Undergraduate Projects/Long Essays

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    Humanity of Christ in the Spirituality of St. Teresa of Avila: Relevance for Today
    (Tangaza University College, 2001-02) Idiahi-Imoleh Ehigie, Daniel
    St. Teresa of Avila, the 16t1 century Carmelite mystic and Doctor of the Church, taught that prayer is "nothing else than an intimate sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with him who we known loves us." This became the foundation of her spirituality. For Teresa, the relationship with God did not lie in the abstract or sublime realm. It had to be real. Thus, "the abstract distant God was gradually 'concretized' for her in Jesus."2 Hence, the humanity of Christ plays a central role in the spirituality of St. Teresa of Avila. The humanity of Christ is by no means restricted to the spirituality of the religious family of St. Teresa, the Discalced Carmelites. It does hold a message for all Christians, and in a special way for the African. The aim of this essay is to shed some light on the role of the humanity of Christ in the spirituality of St. Teresa of Avila, underscore its importance in the spiritual life of Christians, and then present some applications within the African socio-cultural milieu. It is worthy of note that several theologians have done a lot of work in the area of contextualizing Christ°logy in different African cultures. I shall draw on some of their materials in this area. I have chosen to focus my reflections on Africa as a whole, and not any particular culture for some reasons. Firstly, no previous work has been done in relating any aspect of Carmelite Spirituality to any of the local cultures in Nigeria (my country of origin). An in-depth research in this area is certainly beyond the scope of this work. It is true that presently in Africa, most of the countries are going through lots of socio-economic problems that have continued to take their toll on the people unabated. Several of the problems are common to most African countries: ethnic conflicts, wars, poverty, starvation, unemployment, political instability, low per capita income, etc. Thus, the choice of Africa as the context is intended to give a panoramic picture of what obtains in the different countries.
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    Redeemed By the Sacrifice of Christ?
    (Tangaza University College, 2009) Kamoga, John Bosco
    At the start of one's theological studies, one will be introduced to theology as a science of "faith seeking understanding". Human experiences at times bring us face to face with the not so pleasant task of having to question our creeds with the aim of trying to make sense of them, especially those times when what we profess as our faith is contr.Oadicted by our human experiences. At the heart of this work is the earnest attempt to grapple with the negative dimensions of the human predicament, even as the Christian faith continues to teach and hold as an article of faith the fact that Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, by his life, ministry, passion, death, burial, resurrection, heavenly intercession and sending of the Spirit, offered a sacrifice which had an eternal effect on the condition of humanity and the rest of creation. The Church teaches that by this single sacrifice, humanity is redeemed as an integral whole from sin and all the enslaving forces, and conditions hindering the human person from experiencing wholeness and enjoying a good relationship with his or her inner self, the rest of humanity, the environment and God.
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    "IMAGO DEI" and the Problem Of Dominion
    (Tangaza College, 2009) Wangechi, Samson, Mbugu
    The future of mankind and of the planet Earth is in peril and despite warnings on this, the environmental situation continues ever more to deteriorate. Humanity should, therefore, be aware that it is suffering from a malaise caused by man's impaired relationship with the environment and by deteriorating social bonds. There is a great need to understand that it is necessary to overcome resignation and fatalism and react by planning an alternative future which would be realizable and desirable. In order for this to be, there is an urgent need to change our present orientation regarding our dominion and exploitation of Mother Earth, (an orientation characterized by man's relationships with nature and that of men among themselves) and must be substituted by an attitude of sharing, respect and brotherhood among all creatures. It is sad to note that the Judeo-Christian doctrine on the creation of the universe has been accused of creating the numerous problems we have experienced, especially regarding our understanding of the role of man as a care-taker of God's creation. Man is undoubtedly a superior creature among God's creation. The same Judeo-Christian doctrine emphasizes the idea of Man created in the image of God. "imago dei", a fact which gives him the power of "dominion over other creatures.