The purpose of this study is to present a critical analysis of how certain themes of the Norse pagan religion are portrayed in ten selected textbooks used for Religious Science education in grades one through nine. The themes included in the analysis are; the description of the transition from the Norse Pagan religion to Christianity; Adam of Bremen?s portrayal of human sacrifice, and lastly Ibn Fadhlan?s characterization of widow burning. By using a critical knowledge text analysis, and applying a theoretical starting point that pedagogical material analyses and interprets events from a specific perspective; in this case from a Christian perspective, I have from the study concluded that the chapters covering the Norse pagan religion in these textbooks have a distinguished Christian bias seen as the norm. The themes analysed in this study all describe different phenomena in a similar way and make use of the same sources, even though these are often questioned.

The capricious roman goddess Fortune is known for her strong power to influence or even decide the destiny of humans. In ancient Rome she was considered to be a good goddess, who brought the gifts of destiny and who also was seen as a possible ally. During the Middle Ages this position changed. Fortune was given two sides, a good and friendly one and a cruel impenetrable side. She was seen as one of God´s ministers and became an expression of divine providence.My purpose with this essay is to analyse three artworks of Fortune by Giovanni Bellini, Albrecht Dürer and Master MZ, but also some texts by the renaissance humanist Niccolò Machiavelli.

SAMMANFATTNING Uppsatsens titel: AFP ? En ny väg runt mediebruset!? Seminariedatum: 2007-01-19 Ämne/kurs: FEK 591 Magisteruppsats, 10 poäng (15 ECTS) Författare: Alexander Högman, Anders Lindén, Christian Nilsson Handledare: Per-Hugo Skärvad Nyckelord: AFP, Framgångsfaktorer, Medieval, Dolt budskap, TV. Syfte: Uppsatsen inledande syfte är att tydliggöra fenomenet AFP i teori och praktik och därigenom skapa en förståelse för hur fenomenet fungerar. Vidare ämnar uppsatsen att kartlägga, beskriva och analysera faktorer som karaktäriserar framgångsrik AFP. Metod: Undersökningens design är utformad för att belysa vilka faktorer som är viktiga för att nå framgång med AFP.

Denna studie handlar om att beskriva, diskutera och jämföra de olika argumenten som de två teocentriska filosoferna Michael Northcott och James Gustafson har om miljöfrågan. Studien fokuserar på vad de har för tankar om ursprunget till miljökrisen, vilken position mannen har i skapelsen, vad naturen har för värde och vilka konsekvenser deras ställningstagande har för lösningen till miljökrisen. Till sist undersöker studien vad de har för kritik mot samhället, vilken lösning de har för en fortsatt utveckling av samhället utan att ytterligare skada naturen..

This essay examines the 1962 Swedish parliamentary debate preluding the proposition to introduce a uniform compulsory education for all Swedish children. The proposition aimed at ending the previously heterogeneous educational system and replace it with a more equal and democratic system.A widespread debate ensued, regarding the status of Christian religious education (kristendomskunskap) and its new emphasis on scientific objectivity. This essay will examine the relative position of Christianity within the new uniform school system, as it was articulated by the members of the Swedish parliament. This analysis will be achieved through the use of a discourse analytical study of the parliamentary records, the recorded motions and bills. From these records a substantial disparity in the parliamential members articulation of the concept of Christianity can be ascertained, even within the discourse of an educational regime.

In this study I compare the donor portraits on wallpaintings in Scanian churches from the 12th and the 15th century and relate them to medieval society.I find that women were equally capable of owning and donating land during the entire period. The image of the ideal woman changed during the 14th century from a married woman to the unreachable mistress of the chivalrous culture and the holy virgin. Women had a natural place beside their husbands in 12th century donor portraits, while single male donors are more frequent in the 15th century. While 12th century donors were supposed to show their position in society by offering plentiful donations directly to God, donors in the 14th century instead strived to present themselves as humble and pious. The individualisation of late medieval society meant that people had to depend on themselves to achieve salvation..

The aim of this master thesis is to study the reliefs of a Romanesque tombstone from 1130 AD, with the intention to form a plausible understanding of their meaning. During the course of the investigation, my main focus will be on collecting materials of an iconographical and historiographical nature, as they appear in previous studies. I will also use performative analysis when examining the tombstone. Consequently this thesis can be seen as a survey of history and place; early Christian iconology as well as the experience of the viewer. As a result, the 900-year-old tombstone will not only be seen as a memorial in this text, but also as a performance of one man?s faith and as representing the core message of the early Christian church.The tombstone is a rarity in Swedish art history and well worth a closer examination.

The essay aims to show n interpretation of Vampyr and Ordet; seen from a viewpoint Kierkegaards christian existentialism can enhance the understanding of mentioned movies. Central notions from Ks philosophy are explained and then the author points to examples of how this corresponds with the essence of the two movies.The argumentation is based on Ks thoughts on faith and human existence. Other theories concerning Dreyers movies, and to some extent his background, is also discussed.Finally the author concludes that he was right in his hypothesis: that it is possible to show an influence from Kierkegaards christian, existentialistic thoughts in the two movies.Moreover the author thinks that the chosen perspective works as a complement to other written material on the movies and that other writers on the subject have some problems summing up the contents of the movies from their different perspectives.The final conclusion is thus that an interpretation of the movies from a Kierkegaardian viewpoint increases the understanding of the same movies..

The essay aims to show n interpretation of Vampyr and Ordet; seen from a viewpoint Kierkegaards christian existentialism can enhance the understanding of mentioned movies. Central notions from Ks philosophy are explained and then the author points to examples of how this corresponds with the essence of the two movies.The argumentation is based on Ks thoughts on faith and human existence. Other theories concerning Dreyers movies, and to some extent his background, is also discussed.Finally the author concludes that he was right in his hypothesis: that it is possible to show an influence from Kierkegaards christian, existentialistic thoughts in the two movies.Moreover the author thinks that the chosen perspective works as a complement to other written material on the movies and that other writers on the subject have some problems summing up the contents of the movies from their different perspectives.The final conclusion is thus that an interpretation of the movies from a Kierkegaardian viewpoint increases the understanding of the same movies.

An industry in distress was the breeding ground for a noted pricing strategy, labeled name-your-price. The industry was the music industry and the pricing strategy bears reminiscence of how medieval buskers earned their living during the dark ages; by letting the customers decide how much the good was worth, embodied by a thrown coin into a hat or similar collector. Translated into the contemporary corporate environment of today, where technical innovations provides access to the intellectual property for free, a few mighty economic actors have once again turned to the strategy were it all started; letting the customer set the price. The hat has been replaced by a box for your credit card number and the live music by a MP3 file, but the similarity is striking. The business model have been applied in other industries as well with various levels of success, thus the purpose of this thesis is to set up a framework for where the name-your-price strategy is applicable.

The aim of this master thesis is to study the reliefs of a Romanesque tombstone from 1130 AD, with the intention to form a plausible understanding of their meaning. During the course of the investigation, my main focus will be on collecting materials of an iconographical and historiographical nature, as they appear in previous studies. I will also use performative analysis when examining the tombstone. Consequently this thesis can be seen as a survey of history and place; early Christian iconology as well as the experience of the viewer. As a result, the 900-year-old tombstone will not only be seen as a memorial in this text, but also as a performance of one man?s faith and as representing the core message of the early Christian church.The tombstone is a rarity in Swedish art history and well worth a closer examination.

This Master?s thesis concerns the information behaviour of pastors in nonconformist churches (especially new evangelical and Baptist church communions) in Sweden in their spiritual service to the local parish. The thesis also looks into how the information flow functions in the pastors? context and why the information need appears as it does. The theory used in this study is contextual analysis based on Buckland?s, Weber?s and Patrick Wilson?s theories on authority and power structures.

This essay revolves around the Christianisation of the Danish kingdom during the middle ages. Issues like; the length of the Christianisation process and the influence it had on thevillages? structural appearance in the Danish kingdom. A special case study of the villages Kyrkheddinge and Fjälkinge, Scania, is an essential part of the essay. Through writtenmaterial and excavation reports from the both villages the study enlightens the structural appearance of the village and the hierarchy of the farms in the village.

A church in rural Vester Egede from the earliest Christian period in Denmark e.g. the early 1100, a baptismal font is found showing a woman breastfeeding two animals. She is said to be a typical early roman Luxuria, in mild appearance. However, what makes her unique is that she appears standing on the top of her head, her womb serving as font. The main question is how come that a baptismal font like this is to be found in a church, leading to the sub question, if this font really has a Christian origin or could it be rooted in Norse, pre-Christian tradition, alternatively is the font an expression of a syncretism between the two colliding cultures.

This essay is an analysis of the objects made of bronze found in an excavation Västergarn parish, Gotland, in 2010, conducted by the University of Gotland. The studied material presented in this essay comes from contexts inside, as well as nearby the foundation of a medieval building which purpose is still not certain. The first purpose of this study is to present the bronze-objects found inside and nearby the foundation of house 6, and to see if there are any datable objects. There is also a discussion whether there has been any bronze-crafting in the area. The second purpose is to make a contextual analysis to see if there are any differences between the material found outside and inside of the building, and what conclusions can be made regarding the function and use of the building.