Christian Narrative Research Articles

Ethical Accompaniment and End-of-Life Care

Abstract A theology of accompaniment offers insights on how to journey with and be present to those who suffer from terminal illness. In order to sustain acts of accompaniment, the companion must cultivate specific virtues through prayer and the practices of the Christian community. This ethic of accompaniment is based on a Thomistic conceptualization of the virtues of charity and fortitude. These virtues enable the companion to engage in four types of practices with and on behalf of the dying patient. Ethical accompaniment offers the following contributions to end-of-life care, the companion can function as a healthcare proxy, offers a viable alternative to physician-assisted suicide, and overcomes the loss of meaning associated with death through the Christian narrative.

Immigrants and narrative

Since 1960 immigration has been mainly intra-continental on the African continent. With more countries achieving independence and the decline of colonization, there has been a significant decrease of intra-continental migration. Compared to the rest of the continent, South Africa has a relatively low emigration rate. The rate of people emigrating to European countries from Africa is higher than those who emigrate within the African continent. The narrative church provides the space for migrants to exercise their agency. Challenging distorted and false identities is one way of exercising agency. Narrative church welcomes migrants as the Other that form identity of both those who participate in the Christian narrative and those who are connected with the narrative through distant ways such as dialogue, virtual or intellectual and practical engagements.

Христианская истина и политика в романе Ивлина Во «Елена»

The novel Helena (1950) is analyzed as Evelyn Waugh’s profound statement on his most significant problems: the possibility to resolve the crises of the 20th-century consciousness through Christianity and on the nature of power. Cradle Anglo-Catholics were always suspicious of Waugh, seeing him as an errant Catholic; the paper uses the work of Waugh’s biographers and interpreters to pinpoint his personal reception of Catholicism as the most sophisticated, strictly logical system, firmly grounded in historical fact. Waugh’s story of St. Helena is simultaneously a biography of half-legendary Saint, known for her discovery of the Cross of Golgotha, who thus proved the truthfulness of the founding Christian narrative, and an ironic modern historical novel on the decline of the Roman Empire. Many parallels between the period of Helena’s husband and son (Constantius Chlor and Constantine the Great, respectively) and the catastrophic history of the 20th century are suggested through the devices of anachronism, grotesque, figurative style. The author depicts the persistence of paganism, the use of religious cults as political instrument by cynical persons in their pursuit of individual power. High dose of irony prevents the novel from going in the direction of hagiography; nevertheless the author’s concept of his title character brings to life the most positive and optimistic text in Waugh’s whole oeuvre. By the end of her long life, by converting to Christianity, Helena finds her vocation, her providential mission, completes it, and gains in the fact satisfaction and peace.

A FEMININE TYPOLOGICAL TRINITY IN PROBA'S CENTO VERGILIANVS 380–414

Abstract The mid-fourth-century c.e.Cento Vergilianus de laudibus Christi retells the biblical story using cento technique (recombining excerpted lines and partial lines from Virgil into a new poem). Its author, the Christian poet Faltonia Betitia Proba, states that her aim in writing the Cento is to demonstrate that Virgil ‘sang the pious deeds of Christ’ (Vergilium cecinisse … pia munera Christi). Her compositional strategy reflects the exegetical method of typology, as explored in detail by Cullhed: by reusing particular Virgilian verses for biblical characters, Proba creates an implicit typological relationship whereby a Virgilian type both prefigures and is fulfilled by a biblical antitype. This paper first presents an extended model of typology, whereby the type not only prefigures the antitype but also enfigures it, providing the reader with a novel conceptual paradigm through which to understand a particular supernatural reality. The paper then turns to a case study: the baptism scene (380–414), the only passage in the Cento depicting all three members of the Trinity. For each, Proba reuses passages which in the Aeneid describe female characters, hinting at a feminine typological Trinity, one which highlights often-overlooked aspects of the three Christian antitypes. In so doing, she convincingly advances her thesis that Virgil's poetic works reflect typological correspondences to the Christian narrative in a similar way to Old Testament prophecy.

The First Time I Called Myself a ‘Witch’ Was the Most Magical Moment of My Life: Unmasking the Influence of Christianity in the Persecution of Witches Through Cultural Hegemony

Whereas Christianity and biblical narratives continue to constructively form human, theological, spiritual, and social existence, it cannot be downplayed that these two central components sometimes lead to destructive perceptions, actions, and behaviours. This is because Christianity and the Bible have continually influenced the comprehension of humanity and spirituality for centuries. With particular reference to witchcraft, particularly in the South African context, this article aims to unmask and scrutinise the influence of Christianity in the persecution of witches. To do this, this article elicits three biblical pieces of textual evidence from the Bible as one of the historical Christian narratives. To unmask and address the phenomenon of interest, cultural hegemony as a theoretical framework is applied to these three biblical pieces of textual evidence. As a result of this endeavour, this article makes three notable findings. First, as Christianity could be appreciated for constructively shaping social perceptions, actions, and behaviours, it should be implicated in certain immoralities. Second, some of the historical injustices, such as witch-hunts and the killing of witches, have, in large part, been propagated by Christian and biblical ideologies. Third (last), Christianity, as a dominant culture of its time, ought to be unmasked within the contemporary contexts for the very reason that it continues to (re)shape contemporary societies, and it is undoubtedly patent that it may continue to (re)shape future generational societies. This article’s recommendations and closing remarks underscore the necessity to examine Christianity alongside its biblical voices recurrently.

“But Now I Consydre Thy Necesse”: Augustine’s Doctrine of Jewish Witness and the Restoration of Racial Hierarchies in the Croxton Play of the Sacrament

This paper examines the depiction of Jewish and Christian merchants in the medieval English Host miracle play, the Croxton Play of the Sacrament. This play is a critical illustration of religious racialization, effectively demonstrating the perpetuation of anti-Jewish stereotypes and legitimizing violence. Positioned within a broader scholarly debate, particularly in relation to Augustine’s doctrine of Jewish witness, the play portrays Jews as allegorical figures that validate Christian theological constructs. This paper delves into the representation and linguistic depiction of Jewish characters in the play, emphasizing their systematic dehumanization and instrumentalization in Christian narratives. A significant focus is placed on the coerced conversion of Jewish characters, which forces them into the archetype of the “Wandering Jew”, thereby highlighting motifs of symbolic aggression and unending diaspora. This paper also confronts contemporary scholarly perspectives that view the play as challenging religious boundaries, positing that such interpretations overlook the ingrained racialization and marginalization of Jewish identity during the European Middle Ages. It argues that the play’s transient disruption of power dynamics ultimately reinforces prevailing social hierarchies, thereby solidifying deep-seated anti-Jewish sentiments.

Śrīkhṛṣṭa-saṃgītā : William Hodge Mill’s Sanskrit Christian Purāṇa

In the wake of Christian missionaries’ arrival in India, a profound engagement with Sanskrit ensued, resulting in the emergence of ‘Church Sanskrit’ Literature. This genre not only witnessed translations of sacred texts like the Bible but also spawned original compositions centered on Jesus Christ, serving as a vehicle for propagating the Christian faith among the Sanskrit-knowing intelligentsia. Notably, figures like William Hodge Mill played a pivotal role, crafting monumental works such as the Śrīkhṛṣṭa-saṃgītā, which garnered acclaim for its literary and scholarly merits, transcending even revered indologists of the time. His mastery of Sanskrit reached such extraordinary heights that Kamlākānta Vidyālaṅkār, a prominent Bengali scholar, bestowed upon him unprecedented praise, elevating him above esteemed figures like William Jones, William Carey, and James Colebrooke. Vidyālaṅkār’s proclamation likened him to the rebirth of Kālidāsa, the revered ancient poet, affirming the unparalleled excellence of his Sanskrit scholarship. Meanwhile, the Śrīkhṛṣṭa-saṃgītā, while serving as a historical testament to the life of Jesus Christ, transcends mere documentation. Rooted in Western interpretations of the Gospels, it stands as a literary masterpiece, blending historical narrative with artistic expression in a manner reminiscent of the belletristic tradition. The research paper discusses the unique attributes of the Śrīkhṛṣṭa-saṃgītā through the lens of Sanskrit Poetics, exploring its historical narrative while elucidating its impact on nineteenth-century Indian society. Through meticulous analysis, it seeks to unravel the interplay between literary artistry and historical accuracy in this seminal work, shedding light on the cultural and intellectual landscape shaped by ‘Church Sanskrit’ literature. By synthesizing scholarly inquiry with linguistic and literary expertise, this paper aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of the profound influence of Christian narratives in Sanskrit form on the socio-cultural fabric of colonial India.

Christian allegory on the northern frontier of New Spain: González de Eslava’s Coloquio quinto

ABSTRACT Fernán González de Eslava’s fifth Coloquio espiritual y sacramental is a Christian allegorical drama from New Spain of the 1570s. It concerns Spanish attempts to ‘pacify’ the Gran Chichimeca, a contested desert frontier to the north of the Valley of Mexico. The antagonist of this play is a Chichimeca warrior, who challenges military and missionary attempts to conquer and convert. González de Eslava’s allegory vilifies this nomadic native warrior, casting him as the very figure of sin. This piece portrays a fierce Indigenous alterity in order to justify Spanish incursions into native lands and promote a Christianizing agenda. Remarkably, the playwright portrays Chichimeca territory with reference to a major foundational narrative of central Mexican peoples. He invokes the storied trajectory of ancestral migrants who departed from legendary sites of origin in the north, and journeyed southward into the Mexican Basin, where they settled. However, the allegorical drama reconfigures this southward path, and in the place of a central Mexican foundational narrative, González de Eslava asserts a Christian narrative and symbolic system.

The Tree "Yggdrasil" as a Symbolic Key to the Interpretation of the Novel by Mark Z. Danilevsky's "House of Leaves"

The object of research in this article is a novel by Mark Z. Danilevsky's "House of Leaves" in the context of postmodernism. The subject of the study was the mythical element of the novel (ash Yggdrasil). This element is considered as a hermeneutic key to the interpretation of the novel by Mark Z. Danilevsky's "House of Leaves". Also, the subject of the study is space and time in the novel, inextricably linked with the mythical component of the works. As a result, a detailed analysis of the mythical component of the "House of Leaves" is given in the context of the poetics of postmodernism, as well as some characteristics of the space-time of the novel. Hermeneutical interpretation is performed using the poem "Yggdrasil", located on the last page of the novel, as a symbolic key. The grapheme "Yggdrasil" and the symbolism of the components of the limit tree in their relation to the exemplification of the structure of the novel as a whole are analyzed. The mechanism of the inclusion of the work in the context of world literature is described through the actualization of semantic and etymological inclusions of mythical motifs about the creation of the world in the text of the "House of Leaves". The analysis of intertextual references to Egyptian mythology through the symbols of the ouroboros and the solar disk is given. The plot of the path of the sun god Ra in the "House of Leaves" is analyzed. The novelty of the research lies in the fact that we have analyzed the symbolic detail in the novel: the hidden symbolism of the "Ash Tree" as the tree of the limit; elements of biblical mythology; the image of the inverted world; labyrinth, stairs. The interpretation of the work as a model of the world is considered, where the ambiguity of mythological and spatio-temporal layers, based on the inevitable symbolic references-threads, function as an instrument of appeal to the cultural unconscious. The connection of the mythologies of Egypt, Tibet, the texts of the "Upanishads" and "Kabbalah", as well as the artistic and literary intertext with the "House of Leaves" is analyzed. As a result of this hermeneutic analysis, an ironic postmodern interpretation of the work of Mark Z. is described. Danilevsky through the symbolism of emptiness (unselfishness).

동물, 그리고 믿음

This paper explores the distinctive features of Yann Martel’s novels, specifically focusing on the role of animals and the theme of belief in his works Life of Pi and The High Mountains of Portugal. The analysis delves into Martel’s unconventional views on belief, which deviate from traditional religious perspectives. The study investigates Martel’s underlying motivations for consistently employing animals as vehicles for conveying his perspectives on belief. This paper argues that Martel employs animals as potent vehicles to underscore the limitations of rationality and objectivity emphasizing the role of belief in human existence. In Life of Pi, the protagonist’s survival with a Bengal tiger in a lifeboat prompts a deeper inquiry into the essence and significance of belief. Blurring the lines between realism and fantasy, Martel proposes a new idea of faith that transcends traditional institutional frameworks of religion. In The High Mountains of Portugal, Martel appropriates Christian narratives to depict the three stages of human belief. Animals are employed as symbols of the protagonists’ spiritual states. They also serve as guides in their spiritual journey, driving the protagonists toward belief Overall, Martel’s exploration of belief employing animals illustrates human need for belief and the interconnectedness of beliefs and stories.

Miracles and Divine Intervention during the Struggle between the Teutonic Order and Lithuania in Christian Narratives from the 14th Century

More than a hundred years of fighting between the Teutonic Order and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania have left us with a considerable amount of narrative sources that allow researchers today to imagine the language of the Christians who fought against the pagans, and to understand their beliefs and propaganda measures. One little-studied question in this regard is how the Christian narrative tradition of the 14th century portrayed miracles and divine intervention during the struggle between the Teutonic Order and Lithuania. To address this question, the author of the article focuses on the chronicles of the Teutonic Order, which represented the idea of the Crusade to the Lithuanian lands, and therefore showed a strong need to emphasise the religious aspect of the whole military conflict. At the same time, however, she also draws on other surviving documents for comparison, including Lithuanian and Ruthenian narrative sources. The author argues that the accounts of miracles and divine intervention in sources from the Teutonic Order were influenced by the nature of the Order as a religious military corporation and the chroniclers’ need to explain the campaigns to Lithuania as a holy war. It was this need that led them to place a great emphasis on the depiction of divine intervention in the campaigns of the crusaders to help them.

Passion and Passio: The Chahua nü and Late Qing Courtesan Narratives

Lin Shu and Wang Shouchang's Bali chahua nü yishi (1899), a translation of La dame aux camélias (1848) by Alexandre Dumas fils, has usually been read with an eye to the idealized figure of the noble courtesan in the Chinese literary tradition. The resemblance of the lady of the camellias to that figure has served to explain both her popular appeal to late Qing readers and her transformation into a Chinese literary and cultural icon. Her iconic status, however, has overshadowed the complex ways in which Lin and Wang's translation retells Dumas fils's story in relation to the array of late Qing courtesan narratives that would have been known to contemporary readers. By closely reading the original story in light of these narratives, this article shows how Dumas fils's tale shares many elements with late Qing courtesan fiction, including negative images of courtesanship, which the translation omits or rewrites. I examine how the translation transforms the morally ambiguous heroine into a devoted lover and re-situates her suffering (passio) and recognition — central motifs in the original story's Christian mythos — within a nostalgic reflection on courtesan-literati culture, where the courtesan serves as the alter ego of the unrecognized literatus.

«Unearthing the divine horrors»

This study looks into H. P. Lovecraft’s masterful craft of cosmic horror, examining his adept fusion of Christian cosmological elements with subversion and mockery, while concurrently forging a unique cosmic framework. Lovecraft subtly weaves Christian themes into his mythos, introducing his eldritch terrors, deities reminiscent of Christian demonology. These entities, residing in abyssal depths, bear distinctly demonic attributes, highlighting the profound influence of Christian cosmology. The enigmatic entity Dagon, rooted in biblical mythology, is a focal point. Its appearances correlate with catastrophic consequences and the underworld, subverting Christian narratives and invoking a sense of dread through an alternative lens. Lovecraft strategically manipulates Christian celebrations, such as May-Eve and All-Hallows, challenging their significance and intensifying readers’ religious discomfort. Lovecraft’s cosmic framework is non-anthropocentric, portraying an indifferent universe inhabited by ancient cosmic entities beyond human comprehension. However, he alludes to an impending chaos, drawing subtle parallels with the biblical Apocalypse. Lovecraft’s narratives interweave Christian cosmology, subversion, and mockery, challenging religious frameworks while invoking terror and fascination, providing a rich tapestry for scholarly analysis in cosmic horror literature.

Myth as a Performance: Lope de Vega’s The Journey of the Soul and the Bivium

ABSTRACT The Journey of the Soul (El Viaje del Alma) by Lope de Vega has not been studied deeply by scholars. It exemplifies the myth of the bivium, so common in literature throughout history. This article explains the location of Lope de Vega’s play, provides a thematic analysis, and shows its relation to the myth of bivium. The first part explains the play’s dating, structure, and plot. The second part presents the different topics derived from the play. The author then relates the bivium to myth theories in order to explain this topic’s purpose, meaning, and function. The bivium, manifested through performance, communicates the moral values of Lope de Vega’s religion, and elevates its principal eucharistic dogma and ritual, therefore explaining the theoretical configuration of this Christian myth in relation to The Journey of the Soul.

Climate and Christians: A Case Study in Engaging Social Values

Globalization and International Business have contributed to significant issues in climate change and environmental concerns. This case study outlines a number of these implications and then grapples with the religious and political positions of denial and non-engagement. The literature and proposal suggest that this is partially a problem with faith-learning integration, with gaps in understanding the biblical and Christian narrative, worldview, and science. Additionally, this topic exemplifies how principle and conviction over love and mercy can damage the Christian cause, and suggests faith-learning integration opportunities in equipping better leaders and difference makers.Keywords: faith-integration, climate change, environment, Christianity, international business, globalization

THE MOTIVATING FUNCTION OF MYTH: A COGNITIVE ONOMASIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS

The article is devoted to the investigation of such special designation type of words and idioms: the mythological ones. This type is characterized by the choice of formative stems from such fragment of ethnic consciousness, which is unfoundedly taken on trust, that is a myth in the narrow meaning of this term; myth units not removing superstitions, popular belief, signs, etc. A myth is irrational, axiomatic, unfounded cognitive structure, which has powerful ability of transfer by next people generations, informative stability, absence of depth of sense, tendency of disappearance and production of new myths and others like that. Mythological motivation is appropriated to the signs of cultural codes of animals and plants; also, idioms and proverbs can have propositional, associative-metaphorical and value statuses. Mythological motivation nominative units can be of propositional, metaphorical, or evaluative character. Thus, proposition that lies in the basis of mythological motivated words and expressions, is non-controversial. It establishes an unverified idea. Sometimes mythological nominative units can be of metaphorical nature. It is explained by the fact that a myth accumulates figurative layers and hides behind the metaphorical designations of its eventual canvas. The essence of such mythological motivation words and phraseological units in using signs of one cultural code or concept for designating others. Mythologemes can reflect the evaluation of certain nominative units by ethnic consciousness their subdivision on useful and harmful, good-looking and ugly. Evaluation derives mostly from folk beliefs and Christian mythology. Mythological motivation nominative units make it possible to penetrate into the remote layers of folk consciousness and ascertain its reflections in the ethnic culture.

Oedipus and Jesus: Psychoanalytic Readings of the Crucifixion

This paper outlines various theoretical formulations of the Oedipus complex, as elaborated in selected writings of Sigmund Freud, Paul Ricoeur and Hans Loewald and considers how these can be used to provide psychoanalytic interpretations of the death of Jesus as understood in Christian theology. It is argued that Freud’s interpretation of the death of Jesus fails to engage with the Trinitarian shape of the orthodox Christian narrative and as a result lacks resonance with believers. This paper therefore turns to the work of Hans Loewald in dialogue with Ricoeur and Freud, to provide a more contemporary alternative reading of the death of Jesus as presented in the Christian tradition. In providing oedipal readings of the crucifixion, this paper does not argue for or against the truth of the Christian narrative, but instead considers what psychological truths or wisdom can be found in the symbolism of the crucifixion.

The Hegelian Structure of Marx’s Thought

ABSTRACT We can best understand Marx’s economic thought by seeing it as implicitly relying upon and reworking a Hegelian philosophy of history, which was deeply salvific and soteriological in its basic structure. Hegel’s philosophy of history reworked the Christian narrative of man’s fall, his redemption through Christ’s atonement, and his return to a state of reconciliation with God in the life of the Christian church. Thus, the loss of the organic form of community found in the Greek polis was a fall that was atoned for in the religious alienation found in both Judaism and Christianity, where man is treated as separated from a transcendent God. The reconciliation between man and God is found, finally, in the reconciliation of the modern, rational state. Early on Marx adopted Hegel’s philosophy of history, but its basic structure remains even in his mature economic work. There he envisions the loss of the organic unity of primitive communism, and the alienation of individuals from the larger social totality of feudalism and capitalism. Under communism, however, individuals are reconciled with the larger social whole through the collective mastery of the products of labor.

"ANOTHER WORLD": PROSE BY NATALENA KOROLEVA

The paper is devoted to the main ideological-aesthetic, genre-style, historical and cultural features of Natalena Koroleva’s fiction. Historicism and Catholicism, noticeable in the writer’s prosaic works of different genres and styles, are considered the dominant elements of her artistic worldview and thinking. The analysis focuses on the writer’s three key interwar novels: "An Ancestor", "A Shadow’s Dream", "1313" and examines several aspects of their poetics. Koroleva’s historicism is noted for combining scientific (in particular, archeological) knowledge, religious and philosophical experience and an artistic intuition of the writer. The author’s relationship with Catholicism are defined by complexity and ambiguity – from absolutization to undermining of the Christian dogmas and appeal to the history of religious heresies (like the Cathars, Albigensians). Koroleva organically connected Christian mythology with the European cultural tradition as its integral part and understood Christianity as a fundamental basis for the European spiritual and cultural values. The writer’s beliefs in the interaction of history, religion, culture and literature affected a number of her literary texts, many of which are based on gospel stories, medieval mysteries and folk legends. Each of the mentioned works of Koroleva is perceived as a holistic artistic phenomenon linked to her other works and created on the basis of her research into ancient, medieval, and early modern history. The novel «An Ancestor» is viewed as the author’s individual-mythological vision of the family history and the work that, having absorbed various genre varieties (family chronicle, travel novel, historical novel), testified to the author’s attention to the social-cultural, historical, and religious-spiritual characteristics of a person of the early modern era. Koroleva’s novel "A Shadow’s Dream" is regarded as having a connection with the genre of an "archeological novel" ("The Emperor" by Georg Ebers is a particular example of the latter). The novel "1313" is perceived as the author’s attempt to artistically depict the motif of a man’s encounter with the devil in the moral, psychological, cultural, philosophical, and mythological contexts of medieval Europe. The historical and cultural content of Koroleva’s prose, its artistic, aesthetic and ideological potentials are additionally emphasized.

First Days after Death - A Jungian Comparison between the Beliefs of the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Post-mortem Experiences in the Tibetan Bardo Plan

This study examines the psychological aspects of the Bardo Thodol according to C.G. Jung and its relationship with Serbian Orthodox Christianity. Through a comparison of Jung's work "The Seven Sermons to the Dead" (published 12 years before his encounter with Buddhism) and "The Tibetan Book of the Dead," the researcher identifies similarities between these texts, the Bardo Thodol and the writings of the orthodox Church (with an accent on the Serbian Orthodox Church) These similarities include the significance of the soul after death, salvation symbolized by a luminous element, and the presence of an initiator guiding the soul towards salvation (reminiscent of the Orthodox belief in angels). Additionally, the interval between the moment of death and deliverance, present in both traditions, is highlighted. Jung's postscript to the translation of "The Tibetan Book of the Dead" provides valuable insights into the psychological aspect of the book and the varying concept of the soul in Eastern and Western literature. He emphasizes that metaphysical assertions are expressions of the soul and, hence, psychological in nature. Jung describes the Bardo Thodol as a process of initiation aimed at restoring the divine nature of the soul, lost through birth. The Bardo Thodol is deeply rooted in the archetypal representations of the unconscious. Jung's concept of archetypes as universal and hereditary psychic structures helps to understand the connection between the Bardo Thodol and the collective unconscious. Furthermore, the journey through the Bardo of Reality can be seen as a representation of the process of individuation, seeking to achieve wholeness and completeness. Drawing parallels between Orthodox Christian mythology (mitarstva) and the Bardo of Reality, the researcher observes numerous similarities. This raises the question of whether mitarstva, with its well-organized structure involving demons, angels, repentance, and the 40-day journey of the soul after death, represents archetypal representations translating the layers of the collective unconscious in a Christian-pagan population. Therefore, this study sheds light on the intriguing similarities between the Bardo Thodol and Serbian Orthodox Christianity from a psychological perspective, deepening our understanding of the complex interplay between ancient religious traditions and the universal elements of the unconscious mind.