The Hands of God and the Glittering Sword: A Theological History of John Brown

The political praxis of American abolitionist John Brown (1800-1859) furnishes an example of practical liberation theology. This work advances an experimental historiographic model, termed theological history, which combines the central insights of Christian liberation theology and Marxist historical materialism to draw both historical and theological conclusions about its subject, John Brown. The foundational work of Gustavo Gutierrez and James Cone suggests that history and praxis are central to liberation theology, and that Marxist epistemology and ontology are necessary for historical conclusions drawn from liberation theology to be valid. This work extends this contention, arguing for an even greater fusion of these traditions in both theory and practice. Theological history is an attempt to develop the theoretical side of this argument. Using the method of theological history, this work examines the primary sources for the major activities of John Brown, the Pottawatomie Massacre and the Provisional Constitution drawn up in preparation for the raid on Harpers Ferry, in the context of theology and Marxist political economy. Three major historical conclusions are drawn: 1.) Brown’s experiences in business, combined with his understanding of Christian scripture and theology, led him in later life to repudiate reformism, capitalism, and individuality and embrace revolution, utopian socialism, and communalism; 2.) The Pottawatomie Massacre was influenced primarily by Brown’s understanding of Puritan Edwardsian theology, which led him to believe that he was acting as “the hands of God” to violently destroy the Slave Power that he believed controlled the United States; 3.) The Provisional Constitution and later Declaration of Liberty of the Slave Population of America were Brown’s attempts to outline his vision for an ideal post-slavery society, including the strand of socialism mentioned above, the legal enshrinement of Brown’s version of Christian morality, and a radical egalitarianism of class, race, and gender. Attempts by detractors and later historians to cast Brown as mentally ill or insane are historically and scientifically untenable, but they reveal the role that psychiatric discourse plays in pathologizing dissent and revolution and testify to Brown’s relevance for contemporary liberation movements. His most frequently-cited diagnosis, “monomania,” is in reality a psychiatric fiction that served a political rather than medical purpose. Ending on theological conclusions rather than purely historical, this paper shows that Brown’s activities at Pottawatomie and Harpers Ferry demonstrate what liberation theology can look like in practice

Oral-facial tissue reconstruction in the regenerative axolotl

Absence of large amounts of orofacial tissues caused by cancerous resections, congenital defects or trauma result in sequelae such as dysphagia and noticeable scars. Oral-neck tissue regeneration was studied in the axolotl (regenerative amphibian) following a 2.5mm punch biopsy that simultaneously removed skin, connective tissue, muscle, and cartilage in the tongue and intermandibular region. The untreated wound was studied macroscopically and histologically at 17 different time points ranging from 0-180d (N= 120 axolotls). At 12h the wound’s surface was smoothened and within 1mm, internal lingual muscular modifications occurred; at the same distance, between days 4-7 lingual muscle degradation was complete. Immunofluorescence indicates complete keratinocytes migration by 48h. These cells with epidermal Leydig cells, appearing yellow, lead the chin’s deep tissue outgrowth until its closure on the 14th day. Regeneration speeds varied and peaked in time for each tissue, 1) deep Immunofluorescence to Col IV showed basement membrane reconnected between days 30-45 coinciding with the chin’s dermal tissue’s surface area recovery. New muscle appeared at 21d and was always preceded by the formation of a collagen bed. Both chin tissues regain all surface area and practically all components while the lingual structure lacks some content but is generally similar to the original. The methodology and high-resolution observations described here are the first of its kind for this animal model and could serve as a basis for future studies in oral and facial regenerative research

THE CYCLIC NATURE AND MAGNITUDE OF CELL DIVISION IN GASTRIC MUCOSA OF URODELE LARVAE REARED IN THE POND AND LABORATORY

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