The Bible in a Disenchanted Age: The Enduring Possibility of Christian Faith

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-80
Author(s):  
Ronald T. Michener
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Christian Faith ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Privileged Position ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Book Of Daniel

SummaryThis book steers away from modern entrapments of rationalism and empiricism that led to a disenchanted view of the Bible. Instead, Moberly innovatively proposes three lenses by which to view the Bible: history, classic and Scripture. Throughout the book he contrasts Virgil’s Aeneid book 1 and the Old Testament book of Daniel, chapter 7. Moberly defends giving the Bible a ‘privileged’ position for Christian faith with ‘plausibility structures’, arguing that the act of privileging one text over another for a particular worldview is common to all human beings.ZusammenfassungDieses Buch steuert weg von den Fallen der Moderne des Rationalismus und Empirizismus, die zu einer entmystifizierten Sicht der Bibel führen. Stattdessen stellt Moberly das innovative Modell von drei Linsen vor, durch welche die Bibel betrachtet werden kann: als Geschichte, als Klassiker und als Schrift. Dieses Modell behält er durch das gesamte Buch bei und kontrastiert dabei Virgils Aeneis Buch Nr. 1 mit dem alttestamentlichen Buch Daniel, Kapitel 7. Moberly verteidigt eine “privilegierte” Position der Bibel für den christlichen Glauben mit dem Hinweis auf “plausible Strukturen”. Dieses Argument besagt, dass die Praxis, einem bestimmten Text gegenüber einem anderen zugunsten einer bestimmten Weltsicht den Vorzug einzuräumen, allen Menschen eigen ist.RésuméCet ouvrage évite les pièges modernes du rationalisme et de l’empirisme qui ont conduit à un regard désenchanté sur la Bible. Moberly innove en proposant d’aborder la Bible sous trois perspectives : l’histoire, l’approche classique et l’Écriture. Il applique cela tout au long du livre et met en contraste le livre I de l’Énéide de Virgile et le livre vétérotestamentaire de Daniel, chapitre 7. Il plaide qu’il faut donner à la Bible une place « privilégiée » pour la foi chrétienne avec des « structures de plausibilité », en arguant que le fait de privilégier un texte par rapport à un autre dans le cadre d’une vision du monde particulière est commun à tous les êtres humains.

“The Sword of the Lord”

2021 ◽  
pp. 159-174
Author(s):  
James P. Byrd
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Sermon On The Mount ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Emancipation Proclamation

Motivating soldiers to kill in the Civil War was more difficult than inspiring them to die for the cause. Killing, Drew Gilpin Faust wrote, “required the more significant departure from soldiers’ understandings of themselves as human beings and . . . as Christians.” Killing was a problem for many soldiers—violence seemed prohibited by the Bible, especially the New Testament’s Sermon on the Mount, but also the Old Testament command, “Thou shalt not kill” (Exodus 20:13). In response, Americans turned to other passages in the Bible to inspire soldiers to kill, a concern never more urgent than after the bloodbath at Antietam. Soon after that battle, Lincoln announced his Emancipation Proclamation, which gave some northerners a righteous motivation to fight. It was now a war for freedom. In wrestling with these interrelated concerns—the motivation to kill and the battle for emancipation—Americans struggled with the scriptures in the second half of 1862.

scholarly journals Bultmann's Thoughs:Demitologizationand Its Impact on the Contemporary Christianity Today

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (6) ◽  
pp. 1-4
Author(s):  
Stanley Kalalo ◽  
Antoni Bastian ◽  
David Ming
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Jesus Christ ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Christian Faith ◽  
Liberal Theology ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Form Criticism

Liberal theology was a characteristic that stood out in Bultmann's day. Several questions arise: Who is Rudolf Karl Bultmann? How did Bultmann and his thinking demotologi? What are Bultmann's works? How Demithologization and Its Impact on 21st Century Era Christianity? The solution is: (1) Bultman is a New Testament figure based on his form criticism. (2) The demotology says that the entire New Testament is a myth. Especially the stories about the Lord Jesus. He argued that the experiences of the Lord Jesus' ministry, his miracles, death, and resurrection, were stories fabricated by the early church. Biblical evangelicals believe in the invalidity of the Bible and all supernatural events that are recorded in the Bible, both the Old Testament, as well as the events of the preaching of the Word carried out by the Lord Jesus Christ and the Rulers, accompanied by a statement of power, is a truth that also makes sense. Christian faith, cannot accept unreasonable things.Bultmann'sdemitologization should not be taken as a theology, but as a discourse of seeking the truth with no clear origin, a thought for those who do not know God, namely vain thoughts, dark understanding.

scholarly journals Mythology, poetry and theology

2006 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alphonso Groenewald
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Common Phenomenon ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Positive Term ◽  
The Bible

Human beings have always been mythmakers. However, in view of the heavy negative connotations attached to the word “myth”, the aim of this article may, inter alia, be seen as an attempt to “rehabilitate” the word “myth” as a positive term in order to describe one of the most common genres within the Old Testament tradition. The author will indicate that the presence of myth is a common phenomenon in the Bible, and specifically in the Psalter (as poetry). The authors of the Psalms used (re-used) myth, the “mythical” and/or mythical allusions in order to express some of their most profound theologising about Yahweh – the God of Israel – as well as their relationship to that God.

scholarly journals HIDUP DALAM KERAGAMAN: MASALAH DAN WAWASAN KERAGAMAN

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-72
Author(s):  
Barnabas Ludji
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Text Messages ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Ethical Perspective ◽  
Theology Of Religions ◽  
The Bible ◽  
God's People ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Biblical Perspective ◽  
The Church

As God's people, the church needs to realize that diversity is an essential nature of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia. Efforts to homogenize nations that are diverse in race, ethnicity, culture, and religion must be seen as efforts to divide the nation. Therefore religions in Indonesia, especially the Church of God must really be a motivator and encourage their citizens to be truly aware of the diversity of the nation and take part in fostering a lifeof life that respects diversity and tolerates life with fellow human beings with everything attached to himself, including his religion and culture. In connection with the above, the church leaders and theologians must really try to find an understanding of faith that encourages people to accept differences and be able to build a tolerant life together. Efforts in that direction can be built through the perspectives of all fields of theological studies. This paper contains efforts to build a tolerant shared life from a systematic perspective. Theology of Religions and the Biblical (Old Testament). The dogmaticperspective sees two basic needs, namely to nurture and increasingly take root in the faith of church members, and the need to determine attitudes towards the presence of other religious life together. Without forgetting the universal nature of religion as an expression of religious awareness. From an ethical perspective feel the need to develop global ethics that are universal. From the perspective of the science of religions, it is necessary to highlight the verses of the Scriptures possessed by each religion that is universal. While the Biblical perspective sees the importance of Christians understanding their holy books diachronically and holistically. Because improper ways of understanding the Bible make possible the birth of exclusive fundamentalists. Central themes, such as love, justice, truth, peace, redemption, goodness, and life are believed to be from God, all of which are universal. All biblical texts, if understood, diachronically, then the text messages are the central themes already mentioned.

scholarly journals Hannah’s Song: A Foreshadowing of the Magnificat

2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 15-24
Author(s):  
James W. Ellis
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Holy Spirit ◽  
Christian Faith ◽  
The Bible ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
The Holy Spirit ◽  
Great Relevance

Although women’s words account for a small portion of biblical scripture, the Bible records two related prayerful songs that were sung by female prophets: the song of Hannah, in the Old Testament, and the Magnificat of Mary, in the New Testament. This essay uses typological methodology to explore the songs’ connections, including their shared literary precedents and nearly identical theological themes. Their fundamental similarities suggest Hannah’s song served as a harbinger of the Magnificat. Hannah and Mary’s shared blessing, divinely ordained motherhood, and their shared inspiration, the Holy Spirit, explain the parallels of their prayerful verses and prophetic utterances, which were of great relevance for both covenants of the Judeo-Christian faith.

scholarly journals Le Christianisme et l'Animal: Une Histoire Difficile.

2011 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Éric Baratay
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Mental Image ◽  
Spiritual Support ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Christian Perspective ◽  
Divine Origin

Christianity has given a great deal of thought to animals in its effort to situate Man with regard to Creation, and to forge a mental image of the latter. This task was carried out by relying on the Bible, particularly the Old Testament, though its often unclear and elliptical treatment of animals also led theologians to call on the Greek philosophers to interpret it. This move was to eventually impose the obvious and presumably "natural" idea of Man's divine origin and that of the inferiority of animal creatures.  The animal got reduced to a material, mortal being bereft of any afterlife, destined to materially service human beings, or perhaps even to yield spiritual support to them by helping them to think of God. It was not until the 18th and 19th centuries that a minority of clerics, pastors and faithful, most often Protestants, though joined later by a lesser number of Catholics, sought to re-evaluate the animal from a Christian perspective, by reconsidering its nature, fate and role at Man's side. They thus deconstructed a conception constructed by history, one which was actually incongruent with Christianity.  In accordance with Durkheim's model of religion, such changes are not of a theological but social and cultural nature, Christianity serving in this process both as a reflection and a justification of ideas extraneous to it. El cristianismo ha meditado mucho sobre el animal para situar al hombre en la creación y para pensar en ella. Esto lo hace basándose en la Biblia, principalmente en el Antiguo Testamento, aunque su contenido a menudo es poco concreto y elíptico sobre los animales, lo cual ha llevado a los teólogos a ayudarse de teorías filosóficas griegas para interpretarlo. Dicho proceso poco a poco ha impuesto la convicción evidente, es decir, "natural", del origen divino del hombre y de una inferioridad del animal, considerado como una criatura material, mortal, sin futuro en el más allá, consagrado a servir de forma material a los hombres, incluso ayudándoles a nivel espiritual y para pensar en Dios. Sólo a partir de los siglos XVIII y XIX una minoría de clérigos, pastores y fieles, principalmente protestantes aunque también católicos en menor número y de forma más tardía, inició una revalorización cristiana del animal. Dichas voces minoritarias también han considerado la naturaleza del animal, su futuro y su papel junto al del hombre, desmontando así un concepto históricamente construido, para nada consustancial al cristianismo. Dichas teorías evolutivas no tienen un origen teológico sino social y cultural, el cristianismo sirve de eco y apoyo según el modelo durkheimiano de las religiones.  Le christianisme a beaucoup pensé l'animal pour situer l'homme dans la création et pour penser celle-ci. Cela a été fait en s'appuyant sur la Bible, notamment sur l'Ancien Testament, mais dont le contenu souvent incertain, elliptique à propos des animaux, a incité les théologiens à s'aider des philosophies grecques pour l'interpréter. Cette démarche a peu à peu imposé la conviction évidente, « naturelle », de l'origine divine de l'homme et d'une infériorité de l'animal, considéré comme une créature matérielle, mortelle, sans avenir dans l'au-delà, vouée à servir matériellement les hommes, voire à les assister spirituellement en les aidant à penser à Dieu. Ce n'est qu'à partir des XVIIIe-XIXe siècles qu'une minorité de clercs, de pasteurs et de fidèles, surtout des protestants mais aussi des catholiques en moindre nombre et plus tardivement, a entamé une revalorisation chrétienne de l'animal. Ces voix minoritaires ont reconsidéré aussi bien la nature de l'animal que son avenir et son rôle à côté de l'homme, déconstruisant ainsi une conception historiquement construite, en rien consubstantielle au christianisme. Ces évolutions ne sont pas d'origine théologique mais sociale et culturelle, le christianisme servant d'écho et de caution selon le modèle durkheimien des religions.  

scholarly journals Eksegese van 2 Petrus 3:1–2 en die hermeneuse daarvan met spesifieke verwysing na standpunte van die sogenaamde Nuwe Ateïste

2021 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Douw G. Breed
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Jesus Christ ◽  
Christian Faith ◽  
Specific Reference ◽  
Word Of God ◽  
Religious Conviction ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Great Pressure ◽  
2 Peter ◽  
Historical Model

Exegesis of 2 Peter 3:1–2 and its significance for contemporary Christians with specific reference to views of the so-called New Atheists. Die Bybel: 2020-vertaling, in Afrikaans translation of the Bible, has been introduced at a time when the Bible, the God of the Bible and believers who accept the Bible as the Word of God are seriously under suspicion. The question is how Christians are supposed to act and react in the light of these developments. The religious conviction of Peter’s first readers was under great pressure as a result of false teachers. This article exegetically indicates the guidance that Peter gives to his readers according to 2 Peter 3:1–2 and points out its significance for contemporary Christians. The exegesis in the article is concentrated on 2 Peter 3:1–2 within the context of the letter and is done according to the grammatical-historical model as practised in the Reformed tradition. The article cites examples of the New Atheists’ questioning of the Christian faith. Reference is then made to 2 Peter 3:1–2, regarding what believers must do when their faith is questioned. The article found that Christians today, like Peter’s first readers, are still under great pressure because of atheists’ hostile actions. Like Peter’s first readers, modern-day believers need guidance so that they do not succumb to the pressures on their steadfastness. Christians must think purely of the Old Testament prophets and the apostles of Jesus Christ and the revelation they received from God and Jesus Christ. When Christians think purely about prophets and apostles, they will understand the meaning of these people’s message in their present circumstances and will be able to act appropriately. 2 Peter 3:1–2 provides guidance to Christians whose faith is under pressure due to the hostile actions of unbelievers.Contribution: The article contributes to the understanding of the guidance that Peter gave to his first readers according to 2 Peter 3:1–2 and provides guidance to Christians whose faith, like Peter’s first readers, is being questioned.

scholarly journals BORROWINGS AS A MEANS OF COINING STYLISTIC SYNONYMS IN THE KRYMCHAK LANGUAGE

Movoznavstvo ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 321 (6) ◽  
pp. 53-59
Author(s):  
O. O.  TYSHCHENKO-MONASTYRSKA ◽  
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Early 20Th Century ◽  
Prominent Feature ◽  
Linguistic Data ◽  
The Bible ◽  
Book Of Daniel ◽  
Old Greek

Stylistic synonymy or hendiadys (Latinized from Old Greek έν διά δυοȋν «one through two») is an important feature frequently detected in Ottoman Turkish literary standard texts. Simultaneously several scholars found it as a prominent feature of the Bible language, precisely in Old Testament. Thus, it is not surprising to find it in the fragment of Book of Daniel in Krymchak manuscript, Yosif Gabai’s jonk, dated to the early 20th century, which is in the possession of the Crimean Ethnographic Museum. As linguistic data proves, Book of Daniel probably was translated much earlier in Ottoman period and represents Hebrew-Turkic translation literature. The translator employed hendiadys by using different strategies of combination, but usually they are two nouns, or two verbs connected by a conjunction. Phrases composed by Turkic and foreign words of the same meaning or synonymic loanwords with Turkic suffixes, expressing one notion. Stylistic figures found in the manuscript are represented by following types: Turkic-Hebrew, Hebrew-Arabic, Arabic-Persian, Persian-Turkic, Arabic-Mongolian, Arabic-Turkic. Some of them could be treated as religious hendiadys. Hendyadyoin is not attested in folklore texts of Yosif Gabai’s Krymchak jonk, but in religion texts, which are variety of standard.

The Concept of Palestine: The Conception Of Palestine from the Late Bronze Age to the Modern Period

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 143-202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nur Masalha
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Political Geography ◽  
Classical Antiquity ◽  
Late Bronze Age ◽  
Collective Consciousness ◽  
Ancient History ◽  
Master Narratives ◽  
The Bible ◽  
School History

The Concept of Palestine is deeply rooted in the collective consciousness of the indigenous people of Palestine and the multicultural ancient past. The name Palestine is the most commonly used from the Late Bronze Age (from 1300 BCE) onwards. The name Palestine is evident in countless histories, inscriptions, maps and coins from antiquity, medieval and modern Palestine. From the Late Bronze Age onwards the names used for the region, such as Djahi, Retenu and Cana'an, all gave way to the name Palestine. Throughout Classical Antiquity the name Palestine remained the most common and during the Roman, Byzantine and Islamic periods the concept and political geography of Palestine acquired official administrative status. This article sets out to explain the historical origins of the concept of Palestine and the evolving political geography of the country. It will seek to demonstrate how the name ‘Palestine’ (rather than the term ‘Cana'an’) was most commonly and formally used in ancient history. It argues that the legend of the ‘Israelites’ conquest of Cana'an’ and other master narratives of the Bible evolved across many centuries; they are myth-narratives, not evidence-based accurate history. It further argues that academic and school history curricula should be based on historical facts/empirical evidence/archaeological discoveries – not on master narratives or Old Testament sacred-history and religio-ideological constructs.

Witches and Forgers

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Mandelbrote
Keyword(s):  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
Republic Of Letters ◽  
The Bible ◽  
God's Word ◽  
1 Samuel ◽  
The Witch

Scepticism and loyalty represent the poles of van Dale’s career. Two contexts have been mentioned as relevant here: the seventeenth-century attack on magic and superstition, and the circles of friendship that created a contemporary Republic of Letters. This chapter evaluates both contexts, as well as others that may throw light on his relatively neglected attitude to the text of the Bible. It brings into focus two important intellectual episodes: his treatment of the account of the Witch of Endor (1 Samuel 28:3–25), and his engagement with Hellenistic sources relating to the text of the Old Testament, especially to the miraculous composition of the Septuagint. These issues brought van Dale to ask questions about God’s Word. The chapter explores the limits of his scepticism, the extent of his scholarship, and the role of friendship and isolation in his development. Finally, it draws attention to his place in contemporary Mennonite debates.

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