HilastēRion (Rom. 3:25) and the Union of Divine Justice and Mercy. Part I: The Convergence of Temple and Martyrdom Theologies

2019 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-109
Author(s):  
Stephen Hultgren
Keyword(s):  
Divine Justice ◽  
Justice And Mercy

Anselm on divine justice and mercy

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (4) ◽  
pp. 469-485
Author(s):  
WILLIAM E. MANN
Keyword(s):  
Divine Justice ◽  
Justice And Mercy

AbstractThis article examines in detail chapters 8–11 of Anselm's Proslogion, in which he addresses the problem whether perfectly just God can consistently spare sinners who deserve eternal condemnation. The article argues that Anselm's discussion is framed by two doctrines that permeate the Proslogion: that God is the being than which none greater can be conceived and that God is ontologically simple. Anselm presents several principles about justice and mercy for consideration, some of which should be modified or rejected. The article offers a sympathetic construction of the perspectival solution he offers to the problem, but concludes that some important questions remain unanswered.

scholarly journals Divine Righteousness and Forgiveness: The Old Testament Background of Hilastērion in Romans 3:25

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 51
Author(s):  
MICHAEL C. MULDER
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Divine Justice ◽  
In Christ ◽  
Justice And Mercy

We Start With An Analysis Of The Term Righteousness Of God In Romans 3:21–26. The Righteousness As A Gift To Believers (genitive Of Source, Verses 21–22) Is Founded On The Righteousness That Characterizes His Being (subjective Genitive, Verses 24–25). However, God’s Righteousness Should Not Always Be Interpreted As God’s Covenantal Faithfulness. For The Apostle, Divine Righteousness Brings Salvation And Leads To Judgment, As It Does In The Old Testament. There The Hilastērion, The Ark Cover, Brings These Attributes Together. After Investigating The Background, We Describe Paul’s Use Of The Image (Rom 3:25) With The Help Of Jewish Sources. In Christ, Divine Justice And Mercy Come Together In This Image. Finally, We Ask To Whom It Applies. KEYWORDS: (Day Of) Atonement, Forgiveness, Jewish Sources, Mercy Seat, Propitiation, Romans 3, Righteousness Of God, Hilastērion, Reconciliation, Sacrifice

Ahistorical interpretation of the Torah narratives in the Wisdom of Solomon

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 76-88
Author(s):  
Karina Martin Hogan
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Proper Names ◽  
Historical Narrative ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Early Twentieth Century ◽  
Ancient Israel ◽  
Divine Justice ◽  
Wisdom Of Solomon ◽  
Justice And Mercy

The traditional scholarly title (since the early twentieth century) for the last section of the Wisdom of Solomon, chapters 11–19 (or for some, 10–19) is the “Book of History.” This is a misleading designation because the author of the Wisdom of Solomon chose to present certain events from the exodus and wilderness traditions of ancient Israel not in the context of a continuous historical narrative, but rather as paradigmatic examples of God’s justice and mercy toward both the righteous and the ungodly. The purpose of the second half of the Wisdom of Solomon is pedagogical and apologetic rather than historical. The author’s avoidance of proper names and the consistent division of humanity in moral terms (the righteous vs the ungodly/unrighteous) rather than along ethnic lines (Israel vs Egyptians or Canaanites) should be taken seriously as an effort to universalize the lessons of Israel’s stories. The consistent message of both the antitheses and the excurses in chapters 11–19 is that God manifests both justice and mercy in disciplining human beings (both the righteous and the unrighteous) with suffering. Thus, it would be preferable to call chapters 11–19 either the “Book of Discipline” or the “Book of Divine Justice and Mercy.”

The Justice and Mercy of God

2020 ◽  
pp. 79-110
Author(s):  
Mary Sirridge
Keyword(s):  
Eleventh Century ◽  
First Century ◽  
Recent Scholarship ◽  
Divine Justice ◽  
Divine Mercy ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Justice And Mercy

In his eleventh-century Proslogion St. Anselm puts forward the view that, far from being an exception to divine justice, divine mercy is the highest form of divine justice. Anselm’s cryptic reasoning is initially puzzling. It becomes more accessible if we notice that he is taking as a model the theory of imperial clemency put forward by the first-century CE Stoic Seneca in his De Clementia, in which it is argued that imperial clemency is the highest form of justice. Anselm does not quote or make reference to Seneca’s work, and so the case for the relationship between the two works has to be made on internal grounds, but recent scholarship has shown that Senecan materials were readily available in Anselm’s milieu and that there are other cases in which he seems to be using Senecan material.

Hilastērion (Rom. 3:25) and the Union of Divine Justice And Mercy. Part II: Atonement in the old Testament and in Romans 1–5

2019 ◽  
Vol 70 (2) ◽  
pp. 546-599
Author(s):  
Stephen Hultgren
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Word Group ◽  
Divine Justice ◽  
Way Of Thinking ◽  
Divine Wrath ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Justice And Mercy

Abstract Part II of this study explains how the convergence of temple and martyrdom theologies demonstrated in Part I helps us understand ἱλαστήριον in the context of Romans 1–5. Biblical ‘atonement’ is multifaceted, comprehending expiation and forgiveness, as well as removal of divine wrath. In the LXX the ἱλάσκομαι word group is also complex, retaining propitiatory overtones from classical usage (although it may often be better to speak of God removing his own wrath), while taking on the additional meaning of expiation and forgiveness. The Pentateuchal ἱλαστήριον is a ‘place’ for such ‘atonement’. Amidst many proposals, ‘the place of atonement’ with allusion to the כַּפֹּרֶת remains the most likely meaning for ἱλαστήριον in Rom. 3:25. Christ is the ‘place’ where divine justice and mercy meet. His death is the visible manifestation of divine justice, the consequence of humanity’s collective sin, which was ‘building up’ towards a permanent breach in the relationship between God and humanity. Christ’s death is also a ransom and the means by which God objectively removes sin and so frees humanity from death. Paul radically reconfigured martyrdom theology, which offered a way of thinking about how divine justice and mercy can meet in the death of a person.

Punishment, Forgiveness, and Divine Justice

1993 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 151-168 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Talbott
Keyword(s):  
John Milton ◽  
Paradise Lost ◽  
Character Traits ◽  
Epic Poem ◽  
Divine Justice ◽  
Justice And Mercy

According to a long theological tradition that stretches back at least as far as St Augustine, God's justice and mercy are distinct, and in many ways quite different, character traits. In his great epic poem, Paradise Lost, for example, John Milton goes so far as to suggest a conflict, perhaps even a contradiction, in the very being of God; he thus describes Christ's offer of himself as an atonement this way:No sooner did thy dear and only SonPerceive thee purpos'd not to doom frail ManSo strictly, but much more to pity inclin'd,Hee to appease thy wrath, and end the strifeOf Mercy and Justice in thy face discern'dRegardless of the Bliss wherein hee satSecond to thee, offer'd himself to dieFor man's offence.

Peter Berglar on Justice and Mercy in Life and Work of Thomas More

Moreana ◽  
1983 ◽  
Vol 20 (Number 78) (2) ◽  
pp. 51-54
Author(s):  
Geert van den Steenhoven
Keyword(s):  
Thomas More ◽  
Justice And Mercy

Job the True Sage

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael C. Legaspi
Keyword(s):  
Book Of Job ◽  
Divine Justice ◽  
The Will ◽  
Do So

In the book of Job, wisdom is contested. In the speeches of the friends, wisdom is a program based on a pious alignment with divine justice as manifest in the sacred, social, and cosmic orders. In the figure of Job, the reader is invited to reconsider the nature of piety on which this understanding of wisdom is based. Job raises the possibility that piety is a form of integrity that yields a different relation to order. Accordingly, piety does not consist in a knowledge of order that leads to a prosperous life but rather in the determination to hold one’s place within the order, to remain true to the inner dictates of one’s pious life. To do so is to inhabit an order in which the strange inexplicability of this determination is coordinated to the strangeness of the cosmos itself and to the will of an inscrutable God.

Saving the Nation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas H. Reilly
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Social Reform ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
Chinese Society ◽  
Social Revolution ◽  
Social Christianity ◽  
History Of ◽  
Urban Elite ◽  
Justice And Mercy

This book is a history of the Chinese Protestant elite and their contribution to building a new China in the years from 1922 to 1952. While a small percentage of China’s overall population, China’s Protestants constituted a large and influential segment of the urban elite. They exercised that influence through their churches, hospitals, and schools, especially the universities, and also through institutions such as the YMCA and the YWCA, whose membership was drawn from the modern sectors of urban life. These Protestant elites believed that they could best contribute to the building of a new China through their message of social Christianity, believing that Christianity could help make Chinese society strong, modern, and prosperous, but also characterized by justice and mercy. More than preaching a message, the Protestant elite also played a critical social role, through their institutions, broadening the appeal and impact of social movements, and imparting to them a greater sense of legitimacy. This history begins with the elite’s participation in social reform campaigns in the early twentieth century, continues with their efforts in resisting imperialism, and ends with their support for the Communist-led social revolution.

KNOWLEDGE, SUFFERING AND THE PERFORMANCE OF WISDOM IN SOLON'SELEGY TO THE MUSESAND THE BABYLONIANPOEM OF THE RIGHTEOUS SUFFERER

2019 ◽  
Vol 65 ◽  
pp. 63-83
Author(s):  
Alexandre Johnston
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Literary Form ◽  
Human Condition ◽  
Poetic Voice ◽  
Divine Justice ◽  
Ancient Literature ◽  
Literature And Theology ◽  
The Human Condition

This article offers a comparative reading of Solon'sElegy to the Muses(fragment 13 West) and the BabylonianPoem of the Righteous Sufferer, focusing on the interplay of literary form and theological content. It argues that in both poems, shifts in the identity and perspective of the poetic voice enable the speaker to act out, or perform, a particular vision of humanity and its relationship with the divine. The comparative analysis improves our understanding of both texts, showing for instance that Solon's elegy is a highly sophisticated attempt to articulate a coherent vision of divine justice and the human condition. It also sheds light on the particular modes in which ancient literature and theology interact in different contexts, and how this interaction could affect audiences.

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