This thesis discusses the existential consequences for the human being in creatio ex nihilo, where the main subjects of discussion are contingency, freedom and identity. The starting-point of the discussion lies in the presentation of the history of the doctrine of creation, especially the doctrine of creatio ex nihilo. Once the historical and philosophical importance of the doctrine of creation is clear, the anthropological and theological consequences are obvious; creation is contingent and at the same time deeply dependent upon God. The contingency of creation may bring a sense of non-necessity among people, and therefore it makes the question of human freedom and identity in the doctrine of creation utterly important..

Sekularisering fortsätter att drabba kyrkan i både öst och väst. Uppsatsen behandlar sekulariseringsteorier utifrån ett bibliskt perspektiv. Hypotesen är att Jesus Kristus är kyrkan som kropp. Detta kyrkobegrepp har förändrats. Även budskapet och pedagogiken har påverkats.Fältarbete har genomförts i både Egypten och i Sverige.

This study is about the work around festivals and traditions that takes place in multicultural preschools. The purpose of this study is to describe and reflect upon the work around festivals and traditions in multicultural preschools from the view of five preschool teachers who are active in their profession.  The purpose is also to investigate which festivals and traditions that are given attention at preschool and for what reason according to the preschool teachers.The method of research chosen in this study is qualitative in the form of individual interviews with the intention of obtaining and interpreting the descriptions and reflections of the informants around the subject. The results will be analyzed from an intercultural perspective.The results show that all investigated preschools celebrate the traditional Swedish festivals Christmas, St. Lucia?s day, Easter and Midsummer, and that these festivals take up lots of space in terms of time and labor.

The purpose of this essay is to shed light upon the ecumenical work that has been done between the Church of Sweden and the Mission Covenant Church of Sweden. The recent years of work have led to a recommendation for a certain degree of fellowship to be established between those churches. This proposal as well as other documents are analysed in the essay from an ecclesio-logical point of view, to find out how the Church of Sweden looks upon itself in meeting another church.To structure the material, the essay has been subdivided into seven parts that is related to ecclesiology. In those seven chapters the positions of the Church of Sweden and the Mission Covenant Church of Sweden are given individually as well as in common. Questions like the im-portance of dioceses, local congregations or parishes and the national level are described.

Islam Hadhari kontra Islam Siasi - om den partipolitiska kampen mellan UMNO och PAS relaterad till Islamiseringen i Malaysia 1974-2004.

This study investigates the judicial process against Erik Molin, a clerk and former theology student at the University of Uppsala 1734-1739. The main purpose has been twofold; first to investigate the legal process through the various judicial bodies and secondly to analyze the ideas and conceptions about man and society expressed by the authorities and Erik Molin. The theoretical approach has been inspired by the German philosopher Jürgen Habermas? theories concerning the emergence of the bourgeois society and the changing concepts of private and public spheres. The study shows that the diocese of Uppsala regarded Molin's theology as heretic and found that he knowingly had tried to spread his views.

Den latinamerikanska befrielseteologin är en kristen teologi som har sitt ursprung i slutet av 1960 och vill befria de fattiga och förtryckta människor i latinamerika. Denna rörelse uppstod på grund av sociola orättvisor, fattigdom och mänskliga rättigheter i utvecklingsländer i Sydamerika och har kritiserats av den romersk-katolska kyrkan.Därför, från ett pedagogiskt perspektiv, är det en intressant fråga om denna teologi är representerad i läroböcker i religionsämnet. Syftet med denna studie är att analysera om den latinamerikanska befrielseteologin är presenterad i läroböckerna.Denna forskning bygger på fem läroböcker som har granskats genom en textanalys och en enkel kvantitativ analys för att besvara studiens frågor.Resultatet visar att latinamerikanska befrielseteologin presenteras i de analyserade läroböckerna, men mämns inte vid namn i de två senast skrivna.   .

Construction of Identity and Charismatic Leaders deals with fundamentalism and Islamism within the United States, emphasising on similarities between fundamentalists and Islamists. The term "fundamentalist" is here referring to Christian extremists, while "Islamist" refers to the Muslim counterpart. The purpose of the essay is to make North American fundamentalism and Islamism comprehendible on a larger scale.In order to show similarities between these groups when it comes to values, structure and commitment to their tasks, it is important to understand the nature of the religious devotion.Analyzing the similarities of the two groups enables construction of general criteria for how anthropology of religious extremists can be outlined..

ICTY bildades efter krigen i Jugoslavien. I uppsatsen beskrivs tribunalens bakgrund organisatoriskt och historiskt. Jag utreder även dels vad som faller under begreppet sexuellt våld enligt olika internationella organisationer som arbetar med internationella konflikter av olika slag, dels hur den jugoslaviska konflikten såg ut och hur sexuellt våld användes som del av krigföringen under konflikten jämfört med hur det har använts i andra fall. Jag beskriver slutligen de domar som ICTY har fällt angående sexuellt våld. Jag försöker således att utreda om ICTY har ökat juridisk rättvisa för kvinnor som har utsatts för sexuellt våld i krig.

Our purpose was to investigate if Swedish University educated social workers, living as active Christians, in any way might be influenced by Christian values. The main questions; Can Christian values be a factor in the choice of career to become a social worker? How does a personal belief in Christ impact the relationship towards the clients? Is Christian belief a support in the work? In this paper we used a qualitative method and interviewed eight persons, with a background as above, four of them employed by a church organisation and the other four working in the social sector. The result we present is that the eight Christian social workers Christian belief influenced their work very individually. How much this supported them was a choice about how official and open they wanted Christian values to be.

In January 2004 two members of the Pentecostal community Knutby Filadelfia in Uppsalamunicipality, Sweden, were shot by their fellow member Sara Svensson. With a qualitative hermeneutic case study as the principal method this essay takes on the task of not only investigating if and how Stockholm Syndrome can be used as a model for interpreting and understanding the violent incident in Knutby Filadelfia, but also to see if the unique characteristic of the Knutby incident can tell us something about Stockholm Syndrome as a model for understanding violence in religious movements. The material shows Stockholm Syndrome as having been present in Knutby because of among other things, a mileu, leadership and theology that supported the normalization of abuse and the enabling and maintaining of self punishment in the community. While Stockholm Syndrome still is a controversial theory this study shows that it can be used as a powerful tool in the understanding of violence in religious contexts..

The aim of this study is to describe ideas put forward by Sweden Democrats (Swedish: Sverigedemokraterna) about Christianity in Sweden and the Church of Sweden as a Folk Church, a church for a whole people, and how the political party uses Christianity as a part of constructing a Swedish identity. The investigation is based on official documents, newspaper articles, statements and political motions which are analysed using a form of text analysis called idea analysis. The theoretical frame of the investigation is founded on Claire Mitchell?s theory about religious content in ethnic identities and Einar Billing?s and Johan Alfred Eklund?s thoughts about what makes the Church of Sweden a Folk Church.The investigation shows, among other things, that the Sweden Democrats? view of the Church of Sweden is similar to the thoughts of Eklund but they differ in their lack of references to theology. The investigation also shows that Christianity serves as an important marker for the Sweden Democrats in creating a Swedish identity. .

This study departs in a critique issued against the ethics of deconstruction that it does not provide good enough advice for how to turn its ehtics into "real life"-actions. Taking up the concept of moral practices as found in e.g. Alisdain MacIntyre, Stanley Hauerwas, James K.A. Smith, and Roland Spjuth, this study turns to medieval theologian Thomas Aquinas as a potential resource. Combining the teachings in Aquinas' Summa Thologica with a look into his life as a Domninican, a list of moral practices is put forth and analyzed in conjunction with Derrida's ethics.

This paper is an analysis of the hell theme in Rob Bell's book Love Wins. A Book About Heaven, Hell and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived. Using a constructivist text analysis the essay examines how Bell creates a theology around the image of hell that he advocates. The study aims to analyze and explain how Bell constructs the meaning he advocates in the concept of hell. This includes an analysis of the passages in the book that discusses what the term hell refers to and the passages that deal with properties of hell.

This study has a qualitative approach and deals with difficult issues that arise in connection to male violence against women in close relations. The purpose of this study is to bring clarity to why women stay in violent relationships. I have been studying two leading theories, one called the Normalization Process of Violence represented by Eva Lundgren (sociology and theology). The other leading theory is the Neutralization of Violence represented by Margareta Hydén (fil dr and leg psycho therapeut).I have also studied the fight between these two theories for the leading position in the research on male violence against women. Eva Lundgren presents her theory through a structural perspective.