ETD@CUA collection: May 2012

Facing the Emergence of the Modern Middle East: Benedict XV's Diplomacy in Greater Syria (Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine) 1914-1922

2012-06-02T07:58:44Z

Facing the Emergence of the Modern Middle East: Benedict XV's Diplomacy in Greater Syria (Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine) 1914-1922 de Dreuzy, Agnes Pope Benedict XV's pontificate (1914-1922), misunderstood by his contemporaries and neglected by recent scholarship, coincides with the reshaping of the Middle East, from the beginning of World War One to the assignment of Mandates to France and Britain over Syria and Palestine. This study examines Benedict XV's diplomacy in Greater Syria. Its unique aspect resides in the combination of two approaches. Benedict's main priority was to ensure the survival of Christians in the Middle East, providing them with a dynamic ecclesiological structure. The pontiff completed and institutionalized the traditional ecclesiological approach in favor of unionism, with the goal to strengthen the ecclesial structures of the Eastern churches and equip them with solid legal foundations. This ecclesiological approach was integrated in Benedict XV's global geo-political vision that shifted away from its past Eurocentric vision and was combined with an anticipation of the decolonization era. Benedict completed these guiding principles with a policy of emancipation of the missionary world from the bondage of colonial powers, preparing the Church for an active role in the world. These principles were implemented in Syria-Lebanon, as Benedict XV navigated between the pressure of French imperialism and Prince Feisal's Arab nationalism, as well as in Palestine, dominated by the tension between Britain and France, the implementation of a Jewish national home, and the proselytizing of Protestant missions. The core of the dissertation, which stands at the confluence of Church history, international politics, and law, rests upon a historically critical evaluation of documents found in the Vatican Secret Archives, the Archives of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, and of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith in Rome, Italy. Benedict XV reigned during a decade that shook the world. He witnessed, in Greater Syria, events that had tremendous historical, religious, and political implications for the future of the region and our understanding of the unending turmoil affecting the Middle East a century later. Pope Benedict emerges as a wise pontiff, a skilled geo-politician, well ahead of his time. This dissertation is the first regional study of Pope Benedict's diplomatic endeavors. Degree awarded: Ph.D. Church History. The Catholic University of America

"Too much Satire in their Veins": Swift, Austen, and the Transformation of Genre

2012-06-02T08:00:08Z

"Too much Satire in their Veins": Swift, Austen, and the Transformation of Genre Young, Heather Beth This study explores the transformation of eighteenth-century satire through an analysis of the satiric techniques of John Dryden, Jonathan Swift, Delariver Manley, Charlotte Lennox, Elizabeth Inchbald, and, Jane Austen. It takes as a starting point Dryden's "Discourse Concerning the Original and Progress of Satire," traditionally seen as foundational in the development of the satiric theory. The "Discourse" outlines the requirements of the genre, which include a public, moral authority and specific generic goals in line with classical Persian, Horatian, and Juvenalian forms. As such, it consciously limits the production of satire by women, who were traditionally denied a classical education. Swift interrogates Dryden's theory in A Tale of a Tub, using a process of inhabitation. This process is a unique synthesis of various critical approaches describing Swift's ability to impersonate another style of discourse so flawlessly that he seems to become it. Swift calls into question not only Dryden's theory of satire, but the ability of satire itself to effect moral change. In finding Dryden's theory flawed, Swift unconsciously opened the doors for women writers of satire. These women, who had little or no classical education and no public moral authority, embraced Swift's critique of the satiric tradition and attempted to integrate it into the novel, a form more acceptable for women writers. Using Swiftian inhabitation, such early women novelists as Manley, Lennox, and Inchbald experimented with satiric form, theme, and narrative voice. In so doing, they fundamentally changed the nature of satiric writing in eighteenth-century Britain, transforming it from an inflexible genre to a more elastic mode. These experiments informed the work of Austen, who used the process of Swiftian inhabitation to successfully integrate satire and the novel. Degree awarded: Ph.D. English Language and Literature. The Catholic University of America; This dissertation can be viewed by CUA users only. [24 months embargo]

Potters, Power and Prestige: Early Intermediate Period and Middle Horizon Ceramic Production At Conchopata, Ayacucho, Peru (A.D. 400-1000)

2012-06-02T07:58:26Z

Potters, Power and Prestige: Early Intermediate Period and Middle Horizon Ceramic Production At Conchopata, Ayacucho, Peru (A.D. 400-1000) Wolff, Barbara Lee Potters, Power and Prestige: Early Intermediate Period and Middle Horizon Ceramic Production At Conchopata, Ayacucho, Peru (A.D. 400-1000)Barbara Lee Wolff, Ph.D.Director: Anita G. Cook, Ph.D.This dissertation examines changes in the organization of ceramic production at Conchopata, an archaeological site in Peru's Ayacucho Basin, over a six hundred year period (A.D. 400-1000) that coincided with the rise and expansion of Wari, an early Andean empire whose eponymous capital was nearby. The context, concentration and intensity of ceramic production are examined for each period of Conchopata's occupation, as is the likely composition of productive groups. The results suggest that the early Wari state staged the successful installation of a tightly coupled complex of construction, elite occupation, feasting, religious ideology and ceramic production at Conchopata.The research addresses these topics by examining the spatial and temporal distribution of sites, architecture and artifacts during the period of Conchopata's occupation. The underlying intra-site data were collected during 1999-2003 salvage excavations at Conchopata and artifact analysis that took place from 2002-2009. Analysis at the regional level relies upon survey data concerning nearly 500 nearby archaeological sites that were collected during the 1969-1971 Ayacucho-Huanta Archaeological Botanical Project, as well as excavation reports from Ayacucho Basin sites that were contemporary with Conchopata.The research confirms that from approximately A.D. 400-1000 independent household ceramic production took place at Conchopata. Beginning around A.D. 600, the beginning of the Andean Middle Horizon, this form of production appears to have co-existed alongside intensified, state-controlled production of ceremonial and quotidian ceramics under the influence of the expanding Wari Empire. Throughout the Middle Horizon, Ayacucho Basin ceramic production appears to have been concentrated at Conchopata and perhaps Wari rather than evenly dispersed among sites in the area.In addition to intensification of ceramic production, Wari influence included the construction of planned architecture and changes in ceremonial practices. The planned imposition of this complex of related activities may represent an early example of a strategy more widely employed as Wari expanded into other regions. It is of interest to those who study the Wari polity, but also to those more generally interested in the rise of political complexity and the role of craft production in archaic states. Degree awarded: Ph.D. Anthropology. The Catholic University of America

Faith, Human Development, and Service Delivery: The Cases of Education and Health in Ghana and Burkina Faso

2012-06-02T07:59:42Z

Faith, Human Development, and Service Delivery: The Cases of Education and Health in Ghana and Burkina Faso Wodon, Quentin Within the context of the Millennium Development Goals, governments and donors have made improvements in human development in developing countries a key priority. Public sector service providers have a leading role in efforts to improve health and education outcomes, but private providers, including faith-inspired institutions (FIIs), may also contribute. Unfortunately, in-depth empirical assessments of the role that FIIs play in providing health and education services have not been conducted to-date. The purpose of this study is to assess the role that FIIs play in healthcare and education service provision in Ghana and Burkina Faso, with comparisons with other sub-Saharan African countries. The study estimates the market share and reach to the poor of FIIs, their cost for households and their sources of funding, and the satisfaction of their users with the services provided as well as the reasons why individuals and households rely on those services. The study is based mainly on data from national household surveys, but administrative data and information from qualitative fieldwork are also used. The results suggest that the market share of FIIs in the provision of health and education services is lower than commonly believed. Many FIIs do not reach the poor more than public facilities, even if they make efforts to do so, but they do reach the poor more than private secular providers. The cost for households of the services provided by FIIs is often at least as high as that of public providers, but lower than that of private secular providers. When FIIs benefit from external support, they are able to make their services affordable for the poor. The satisfaction of users with the services provided by FIIs is often higher than for public facilities, with respect for users and attention to their needs on the part of the staffs of FIIs playing a key role for higher satisfaction. While faith is not a major factor affecting the choice of healthcare facilities by households, it does influence strongly the choice of schools, especially among Muslim populations. Finally, many of the results are context-specific, highlighting the need for detailed country and local level work in this area. Degree awarded: Ph.D. Religion and Culture. The Catholic University of America; This dissertation can be viewed by CUA users only.

Selection and Analysis of HIV-1 Envelope Epitopes for Design of Vaccines that can Induce Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies

2012-06-02T08:03:29Z

Selection and Analysis of HIV-1 Envelope Epitopes for Design of Vaccines that can Induce Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies Wieczorek, Lindsay Marie HIV-1 vaccines are designed to mimic the structure and contextual elements of viral epitopes that have the potential to induce broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) in vivo. The structure of gp41 membrane proximal external region (MPER), targeted by three bnAbs, is poorly defined. The goal of this study is to select epitopes with enhanced binding to MPER bnAbs, to identify neutralization-competent structures by characterizing the function of epitope-specific antibodies in vivo and to determine if these selected MPER epitopes can be used to broaden the immune response as potential vaccines.MPER epitopes were selected by biopanning with phage-displayed peptide libraries against bnAbs 4E10, 2F5 and Z13. Epitopes were screened in antigen competition binding assays where M13-displayed epitopes competed with HIV-1 envelope peptides or infectious HIV-1 particles for antibody binding. In vivo response to MPER was assessed by M13 immunoprecipitation and neutralization competition assays using HIV-positive plasma. Immunogenicity of select epitopes was determined by immunization of mice and elicited cellular and humoral immune responses were assessed.Unique 4E10, and known 2F5 and Z13, epitopes were selected from M13 phage display libraries, which were able to compete with envelope peptide and HIV-1 for antibody binding. 4E10 and 2F5 epitopes were found to be immunogenic during HIV-1 infection; of the twelve HIV+ patient plasma tested, 100% and 58% reacted with phage-displayed 4E10 and 2F5 MPER epitopes, respectively. 4E10-epitopes were capable of absorbing MPER-specific neutralizing antibodies in HIV+ plasma. Mouse immunization with selected, neutralization-competent MPER epitopes elicited HIV-1 specific cellular and humoral immune responses and boosted the neutralizing activity of a gp145 protein subunit vaccine.Unique 4E10 epitopes, that represent functional HIV-1 envelope trimers, were identified. Chronically HIV-infected individuals generate neutralizing antibodies to a subset of the selected MPER-variant epitopes. These M13-displayed 4E10 epitopes have the potential to elicit HIV-1 neutralizing antibodies in mice. Increasing the range of antibody recognition to MPER, potentially by vaccination with multiple MPER variant epitopes, will be the key to improve HIV-1 vaccine design. Degree awarded: Ph.D. Biology. The Catholic University of America; This dissertation can be viewed by CUA users only. [6 months embargo]

Advanced Formation for Liturgical Ministers: Understanding and Integrating Full Participation

2012-06-02T08:00:15Z

Advanced Formation for Liturgical Ministers: Understanding and Integrating Full Participation Wickman, James The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy calls for the "full, conscious, and active participation" of the faithful in the celebration of the liturgy, as a right and duty by baptism. Heeding this call in the years since the Council, liturgical formation has defined "full, conscious, and active" as taking part in the rites, texts, singing, gestures, and external actions of the celebration. In addition, formation for liturgical ministers has centered on skills needed to perform a specialized role. The problem addressed in this paper is how to help experienced liturgical ministers move to a level of understanding of participation in the liturgy that goes beyond the external actions to the internal movements of the heart, to transformation of life, so that all who participate in the liturgy may live out what they have become.The primary texts of the project include Sacrosanctum Concilium and Lumen Gentium, as well as Kathleen Hughes' Saying Amen: Mystagogy of Sacrament, Susan Wood's Ordering the Baptismal Priesthood, and Louis-Marie Chauvet's Sacraments. The method includes pre and post workshop research questionnaires and a full day workshop. The workshop began with an overview of participation as understood in the documents of the Church. With this background, an extended presentation on participation as primarily internal was given. Interior participation consists of taking part in the sacrifice of Christ by the offering of self with Christ in gift to God at the liturgy. The day ended with a practical experience of mystagogical reflection on the liturgy, which the participants used to process their own participation.The results of the project showed a significant increase in understanding of a deeper level of participation. Half of the participations indicated an increase in their awareness of how they participate in the sacrifice of Christ, and that their participation involves a giving of self, as Christ gave fully of himself on the cross, to God and to others. The conclusion is that further formation in a deeper level of participation for those who are committed to the liturgical life of the parish can reap strong results when focused on increasing interior participation. Degree awarded: D.Min. Liturgical Studies/Sacramental Theology. The Catholic University of America; This dissertation can be viewed by CUA users only. [24 months embargo]

Active Participation of the Local Church in the Enactment of the Eucharist in the Thought of Edward J. Kilmartin

2012-06-02T08:00:50Z

Active Participation of the Local Church in the Enactment of the Eucharist in the Thought of Edward J. Kilmartin Varghese, Rejimon This study investigates the pneumatological-Christological understanding of active eucharistic participation as articulated by the twentieth-century American theologian Edward J. Kilmartin, S. J. Based on a Trinitarian model of theology in connection with the insight gained from the ancient eucharistic prayers (participation in the transitus of Jesus to the Father), Kilmartin develops the notion of interior participation as emphasized by the Fathers at the Second Vatican Council (1962-65). He thus provides a "theological" approach to the "full, conscious, and active" participation as succinctly articulated by the Fathers at the Council. The participation by believers in the covenantal relationship with God, in and through the eucharistic celebration, necessarily involves a union with Christ. Kilmartin explains this union by establishing a strong pneumatological connection between Christ and believers resulting from the bestowal model of the Trinity. This union with Christ in the Spirit allows Kilmartin to demonstrate a parallel between Jesus' life of faith and the life of faith required of believers. It is the Holy Spirit, whom Christ sends to his Church, which is represented by the liturgical assembly (the ordained priest and the believers) in the eucharistic celebration, that becomes the Spirit of the Church. This Spirit enables the liturgical assembly to participate fully in the mind of Christ through appropriating the sacrificial attitudes of Christ.With Kilmartin's description of participation in "the Spirit of the faith of Christ" which this study explores and presents, a better understanding of the notion of active participation in the Eucharist can be attained in response to Vatican II exhortations as outlined in Sacrosanctum Concilium and Lumen Gentium. Furthermore, Kilmartin's comprehensive theological treatment of the subject grounded in the Trinitarian model is capable of including the various elements of active participation of Y. Congar, F. McManus, M. Collins, and J. Lamberts as treated in this study. This dissertation, therefore, argues that Kilmartin has made a significant contribution to the notion of active eucharistic participation in the post-Vatican II era. Degree awarded: S.T.D. Liturgical Studies/Sacramental Theology. The Catholic University of America; This dissertation can be viewed by CUA users only. [24 months embargo]

Personal and Contextual Factors Related to Empathy in Medical Students

2012-06-02T07:57:51Z

Personal and Contextual Factors Related to Empathy in Medical Students Walker, Deborah Camalier Despite the fact that research has emphasized the importance of empathy in the establishment of the physician-patient relationship (Norfolk, Birdi, & Walsh, 2007), little empirical research has been undertaken to identify and measure the factors related to the development of empathy among medical students. Several studies have suggested that the quality of the doctor-patient relationship not only influences the patient's perception and attitudes toward disease (Lerman et al., 1993), but also precipitates positive, measurable results, including quality of life and improved health outcomes (Baile & Aaron, 2005; Barrier, Li, & Jensen, 2003; Stewart, 1995; Traveline, Ruchinskas, & D'Alonzo, 2005; Teutsch, 2003).The present study explored both personal and contextual factors posited to influence levels of empathy in medical students. Personal factors included self-esteem, altruism, and personal experience with illness. Medical school year, chosen specialty, and participation in psycho-social curriculum were considered as contextual factors. The following hypotheses guided the study: H1 - Controlling for age, gender and race, those medical students with higher levels of self-esteem and altruism, and those who have had personal experience with chronic/serious illness, will have higher levels of measured empathy than those medical students who do not. H2 - Controlling for age, gender and race, those medical students who are in their first year of study, who have participated in psycho-social curricular electives, and who have selected either psychiatry, pediatrics, emergency, family or internal medicine as a specialty, will have higher levels of measured empathy than students in the second, third or fourth year, those students who have not participated in psycho-social curricular electives, and those who have selected either orthopedic surgery or anesthesiology as specialties.Four reliable and valid instruments measuring self-esteem, altruism, and dimensions of empathy constituted the majority of the questions in the online survey. Descriptive statistics were conducted to describe the sample. Reliability statistics were run on all scales using Cronbach's Alpha, and multiple regression analysis was employed to test the hypotheses.Significant findings indicate the following:1) Medical students with higher levels of self-esteem and altruism, and those who have had personal experience with chronic/serious illness, have higher levels of measured empathy.2) Students participating in the Mind/Body psycho-social curricular elective have greater levels of empathy than those not enrolled in this program.3) Students selecting the specialty category of Orthopedics/Anesthesiology have lowered measured levels of empathy than students in other specialties.4) Female students have greater empathy than male students.Implications for the study suggest that the social work profession is uniquely important in health care, as it considers the whole person as a self-determining individual influenced and influencing his or her environment (Reese & Raymer, 2004). In terms of education, with an understanding of the cognitive and affective dimensions of empathy gleaned through an exploration of both personal and contextual factors, social workers are in a unique position to shape curricular changes and to disseminate the information to students in medical school. Furthermore, an examination of the factors influencing empathy help to broaden existing knowledge for future research, while adding to the general area of expertise. Degree awarded: Ph.D. Social Work. The Catholic University of America