scholarly journals From timely exegesis to contemporary ecclesiology: Relevant hermeneutics and provocative embodiment of faith in a corona-defined world – Generosity during a pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 77 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Scot McKnight
Keyword(s):  
Early Church ◽  
Pastoral Epistles ◽  
Apostle Paul ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
2 Corinthians ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Good Works ◽  
Economic Climate ◽  
Mean Equality ◽  
Fair Balance

In a world where economies have no moral conscience, biblical theologians can challenge local cultures with ancient wisdom about generosity and equity. Systemic solutions require changes in the habits of virtue, and this study focuses on the habit of generosity. Building on the work of Stephan Joubert’s Paul as Benefactor, this study concentrates on Paul’s collection in one notable instance: what he says about generosity in 2 Corinthians 8-9 and, in particular, what he means by isotēs in 2 Cor 8:13–15. Does it mean “equality” or “equity”? Beginning with a reinvigorated interest in the economic vision of the apostle Paul about what is meant by “weak” and “good works” and what the Pastoral Epistles communicate with eusebeia (not “godliness” but “social respectability and civility”), we reconsider the collection as an act on the part of the Pauline mission churches to express more than ecclesial unity. This act embodied a theology of grace in mutual reciprocity and in equitable provision on the part of the wealthy for the poor, not least and not limited to those in their own Christian assemblies. The term isotēs is too easily glossed over when translated as “fair balance”, “fairness”, and so the translation of the term with “equity” or “equality” comes closest to the vision of the apostle. Too few studies on this term baptize it sufficiently in the economics of the ancient world and the early Christian radical vision of siblingship and family.Contribution: From the perspective of the Historical Thought and Source Interpretation of the work of Paul, the question of systemic equality or equity is as crucial to navigating the current economic climate as it has ever been. Equality or equity is not limited to Christian communities but following the early church in embodying a theology of grace.

Unravelling the Threads: The Origins of Women's Asceticism in the Earliest Christian Communities

1997 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 137-155
Author(s):  
Patricia Moss
Keyword(s):  
Early Church ◽  
Pastoral Epistles ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
History Of

The question of the origins of women's asceticism in Christianity is one of the most intriguing puzzles in the history of the early church, at first glance seeming to appear virtually out of nowhere. This paper seeks to untangle the threads of evidence a little, first by exploring the precedents for women's asceticism in the Jewish and Græco-Roman worlds, and then by suggesting possible motives for Christian women's asceticism in Corinth and the community of the Pastoral Epistles.

The Oxford Handbook of Early Christian Archaeology

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
State Of The Art ◽  
Early Christianity ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Regional Studies ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Christian Churches ◽  
Archaeological Methods ◽  
Archaeological Method ◽  
Ancient Geography

The Oxford Handbook of Early Christian Archaeology brings together significant work by leading scholars of the archaeology of early Christianity in the Mediterranean and surrounding regions. The thirty-four contributions to this volume ground the history, culture, and society of the first seven centuries of Christianity in archaeological method, theory, and research. Collectively the essays emphasize the link between fieldwork, archaeological methods, and regional and national traditions in constructing our knowledge of the early church, Christian communities, and the context of the ancient Mediterranean. An introductory essay provides historical and chronological perspectives on the archaeology of the early Christian world. This is followed by two chapters on the archaeology of the earliest Christ followers, and a series of topical treatments that focus on significant types of objects common to Christian contexts, such as ceramics, lamps, and icons,and monuments and contexts ranging from Christian churches to martyria, catacombs, and baths. Finally, the volume locates the archaeology of the early Christian world in a series of regional studies stretching from Britain to Persia. These regional studies situate the archaeology of early Christianity in historical contexts shaped by ancient geography and modern national archaeological traditions. The thorough, carefully researched, and fully referenced essays offer the most intensive, state-of-the-art treatment of recent research into the archaeology of early Christianity currently available.

Diakone in Rom? Das Zeugnis des Hirten des Hermas

2018 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 93-101
Author(s):  
Mark Grundeken
Keyword(s):  
Early Church ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Common Opinion ◽  
The Common

Abstract This article challenges the common opinion that the Shepherd of Hermas gives evidence for the office of deacon in the early Christian communities in Rome (Vis. 3.5.1; Sim. 9.15.4; 9.26.2). It suggests that the mention of the διάκονοι within the context of Hermas’ call to µετάνοια as “admirable” respectively “despicable” believers makes it difficult to decide whether these examples are existing or imaginary figures. Moreover, it notes that the διάκονοι, unlike the presiding presbyters (Vis. 2.2.6-7; 2.4.2-3; 3.9.7), are not associated with the ἐκκλησία in Rome and not directly addressed. The article is meant to be a prelude to new enquiries into the development of offices in the early church.

The Significance of φιλέω and φίλος in the Tradition of Jesus Sayings and in the Early Christian Communities

1997 ◽  
Vol 90 (4) ◽  
pp. 393-409 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Graham Brock
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Apostle Paul ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
The Way

Due in part to the prominence of the word ⋯γαπάω in the New Testament, readers of that book have often believed that the early Christians as a group considered ⋯γαπάω to refer to a superior form of love than that represented by the Greek word φιλέω. One of the primary reasons for this conviction is the way in which the apostle Paul uses ⋯γάπη and ⋯γαπάω to such an extent in his epistles. In fact, Paul's usage of the ⋯γαπάω word family is so consistent that with one exception the word φιλέω is entirely absent from his vocabulary. Likewise, in the Septuagint the occurrences of ⋯γαπάω outnumber those of φιλέω by a ratio of 266 to a mere fifteen.1

scholarly journals The Pauline Understanding of Life in the Young Heidegger (1920–21)

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 120-135
Author(s):  
Isabella Guanzini
Keyword(s):  
First World War ◽  
Phenomenological Analysis ◽  
World War ◽  
Apostle Paul ◽  
Problem Of Time ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
The First World War ◽  
Metaphysical Tradition ◽  
First World

Abstract In the years after the First World War many authors returned to the Apostle Paul to rethink the meaning of history in a time of crisis. In this period the problem of time represents a crucial topic of Heidegger’s philosophy as well, through which he reconsiders the meaning of the Being of the whole metaphysical tradition. Heidegger already develops his reconsideration of temporality in his early Freiburg lectures on the phenomenology of religious life through the interpretation of Paul’s epistles. The article focuses on the analysis of the category of temporality in these lectures, where the philosopher investigates the experience of conversion and the expectation of the parusia in the proto-Christian communities, within which the radically historical dimension of existence clearly emerges. This contribution aims to show that such phenomenological analysis of early Christian temporality emphasizes the disquieting nature of the evangelical message, which unsettles any fixed identity and transforms personal, communitarian history and social, opening it to the future.

scholarly journals Formation of the early Church (beginning from the appointment of the first deacons to the end of the apostolic period)

2015 ◽  
pp. 168-220
Author(s):  
Алексей Иванович Сидоров
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Church History ◽  
The Other ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Christian Church ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Church

Публикация представляет собой продолжение очерка по истории становления первохристианской Церкви. Исследование основано на свидетельствах первоисточников и привлечении широкого спектра мнений отечественных и зарубежных специалистов по истории Древней Церкви. События проповеднической деятельности апостола Павла, возникновение разногласий в первохристианской общине и последовавший за ними Апостольской Собор, который утвердил необязательность соблюдения ветхозаветных постановлений, рассматриваются в контексте появления в среде первых христиан так называемых «эллинистов». Последние вывели проповедь Евангелия за пределы Палестины, а апостол Павел и его сподвижники основали христианские Церкви во многих частях «ойкумены». Кроме того, повествуется о кончине святого Иакова Праведного и судьбе Иерусалимской Церкви, деятельности апостола Петра и Иоанна, как и прочих апостолов, вплоть до завершения апостольского периода в истории древней Церкви. This publication is a continuation of the essay on the history of the formation of the early Christian Church, based on first-hand evidence and engaging a wide range of views of domestic and foreign researchers of early Church history. Both the results of Paul’s preaching, the emergence of differences among early Christians, and the subsequent Apostolic Council, which approved some sort of compliance with the regulations of the Old Testament, are all considered in the context of the emergence among early Christians of the so-called «Hellenists», who brought the preaching of the Gospel beyond Palestine, while Paul and his associates founded Christian communities in many parts of the «Oecumene». Moreover, the article tells the story of the death of St. James the Just, and the fate of the Church of Jerusalem. It describes the activities of Apostle Peter and John, as well as the other apostles, up until the end of the apostolic period in the history of the ancient Church.

Salvation and Childbearing

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alicia D. Myers
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Family Life ◽  
Pastoral Epistles ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Roman World ◽  
Feminine Virtue

Augustus’s prioritization of family life to promote his own masculinity resulted in a simultaneous emphasis on motherhood in the Roman world. Not only did motherhood advertise a man’s masculine purposing of his woman/wife, but it was also a legitimate path to increased agency for free(d) women. Situated in this context, New Testament and other early Christian traditions offer varying constructions of “feminine virtue,” some of which prioritize or assume motherhood and others of which downplay or even reject it. This chapter examines these themes in the Pastoral Epistles, New Testament household codes (Col 3:18–4:3; Eph 5:21–6:9; 1 Pet 2:9–3:12), the Acts of Thecla, Acts of Andrew, and the Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas. In their sustained wrestling with and formations of Christian gender(s), these writings present salvation as masculinization for all followers of Christ, but they disagree on whether motherhood should be a part of this process.

Slavery and Sexual Availability

2019 ◽  
pp. 626-644
Author(s):  
Jennifer A. Glancy
Keyword(s):  
Roman Empire ◽  
Social Status ◽  
Sexual Exploitation ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Social Morality ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
The Right

Any investigation of slavery in the Roman Empire must contend with the sexual exploitation of slaves endemic to the system. Given the diversity of ancient Christian attitudes toward sexuality, there is no reason to expect that a slaveholding ethos touched all Christian communities in a uniform fashion. At issue, however, is not whether the wider context of a slaveholding empire affected the formation of Christian attitudes toward sexuality. At issue is how. The purpose of this essay is to question whether early Christian silence on the issue should be construed as wholesale rejection of a system in which social status scripted social morality, or as complicity with that system. In the end, it is difficult to imagine how the churches could have challenged the right of a male slaveholder to exploit his domestic slaves sexually without challenging his right to claim ownership of other human beings.

scholarly journals The “Christology” of Bely the Anthroposophist: Andrei Bely, Rudolf Steiner, and the Apostle Paul

Religions ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 519
Author(s):  
Monika Spivak
Keyword(s):  
The Self ◽  
Apostle Paul ◽  
Rudolf Steiner ◽  
2 Corinthians ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Impact

The article focuses on R. Steiner’s perception of the Gospels and the impact of that view on Bely’s works. The latter had always valued Steiner’s lectures on Christ and the Fifth Gospel, the “Anthroposophic” (relating to the philosophy of human genesis, existence, and outcome) Gospel, the knowledge of which had been received in a visionary way. In addition, Bely was an esoteric follower of Steiner and often quoted from Apostle Paul’s 2 Corinthians, “Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men”. The citation occurs in Bely’s philosophical works (The History of the Formation of the Self-Conscious Soul, “Crisis of Consciousness”), autobiographic prose (Reminiscences of Steiner), the essay “Why I Became a Symbolist…”, and letters (to Ivanov-Razumnik and Fedor Gladkov). Bely’s own anthroposophic and esoteric ideas relating to the gospel sayings are also examined. The aim of the research is to show through the example of one quotation the specifics of Bely the Anthroposophist’s perception of Christian texts in general. This provides a methodological meaning for understanding other Biblical quotations and images in the works of Bely because anthroposophical Christology is also the key to their deciphering.

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