Beyond Babel: A Handbook for Biblical Hebrew and Related Languages
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Saturday, 25 February 2012
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Tuesday, 21 February 2012
Jesus Remembered
James
Dunn is regarded worldwide as one of today's foremost biblical
scholars. Having written groundbreaking studies of the New Testament and
a standard work on Paul's theology, Dunn here turns his pen to the rise
of Christianity itself. "Jesus Remembered" is the first installment in
what will be a monumental three-volume history of the first 120 years of
the faith.Focusing on Jesus, this first volume has several distinct
features. It garners the lessons to be learned from the quest for the
historical Jesus and meets the hermeneutical challenges to a historical
and theological assessment of the Jesus tradition. It provides a fresh
perspective both on the impact made by Jesus and on the traditions about
Jesus as "oral" tradition -- hence the title Jesus Remembered. And it
offers a fresh analysis of the details of that tradition, emphasizing
its "characteristic" (rather than dissimilar) features. Noteworthy too
are Dunn's treatments of the source question (particularly Q and the
noncanonical Gospels) and of Jesus the Jew in his Galilean context.In
his detailed analysis of the Baptist tradition, the kingdom motif, the
call to and character of discipleship, what Jesus' audiences thought of
him, what he thought of himself, why he was crucified, and how and why
belief in Jesus' resurrection began, Dunn engages wholeheartedly in the
contemporary debate, providing many important insights and offering a
thoroughly convincing account of how Jesus was remembered from the
first, and why.Written with peerless scholarly acumen yet accessible to a
wide range of readers, Dunn's "Jesus Remembered," together with its
successor volumes, will be a sine qua non for all students of
Christianity's beginnings.Dualism in Qumran
The
Library of Second Temple Studies (LSTS) is a premier book series that
offers cutting-edge work for a readership of scholars, teachers in the
field of Second Temple studies, postgraduate students and advanced
under-graduates. All the many and diverse aspects of Second Temple study
are represented and promoted including innovative work from historical
perspectives studies using social-scientific and literary theory, and
developing theological, cultural and contextual approaches.Dualism in Qumran is an assessment of dualistic thinking in the material found at Qumran, in the light of two decades of Qumran research.
A key facet of studying the Dead Sea Scrolls has always been to support the conviction that it is impossible to deduce compelling doctrines in the 'theology of Qumran' û that scholars should not attempt to falsely impose a sophisticated doctrinal system upon the texts. However, since virtually all of the Qumran material has now been published the time is now ripe to consider key themes which occur in the Qumran material in greater depth. The contributors to the present volume begin this work, opening up new fields of enquiry to stimulate further reflection on the topic of dualism. The essays assess such issues as: the origin of Qumran's dualism; the literary growth of the passages in question; and the social/ideological setting of the dualistic passages within the Qumran Library.
Early Christian Doctrines
A
history of doctrines of the Early Church, written and arranged with
exceptional clarity by a leading patristic scholar. Canon Kelly
describes the development of the principal Christian doctrines from the
close of the first century to the middle of the fifth, and from the end
of the apostolic age to the council of Chalcedon.
Feminist Reconstructions of Christian Doctrine: Narrative Analysis and Appraisal
What
is the relationship between feminist theology and classical Christian
theology? Is feminist theology "Christian," and if so, in what respect
and to what extent? This study seeks to analyze and evaluate the
relation of feminist "reconstructions" to traditional Christian
teaching. Greene-McCreight uses the extent to which the biblical
depiction of God is allowed to guide theological hermeneutics as a test
of orthodoxy. She looks at the writings of a wide range of contemporary
feminist theologians, discusses their doctrinal patterns, and
demonstrates how the Bible is used in undergirding their theological
reconstructions.
God Incarnate: Explorations in Christology
The
doctrine of the incarnation is one of the central and defining dogmas
of the Christian faith. In this text, Oliver Crisp builds upon his
previous work, Divinity and Humanity: The Incarnation Reconsidered
(Cambridge, 2007). In God Incarnate, he explores the Incarnation further
and covers issues he did not deal with in his previous book. This work
attempts to further the project of setting out a coherent account of the
Incarnation by considering key facets of this doctrine, as parts of a
larger, integrated, doctrinal whole. Throughout, he is concerned to develop a position in line with historic Christianity that is catholic and ecumenical in tone, in line with the contours of the Reformed theological tradition within which his own work falls. And, like its predecessor, this book will draw upon philosophical and theological resources to make sense of the problems the doctrine faces.
Gregory of Nazianzus
Gregory
of Nazianzus, a complex and colorful figure living during a crucial age
in which it was permissible for the first time to be a public Christian
intellectual (4th Century AD), was well placed to become one of the
outstanding defenders and formulators of Trinitarian orthodoxy. A gifted and skilled rhetorician, poet, and orator, as well as a profound theologian, Gregory was ordained a bishop and served as head of the orthodox Christian community in Constantinople, where he played an important role in formulating the classical doctrines of the Trinity and the person of Christ. Under fire from opponents in the Church, the enigmatic Gregory soon retreated into a quiet life of study and simple asceticism, concentrating on quiet meditation and strengthening his canon of literature. Gregory's body of works, comprising poetry, letters, sermons and lectures on religious themes and written with the terseness and elegance of classical Greek literature, was canonized in the Byzantine age as equal to the greatest Greek writers before him.
A collection of new translations of a selection of these achievements in literature and theology, with an extensive introduction to Gregory's life, thought, and writings, Gregory Nazianzus portrays a vivid picture of a fascinating character of vital importance; who deserves to be regarded as the first true Christian humanist.
Bandits, Prophets & Messiahs: Popular Movements in the Time of Jesus
The
Trinity Press edition of this popular book includes a new preface by
the author, responding to reviews of earlier editions. Horsley also sets
forth the continuing value of Bandits, Prophets, and Messiahs for
reconstructing the social history background of the New Testament.This
book represents a brilliant portrait of Jewish culture in the first
century and contains a fresh evaluation of Jesus' relation to this
complex society. Horsley rediscovers the "common people" (Jewish
peasantry) in the time of Jesus the masses led by bandit forces,
apocalyptic prophets, and messianic leaders and provides new insights
into their significance.Get it
Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity
This
outstanding book provides an in-depth historical study of the place of
Jesus in the religious life, beliefs, and worship of Christians from the
beginnings of the Christian movement down to the late second century.
Lord Jesus Christ is a monumental work on earliest Christian devotion to Jesus, sure to replace Wilhelm Bousset's Kyrios Christos
(1913) as the standard work on the subject. Larry Hurtado, widely
respected for his previous contributions to the study of the New
Testament and Christian origins, offers the best view to date of how the
first Christians saw and reverenced Jesus as divine. In assembling this
compelling picture, Hurtado draws on a wide body of ancient sources,
from Scripture and the writings of such figures as Ignatius of Antioch
and Justin to apocryphal texts such as the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Truth.
Hurtado considers such themes as early beliefs about Jesus' divine status and significance, but he also explores telling devotional practices of the time, including prayer and worship, the use of Jesus' name in exorcism, baptism and healing, ritual invocation of Jesus as “Lord,” martyrdom, and lesser-known phenomena such as prayer postures and the curious scribal practice known today as the nomina sacra.
The revealing portrait that emerges from Hurtado's comprehensive study yields definitive answers to questions like these: How important was this formative period to later Christian tradition? When did the divinization of Jesus first occur? Was early Christianity influenced by neighboring religions? How did the idea of Jesus' divinity change old views of God? And why did the powerful dynamics of early beliefs and practices encourage people to make the costly move of becoming a Christian?
Boasting an unprecedented breadth and depth of coverage — the book speaks authoritatively on everything from early Christian history to themes in biblical studies to New Testament Christology — Hurtado's Lord Jesus Christ is at once significant enough that a wide range of scholars will want to read it and accessible enough that general readers interested at all in Christian origins will also profit greatly from it.
Get it
Lord Jesus Christ is a monumental work on earliest Christian devotion to Jesus, sure to replace Wilhelm Bousset's Kyrios Christos
(1913) as the standard work on the subject. Larry Hurtado, widely
respected for his previous contributions to the study of the New
Testament and Christian origins, offers the best view to date of how the
first Christians saw and reverenced Jesus as divine. In assembling this
compelling picture, Hurtado draws on a wide body of ancient sources,
from Scripture and the writings of such figures as Ignatius of Antioch
and Justin to apocryphal texts such as the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Truth.Hurtado considers such themes as early beliefs about Jesus' divine status and significance, but he also explores telling devotional practices of the time, including prayer and worship, the use of Jesus' name in exorcism, baptism and healing, ritual invocation of Jesus as “Lord,” martyrdom, and lesser-known phenomena such as prayer postures and the curious scribal practice known today as the nomina sacra.
The revealing portrait that emerges from Hurtado's comprehensive study yields definitive answers to questions like these: How important was this formative period to later Christian tradition? When did the divinization of Jesus first occur? Was early Christianity influenced by neighboring religions? How did the idea of Jesus' divinity change old views of God? And why did the powerful dynamics of early beliefs and practices encourage people to make the costly move of becoming a Christian?
Boasting an unprecedented breadth and depth of coverage — the book speaks authoritatively on everything from early Christian history to themes in biblical studies to New Testament Christology — Hurtado's Lord Jesus Christ is at once significant enough that a wide range of scholars will want to read it and accessible enough that general readers interested at all in Christian origins will also profit greatly from it.
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Jerome
Jerome
(AD 347-420) brought the traditions of classical rhetoric and Christian
exegesis more closely together than any other early Christian writer,
many of whom saw classical culture as an enemy to be rejected. As a
scholar and commentator on the Bible and an indefatigable translator
from Hebrew, Jerome was a major intellectual force in the early church.
His novelistic lives of the saints encapsulated Christian aspirations in
an attractive literary form. As an ascetic and (often irascible) mentor
to many young Christian men and women, he shaped the ideals of
Christian chastity and poverty for generations to come. This book
assembles a representative selection of his voluminous output, and will
help readers to a balanced portrait of a complex and brilliant, but not
always likeable man.John and Empire: Initial Explorations
In
this significant and innovative contribution, Warren Carter explores
John's Gospel as a work of imperial negotiation in the context of
Ephesus, capital of the Roman province of Asia. Carter employs multiple
methods, rejects sectarian scenarios, and builds on other Christian
writings and recent studies of diaspora synagogues that combined
participationist lifestyles with observance of distinctive practices to
argue that imperial negotiation was a contested issue for late
first-century Jesus-believers. While a number of Jesus-believers
probably lived societally-accommodated lives, John's Gospel employs a
"rhetoric of distance" to urge much less accommodation and to create an
alternative "anti-society" for followers of Jesus crucified by the
empire but vindicated by God. In addition to establishing this tense
historical setting, chapters identify various arenas and strategies of
imperial negotiation in wide-ranging discussions of the gospel's genre,
plot, Christological titles, developing traditions, eternal life, the
image of God as father, ecclesiology, Jesus' conflict with Pilate, and
resurrection and ascension.The Church and the Churches
In
this book are presented Karl Barth's lectures on the question of the
unity of the Church in view of the multiplicity of the churches. They
are among the most significant and mature writings of this distinguished
theologian. Through a thoughtful study of the nature of the Church and
the churches, he reaches a notable conclusion as to their relation, and
closes with a surprising suggestion for Christian unity.
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Keys to First Corinthians: Revisiting the Major Issues
Jerome
Murphy-O'Connor's reputation as a recognized expert on the Corinthian
correspondence has been built on the original solutions he has offered
to perennial problems. Brought together for the first time in one
volume, each of the sixteen articles anthologised here deals with one or
more verses in 1 Corinthians that have baffled scholars for
generations. Throughout the collection the author dialogues with the
opinions of colleagues, responding to and building on their accurate
observations, and explaining in detail why certain solutions are viable
whilst others are implausible. A newly written 'reception history' has been appended to each article to bring the collection completely up to date. Although not a commentary on 1 Corinthians, this volume deals thoroughly with all the major problems of the most interesting of the Pauline letters.
Maximus the Confessor
St.
Maximus the Confessor, the greatest of the Byzantine theologians, lived
through the most catastrophic period the Byzantine Empire was to
experience before the Crusades. This book introduces the reader to the
times and upheavals during which Maximus lived. It discusses his cosmic
vision of humanity and the role of the church. The study makes available
a large number of Maximus' theological treatises, many of them
translated for the first time, which are accompanied by lucid and
informed introductions. Maximus the Confessor provides a much needed
introduction to the theology of Maximus, as well as direct access to his
profound but often difficult thought.
The Way of Jesus Christ: Christology in Messianic Dimensions
The
Way of Jesus Christ discusses the following topics:1. The symbol of the
way embodies the aspect of process and brings out christology's
alignment towards its goal. This symbol can comprehend Christ's way from
his birth in the Spirit and his baptism in the Spirit to his
self-surrender on Golgotha. It also makes it possible to understand the
path of Christ as the way leading from his resurrection to his
parousia?the way he takes in the Spirit to Israel, to the nations, and
into the breadth and depth of the cosmos.2. The symbol of the way makes
us aware that every human christology is historically conditioned and
limited. Every human christology is a 'christology of the way,' not yet a
'christology of the home country,' a christology of faith, not yet a
christology of sight. So christology is no more than the beginning of
eschatology; and eschatology, as the Christian faith understands it, is
always the consummation of christology.3. Finally, but not least
important: every way is an invitation. A way is something to be
followed.Handbook of Old Church Slavonic, Volume 1
Grigore Nandris
University of London, Athlone Press, 1965Get it
Handbook of Old Church Slavonic: Texts and glossary, by R. Auty
Grigore Nandris, Robert Auty
University of London, Athlone Press; [label: Fair Lawn, N.J., Essential Books] 1977Get it
Old Church Slavonic Grammar
This
description of the structure of Old Church Slavonic is intended to
present fully the important data about the language, without citing all
the minutiae of attested variant spellings. The facts have been treated
from the point of view of structural linguistics, but pedagogical
clarity has taken precedence over the conciseness required for elegant
formal description.
Paul and the Salvation of the Individual
This
book proposes that there was a lively sense of the individual self in
persons in the Hellenistic world of the urban centres in which Paul
lived and ministered, whereby individualistic behaviour was not unknown
and where individuals were not simply determined by their culture and
the group of which they were a part. This is in contrast to many recent
sociological approaches to the New Testament which emphasise the
collective over the individual. Hence it is argued that the individual
is a central feature of Paul's letter to the Romans. Three texts in the
first eight chapters of Romans are examined to indicate Paul's concern
with the salvation of the individual, and not just with questions of a
more collective nature to do with the identity of the people of God.
This book challenges the very strong emphasis put upon the collective in
recent approaches to Paul's letter to the Romans, especially by
sociologically based NT research, but also within the wider body of
Romans research. It suggests that it is possible to maintain that Paul
was vitally interested in the salvation of the individual, without
having to revert to traditional Lutheran interpretations of the text.Paul on Marriage and Celibacy: The Hellenistic Background of 1 Corinthians 7
Will Deming
Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2004 - 271 pages
Foreword
by Raymond F. Collins Paul is traditionally seen as one of the founders
of Christian sexual asceticism. As early as the second century C.E.
church leaders looked to him as a model for their lives of abstinence.
But is this a correct reading of Paul? What exactly did Paul teach on
the subjects of marriage and celibacy? Will Deming here answers these
questions -- often in provocative new ways.By placing Paul's statements
on marriage and celibacy against the backdrop of ancient Hellenistic
society, Deming constructs a coherent picture of Paul's views. He shows
that the conceptual world in which Paul lived and wrote had
substantially vanished by 100 C.E., and terms like "sin," "body," "sex,"
and "holiness" began to acquire moral implications quite unlike those
Paul knew. Paul conceived of marriage as asocial obligation that had the
potential of distracting Christians fromChrist. For him, celibacy was
the single life, free from such distraction, not a life of saintly
denial. Sex, in turn, was not sinful but natural, and sex within
marriage was both proper and necessary.
Revealed Wisdom and Inaugurated Eschatology in Ancient Judaism and Early Christianity
This
book examines four texts: 1 Enoch, 4QInstruction, Matthew and 2 Enoch. A
common idea in these texts, which blend sapiential and apocalyptic
elements, is that the revealing of wisdom to an elect group inaugurates
the eschatological period. The emphasis on "revealed wisdom" is
essentially apocalyptic, but facilitates the uptake of motifs, forms and
language from the sapiential tradition and is important in explaining
the fusion of the two traditions. In addition, revealed wisdom often has
creational associations and this has significance for the notion of
ethics in these texts. The book will interest anyone concerned with the
development of Jewish and Christian eschatology and ethics. It also
challenges the simplistic redactional assumptions of certain New
Testament scholars.The Gospel of Matthew in its Roman Imperial context
The
Gospel of Matthew in its Roman Imperial Context examines how Matthew's
gospel reflects the situation in which the community found itself after
the fall of Jerusalem and the subsequent humiliation of Jews across the
Roman Empire. It considers the extent to which Matthew was seeking to
oppose Rome's claims to authority and sovereignty over the whole world,
to set up alternative systems of power and society, and to forge new
senses of identity. It asks how Matthew's approach to such problems
compared with that of Jews who were not followers of Jesus Christ and
with that of others, Jews and Gentiles, who were followers.The Word of God in Transition: From Prophet to Exegete in the Second Temple Period
The
Chronicler distinguishes between "traditional prophets" and "inspired
messengers," and thereby highlights a radical transition in the meaning
of the "word of God" which takes place in the post-exilic period. The
Chronicler summarizes his perspective in 2 Chron. 36.16, saying that
Israel rejected "his prophets," "the messengers of God," and "his word"
(i.e. Torah). This distinction is reflected in the forms and functions
of prophetic speech in the books of Chronicles. Thus, the prophets speak
to the king, and the inspired messengers (e.g. priests, levites) speak
to the people. The prophets interpret narrative events for the king;
they explain how God acts. The inspired messengers exhort the people,
admonishing them how they should act. The prophets' speeches usually do
not use any kind of inspiration formula, but the inspired messengers'
speeches are prefaced with possession formulas. These possession
formulas are not typical of classical prophecy and mark the rise of a
new kind of prophecy, namely, the inspired interpretation of texts.
These inspired messengers are thus forerunners of the inspired
interpreters of scripture in Qumran, early Christianity and Judaism.
Severus of Antioch
In
the first book to be devoted exclusively to Severus, well-known author
in the field, Pauline Allen, focuses on a fascinating figure who is seen
simultaneously as both a saint and a heretic. Part of our popular Early
Church Fathers series, this volume translates a key selection of
Severus' writings which survived in many other languages. Shedding light
on his key opposition to the Council of Chalcedon and rehabilitates his
reputation as a key figure of late antiquity, is examines his his life
and times, thinking, homiletic abilities and his pastoral concerns.
Severus was patriarch of Antioch on the Orontes in Syria from 512-518.
Though he is venerated as an important saint in the Old Oriental
Christian tradition, he has mostly been regarded as a heretic elsewhere;
and as his works were condemned by imperial edict in 536, very little
has survived in the original Greek.The Anthropological Turn: The Human Orientation of the Theology of Karl Rahner
The
form and content of the study of theology in the present, modern epoch
are marked by a vast quantity and variety of the most diverse and, in
part, the most divergent points of departure. The classical unity and
perspicuity of the world of theological thought, so typical in earlier
centuries, has dissolved with the plurality of the horizons and problems
of modern thinking. The reality of the world, science, and theology
appears no longer as a single orbis,but rather as an open and unbounded
space. Indeed, precisely for the study of theology in modern
universities, the catchphrase, the new vastness,thus appears to hold as
well. This book is intended to provide Christians and theologians with
an access to Karl Rahner to unpack his thinking and to make a
theological inspection of his work possible. In this respect it is
essential to locate the central point of departure for the theology of
Karl Rahner in the concerns and questions of human beings and, to take a
cue from the key concept of the anthropological point of departure,to
make understandable the underlying tendency of Rahner's work. Mastering
scientific inquiries in the everyday praxis of contemporary theological
studies of necessity often takes the unsatisfactory form of a
compilation of various essays, articles, and contributions to handbooks.
Precisely for this reason, immersing oneself in the work of an
epochally significant author, in the world of his thoughts, and in his
theological profile-as here in the case of the theology of Karl
Rahner-ought to be, not only a dutiful exercise, but a delightful change
of pace, perhaps even a passion: studium in the proper sense of the
word.The Cambridge Companion to Dietrich Bonhoeffer
This
Companion serves as a guide for readers wanting to explore the thought
and legacy of the great German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-45).
Its chapters, written by authors from differing national, theological
and church contexts, provide an introduction to, and commentary on,
Bonhoeffer's life and work, guiding the reader along the paths of his
thought. Experts set out Bonhoeffer's political, social and cultural
contexts, and offer biographical information that is indispensable for
the understanding of his theology. There is a chronology and a glossary.
The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Hasmonean State
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The Open Secret: A New Vision for Natural Theology
Natural
theology, in the view of many, is in crisis. In this long-awaited book,
Alister McGrath sets out a new vision for natural theology,
re-establishing its legitimacy and utility.A timely and innovative
resource on natural theology: the exploration of knowledge of God as it
is observed through natureWritten by internationally regarded theologian
and author of numerous bestselling books, Alister McGrathDevelops an
intellectually rigorous vision of natural theology as a point of
convergence between the Christian faith, the arts and literature, and
the natural sciences, opening up important possibilities for dialogue
and cross-fertilizationTreats natural theology as a cultural phenomenon,
broader than Christianity itself yet always possessing a distinctively
Christian embodimentExplores topics including beauty, goodness, truth,
and the theological imagination; how investigating nature gives rise to
both theological and scientific theories; the idea of a distinctively
Christian approach to nature; and how natural theology can function as a
bridge between Christianity and other faiths
The Psalms of the Tamid Service: A Liturgical Text From the Second Temple
This
volume studies the seven psalms that were performed at the fundamental
daily ritual of the Jerusalem Temple in the late Second Temple period
(Psalms 24, 48, 82, 94, 81, 93, 92). It is the first comprehensive and
detailed study of this richly-relevant liturgical collection.The work
centers around a literary poetic analysis of the collection as a whole,
focussing on unifying features such as connections between psalms,
overall structure, theme and plot. A review of the Tamid service and
exegetical studies of each psalm are included. Three innovative sections
illustrate the importance of the Tamid Psalms in Second Temple studies;
topics include the formation of the Psalter, the structure of
liturgical texts, and the performance of Temple worship.
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