Showing posts with label Biblical Interpretation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Biblical Interpretation. Show all posts
2/19/13
"People of the Book" Reviewed
6/14/12
Kindle Version of "People of the Book"
I am pleased to announce that my most recent work People of the Book: Inviting Communities into Biblical Interpretation is now available on Kindle. You can click HERE or the image to the left to get it. The Kindle version is only $9.99! You can also get the print version on Amazon HERE or from the publisher, Wipf & Stock, HERE where it is now ON SALE for $15.20!!! When you get a chance, check out the companion website for the book, which is complete with photos, videos, an app, and more HERE. So, go get your Kindle version of People of the Book now. Even better, share the news with others. Thanks!
5/31/12
People of the Book Flyer
For those of you who are using People of the Book: Inviting Communities into Biblical Interpretation or would like to share the details about it with others, here's a nice little flyer that the publisher created, which you can print, download, share, post, etc. Thanks for the support!
1/11/11
A Manifesto of Scared, Anti-Intellectual Christians
* Dim lights in the world, uneducated and not knowing much
* Afraid of learning, scared of being challenged
* Circular reasoners, ready to ignore other views
* Closed-minded people, childish in faith
* Stunted in spiritual growth, rejecting deep truths
* Antagonistic toward studying, lazy and lackluster congregants
* Slim on wisdom, ignorant in theological disposition
* Unskilled arguers, incapable of coherent thoughts
* Unprepared to give a defense, stupid in season and out of season
* Haters of difficult matters, suckers of pop-theology's breasts
* Advocates of cheap grace, seizers of anything surfacy and easy
* Critics of exegesis, deniers of the command to love God with the whole mind
* Pseudo-pietists, rejectors of academics
* Pharisaic to the core, Philistine-like to the bone
* Belligerent about the Bible, arrogant about Jesus
* Sell-outs to culture, attention-whores
* Offended easily, ready to crucify the learned
* Politically charged, unmotivated to serve
* Fakers of sanctification, unwilling to give the Spirit more to work with
* Adopters of fads, globally and missionally inept
* Distorters of scripture, first-rate prooftexters
* Tamed in desire to learn, un-hungry churchgoers
* Hoarders of Bibles, biblical illiterates by choice
* Deaf to a word finely spoken, blind to the need for good thinkers
* Prone to take someone's word for it, grovelers over motivational speeches
* Desirers of everything but Bible reading skills, the problem with today's church
9/8/10
On The Interpretation Of Scripture
In the field of biblical studies and in particular biblical interpretation, one of the most well-known and formative essays on the topic was penned by Benjamin Jowett. His article, "On the Interpretation of Scripture" sparked decades of controversy in Europe and to this day, has had lasting affects on interpreters of the Bible (from the average layperson to the top-ranking professors). If you want to engage a fundamental article in this area, check out this nice, clean-cut, interactive, magazine-style copy of Jowett's article by clicking on the "Open Article" button below. Enjoy.
Jowett Article
Snapshot
9/22/09
Origen's Commentary on The Song of Songs (A Brief Review)
Below is a short review I wrote up for a class presentation, which deals with Origen's Commentary on The Canticles (Song of Songs). I only interact here with his interpretation of the first few verses but if you want to get an idea of how Origen did exegesis, you may find some of this review helpful. Enjoy.
Origen, an exegete nurtured in the Alexandrian spirit of interpretation, above all else in his reading of the Song of Songs, appears to value the notion of the unity of the Scriptures. Shaped by the “Rule of Faith,” the theological banner of his socio-religious context, he strives to show how passages of the “Divine” and “Holy Scriptures” (63-64) work in unison. For Origen, this seems most explainable by reading Scripture through a sort of dualistic lens: Literal (which also encompasses “literary”) and Spiritual.
From the start, Origen makes it clear in his interpretation of the Canticles that there indeed, is a literal / literary sense to the text but that upon further reflection, there is a more spiritual or “inner” sense as well (58). After reviewing the literary aspects of the story (in a verse-by-verse fashion), he writes, “This is the content of the actual story, presented in dramatic form. But let us see if the inner meaning can be also fittingly supplied along these lines” (59). In his commentary, the foremost way in which he goes about finding this “inner meaning” is to reference other, allegedly related Scriptural texts—an approach which is quite likely to offend the sensitivities of the modern exegete!
For example, Origen suggests that 1.2, a verse which reads “For thy breasts are better than wine” should be filtered such through narratives as that of John leaning on the breasts of Jesus during supper in John’s Gospel and the separation of priestly sacrifices in Leviticus (64). Further, he goes on to make an argument whereat the breasts are types of the teachings of Christ, which make them good breasts and therefore more desirable than the shapeless breasts of the Law. This reading, asserts Origen, can find more stock in the statement by Qohelet who speaks of “looking on that which is good” (66). Origen finds no reason to stop here though. He even gets some mileage out of the stories of the boy Jesus being searched for in the Temple by His parents, the Cana Wedding scene, the Queen of Sheba, the sons of Jonadab and the parable of the treasure hidden in a field (66-70).
In making hermeneutical choices such as these, Origen seems to assume that exegetes must not only have a working knowledge of the text but also a high theology of Scripture and an orientation toward deep spiritual discernment. While these (doctrinal) dispositions may not be troubling to many interpreters, again, many modern readers are far less comfortable with Origen’s allegorizing (60-61), christianizing (59) and personalizing of these texts (59). He also has expectation that those engaging the text should soon find themselves embedded in it. This is an expectation that can be seen in his self-referential rhetoric (e.g. “Let it be [us] the Church…59).
On-the-one-hand, Origen’s methods would appear to lead readers to an ahistorical point-of-view of the biblical events. That is, one gets the impression that by allegorizing and spiritualizing things as he does, Origen ultimately overemphasizes revelation to the detriment of history (or historical happenings). Of course, such a reading might be expected when it is a reading done by those who stand in the wake of ongoing and heated debates about the distinctions between the Jesus of history and the Christ of faith. However, there is one sense in which Origen does root his interpretations (and applications) in real history: through eschatology.
He makes two comments early on in his commentary that allude to this: 1) “…but since the age is almost ended…” and 2) “…at His coming…” (60). Without too quickly throwing the baby out with the bathwater, readers may do well to attempt to understand the precise connections that Origen may be suggesting actually exist between these two spheres. Undoubtedly, Origen believes that his “Bridegroom” (Christ) is going to make a real return within the confines of world history but interpreters may get too hung up on his assertion that the “Bridegroom” mentioned in the drama of the Canticles is Christ, to actually notice it.
9/14/09
Early Biblical Intepretation (A Review)
Below is the text of a brief 2 chapter review of the Kugel & Greer book titled Early Biblical Interpretation, which I wrote to present to some of my classmates. If you've had any interaction with this text and would like to share your thoughts, please do.
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Reviewed by T. Michael W. Halcomb. Early Biblical Interpretation (#3 LEC). By James L. Kugel & Rowan A. Greer, ed. Wayne A. Meeks. Philadelphia, PA: Westminster John Knox Press, 1986. 214 pp. $19.95 (paper).
The third installment in a series of books edited by Wayne Meeks, Early Biblical Interpretation is a volume that focuses on “the interpretation of Scripture as practiced in Early Judaism and Christianity” (7). The first two chapters of this work—and the central points of emphasis for this brief review—explore the common backgrounds of early & later forms of biblical exegesis. Thus, the first two chapters of the tome aim to explain what prompted “The Rise of Scripture” (13) and subsequently, “The Need for Interpretation” (27).
The idea is that Israel, people whom envisioned themselves as discourse partners with God, had within their circle of adherents, divinely attuned leaders called prophets. These individuals “sought to announce God’s judgments and desires” as well as to explain the meaning and/or significance of certain events (15). However, laying hold of God’s desires or even a “word” from God during the Diaspora, during a time period where the Temple sat in ruins, proved challenging to Israel. Eventually, the unbearable question that confronted the Israelites remained: “Where was the God of Israel now that His house had been destroyed, and what hope was there for deliverance?” (15)
As time passed and the rule and Edict of Cyrus surfaced, many of the Israelites began returning to their homelands. Soon, the desire to bring God back to the land arose and so, the Temple structure was rebuilt. Of course, it was not nearly as majestic and in fact, it was quite “damaging to the prestige of [Israel’s] Deity” (16). At this point, religious, political, economic and spiritual decay set in, with leaders abusing their restored roles. Israel began wondering if, at present, she could truly refer to herself as God’s dialogue partner? To remedy the ever-present fallout, Israel returned to her past, a past found in texts.
With the emphasis shifting from the Temple and its priests to the texts and their interpreters, Israel’s sacred writings and their commentators took on more significance than ever. Seeking out Divine approval, Israel had its exegetes scour the texts for guidelines and meaning. Yet, some passages were ambivalent and interpretations varied from one reader to the next. Soon, scriptural interpretation turned into a sort of sacred exercise or enterprise. “If these texts were to play a critical role in governing community affairs, in setting forth models of ethical behavior and educating the young, then [passages that raised questions] surely did not die in the breasts of readers and listeners; they were asked often, and in public, and they demanded unambiguous response” (34).
This “return” to the days gone by, a philosophy that drove the communities of ancient Israelites, here, began consistently using the past as a standard bearer or measuring rod for the present. The hope was that the great days of the pre-exilic monarchy would serve both as a basis and a “model for national revival and…hopes for the future” (37). If a return to the past was the desire, the fullest means of such a return was through texts. The return wasn’t merely for the sake of returning but rather, with the hopes that in diving into even the tiniest minutiae of the past, fruits would be yielded in the present.
As Kugel & Greer note, “…it was precisely the intermittent obsession with past events and the necessity of having them bear on the present that gave interpretation of all kinds its urgency” (38). Indeed, in a time when Israel felt as though the conversation between her and her dialogue partner was waning, a visit to the Temple experienced relegation to the shadows while a visit to the text or to some hermeneutical event whereat the texts were being expounded or proclaimed, came to the fore. The desire to experience a “word” from God permeated the community as people waited eagerly to see how a hint of their past might just transform their present.
Reviewed by T. Michael W. Halcomb. Early Biblical Interpretation (#3 LEC). By James L. Kugel & Rowan A. Greer, ed. Wayne A. Meeks. Philadelphia, PA: Westminster John Knox Press, 1986. 214 pp. $19.95 (paper).
The third installment in a series of books edited by Wayne Meeks, Early Biblical Interpretation is a volume that focuses on “the interpretation of Scripture as practiced in Early Judaism and Christianity” (7). The first two chapters of this work—and the central points of emphasis for this brief review—explore the common backgrounds of early & later forms of biblical exegesis. Thus, the first two chapters of the tome aim to explain what prompted “The Rise of Scripture” (13) and subsequently, “The Need for Interpretation” (27).
The idea is that Israel, people whom envisioned themselves as discourse partners with God, had within their circle of adherents, divinely attuned leaders called prophets. These individuals “sought to announce God’s judgments and desires” as well as to explain the meaning and/or significance of certain events (15). However, laying hold of God’s desires or even a “word” from God during the Diaspora, during a time period where the Temple sat in ruins, proved challenging to Israel. Eventually, the unbearable question that confronted the Israelites remained: “Where was the God of Israel now that His house had been destroyed, and what hope was there for deliverance?” (15)
As time passed and the rule and Edict of Cyrus surfaced, many of the Israelites began returning to their homelands. Soon, the desire to bring God back to the land arose and so, the Temple structure was rebuilt. Of course, it was not nearly as majestic and in fact, it was quite “damaging to the prestige of [Israel’s] Deity” (16). At this point, religious, political, economic and spiritual decay set in, with leaders abusing their restored roles. Israel began wondering if, at present, she could truly refer to herself as God’s dialogue partner? To remedy the ever-present fallout, Israel returned to her past, a past found in texts.
With the emphasis shifting from the Temple and its priests to the texts and their interpreters, Israel’s sacred writings and their commentators took on more significance than ever. Seeking out Divine approval, Israel had its exegetes scour the texts for guidelines and meaning. Yet, some passages were ambivalent and interpretations varied from one reader to the next. Soon, scriptural interpretation turned into a sort of sacred exercise or enterprise. “If these texts were to play a critical role in governing community affairs, in setting forth models of ethical behavior and educating the young, then [passages that raised questions] surely did not die in the breasts of readers and listeners; they were asked often, and in public, and they demanded unambiguous response” (34).
This “return” to the days gone by, a philosophy that drove the communities of ancient Israelites, here, began consistently using the past as a standard bearer or measuring rod for the present. The hope was that the great days of the pre-exilic monarchy would serve both as a basis and a “model for national revival and…hopes for the future” (37). If a return to the past was the desire, the fullest means of such a return was through texts. The return wasn’t merely for the sake of returning but rather, with the hopes that in diving into even the tiniest minutiae of the past, fruits would be yielded in the present.
As Kugel & Greer note, “…it was precisely the intermittent obsession with past events and the necessity of having them bear on the present that gave interpretation of all kinds its urgency” (38). Indeed, in a time when Israel felt as though the conversation between her and her dialogue partner was waning, a visit to the Temple experienced relegation to the shadows while a visit to the text or to some hermeneutical event whereat the texts were being expounded or proclaimed, came to the fore. The desire to experience a “word” from God permeated the community as people waited eagerly to see how a hint of their past might just transform their present.
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