22 research outputs found
School of Nisibis: Its Origin, Statues, and Celebrated Personages
No full textThe School of Nisibis was an east Syriac center for study, a successor to the School of the Persians at Edessa. This brief but important work (also known by its French title, École de Nisibe. Son origine, ses règlements et ses hommes célèbres) by the Chaldean Archbishop Addai Scher (1867-1915), who elsewhere edited the so-called Cause of the Foundation of the Schools (one of the chief documents for knowledge of the School of Nisibis), provides readers with a concise overview of the School, including the famous teachers and students associated with it (e.g. Narsai, Abraham de Beit Rabban, Ishoyahb I, Henana, Babai) and its functional arrangement, that is, dealing with the titles and roles of its leaders and with the School’s statutes. Throughout the work, Scher indicates important Syriac terminology. An index of proper names concludes the volume. This book is a significant study of a formative period of the Church of the East.Includes an index of proper names in the end of the volume
Effects of Urban Periodic Markets on Rural Development in Ghana: A Rural Web Analysis
No full textRural areas in Ghana continue to experience limited access to and participation in urban
markets, poor socioeconomic linkages between rural and urban areas as well as the decreasing
returns for rural products and profitability of agriculture. These problems have led to increasing
poverty and especially, within villages in the northern part of Ghana. Ghana’s decentralisation
policy clearly defines the responsibilities of the local councils to address rural problems
through the implementation of projects including urban markets. However, the local councils
have not paid much attention to urban periodic markets (UPMs) as a mechanism for rural
development. This thesis primarily investigates the extent to which UPMs affect the rural
economy of Ghana to inform policy decisions. The thesis adopts the Rural Web analysis to
explore the effects of UPMs on important dimensions in selected villages in the south and north
of Ghana to comprehend the contribution of these urban markets to rural development. The
dimensions include novelty production, social capital, and the governance of markets,
sustainability, endogeneity, and institutional arrangements. The study finds that UPMs are a
form of an institutional environment that operates effectively by engaging rural households in
trading activities. First, UPMs affect institutional arrangements in rural areas through the
formation of groups and institutional collaboration. Second, UPMs affect social capital through
the creation of social interactions among households within and outside the villages. Third,
they affect the governance of markets by increasing the direct participation of rural households
in urban markets. Fourth, UPMs affect endogeneity in rural areas by encouraging the sale of
food crops, livestock, and poultry in urban markets. Fifth, they affect novelty production
through the sale of value-added foods in urban markets. Finally, UPMs affect sustainability by
encouraging the sale of organic foods in urban markets.
The formation of producer-marketing groups on market days enables farmers to overcome the
difficulty of transporting their products to UPMs. UPMs engage the local councils to pay
particular attention to road infrastructure through the rehabilitation of village roads. Group
selling in UPMs helps farmers to determine the prices of their products. The social interactions
that are generated during UPMs connect farmers to urban and international buyers. Farmers
trade in foreign currency with international buyers during market days in urban areas with the
possibility that they would earn a high income. The availability of transport services in villages
during market days as well as the proximity of UPMs to villages increase farmers’ direct
participation in these urban markets. Rural farmers sold a larger proportion of agricultural
products in the UPMs. Rural farmers are encouraged to increase the sale of value-added and organic foods at the UPMs because consumers trust these products during market days. UPMs
engage farmers in numerous non-farm jobs, which provide them with additional income. The
study findings are relevant for Ghana’s development policies that seek to improve standards of
living in rural and urban areas. The study suggests that the local councils in Ghana should
incorporate the activities of UPMs into their development policies to aid in promoting rural
and urban interactions, as well as rural developmentThesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Social Sciences, 202
Contributions of urban periodic markets to sustainable rural development in Ghana: A rural web analysis
No full textAvailable online 14 March 2023There is a limited theoretical understanding of the importance of urban periodic markets (UPMs) for sustainable rural development in sub-Saharan Africa. This paper explores the value of UPMs to sustainable rural development by employing the rural web technique. The specific objectives are to (1) describe the characteristics of UPMs in Ghana, and (2) assess the effects of UPMs on the six indicators of sustainable rural development proposed by the rural web technique. Surveys and interviews were used to collect primary data in villages both in Ghana’s more developed southern region and the less developed northern region. Our study finds that UPMs generate important socioeconomic interactions and enable cooperative marketing in both regions. UPMs shorten the food supply chains and create new types of rural-urban linkages, especially through farmers’ direct participation. Farmers from across Ghana noted that UPMs create employment opportunities, and in turn, provide access to varieties of goods that are not locally produced. In northern Ghana, farmers’ participation in UPMs enable cross-border trading with international buyers from Burkina Faso and Cote D’lvoire. The findings imply that the modernisation of UPMs could provide a critical pathway to achieving sustainable development objectives within rural Sub-Saharan Africa.Godfred Addai, Jungho Suh, Douglas Bardsle
Social interactions in periodic urban markets and their contributions to sustainable livelihoods: Evidence from Ghana
No full textPeriodic markets are an important aspect of local economies, providing a platform for farmers (producers), wholesalers, retailers, and consumers to interact face-to-face and exchange goods and services. These markets have been increasing in urban areas in Africa, Asia, and South America because of urbanization. The increase of periodic urban markets (PUMs) in urban areas is observed as an index of modernization, reflecting a response to transition process. However, there are limited studies on how social interactions in PUMs contribute to sustainable livelihoods. This study investigated the types of social interactions occurring in PUMs in Ghana, the benefits of social interactions for participants of PUMs, and how social interactions contribute to sustainable livelihoods. This research interviewed 162 participants, comprising 27 farmers (farmers were regarded as producers in this study), 61 retailers, 47 wholesalers from 9 selected PUMs across Ghana, and 27 officers from government institutions and non-governmental market associations to obtain their opinions. We analyzed the interview data using the NVivo software. The results showed that there are seven kinds of social interactions in PUMs, including (i) producer-wholesaler relationship, (ii) producer-consumer relationship, (iii) wholesaler-retailer relationship, (iv) retailer-consumer relationship, (v) trader-driver relationship, (vi) trader-institution relationship, and (vii) trader-international buyer relationship. We found that these social interactions in PUMs enhance sustainable livelihoods by supporting human, social, financial, natural, and physical assets of traders (traders refer to producers, wholesalers, and retailers in this study). Therefore, we concluded that the development of policies to improve PUMs could strengthen social interactions, enabling the achievement of sustainable livelihoods in developing countries
The Contribution of Periodic Markets to Internally Generated Fund (IGF) of Ejisu-Juaben Municipal Assembly
No full textAs part of Ghana's fiscal decentralisation programme, Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies are mandated to mobilise resources internally to reduce dependence on the external sources of funds. Internally Generated Funds (IGF) of MMDAs in Ghana has been relatively low since 1993. The focus of this paper is to assess the contribution of revenue mobilisation from periodic markets to Internally Generated Fund (IGF). Simple random sampling techniques were used to select 94 market sellers in the municipality and officers of the Assembly using purposive sampling. The four main periodic markets were located in Ejisu, Juaben, Kwaso and Boamadumase. Interview guides and structured questionnaires were used to collect data. The study found that the Municipality practice Public-Private Partnership (PPP) with REVSOL Company in local revenue collection. The proceeds from periodic markets contributed 7.5 percent and 7.8 percent in 2010 and 2011 respectively. A number of factors affect revenue collection from periodic markets in the Municipality. These include; lack of accountability and transparency, lack of adequate logistics, weak institutional collaboration, inadequate motivation to revenue collectors, inadequate revenue collectors, lack of skilled personnel, poor development of the market and weak legal and regulatory framework
INVESTIGATING THE TRINITY AND GOD\u27S LIBERATING PRESENCE IN THE WORLD: ITS RELEVANCE FOR CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIANS
No full textAll the theistic religions in the world like Judaism, Christianity and Islam profess faith in one God. However, in Christianity, Christians believe that in this One God, there are three (3) persons. These persons are distinct and equal. This, they call the Trinity. Christians believe that all the works of God like Creation, Redemption/Salvation and Sanctification were done equally by all the three (3) persons in the One God. There is nothing like division of labor. The Trinity has been a source of controversy in inter-religious dialogue. Even among Christians themselves, it has resulted into disputes. It was the discourse of the Trinity that led to the Great Schism of the church between the East and West in AD 1054. In the course of the history of the church, discussions and opinions on the Trinity has led to many Councils in the church in order to try to explain and understand the Trinity. This has resulted in many excommunications - dismissal from the church. In this article, the author takes a cursory look at the Trinity from the bible and the history of the church and discusses its relevance for Christians today. The method that the author uses is the literary approach. In order words, it is library sources that are mainly used. The author believes that this article is significant and contributes to knowledge. This is because a proper understanding of the Trinity will help to heal the wounds that have divided major religions in the world and promote cordiality among Christians.  
AN APPRASAIL OF THE UNITY OF THE CHURCHES AND ITS RELEVANCE IN CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY FOR NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
No full textJesus came into the world mainly to proclaim the Reign/Kingdom of God - cf. Mk. 1: 14 - 15. This Reign of God is a mystery. It is beyond human comprehension and understanding. To help us to understand the mysterious nature of the Reign of God, Jesus used images and parables to depict and teach about the inner dynamics of the Reign of God - cf. Matt. 13: 1 ff. According to Jesus, no human being can bring about the Reign of God. It is God who initiates and brings it about. In the course of his ministry, he got some followers who later on grew into the Church. After staying with them, forming them for some time, he sent them on mission. The mission was very specific - to preach about the Reign of God - cf. Matt. 10:1-25. In this article the author discusses among other things: Jesus on unity among his disciples: Unity in the Early church in the Acts of the Apostles: Division in the cause of the History of the Church: The Church and National Development and Efforts towards Unity among the Churches. In this article the author does not use either the qualitative or the quantitative or the mixed methods. Instead the literary approach is used. In other words, library sources are used
The religious innovator Tatian: a precursor of Mani in Syrian Christianity?
No full textTatian the Syrian, author of an Oration to the Greeks and the Diatessaron, who flourished in the second half of the second century (150–180+), has long been looked at in the context of the study of the early Christian sources of Manichaeism. In the past attempts were made to draw direct links between Tatian, early Syriac Christianity, and early Manichaeism. F.C. Burkitt, for example, suggested that the name “Tatian” might be the Greek version of the apostle “Addai”, protagonist of the Syriac Doctrine of Addai, which H.J.W. Drijvers later proposed to be a Christian appropriation of a Manichaean tradition. Yet later, J.C. Reeves found many elements that occur in Tatian’s Oration recurring in third-century Mesopotamian literature and thus feed into an emerging Manichaean tradition. This paper does not attempt to draw a direct link between Tatian’s second century teaching and Mani’s teaching but looks at some of Tatian’s teachings as put forward in the Oration. It asks to what extent these show characteristics that may be found later in Mani’s teaching. The focus will be on three areas: 1) Tatian’s concept of Pneuma, the working of which Tatian seems to explain (in some places) in surprisingly materialistic terms; this will be compared with a Manichaean text; 2) Tatian’s assumed “leanings” towards Encratism; and 3) in connection with (2), passages in the Oration that deal with issues related to women and gender. Overall, Tatian’s original thinking in some of these areas is analysed with a view to the concept of “innovation” in late-antique religion
Community in faith and eucharist
No full textPotaknut dokumentom Papinskog vijeća za jedinstvo kršćana
o pripuštanju euharistiji između Asirske crkve Istoka i
Kaldejske crkve, autor najprije pruža kratki pregled povijesti
Asirske crkve Istoka (Perzijske crkve) i Kaldejske crkve, te potom
izlaže sadržaj dvaju dokumenata: Zajednička kristološka izjava
između Katoličke crkve i Asirske crkve Istoka, te Smjernice za
pripuštanje euharistiji između Kaldejske crkve i Asirske crkve
Istoka. Nakon toga slijedi prijevod euharistijske molitve - anafore
Addai i Mari, te obrazloženje osobitog značaja ovog koraka za
daljnji ekumenski dijalog.Prompted by the document of Papal Council for Unity of
Christians on giving admittance to the Eucharist between the
Assyrian Church of the East and Chaldean Church, the author
first gives a brief history of these churches and then presents
the content of two documents: A Joint Christological Declaration
between the Catholic Church and Assyrian Church of the East
and References for Giving Admittance to the Eucharist between
the Chaldean Church and Assyrian Church of the East. Then follows
translation of the Eucharist prayer – anaphora Addai and
Mari and explanation why this step is of special importance for
further ecumenical dialogue
A DISCUSSION ON AUGUSTINE\u27S NOTION OF PREDESTINATION AND ITS LATER INTERPRETATION IN SALVATION HISTORY
No full textSalvation is at the core of Christianity. It is something that can be bought. Rather, it is offered gratuitously by God out of love. However, each and every person has to make his/her own this salvation. In other words, one has to make his/her own this salvation offered by God. This article discusses the doctrine of Predestination as seen by Augustine and its later interpretation by other theologians. In the opinion of Augustine God has the intention to save all human beings - cf. I Tim. 2:4. God has destined this from the beginning of creation. However, this salvation is not on a silver platter. One has to make a conscious effort to make his/her own this salvation. Furthermore, the article examines how later theologians have looked at the doctrine of Predestination. Finally, the article posits that later interpretations have not been faithful to the mindset of Augustine. It concludes that it is the intention of God to save all. God\u27s foreknowledge does not mean predetermination. One has to make good use of one\u27s Free will and choose the salvation offered by God in order to be saved. If one misses salvation, it means one made a wrong use one\u27s Free will. In writing this article the author uses the literary approach that is library sources. 
