Theology and NT lectures on iTunes

Inspired by Nijay Gupta's post here, I thought I'd search through iTunes to see what academic lectures I could find. Here are my results.

Here are the Carmichael-Walling Lectures in NT and Early Christianity, with audios from Wayne Meeks, Margaret Mitchell and Abraham Malherbe.

Here is a bunch of albums from the American Public Media. You'll find lectures by John Polkinghorne, one on Quarks and creation, here

From Duke Divinity school you have lectures by Gary Habermas and Joel Marcus on the resurrection, Richard Hays and Bart Ehrman on the Da Vinci nonsense. Dale Allison speaks about the historical Jesus and the theological Jesus in the Kenneth Clark lectures here.

From Fuller Theological Seminary you have lectures from Marianne Meye Thompson, Robert Morgan here, here and here.

Seattle Pacific University has lectures by NT Wright, Moltmann, Polkinghorne, Witherington, Richard Hays and many more (search for Seattle Pacific University in the iTunes search)

Yale has a lecture by Gustavo Gutiérrez, here.

If you know of any others, do let me know in the comments.

UPDATE:

Check out the comments for more great links.

Quote of the Day

My special thanks to the kind folk at IVP for review copies of both volumes 1 and 2 of John Goldingay's new Old Testament Theology. I'll be featuring both of these exciting books on the blog in the next week or two. I'm really enjoying them.

'Given that biblical creation accounts are either poetry or parabolic history, in principle Christians have no vested interest in any particular scientific theory about how the world came into being'

John Goldingay, Old Testament Theology. Volume 1: Israel's Gospel (Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP, 2003), 49

Guest Book Review: Picturing the Gospel

Thanks to the kind folk at IVP for a review copy. While Phil was in Tübingen he took the copy himself for review from my shelf - and I think he's done a great job in presenting the material. Cheers mate! Btw, Phil, I finally obtained a copy of the article by Seitz in Canon and Biblical Interpretation you mentioned ...

Neil Livingstone's Picturing the Gospel: Tapping the Power of the Bible's Imagery (Downers Grove, Ill.: IVP, 2007)

By Phil Sumpter

I was already a Christian when I first came across a Billy Graham pamphlet at the age of 18. It didn't convert me—I was already a believer—but this version of the Gospel revolutionised the way I thought and did Christianity. The idea that it was for my sin that Jesus had died, that he was a bridge over a chasm separating me from God, that only through faith alone could I be saved—this new paradigm gave a coherency to my otherwise more intuitive spiritual life and integrated a host of theological themes that had otherwise baffled me. Before the pamphlet I had been a committed Christian, open about my faith and trying to let it shape my life. After the pamphlet, I had a new vision and focus, which transformed the way I did this.

Things haven't stayed still, and I'm learning that the Gospel is much more than Jesus paying for my sin. I've always known intuitively that God is about life, about transformation, about joy. I saw it in the Brethren community which gave me the pamphlet, but I didn't have the vocabulary to articulate it. In my yearning to take stock and figure out what is going on, I feel Neil Livingstone's book was written just for me!

Picturing the Gospel—the title says it all. Livingstone's aim is to open up the true nature of the Gospel to us so that it can change the way we do Christianity. Yet his vision of the Gospel is 3-dimensional and only an aesthetic journey into the intersection of heaven and earth can help us begin to grasp its contours. How could it be otherwise if, as he says, the Gospel "is a story of life and how life ought to be" (118)? "The Gospel is not a subject to be studied or debated; it is a call to be given, a new life to offer" (161).

Life, then, is the context within which our journey with Livingstone into the Gospel takes place. The journey consists of three stages, each focussing on different aspect of the Gospel message. These stages are then illustrated using images from the Bible and everyday life. Stage 1 concerns New Life, which is the goal of the Gospel. Livingstone intimates what true life really is, what it is that we are all truly yearning for. This is good news for those who feel the claws of death suffocating their ability to live. He illustrates the relational nature of this new life using the metaphor of adoption. This is good news for the unloved. Finally, he closes with kingdom imagery, communicating God's good news to those sick of the way the world is run.

These images have a "demanding beauty" in that, by implication, they point out what is wrong with us. Having been shown what we are saved for, stage 2, Images of Mercy and Restoration, focuses on what we are saved from. Feeling guilty? Read about justification. Or do you rather feel that you owe something? Then read about forgiveness. Or if you've managed to work up a sense of shame in our shame-less culture, read about atonement. There's good news for everyone!

The good news of the Gospel doesn't stop at our personal lives. It is also good news for the world, and for those who care about it. The final stage, Images of Deliverance, expands the horizon to include the broader forces of evil in the world which God's good news repudiates. The chapter on salvation deals with evil in general, whether we are its cause or its victim. Images of ransom and redemption show us the price that we are worth and that God paid to save us. And finally, to form an inclusio with the opening chapter on "life," Livingstone talks of the joy of the "freedom" to live God's life, which is our true life.

Picturing the Gospel does just that, but it barely scratches the surface. Livingstone hints at further visual possibilities: new creation, reconciliation, healing and sanctification, to name a few. For me at least, he has provided enough material to work on for a lifetime. Though the book is clearly and eloquently, even poetically, written, I often had the feeling of standing on the edge of something too big to grasp, something that will require study, meditation and application to fully grasp. It is helpful, therefore, that Livingstone provides us with a series of exercises at the end in order to help us let these images "sink in" and ultimately transform us. It is here that it becomes clear that the Gospel is not only something for those outside the fold, it is an ongoing call and challenge to those who have already responded to truly appropriate what has been offered to us. This is a book for both believers and unbelievers alike.

‘Worst way to die’ of the day

Inspired by T. Michael W. Halcomb, who asks, 'What do you think the best way & worst way to die would be?', I present you with my new slot, to go with 'quote of the day', 'thought of the day' etc.

---
To be chased by Dictionary of Paul and His Letters-sized cockroaches into a cage full of rabid dogs while wearing nothing but dog-food flavoured underpants
---

Thank God for Evolution

Check out this webpage with a free book (I thought that bit would get your attention).

The fascinating sounding book in question, Michael Dowd's Thank God for Evolution!, has been endorsed by a whole bunch of Nobel Laureates and could have an important effect. So I'm sure he won't mind me stating that I think he looks, in his web picture, a bit like a Groundhog. Don't tell me you don't see it too.

Quote of the day

'British evangelicals see the Bible primarily as a "rule of life" to be followed; our American sisters and brothers see it firstly as a "deposit of truth" to be believed'

Stephen R. Holmes, in What Are We Waiting For? Christian Hope and Contemporary Culture, Milton Keynes: Paternoster, 2008, p.7

I dunno if that convinces me, to be honest, but a difference there certainly is.

Slowly getting better

Thanks for your well wishing, and for those of you who prayed. I'm still feeling like a piece of sh.....ugar, but less of one than yesterday or the day before. So, I'm getting better, thank God.

My brain is working about as fast as an one-legged asthmatic hedgehog trying to scuttle across wet cement while stapled to a snail, however – which makes writing for a blog post tricky. Damn it, I don't even have anything funny I want to write about. In fact, I'm feeling quite grumpy and would really love to be mean to somebody. But I've been nasty enough to Jim recently, and his rabid and obstinate anti-Wrightian anti-Emergent tics. So who, well, who apart from the world of crazed fundamentalism, is left? Probably plenty, but I don't have the energy to be a really convincing scum bag anyway. Best I just give up, and limp out a 'quote of the day' or something equally pathetic.

I’m still ill

This virus is tacking quite a while to shake and my temperature has been crazily high. I haven't even been able to read much either (oh the horror) because of the headaches.

And no blogging, as perhaps you have noticed. Which is probably just as well as I so wanted to write a post about the Peter Enns situation, and given my high temperature some necessary tact may have been forgotten in my righteous passion.

Prayers Plainly Spoken - 5

This ends my short series on Hauerwas' Prayers Plainly Spoken. Some of the prayers are irreverent and raw, as indeed are some biblical Psalms. What do you make of the following sort of prayer?

In the aftermath of hurricane Fran:

'... What are we to say to you: Are you in the hurricane? We fear acknowledging that you may be. We want to protect you. Do we dare to believe that Christ could still the winds? We want our world regular, predictable, not subject to disorder or chaos. So if you are in the hurricane, please just butt out. We confess we have lost the skill to see you in your creation. We pray to you to care for those injured, those in shock, those without housing, those in despair, but how can you do so if you are not in the hurricane? We confess we do not know how to put this together' (105-106)

Prayers Plainly Spoken - 4

Hauerwas introduces his prayer, No Rose Garden, but How About Some Daises?, with these words: 'I wrote this prayer in response to a particularly egregious act by a member of the divinity school community that brought shame on the school'.

'WIERD LORD, you never promised us a rose garden, but right now we could use a few daises or zinnias. We feel confused, unsure of where we are, angry because a wrong has been done, and we are unsure who to blame. It ought to be somebody's fault, but even the one who is to blame is so pathetic it hardly seems worth the effort [!!!!!]... Work on us to make us a community of truthfulness' (84).

Well, I thought that was really funny!

Prayers Plainly Spoken - 3

Theology as a Way to Control You

REVEALING AND TERRIFYING GOD, whose very revelation is mystery, forgive our frightened attempts to possess you. You have created us for yourself, but we find that hard to believe, much less live. So we strut across your creation as if we really understood you. Theology becomes our way to try to be in control, dear God, even of you. So was ask for the humility that comes from the unavoidable recognition that you insist on our being your people. What an extraordinary thing. AMEN

(From pg. 54)

From the prayer Virtues of Fear and Hate:

'Give us the virtue of love that we might rightly hate that which is hateful' (59)

From the prayer: A Prayer to the Jester King

'FUNNY LORD, Jester King, you are surely a strange God. You must have an extraordinary sense of humor to trust your kingdom to a people like us' (62)

Prayers Plainly Spoken - 2

The following prayer is a good example of the disarming honesty Hauerwas seeks:

Living Confessions of Love

LORD OF ALL LIFE, we come before you not knowing who we are. We strut our stuff, trying to impress others with our self-confidence. In the process we hope to be what we pretend. Save us from such pretense, that we might learn who we are through trust in you to make us more than we can imagine. Help us, Augustine-like, to reread our lives as confessions of sin made possible by your love. Bind up our wounds and our joys so that our lives finally make sense only as a prayer to you.

Amen.

(From pg. 29)

Prayers Plainly Spoken - 1

Thanks to the kind folk at Wipf and Stock for a copy of Stanley Hauerwas' Prayers Plainly Spoken. 1999. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2003.

Now that my health has started to return, I will write a series of posts today on Hauerwas' little book. This is a curious selection of prayers, vibrantly and almost heretically honest (like many of the biblical Psalms), and often amusing. So Hauerwas writes that 'these prayers are not "holy"' (12)! He continues: 'If anything, these prayers are plain. They are so because I discovered I could not pray differently than I speak. In other words, I thought it would be a mistake to try to assume a different identity when I prayed. I figured (Texans 'figure') that God could take it, because God did not need to be protected. I think I learned this over the years by praying the Psalms in church. God does not want us to come to the altar different from how we live the rest of our lives. Therefore I do not try to be pious or use pious language in these prayers. I try to speak plainly, yet I hope with some eloquence, since nothing is more eloquent than simplicity' (13).

These prayers were originally prayed in Hauerwas' Duke divinity school classroom on a variety of occasions, and to quote some book blurb, they show how 'Christians can pray with all the passion, turbulence and life of the ancient psalmists'.

However, by 'plain' he certainly does not mean they are not thought through. '[I]t is my hope that these prayers reflect what I have learned about what it means to be a Christian'. He continues: 'Prayer is our most determinative speech. Any theology, therefore, that is finally not about helping us to pray cannot be Christian. In an odd way, then, this book represents the most important testing of my theological work' (15).

In the following few posts, today, I'll be offering some of Hauerwas' prayers, for discussion, enlightenment, encouragement, and most of all – to pray.

Thought for the day

When I try to think about the new heavens and earth, the future God has graciously promised, my hope cannot survive if it thinks in terms of usual possibilities or potentials. But in the resurrection of Jesus Christ I believe the dawn of the future new creation is glimpsed, a creation as depended on God as it was for its origin and continual existence. There, and only there, my hope finds its anchor, animation, energy and purpose.

Links

• Matthew D. Montonini has posted an interview with guest poster, Prof. Klyne Snodgrass, author of Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus. Great job, chaps!
• Dan writes a terrific open letter to Jürgen Moltmann
  
• Loren Rossen writes part II on 'What did Paul Mean by Fulfilling the Law?'
  
• Jim West shows some very worrying and depraved signs in this post. I quote:
  
  'James Crossley ... he's a very handsome man'; 'Mark Goodacre ... he's a handsome man as well'.
  
  I hear 'YMCA' being sung in the background. This rather creepy man-love was already starting to slime to the surface here. 'Given over', I tell you. Pray for his soul.
  
• However, salt and sugar, as it were, often come from the same pen. Jim also managed to write this gem. Prepare to be worried if 'you have numerous broken links, don't engage with others vie a blogroll, post irregularly, have no comments function, and lack any sense of humor'.
  
• Chris Heard tells of an article from an upcoming issue from The Annals of Applied Statistics by Randall Ingermanson. Rather amazingly, footnote one refers to this blog, and a guest post by Richard Bauckham! As Chris said: 'Score one for biblicablogdom!'
  
• Ben Witherington III posts a section from his 'forthcoming two volume work on NT Theology and Ethics, entitled The Indelible Image'. There is good discussion in the comments, too.
  
• For chess players, the Chessbase team reveals a new calculation training option in Fritz 11. Part one and part two.

A Guest post by Klyne Snodgrass

The following is a guest post by Prof. Klyne Snodgrass, the author of the important new volume, Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus. He responds to my review of the book, and, er, my little poke: Scandal of the day: Snodgrass critiques Wright. In the following, he confronts my Wrightian idolatry head on!
-----------------------------------

First, thank you for the attention given to my work. That others give serious attention to what I have done is about all I can ask. My goal was not to have people agree with me, but to provide—primarily for myself—a comprehensive treatment of each parable (well, at least most of them) and to provide as much as possible the resources and insights needed to interpret the parable, even if a person chooses not to agree with me.

I agree fully that footnotes would be better than endnotes. Some of the notes were so long (like one on allegory in the introduction) that they could not be placed at the bottom of the page. Incidentally, while scholars prefer footnotes, pastors have expressed gratitude that the publisher used endnotes.

You need to be aware that the title is a protest. This was my title, not the publishers. (On the other hand, the artwork on the dustcover is entirely from the publisher.) From the early days of the church to today people have done what they will with the parables to make them serve every purpose imaginable, but Jesus, like prophets before him, told parables with a prophetic intent to confront, challenge, and enlighten God's people. I have given a pretty full report of what others have done, but I have tried to see the parables within the larger context of Jesus' ministry to Israel. If we do not hear Jesus' intent, as hard as that may be at times, why are we even reading the parables?

You are correct that I am quite in line with Bauckham's work in Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. On the scandal of the day, I did not know critiquing Wright was a scandal! Flee idolatry! I am quite sure Wright is wrong on the coming of the Son of Man, but Tom makes the work of the rest of us much easier. I love the guy, and I am more in agreement with Tom than not. Especially with regard to his approach to parables, Wright is very good. He is one of the few who sees that parables are prophetic instruments, and I push that point partly in dependence on him. However, his reading of individual parables is less convincing. While he is correct that some of the parables are Israel's story, with others I think this is overreading Jesus' stories and forcing all of them into a mold. No where is this more the case than with the Prodigal Son and Elder Brother, and in my mind if the elder brother does not represent the Samaritans, then it is difficult to see the prodigal pointing to the nation. Luke 15:1-2 certainly does not set up the parable that way. A word of caution is needed though. These parables are not allegories, but analogies, and there is a difference. Compare my treatment, e.g., of the Lost Coin. For a more direct treatment of Wright's approach see my "Reading and Overreading the Parables in Jesus and the Victory of God," Jesus and the Restoration of Israel: A Critical Assessment of N. T. Wright's Jesus and the Victory of God. Edited by Carey Newman. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1999, 61-76.

One topic that I have not seen anyone comment on so far is my attempt to map out the eschatological givens of Jesus' message and work. I did this in the chapter on parables of future eschatology. I argue the parables in the Eschatological Discourse in Matt 24-25 are first hand evidence of Jesus' eschatology. Something akin to a hermeneutical circle is involved in talking about Jesus' eschatology and his eschatological parables. I am sure some will not like what I do with these parables, but I could do no other.

Peace and a meaningful Easter to all of you,

Klyne

Happy 80th Birthday Hans Küng!

Today, the 19^th of March 2008, marks the 80^th birthday of the great Swiss Catholic theologian, Hans Küng. I extend my warmest online blessings to him.

As a small birthday gesture, I put a copy of my recent article in his post-box: Chris Tilling, "Engaging Science in the Mode of Trust: Hans Küng's 'The Beginning of All Things'." Zygon 43, no. 1 (March 2008): 195–210.

He closed his On Being a Christian, with the following words:

'By following Jesus Christ,
people in the world of today
can live, act, suffer and die
in a truly human way;
in happiness and unhappiness, life and death,
sustained by God and helpful to fellow men and women'

Here is a hearty Danke to 80 years of being sustained by God.

Two new books on Galatians

A couple of interesting new monographs on Galatians have recently been published by Mohr Siebeck:

First is Justin K. Hardin's Galatians and the imperial cult: a critical analysis of the First-Century social context of Paul's letter. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2008.

I'm no Galatians expert but my favourite Galatians commentary is probably Jimmy Dunn's brilliant effort in the Black's NT Commentaries series. On the other hand, I'm not a big fan of J. Louis Martyn's Anchor Bible commentary, so I was glad to see Hardin propose an exegetical approach to Gal. 4:1-11 that rejects the notion that Paul was rebuffing any idea of 'salvation history'. In my view he rightly argues:

'[T]here is no inherent dichotomy between Paul's apocalyptic thought and his concern for the reversal of Israel's plight under the (curse of the ) Law and the inclusion of the Gentiles as Gods people. Far from salvation history beginning from the time of God's eschatological invasion in human history through Christ, as Martyn asserts, the incarnation rather was the pinnacle (dare I say climax?) of God's saving activity in the world' (154).

As is clear from the book title, of course, a major focus of Hardin's little monograph concerns the whole 'imperial cult' debate. He argues that this cultic background needs to be taken seriously in reading Galatians, and offers 'a plausible way forward for understanding the crisis in Galatia' (155).

Second is Todd A. Wilson's The curse of the law and the crisis in Galatia: reassessing the purpose of Galatians. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2007.

In a quick flyover, in Part 1 he argues that the rhetoric of cursing is of greater importance in Galatians than is usually assumed, and even played a key part in the Agitators appeal for circumcision. In Part 2, he examines the four references to the Law in 5:13 to 6:10 and argues that Paul's appeal to the law was intended to maintain that it is fulfilled, and the curse thereby avoided, by serving and loving one another. The curse of the law is thus only avoided by fulfilling the law.

'While Christ has redeemed us from the Law's curse (3.13), he has done so neither by eradicating any possible threat of a curse nor by circumventing the Law altogether. Instead, his death has allowed, as Paul says, the sending of the Spirit ..., who in turn enables believers to fulfil the Law and thereby avoid the Law's curse' (116).

Without looking into the book in any depth, which in point of argument reminds me somehow of Hafemann's work in 2 Corinthians, my initial feeling is that his approach may leave much unexplained in Galatians – but this is only a very uninformed initial thought. Is not the very concept of 'law' transformed by Paul when he speaks of it positively, such that the continued extension of Israel's Law and its curse today for all outside Christ's ethical empowering is questionable? The curse of 1 Cor. 16:22 is not on those who do not obey the law, but on those who have no love for Christ. Anyway, I won't carry on until I've actually read Wilson's contribution! Some thought-provoking stuff here.

And now for something completely different

Before I started my doctorate, I naively wanted to write a chess book. Bit mad really as I'm not a great player. And these days I simply don't have the time to play for a club, or train my opening knowledge, endgame play etc. But I still love the game, follow the big pro tournaments (incidentally, one of my all time favourites just finished), and deeply enjoy solving tactical puzzles. I especially delight in stretching my mind by trying to solve tactical problems without sight of a board. It is something about the required mental energy that fascinates me. Perhaps I will return to that far-fetched book project one day.

Here is an easier challenge to tackle: Without sight of the board, play these moves in your mind:

1. e4, e5 2. Nf3, Nc6 3.Bc4, Nf6 4. d4, exd4 5. c3, dxc3 6. e5, Ne4?

Now, close your eyes. What was White's winning 7th move?

What has this to do with a NT related blog? Well, errr, one webpage tells me that those who have played chess include Thomas Becket (Archbishop of Canterbury), Charles Borromeo (Bishop of Milan), Pope Gregory VI, Pope Innocent III, Pope John Paul I, Pope John Paul II, Pope Leo X, Pope Leo XIII, Cardinal Richelieu, and Billy Graham! Given this list of Popes, and even the great Billy, I have added a 'chess problem of the day' feature at the bottom of my sidebar.

Oh yes, click here to play chess online against fun levels of Shredder 11.

Supersessionism

Much has been said about John Hagee's Zionism today. In light of that I will make mention of the following:

I read a decent, if rather too short, article today, namely Bruce Longenecker's, "On Israel's God and God's Israel: Assessing Supersessionism in Paul", JTS 58, no. 1 (2007): 26–44.

From the abstract: 'Does the church replace ethnic Israel in Paul's thinking (as so many have imagined throughout the history of the Christian church)? Or is ethnic Israel on a separate salvific path by way of her covenant election (as many are now currently advocating)? Or are there other dimensions to be considered?'

Longenecker arguably rightly rejects, in critical dialogue with Stanley Stowers' A Rereading of Romans, the Sonderweg option, that Israel has a way of salvation independent of Christ. Of course, on certain moral grounds one can see why such a view obtained a foothold in NT scholarship, but I still do not understand how it ever became so popular in the name of the Apostle Paul. Longenecker concludes that Paul's theology 'included a type of supersessionism over against non-Christian forms of Judaism' (34). Right. However, Longenecker is very careful to formulate his position in contradistinction to the 'replacement virus' (38). Indeed! The replacement view is rightly identified as a virus, a position the Apostle Paul would of course never have accepted. He asks some thought provoking questions towards the end of the article. In particular, these stuck with me:

'I wonder whether we can afford to ignore the handful of Jewish interpreters who have seen Paul's supersessionism as something of a laudable development in one way or another within the context of first-century Judaism/Judaisms? Is there scope for seeing Paul's supersessionism as in some sense a positive development in some of its goals—regardless of the veracity of its truth claims?' (41)

Book Review: Ancient Christian Devotional

I am quite the total book review machine at the moment, so thanks to IVP for a review copy of Ancient Christian Devotional: A Year of Weekly Readings (IVP: Downers Grove, Ill., 2007), general ed. Thomas C. Oden, ed. Cindy Crosby

My own rediscovery of liturgy, and my more recent appetite for the church fathers, finds perfect combination in this new IVP book. In a nutshell, '[t]his guide to prayer and reflection combines excerpts from the writings of the church fathers as found in the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture with a simple structure for daily or weekly reading and prayer' (backcover).

Each week has:

• Focused readings and reflections upon a certain theme
  
• an opening prayer taken from early church sources (indexed in the back)
  
• scripture readings from the OT, Epistles and Gospels, in keeping with the church lectionary cycles (i.e. it is connected to cycle A of the Revised Common Lectionary)
  
• a psalm of response
  
• multiple reflections from the church fathers. This week's reflections (week 16), for example, are taken from Lactantius (that sounds like a disease, to me), Tertullian, Chrysostom, Ambrose, Theodore of Mopsuestia and Cyril of Alexandria.
  
• and a closing prayer, taken again from ancient sources
  

At the end of the book is a helpful biographical section, introducing the characters named throughout – a real necessity for church history numpties like me. So, on page 283 I learn that the Ambrosian is a Latin liturgical rite, not a type of rice pudding. Don't look at me like that! You know you thought the same!

For me, while it won't replace the Anglican Common Worship: Daily Prayer, I have found this devotional useful, and I turn to it now and then for more variety in my liturgical diet. All the more so as I am often starving for tradition! Plus, because its liturgical programme is not too demanding it is nonthreatening and adaptable.

You can watch a video presentation about the book, here, and read an interview with the author here.

(Note to self: On the 12^th March, 2008, I wrote a review for a liturgical book focusing on the fathers. If only a seven-year younger version of me could see what I have become. 'Liturgy' and 'tradition' used to be words best spat, like cuss words: 'Get your liturgical tradition out of the way, you son of a liturgy'. How the tides change)

Scandal of the decade

'It can be concluded that Wright has not provided a convincing defence of the historicity of Mark 13' (James Crossley, The Date of Mark's Gospel, 27, italics mine)

And it started off so well: 'Wright has provided important and convincing arguments in favour of the historicity of many of the passages in the synoptic tradition' (Ibid, 20)

;-)

Paul, eschatological restoration and intertextuality

The more I read Paul and try to understand how he used scripture, the more convinced I am that his reliance on the Prophetic narrative of exile and restoration needs greater emphasis.

Take 2 Corinthians, for example. Paul's scriptural citations in 2 Corinthians 6:16-18 (namely 2 Sam. 7:14; Ezek. 20:34; Isa. 43:6; 52:11) demonstrate that Paul 'sees the beginning fulfilment of the promised restoration of God's people already taking place in the establishment of the Corinthian church' (Scott J. Hafemann, "The Covenant Relationship," in Central Themes in Biblical Theology: Mapping Unity in Diversity, eds Scott J. Hafemann, Paul R. House [Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007], 60). This sounds convincing, unless these verses constitute a non-Pauline interpolation, of course! But also in 2 Corinthians 3 one finds mention of numerous themes associated with the promised return from exile: new covenant, the gift of the spirit, a new heart. In Christ God's promises are 'yes' (cf. 2 Cor 1:20)

So, when I read, for example, Paul's use of the 'husband' metaphor in 2 Cor. 11:2-3 I am more tempted these days to read a greater eschatological significance into Paul's allusions than previously. To explain:

The mention of the 'YHWH as husband of Israel' metaphor is found in Isaiah 54:5-6, the context of which is that of Israel's re-gathering and restoration after exile. The employment of the metaphor in Isaiah 62:5 concerns, once again, the vindication and salvation of God's people. In fulfilling his promise, God will rejoice over his people 'For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your builder marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you' (62:5). In Jeremiah 3, the metaphor is used in terms of the reunification of the twelve tribes ('the house of Judah shall join the house of Israel', 3:18) and their return from exile to the Land (3:18-19). Exile happened because 'as a faithless wife leaves her husband, so you have been faithless to me, O house of Israel' (3:20). Of course, Hosea is replete with the metaphor. While the nation's sin is like adultery against YHWH, after punishment (2:13) there will be a day when 'I [the Lord] will take you for my wife forever; I will take you for my wife in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love, and in mercy. I will take you for my wife in faithfulness; and you shall know the LORD' (2:19-20).

This would mean that the eschatological event of God's restoration, and the accompanying marriage of God to his people, is expressed by Paul in terms of the relation between risen Lord and believers, of the marriage between Christ and believers. It is not merely that Paul uses the husband language in a stale and effectively synchronic employment of God language. Rather, the allusion is bent around an eschatological agenda, is shaped by a diachronic force.

Now the crunch: this conclusion assumes 1) Paul knew the context of the prophetic texts which he cites or alludes, and 2) that this context mattered to Paul. While the first is a safe bet, is the second? I think the only way of knowing is judging how any metalepsis illuminates our reading of Paul. But for such allusions as those in 2 Corinthians 11:2-3 it is difficult to say. Can we really know how much of the context of an allusion or citation finds reflection in Paul?

Liturgy and theology

I've been rather busy this weekend, especially yesterday with my brother-in-law's confirmation into the Landeskirche. The Germans take conformation very seriously – an all day celebration. During the festivities I managed to start John E. Colwell's new book, The Rhythm of Doctrine. And I am really excited about this one, so far. Colwell speaks from my heart. He structures a systematic theology around the liturgical year, bringing theology back home to its doxological roots. If God is known in worship and prayer, why not speak theologically in light of the devotion of the church (he follows a version of the 'daily office': Celebrating Common Prayer)? I suspect many of my readers will love this book.

Creative Idea of the Day

Today's Creative Idea to Lighten Up a Church Service is a) biblical, b) full of evangelistic potential, c) simply yet another great idea from CTRVHM and d) bound to bring about the defeat of all kinds of territorial demonic strong holds.

You have no doubt heard of 'prayer ministry', 'deliverance ministry', 'book sale ministry', 'youth ministry' etc. The creative suggestion for the day is to start up your own 'Tonsil hockey' ministry. Based on verses such 1 Peter 5:14, Rom. 16:16, 1 Co. 16:20, 2 Co. 13:12, and 1 Thess. 5:26 (I want to point out, the Greek is unmistakably in the imperative), at your next Sunday service greet your unmarried sister (or brother) with an unforgettable 'kiss of lurrrrve'. Bring your lips up out of exile, and let those roaming kisses go free.

Also, you've heard of 'open air' street evangelism? Preaching on a street corner to passersby? Well, what about open air street kiss evangelism? This will probably get you punched as well, which is, of course, persecution – proving you are righteous.

The Evil Zwingli meme

I tend not to get involved with these 'meme' things, but after Doug tagged me, well, I really can't resist this one. He explains the rules:

"It seems that Jim West blogs to annoy other people. One of the things that particularly annoys him is memes. For a moment I was tempted to encourage you to send him every meme you've got. But I've had a better idea. This is a meme with two very simple rules.

1) Post something rude about Zwingli. (Outrageous slander especially welcome.)
2) Tag someone who is NOT Jim West"

I think the following will have the desired effect (annoy West), especially because we all know that I'm simply stating the truth:

Were the terminology around at the beginning of the Protestant Reformation, Zwingli would have been called 'emergent'. Were he alive today, I suspect he would be very suspicious of Bultmann, and would shake his head in frustration at the minimalists – and probably make rude jokes about them. Plus, from this picture it is clear that he wore lipstick, and probably eyeliner. In other words, we have a cross-dressing, emergent closet Fundamentalist.

I tag Nick Norelli

Eleven Reasons why I like Bultmann

I was asked by a friend last week what I like about Bultmann:

1. He's German. So is my wife (that should score me points with the ladies)
   
2. He sounds like a character from an old Frankenstein movie, which is kinda cool
   
3. He smoked a pipe and had big friendly cheeks
   
4. His theological vision, together with its relationship with NT exegesis, was breathtaking in its scope. He sought to answer many problems all at once, and in many ways was arguably successful.
   
5. He was a fine exegete. Cf. especially his commentary on 2 Corinthians.
   
6. He recovered the centrality of the gospel, of God's word to us in Christ, from some of the more fanciful projections of the Religionsgeschichtliche Schule, and wedded it to a healthy Lutheran spirituality.
   
7. His faith was fearless. He looked the loin of critical scholarship in the mouth and said 'do your worst!' – and he, in fact, led the way in developing new tools for understanding the text.
   
8. His preaching was, at least at one level, highly practical, existential, demanding of a decision for Christ.
   
9. He wrote succinctly and clearly.
   
10. Theology for Bultmann was not mere speculation; to speak of God is about the faith and life of the believer.
    
11. Theology for Bultmann was, at least in principle, grounded in exegesis, in his dealing with the biblical texts.

Oddly, in almost all of the above points I also see a dark shadow cast. Precisely in his strengths one finds the roots and/or evidence of his most detrimental weaknesses. But they are for another post.

What if?

One of those thoughts that happened to float around in my head this morning:

What if Gunkel, Deissmann and co had suffered from a bad stutter as they spoke?

"D-D-Die Re-re-religionsge-ge-ge-geschichtliche Schschchchchch-ule"

You could hardly finish a word, in German, never mind a sentence. NT scholarship would have taken a different route!

Scandal of the day: Snodgrass critiques Wright

In discussing the various analyses of the parables of future eschatology, Snodgrass argues that 'certain options are [to be] excluded'. The second of his excluded options is the proposal that 'the coming of the Son of Man in glory' is to be equated with 'the destruction of Jerusalem as N.T. Wright suggests' (479). His reasons:

'Jerusalem had been destroyed in 586 B.C. and would be again in 135 A.D. What makes the destruction in 70 A.D. so crucial that it would be describes as the coming of the Son of Man, and why was the destruction so unimportant to the early church that it is never mentioned?' He continues: 'The early church saw the vindication and victory in the resurrection, the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, and in the expected parousia' (479).

Biblicapodcast

The extremely likeable Chris Brady, of Targuman, interviewed me for a 'biblicapodcast' this evening. Chris, as you will hear, is a dab hand at this sort of thing, whereas I struggled to get my microphone working properly. My mic ended up awkwardly draped around my neck, so my voice sounds a bit rough (actually, a bit like a couple of squirrels were trying to hump my microphone at the same time as me speaking), though you can still hear me clearly enough.

How do I introduce a post about an interview with me without sounding conceited? Let me speak about my interviewer, instead: Chris Brady has a nice smooth voice, plus he is the super hero grandmaster wizard expert of Aramaic Targuman! He's worth listening to!

You can download it here.

Book Review: Stories with Intent

My thanks to the kind folk at Eerdmans for a review copy of Klyne R. Snodgrass' Magnus opus, Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus (Cambridge: Eerdmans, 2008).

Some books have no rivals because of the quality of their reasoning, subtleness of exegetical insight etc. Others have no rivals because they offer something no other book even attempts. One can say that Snodgrass' Stories with Intent, also has no rivals - for a mixture of both of these reasons. At over 850 pages, Graham Stanton rightly exclaims that this book 'will be the book on the parables for the next decade and beyond'. We have here, with Stories with Intent, a real publishing event.

Of course, such a long work, as Snodgrass explains in his preface, is not meant to be read in one go. It functions as a resource manual, as a mine of relevant information concerning all of the parables of Jesus, carefully sifted from all manner of historical sources.

His introduction to the parables of Jesus includes a discussion of his definition of 'parable' ('an expanded analogy used to convince and persuade', 9), the characteristics of Jesus' parables, an examination of how parables should be interpreted, and a look at NT criticisms in relation to the parables. Wisely, in my view, he questions a number of dubious assumptions behind much previous work on the parables, such as the notion that there was 'an original' form, that 'items with allegorical significance were probably added', that 'the handing on of traditional material follows certain "laws" so that the shorter is earlier, the more detailed is later, etc.', that 'the parables can be read as mirror images of what was happening in the Evangelists' communities', and so on (cf. 32). All of this is naturally expressive of his methodological approach throughout the work.

Particularly revealing of his methodology are also his statements at the end of the introduction. In terms of the question of historical reconstructions of the life of Jesus, he argues along with Dunn that '[w]e do not have the ipsissima verba of Jesus ... and attempted reconstructions are not going to supply them ... the only Jesus that exists is the historic, biblical Christ. Anything else is a figment of the imagination' (35). As he later explains, he recognises very well the 'the essential fidelity of the Gospel writers to the tradition they received and the freedom with which they adapted it' (280). Because of this, we are left, for better or worse, with the biblical Christ. I am reminded of similar claims in Bauckham's Jesus and the Eyewitnesses, in which the author formulated his argument in dialogue with M. Bloch, R.G. Collingwood, Paul Ricoeur etc. Of course, Snodgrass is careful to fend off potential misunderstandings of his statements. But it is such comments as these that show the massive changes presently underway in much historical Jesus scholarship. But I am left wondering, Is any other approach really only 'a figment of the imagination'? How can we know that? How do we know if the Gospel writers handled their traditions with fidelity and freedom? Is this wanting to have our cake and eat it? While I think some good answers are forthcoming in terms of the last two questions, the others hang in the air, not so easily waved away. Nevertheless, I for one am heartily in favour of this overturning of the many presuppositional 'holy cows' that have driven much historical Jesus scholarship into many a bizarre dead end. About 90% of me passionately stands behind Snodgrass on these issues!

After this, Snodgrass turns to examine parables in the ancient world, namely in the Old Testament, early Jewish and Greco-Roman writings, the early church and later Jewish writings. Jesus, of course, was not the first to use parables. Yet prior to him, it appears that they were not used so forcefully or frequently. What is more, parables mostly have a very dependent relationship with the context in which they are said (which is why I wanted more appreciation of Wright's insights. But more on that anon).

In the following, Snodgrass turns his attention the various parables, categorising them thematically under the following chapter headings:

• Grace and Responsibility (Matt 18:23-35; Luke 7:41-43)
  
• Parables of Lostness (Luke 15; Matt 18:22-14)
  
• The Parable of the Sower and the Purpose of Parables (Matt 13:3-23; Mark 4:3-20; Luke 8:5-15)
  
• Parables of the Present Kingdom (Matthew 13, Mark 4, and Luke 13)
  
• Parables Specifically about Israel (Matt 21:28-32, 33-46; 22:1-14; Mark 12:1-12; Luke 13:6-9; 14:15-24; 20:9-19; Gos. Thom. 64-66 – though it wouldn't worry me, for those panicking at the sight of 'Gos. Thom.', I say 'fear not', for Snodgrass argues that these texts are dependent on the canonical witnesses!).
  
• Parables about Discipleship (Matt 7:24-27; 20:1-16; Luke 6:47-49; 10:25-37; 14:28-32)
  
• Parables about Money (Luke 12:16-21; 16:1-13, 19-31)
  
• Parables concerning God and Prayer (Luke 11:5-8; 18:1-14)
  
• and Parables of Future Eschatology (the Eschatological Discourse; Matt 13:47-50; Matt 25:1-46; Luke 19:11-27)
  

For each parable, Snodgrass seeks to provide an introduction, an examination of the parable type, a list of issues requiring attention, a look at helpful source material, categorised and cited according the divisions employed in his study of 'parables in the ancient world'. He offers a comparison of the various accounts of the parable, a study of textual features worthy of attention and relevant cultural information, and an explanation of the parable (with 'options for interpretation', 'decisions on the issue'). Finally, he offers a section on 'adapting the parable' (for today), a further reading list and often some final remarks. All of these issues are raised in turn, in relation to the parables, in a structured manner.

It is clear that this material has been prepared with specific goals in mind. As he writes in the preface, the material is 'what I want when preparing to teach or preach on the parables' (xi). In other words, the material Snodgrass provides is of interest for all, whether scholar, student or preacher. As Martin Hengel comments in his book blurb. Stories with Intent is a book 'written for pastors and scholars, for students of the Bible, and for laypeople interested in the teaching of Jesus'. And given the consistent divisions in the discussion concerning each parable, finding whatever information is of interest is not difficult.

I have just one major grumble with the format of the book, however. Eerdmans decided to use endnotes. Why oh why?! Endnotes come from the pit; they are the invention of the satanic hoards! Please, oh please: Footnotes!! It makes it SO much easier to read. Perhaps the editor was worried Snodgrass' potential readers were going to be 'frightened away' by so many footnotes. But I think that the size of the book would have done all of the frightening away before that sort of reader would have been put off by footnotes. Please! FOOTNOTES!

I also had a small grumble with Snodgrass' critique of Wright's (peace be upon him) approach to material in Luke 15. Anybody who has read Jesus and the Victory of God (which is my all time favourite book, if I haven't yet mentioned that this week) will know Wright's approach to the parable of what Snodgrass calls 'the compassionate Father and his two lost Sons' (Luke 15:11-32). Wright, if you remember, argues that the controlling story for understanding the parable is that of exile and return, and that this parable is to a large extent that story in miniature. Snodgrass dismisses Wright's suggestion with the argument that his attempt to explain the significance of the elder brother is dubious (Wright proposes that the elder brother represents the Samaritans). I agree with Snodgrass that Wright's thesis at this point is questionable, but that is not enough to wipe the rest of Wright's proposal away! Luke's Gospel sets itself up to be read, in my view, in terms of the controlling story Wright posits (cf. the material relating to the presentation of Jesus in the temple as a baby, Luke's citation of the prophetic literature used by John the Baptist, and by Jesus in his sermon in Nazareth etc.). Just because Wright's Samaritan proposal does not persuade does not mean another option to explain the significance of the elder brother in terms of exile and return is not forthcoming. I believe one is, but I leave you guessing until a later date on that one. I thought it a real pity Snodgrass didn't pursue matters with a more positive assessment of Wright's (valid) insight on this matter. Is Snodgrass' project marred for its lack of appreciation of the controlling story of exile and restoration? I will let the reader decide.

Stories with Intent is a tremendous resource, one I will dip into for the rest of my life in relation to both scholarly pursuits and for sermon preparation. Even though I have sometimes found myself in disagreement with Snodgrass' judgments, I know that every time I read it I will potentially be inspired, corrected and educated by the pen of this 'parable grandmaster'. In many ways he represents evangelical scholarship at its best: mature, thoughtful, wise, balanced, not uncritical but not crazy woolly trash, deeply academic, yet pastoral and spiritual. I can think of no higher honour for a book than to say such things. Stanton calls it a 'stunning achievement', Hengel a 'wonderful' and 'inspiring' book. Bock simply says 'Bravo!' I'm not really sure what 'Tilling' can add to that list of names, but I do. Nobody preaching on the parables or working on them as a student or as an academic should be without a copy of Stories with Intent.

Dan reflects on NT Wright and Hell

Here

How to read the NT canon

"I suggest, Christians should learn to read the canon of the NT, not in search of an essential core or purified "canon within the canon"—not, in other words, within the frame of a single abstract principle—but in a living conversation with all the writings in all their diversity and divergence. Only in this way can they continue to speak"

Luke Timothy Johnson & T.C. Penner, The writings of the New Testament: An interpretation (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1999), 613.

Quote of the day

"Yes, Paul was someone caught up in a mission. Yes, Paul's life-story had a cruciform shape. And yes, Paul regularly suffered for participating in God's mission and Christ's cross. But in spite of this all-consuming passion and its consequences—or perhaps because of it—Paul was someone whose participation in God's new creation was an experience of joy now (Gal 5:22; Philippians), and he was someone whose anticipation of future indescribable joy and glory kept him going (Rom 5:2; 1 Cor 2:9). The pilgrim church on earth that is shaped by his gospel will share that joy and hope, even as we discern how we can participate more fully and faithfully in the same divine mission with Paul-like zeal, courage, and imagination"

Michael Gorman, Reading Paul (Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2008), 188

Hanging in my study

Hanging in Jim West's study are framed pictures, unsurprisingly, of Zwingli, Luther, Bultmann etc (though I bet he's got a depraved 'Cheerleaders in Soap-suds' calendar up behind his books somewhere, as well). If I remember rightly (I may not have), Ben Myers once posted about various decorations in his study. He showed pictures of a Bultmann bust he owns! A damn bust!

My study ... well, I say 'study'. It really is a study, but it is also my lounge and dining room! ... is a different matter. Instead of a bust of Bultmann or Barth, or a portrait of a great theologian or thinker, I have, and have had so for years, hanging next to my desk:

Does my lack of sophistication worry me? Nope.

Speaking of written prayers ...

For my potentially controversial presentation at the Tübingen colloquium tomorrow:

'Dear person about whom the WWJD wrist bracelets speak, please just grant Chris unusual charisma and intelligence tomorrow with his paper presentation and the following discussion. Just smite those who would "critique him in a mean way" with bad dandruff, antiperspirant that doesn't work, milk that goes sour very quickly, like, just, really the like next day, plates and pans that just don't get clean, even after just really hard scrubbing with all kind of cleaning liquids, and an inability to speak for 40 days and nights'

Either that, or pray one of Jüngel's deeply trinitarian and profound prayers, found here. But add a few 'justs' and about three 'Lords' per sentence, or what's the point?

Colloquium

As Phil Sumpter explains, he is on his way down here to Tübingen for a colloquium, at which I will present a paper on 1 Corinthians 8 and inerrancy. Unfortunately, my neck went into a terribly painful spasm a couple of days ago, which literally stopped my typing or preparing for the lecture. Thankfully the pain is subsiding now, which means I'm back to the high calling of hacking at certain modern 'inerrancy' formulations such as the Disaster in Chicago Statement. I still can't believe the ETS adopted it.

Collections of Prayers

I love praying through written prayers. Of course, I have a stable diet of the C of E 'Daily Prayer' plus a few other liturgies, but I mean to refer to collections of just prayers. One of my favourites is by Karl Rahner, Gebete des Lebens. Barth's Gebete is another.

Can you recommend me any others? I would love to expand my library in this direction.

Theological breakthrough of the day

Big news today, completely destroying all of the central arguments in my own doctoral work: Undeniable Proof that Jesus is Not God

A great new site on science and theology

... has been launched by my friend, David Vinson.

Here

His story reflects, in many ways, a more advanced version of my own on the subject of theology and science (i.e. from sound and solid Fundie to suspicious compromise!).

He writes: 'As a typical American conservative evangelical, I spent over 20 years thinking that the only proper Christian approach to biological evolution was to denounce it, despite my training in physiology (UC Berkeley) and medicine (UC Davis) and an ongoing vocation as clinician and research scientist'.

He continues: 'After years of study, conversation, and conferences, what have I discovered? To my surprise (and relief!) I found that both of my presuppositions were neither necessary nor sensible. Evolutionary science is not inherently atheistic. Rather, like all of science, including medicine, it seeks to provide natural explanations for the way things work. It is not suited to speak to supernatural causes or purposes ... It's been an intriguing and exciting investigation for me. Much has been learned. And I know that more, far more, awaits me. The resources you'll encounter on the following pages are those that helped guide me out of the world of polarized and polemic (and often pointless) debate to a place of congenial and constructive dialogue'.

David's enthusiasm for learning, for honest dialogue and searching questioning is contagious. Enjoy his webpage!

The ‘knowledgeable’ in 1 Corinthians

I'd be interested to hear what people think of Volker Gäckle's recent and extensive study on the 'strong' and the 'weak' in Corinth and Rome (Die Starken und die Schwachen). It has been received well even by Gäckle's 1 Corinthians 8-10 'sparring partner', Woyke (cf. Johannes Woyke, "Das Bekenntnis zum einzig allwirksamen Gott und Herrn und die Dämonisierung von Fremdkulten: Monolatrischer und polylatrischer Monotheismus in 1. Korinther 8 und 10," in Gruppenreligionen im römischen Reich. Sozialformen, Grenzziehungen und Leistungen, J Rüpke [Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2007], 101)

Based upon an examination of the likely Corinthian slogans and citations found in 1 Corinthians 8:1-11:1, the concepts and vocabulary found therein, and the semantic field of ἀσθεν- ('weak'), Gäckle proposes a compelling portrait of the 'strong'. The description of a group as 'weak' by another is based upon 'kognitiv-rationalen edukativen und psychisch-emotionalen Kategorien' (108). He thus argues that the 'strong' are notably concerned about cognitive categories. 'Ebenso wie in 1Kor 8 liegt der Schwerpunkt der Diskussion in 1Kor 1-4 auf der Frage nach der Bedeutung von Wissen und Erkenntnis' (200). Indeed, he shows in detail that there are many examples in ancient literature of the pejorative characterisation of another group as ἀσθενής by a cognitively focused group (cf. 1 Cor. 4:10; 8:7, 9, 10; 9:22; 12:22). Gäckle writes:

‚Wie fast alle korinthischen Zitate und Begriffe lässt auch dieses Zitat ['Wir haben Erkenntnis'] ein aristokratisches Bewusstsein durchscheinen, das sich auf eine intellektuelle Welt- und Gotteserkenntnis gründet ... Der Glaube der starken nahm seinen Ausgangspunkt bei der Suche nach dem intellektueller Gotteserkenntnis' (190. Cf. also 189, 200–204).

The Corinthian 'knowledge' involves elitist cognitive concerns, an Intellektualismus (201).

Hit or miss?

Discussion on hell

I'm not sure what you imagine hell to be. If you are sane then it probably has something to do with being forced to read Jim West's blog. But whatever your thoughts on this subject, you may be interested to read the discussion on my friend Jason Clark's blog. He explains:

"On Monday we have Gregory McDonald writing about why he is an evangelical universalist, based on his book which has just been released in the UK: The evangelical universalist.

On Tuesday we have a response from Kevin Corcoran an associate professor of philosophy at Calvin College. Kevin also has his own blog here.

On Wednesday we have the thoughts of Dr Justin Thacker who is head of theology at the Evangelical Alliance UK. Justin's regular comment on events of the week can be found here."

"Gregory" has posted his offering here.

Once again: A new statement on scripture

I'm presenting a paper in Tübingen this Friday which involves a discussion on biblical inerrancy. My own 'statement' below is first doxological, and 'ontological' to the biblical texts only in terms of its relation to believers and their practices, as they relate to God. It is a confession not simply about the precise nature of God's inspiration of the Christian canon (and even less when squeezed into the deductive logical wringer through which the stricter versions of inerrancy are forced), but is a statement about our daily practices and posture as we read and study scripture as Christians. This is stressed in order to emphasise that the confessions provide a trajectory of orientation towards the significance of the Christian canons. To confess the below is a sign pointing in the right direction, but Derrida's différence pushes the 'presence' of the statement not only into practices and postures, but also into the eschaton. The following statement thus does not attempt to describe scripture alone, but to provide a trajectory of meaning which supports healthy practice and posture. Actually, I would arguable that the following statement should encourage a higher appreciation of scripture than statements of inerrancy.

Part 1.
We believe[1] that all scripture[2] is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.[3]
We believe that the prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit and Spoke from God.[4]
We believe that God speaks in many and various ways,[5] and most definitively he speaks in his Son.[6]
We believe that as we read scripture, we are invited to approach Christ,[7] and hear the final and definitive Word God speaks to us in his Son.[8]
We believe that as we read and study scripture together seeking Christ, we are addressed by God, that through scripture God speaks to us.[9]
We believe the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.[10]
We believe that in the law there is the embodiment of knowledge and truth[11]
We believe that humans do not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.[12]
We believe that the words of the LORD are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times.[13]
We believe scripture is trustworthy and precious, deserving of study, love, time and energy.
We believe that God’s word is truth.[14] Christ is the truth,[15] and we rejoice in the truth,[16] the gospel.[17]

Part 2.
We purpose to call out for God’s Spirit for insight and understanding as we seek to understand and apply the words of scripture.[18]
We purpose to look for wisdom therein as one would for that which is the most precious, as a poor man would for hidden treasure.[19]
We purpose to apply various creative means of impressing scripture to our hearts[20]
We purpose to regularly meditate upon and memorise scripture,[21] and hide God’s word in our hearts,[22] expectant that God will speak a gracious word to us.
We purpose to handle scripture wisely.[23]
We purpose to be discerning doers of God’s word, not just hearers.[24]
To do this we purpose to seek the help of others in every way possible, and we pledge all of our intellectual, creative, emotional and physical faculties to the process, and offer them today to God’s sanctifying Spirit.[25]

Do I hear an 'Amen', anyone?

[1] Note this Statement deliberately does not use the formulation ‘We affirm’, as does the Chicago Statement.
[2] Such statements, to repeat, are to orientate the confession; they do not make an ontological statement about the modern Protestant or Catholic Christian canons.
[3] 2 Tim 3:16-17
[4] 2 Peter 1:21
[5] Heb 1:1
[6] John 5:39
[7] John 5:40
[8] Heb 1:2
[9] 2 Cor 6:16
[10] Heb 4:12
[11] Rom 2:20
[12] Matt 4:4
[13] Psalm 12:6
[14] John 17:17
[15] John 14:6
[16] 1 Cor 13:6
[17] Col 1:5
[18] 1 John 2:27
[19] Prov 2:1-5
[20] Deut 6:6-9
[21] Josh 1:8; Ps 1:2; 77:12; 119:15
[22] Ps 119:11
[23] 2 Tim 2:15
[24] Jam 1:22
[25] Deut 6:5-6

In a nutshell: the problem with inerrancy

Modern formulations of biblical inerrancy (such as the Chicago statement) are faulty because they do not correspond with the reality to which their manner of discourse makes appeal. In other words, within the genre of analytical discourse, the medium in which modern formulations are presented, appeal to inerrancy flounders on the demonstrable error its claim, and it loses sight of its strictly doxological status.

Eat, drink and be merry

We had a delightful meal tonight here. Swabian cuisine at its best. If you are ever in the Tübingen area and want to experience local traditional dishes, that is the place to visit.

And for the first time ever I home roasted some fresh green coffee beans. What a glorious cup of coffee they made. The first picture is of the Ethiopian raw Mokka beans. I'm grateful that the local coffee shop imports them for a few African immigrants living in the area (they've come out a bit blue in this picture for some reason??)

The second picture is taken after about 10 minutes of roasting, together with some of the freshly grounded coffee powder. I wish you could smell it through the internet as it has a heavenly aroma.

For an interesting aside on coffee and official papal activities, have a read of this. One of the points notes: 'Dervishes--mystic devotees of Islam's Sufi sect--consumed coffee at all-night ceremonies as fuel for achieving religious ecstasy'. Funny: I use coffee as fuel for achieving decent exegesis after I've woken up, when I'm so tired I can't even remember my own name.

Academic theology stuck in a crisis?

Prof. Friedrich Wilhelm Graf thinks so.

To generalise horribly, I have mixed feelings about much German NT exegesis. While it most often proves to be the best in the world when it comes to depth of research and syntactical analysis of the Greek, it can also tend to be rather insular in its focus.

Name it and claim it! 5 years married today

'If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer' (Mt. 21:22)

Zoom back about 7-8 years to my 'prayer closet':

'Pleeeeeeease give me a super hot wife, Lord, who for some reason really loves me a lot, and who is super wonderful, likes massaging my head and is just perfect for me. Victorious AMMMEEEEEENNNN'.

Actually, in my more charismatic and pietistic days that prayer probably sounded more like this:

'If you would just hear me Lord now, Lord. Oh Lord, please just grant me, Lord, a wife, for, Lord, it is, Lord, written "He who finds a wife finds a good thing". And that I do not burn within … [here I probably reminded God of something Saint Paul said in 1 Corinthians 7], please just hear me, Lord, for a fair wife, Lord, who loves you'

And five years ago on this day, God happily answered my prayers! I married my beautiful, precious wife, Anja, whom I love so dearly. May God also graciously grant us many more happy years together!

Both of these pictures were taken on that amazing day, 5 years ago. Of course, the question on everybody's lips is: 'How the hell did he manage that?!' I point readers to the new poll on my sidebar: 'How did Chris manage to marry such a looker?' I voted for options 2 and 4 of course.

"Ich liebe dich, Anja, so ganz arg viel,
Am Abend und am Morgen,
Noch war kein Tag, wo du und ich
Nicht teilten unsre Sorgen.
Und wenn die Liebe ein Chamäleon
ist denn liebe ich dich
mit verschiedenen Farben"

Beat that, Goethe!

Richard Bauckham - A Short Video Interview

From http://www.thechristfiles.com.au/, with other video interviews with James Charlesworth and Tom Wright.

Happy News

As many have already discovered, Jim West, so moved by the flood of e-mails, blog posts etc., has decided to give a new blog try! I'm so thankful he didn't give up, which would have only completed the malicious actions of the hackers. You will be able to find his putreficly slanderous anti-Wright (peace be upon him), foaming mouthed Zwinglilatrous, 'emergent' misrepresenting, and borderline depraved but always engaging and fun to read post here:

http://jwest.wordpress.com/

He thereby, of course, extends a deserved middle finger in the general direction of the hackers.

Book Review: Reading Paul

My thanks to the great chaps at Wipf and Stock for a review copy of Michael J. Gorman's Reading Paul, Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2008

It is not often that I am as excited about getting a book in the post as I was waiting for Michael Gorman's Reading Paul. Apart from the fact that Gorman is a most accomplished Pauline scholar, I simply love introductory books on biblical themes. Indeed, if I'm honest, even if a book is targeted for beginners I often learn a lot more from them than many others. Also promoting my interest in this book were the blubs by Richard Hays and Joel Green, both of whom were fairly unrestrained in their praise of this little book: 'This splendid introduction to the Apostle Paul is the best book of its kind', said Hays; 'Michael Gorman has given us an extra ordinary gift', wrote Green!

But what particularly attracted me to this little book
was its focus. Instead of detailing a Pauline chronology and the various steps in Paul's missionary journeys (matters that tend to leave me a little cold), Gorman focuses upon providing a framework for understanding Paul's theology. In practice this means that Gorman examines, after three chapters on Paul, his letters, and his gospel, 'eight themes that a lie in and behind his letters' (6). Gorman's project is not, however, an exercise in abstract theologising, but rather aims to present Paul's letters as Christian scripture. He argues:

'To be sure, there is merit in remembering that Paul and his letter-recipients lived in a culture different from our own. We need to acknowledge the distance between now and then, and we need to employ tools to understand "then." But the perspective that stresses difference should not be the governing view we bring to the reading of Paul. If it is, we betray the apostle's own purpose in writing and forget the very meaning of the word "Scripture."' (4)

As I noted in a previous post, Gorman introduces his task by attempting to summarise Paul in one sentence. This sentence introduces all the themes that he will seek to unpack in the following chapters. He first examines the apocalyptic in Paul. Quite rightly, in the next chapter, he goes on to examine 'the Gospel of God' in terms of covenant faithfulness. Gorman thus avoids the false either / or between apocalyptic and covenant. Naturally he draws from Tom Wright's work at this point, especially his language of Christ as the 'climactic event' of God is dealings with Israel (68). After examining the meaning of Christ's death in Paul, he turns, in chapter 8, to examine the meaning and (eschatological) logic of the resurrection in Paul and the meaning of the statement 'Jesus is Lord'. In this chapter Gorman pays particular attention to eschatological claims and is careful to emphasise the physicality of Paul's hope.

In a chapter that no doubt some will want to read first, Gorman then turns to the question of justification by faith. Naturally, he emphasises participation in Christ. To no doubt cause disappointment for some and prompt others to sing for joy, he explains in a brief footnote his position on E. P. Sanders' Paul and Palestinian Judaism:

'Although other aspects of this book have been rightly challenged, and although Sanders does not offer a fully satisfying account of the connection between justification and participation, he was on the right track' (113 n.6)

However, Gorman maintains that there are several interlocking streams of biblical thought informing Paul's understanding of justification/righteousness (114-115). This enables him to not only lampoon 'cheap grace' but also affirm that there is truth in different approaches to justification in Paul (traditional Protestant and 'new perspective'). For Gorman 'justification and participation are two sides of the same coin, the coin of relationship to God in Christ by the Spirit, because faith for Paul is above all sharing in the fullness of Jesus that culminated on the cross ' (130).

Gorman then goes on to discuss the meaning of the church as 'God's countercultural and multicultural beloved community that walks in the Spirit of Christ' (143). This leads naturally into his eleventh chapter and a discussion of his notion of 'cruciformity'. He proposes that '[h]oliness for Paul, we have suggested, is a countercultural life shaped by the presence of the crucified and resurrected Christ who is present within his people' (145). He maintains that '[c]ruciformity, conformity to Christ crucified, is Paul's all-encompassing spirituality' (165). It is within this frame that Gorman discusses the meanings of 'faith', 'Love' and 'hope'.

In chapter 12 he returns again to eschatological themes. He argues that '[g]ross misunderstanding and misdirected zeal characterize much popular, and even some more sophisticated, theological reflection on the things to come' (179). Of course, this involves the compulsory sideswipe at the anti-creational Left Behind novels!

The themes of the final chapter (the character of God, the theopolitical character of the Gospel and the church, some things that should mark out the church, and the inseparability of faith, hope and love) show particularly clearly how Gorman, in this book, has treated Paul's letters as scripture. Indeed, at end of each chapter is a useful summary as well as a number of questions for reflection. In other words, this is an ideal book for group discussion on Paul. In fact, I plan to use it soon in a church group myself.

I will not here detail all potential points of disagreement, but I will mention just a few thoughts. First, I remain unconvinced that '[c]ruciformity, conformity to Christ crucified, is Paul's all-encompassing spirituality' (165). While not directly engaging with this question, the kind of material analysed in my doctorate puts a question mark after such a claim. Second. I'm not sure that Wright's language of 'climax', which Gorman simply adopts, is the best. While I suspect Scott Hafemann goes too far in the other direction, do see his critique of Wright on this point in his review of The New Testament and the People of God in JETS 40 (1997), pp. 305-308. Third, I am not sure Gorman managed to grasp the historically contingent nature of Paul's eschatology firmly enough (cf. the works of Andrew Perriman for more on this topic. Though like Hafemann, I suspect he goes too far at various points as well). I would also have liked more discussion about the practice of reading the context of the OT texts which find allusion and citation in Paul's letters. Of course, it is easy to make such 'know-it-all' comments at the end of a review. The hard work has been done by Gorman, and I agree with Green: Gorman's book is indeed a precious gift.

From Jim West

It is with a heavy heart that I write these introductory sentences. Jim West, whose blog was deleted yesterday by malicious hackers, has asked me to post the following:

“I want to thank all those who have dropped me a line or posted on their own blog words of encouragement and urging continuation. I'm appreciative and even (potentially) a bit humbled (ah but that's already passed, thankfully- what a wretched feeling that humility nonsense is).

While I appreciate your sentiments, I don't think I'll re-enter the fray. I'll post from time to time on biblioblogs.com and occasionally on moderatebaptists.blogspot.com (both of which are 'group' blogs); and of course I'll remain active on the biblical studies list- but at present I don't imagine I'll launch another private blog. I think I'll just let the vacuum caused by my absence naturally fill with newer, better, and more adorably oriented biblioblogs, and focus on my printed works aimed at church folk.

With all my denunciations of total depravity and my constant assertions concerning the reality of Divine Providence, it would be hypocritical were I surprised to be the victim of the one and the servant of the other. Perhaps this 'closed door' is best after all.

Receive all my best wishes, biblioblogging brothers (and I think 1 or 2 sisters), as you carry on the work. It's yours now. Do well.”

From Jim West

It is with a heavy heart that I write these introductory sentences. Jim West, whose blog was deleted yesterday by malicious hackers, has asked me to post the following:

“I want to thank all those who have dropped me a line or posted on their own blog words of encouragement and urging continuation. I'm appreciative and even (potentially) a bit humbled (ah but that's already passed, thankfully- what a wretched feeling that humility nonsense is).

While I appreciate your sentiments, I don't think I'll re-enter the fray. I'll post from time to time on biblioblogs.com and occasionally on moderatebaptists.blogspot.com (both of which are 'group' blogs); and of course I'll remain active on the biblical studies list- but at present I don't imagine I'll launch another private blog. I think I'll just let the vacuum caused by my absence naturally fill with newer, better, and more adorably oriented biblioblogs, and focus on my printed works aimed at church folk.

With all my denunciations of total depravity and my constant assertions concerning the reality of Divine Providence, it would be hypocritical were I surprised to be the victim of the one and the servant of the other. Perhaps this 'closed door' is best after all.

Receive all my best wishes, biblioblogging brothers (and I think 1 or 2 sisters), as you carry on the work. It's yours now. Do well.”