. Thoreau's overall vision ultimately creates significant problems with which environmentalists still struggle. While Thoreau's emphasis on freedom and the immaterial aspects of human and non-human nature are of considerable value, his abstract political morality, misanthropy and escapism must be resisted both for the sake of environmental well-being and human dignity.