Jewish Scriptures Research Articles

Paul's Use of the Old Testament in 2 Corinthians

The Jewish scriptures provide a rich resource for Paul's reflection and argument in 2 Corinthians. Quotations and images from the Old Testament illuminate Paul's mission and suffering, and point to the theocentric perspective of his ministry, which has as its goal the praise of God's glory.

Books and Readers in the Early Church: A History of Early Christian Texts (review)

Reviewed by: Books and Readers in the Early Church: A History of Early Christian Texts Sheila Elizabeth McGinn Harry Y. Gamble. Books and Readers in the Early Church: A History of Early Christian Texts. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1995. Pp. xii + 337. $32.50. Harry Gamble fills a gap in our knowledge of the early Christian movement by exploring the extent to which early Christians were capable of writing and reading. Beginning by debunking the form critical distinction between Kleinliteratur and Hochliteratur, with the concomitant “romantic conception of the folk community” of early Christianity (20), G. illuminates the complexities of determining literacy levels in a multilingual society. Uncovering the sociological assumptions behind prior discussions, G. shows that the literary culture of the early church involved a rich collection of texts directed at a wide spectrum of socioeconomic classes. The early Christian use and interpretation of Jewish scriptures demonstrates “a scholastic concern and activity . . . from the begin- ning . . .” (24f). Gamble’s discussion of the Christian use of the codex is a fascinating example of historical reconstruction based on close examination of the evidence. Through a painstaking analysis (in chpt. 2), he makes a strong case for the seven-churches edition of Pauline letters being the incentive for the disproportionate use of the codex form by early Christians. Eventually, the wide currency of Christian books [End Page 149] shifted the traditional preference from inscribing literary works on scrolls to codices. In his discussion of how ancient books were transmitted and “published,” G. shows that Christian writings were disseminated very rapidly and over a wide geographical area. This does not presuppose a Christian “publishing house” in the contemporary sense of the term; the closest thing to this seems to be Origen’s private scriptorium in Alexandria. But there exists plenty of evidence that churches shared copies of their documents, and that collections of Christian writings were in circulation at very early dates (e.g., the collection of the letters of Dionysius of Corinth already during his own lifetime, ca. 170). The recurrent concern that texts might be adulterated (e.g., Rev. 22:18–19; cf. Eus. HE 5.20.2) testifies to a scholarly interest on the part of Christian writers. This interest in studying texts is confirmed by the proliferation not only of copies of early Christian writings texts but also their vernacular translations for use in the more remote sectors of the provinces. The practice of keeping stenographic records of church councils reinforced a strong Christian orientation toward the written word. Christians’ reliance on sacred scriptural texts was the most significant factor in giving Christianity the external appearance rather of a philosophical movement than a religious cult. The broad distribution of Christian books at an early date and their collection by even small local communities naturally led to the establishment of larger libraries in Christian centers such as Alexandria, Caesarea, and Rome. Even smaller churches had sizeable congregational libraries by the beginning of the fourth century. Diocletian’s edict ordering the confiscation and burning of Christian books attests that they were seen as vital to the continued viability of Christian communities. In his extensive discussion of libraries in antiquity, G. shows that early Christian libraries were relatively unique in their type of holdings. These church libraries “consisted primarily of religious texts used for religious purposes, a phenomenon closely paralleled in the Greco-Roman world only by Judaism.” (196f) Yet, even from the late second century, Christian libraries included texts from classical pagan authors, and became the medium through which these classical texts were collected and preserved (202). In his final chapter on “the Uses of Early Christian Books,” G. covers the gamut from public reading of the texts in communal worship, to private reading, to bibliomancy and other magical uses. His surprisingly unsupported claim that the public reading of texts like acta martyrii “was never confused with the reading of scripture” (218) is the exception that proves the rule to his careful and sequential analysis of the evidence. True, some may rather employ a “hermeneutic of suspicion” in analyzing the evidence of private ownership and reading of Christian texts, seeing in it a stronger aristocratic bias than does G. (e...

Jews and Christians Speak of Jesus (review)

Book Reviews BOOK REVIEWS 147 Jews and Christians Speak of Jesus, edited by Arthur E. Zannoni. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1994. 191 pp. $12.00 (P). In recent years, topics in dialogue meetings between Jews and Christians have often focused on practical matters of current concern rather than the divisive issues offaith and teaching. This volume shows the measure of maturity that has been achieved in Jewish-Christian relations by tackling head-on one of the most central issues between these two groups, namely, Jesus of Nazareth. The essays in this volume, by recognized Jewish and Christian scholars, were originally presented as papers at a series of symposia sponsored by the Center for Jewish-Christian Learning at the University of St. Thomas (St. Paul and Minneapolis). This set of essays is an attempt to look afresh at the Jewish origins of Jesus, casting new light on the relations ofJesus to his contemporaryJews and on the process by which early Christians began to ascribe messiahship and divinity to Jesus. The book is set up admirably to facilitate discussion and rethinking of old issues. Each of the four parts of the book focuses on a crucial aspect ofunderstandingJesus. Part one, with essays by ShayeJ. D. Cohen and Anthony J. Saldarini, explores the diversity within Judaism at the time ofJesus. In part two, Lawrence H. Schiffman and E. P. Sanders examine the Jewishness ofJesus and how he related to the Judaisms of his time. In part three, Paula Fredriksen and John R. Donahue trace the background of the idea of messiah and the path by which early Christians came to consider Jesus as the messiah. And in part four, Alan F. Segal and Monika K. Hellwig reflect on how Christians began to make the move in their interpretation of Jesus from Christ to God-and how this radical move relates to the Jewish background of Christianity. These essays provide a helpful sampling of recent scholarship relating to understanding Jesus of Nazareth. There certainly is broad agreement among all these scholars that Jesus must first of all be seen within the context of the Jewish world in which he lived-that is perhaps the central theme of the whole volume. But within that general consensus these essays also present a fertile diversity in interpretation, bringing the reader into the lively and ongoing scholarly discussion. For example, Cohen argues that, for all the diversity of the Judaisms of this period, there was a clear assumption both amongJews and among 148 SHOFAR Fall 1996 Vol. 15, No. 1 outsiders that Judaism was a unified system. Saldarini, on the other hand, sketches out the factions and distinct groups within Jewish society, importing modern ideas of sects and deviance to highlight the function of the diverse groups. Schiffman argues that almost all the sayings of Jesus reflect similar ideas expressed by otherJews, especially in the later rabbinic collections. Sanders makes a similar point about Jesus' relation to Jewish law, proposing that Jesus did not wish to oppose traditional religious law, even in the reported conflicts over sabbath observance and unclean foods. Scholars have sometimes emphasized that, while Jesus remained within the Jewish orbit, Paul and the other Christians who began to ascribe messiahship and divinity toJesus moved far beyond theirJewish roots. The essays in this volume suggest a much more nuanced view of Christian development within the Jewish context. Paul's construction ofthe message and the mission of Christianity, Fredriksen finds, fits entirely within the views and concerns ofJudaism. For example, the Gentiles Paul preached to were actually those who customarily attended synagogues without being Jewish converts, Gentiles who thus knew Jewish scripture and tradition. Donahue argues that the narratives of Jesus' suffering and death, which have been so divisive in Jewish-Christian relations, were motivated not by history but by theological concerns and contemporary issues. One important point in reexamining these narratives, according to Donahue, is to realize that Jesus was not tried by a Jewish "supreme court" (the Sanhedrin), as has traditionally been supposed, but actually by a type of informal group called in to arbitrate local cases. Concerning the ascription of divinity to Jesus by Christians, Segal suggests that this was not an alien non-Jewish...

Book Review: Medicine and Hygiene in the Works of Flavius Josephus, and: Healing in the Second Tempel [sic] Period

Reviewed by: Medicine and Hygiene in the Works of Flavius Josephus, and: Healing in the Second Tempel [sic] Period Gary B. Ferngren Samuel S. Kottek. Medicine and Hygiene in the Works of Flavius Josephus. Studies in Ancient Medicine, no. 9. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1994. xiii + 217 pp. $68.75; Nlg. 120.00. Larry P. Hogan. Healing in the Second Tempel [sic] Period. Novum Testamentum et Orbis Antiquus, no. 21. Freiburg, Switzerland: Universitätsverlag; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1992. 337 pp. Sw. Fr. 98.00. The two books under review examine medicine and healing in ancient Judaism. In his study of Josephus, Samuel S. Kottek extends Max Neuberger’s brief treatment of the first-century Jewish historian in his monographic study Die Medizin im Flavius Josephus (1919). Kottek deals in separate chapters with nearly every aspect of medicine in Josephus: physicians, disease and epidemics, hygiene and public health, war injuries and traumatology, psychiatry and psychology, therapeutics and materia medica, and his use of medical metaphors. Five appendices deal, inter alia, with hygiene and healing among the Essenes, Josephus’s opinion of suicide, and Herod’s last illness. Kottek’s monograph is not intended to provide a comprehensive study of his subject. All but two of the book’s seven chapters and one of its four appendices have previously appeared in print elsewhere. Kottek’s lexical and philological approach is almost entirely descriptive, and one misses any detailed analysis of the subjects treated. Thus, for example, Kottek declines to discuss the identification of biblical leprosy or the background of Jewish rites of purification (p. 78 n. 88). The first two chapters compare medical cases mentioned by Josephus with parallel biblical or midrashic accounts, with some attempt at retrospective diagnosis. Larry P. Hogan’s study of healing in the Second-Temple period (the last five centuries b.c.) is a published version of his Ph.D. thesis, which was submitted to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He examines attitudes to the body in noncanonical and nonrabbinic Jewish literature as well as in the New Testament. His observation that “the concern of the Hebrew Scriptures is not biomedical, but rather socio-cultural and spiritual” (p. 2) is essential to understanding the place of healing in Jewish literature. It is this emphasis that gives rise to the frequent use of the healing of the body as a metaphor of spiritual healing (and leads not infrequently to a linguistic ambiguity that Hogan himself occasionally fails to notice). Hogan describes Exodus 15:25–26 as the most important Old Testament reference to healing. In the Jewish Scriptures God is depicted as both the ultimate and the direct cause of healing, and the two are often not distinguished. Hogan’s approach is literary-philological and he provides a close exegesis of the texts under examination. He devotes a separate chapter to each of several Jewish pseudepigraphical and apocryphal works, as well as to the Qumran literature and the works of Philo of Alexandria and Josephus. [End Page 699] When he turns to the New Testament, Hogan discusses medicine and healing in each of the four Gospels, the writings of Paul, the Epistle of James, and Revelation. He rightly rejects the assertion of scholars like Ulrich Mueller and Otto Böcher that New Testament writers attribute all disease to a demonic etiology (pp. 232–33, 249). But his treatment tends to be brief and sometimes superficial, and it contains occasional errors and misunderstandings. Even lengthy discussions (like that of the important passage on healing in James 5:14–15) are not very penetrating. Moreover, Hogan intentionally avoids questions of sources, historicity, provenance, and authorship (p. 232), a decision that prevents him from grappling with some of the most crucial problems of interpretation. Hence he merely touches on issues that demand extended discussion (e.g., the difference between the place of healing in the writings of Paul and in the Gospels/Acts). While there is much in the volume that is useful, one regrets that Hogan’s treatment (particularly of the New Testament) does not explore deeply enough issues that require greater theological and historical analysis than he gives them. The bibliography is detailed and comprehensive. Gary B. Ferngren...

Jesus: Miriam's Child, Sophia's Prophet: Critical Issues in Feminist Christology

Jesus: Miriam's Child, Sophia's Prophet is the long-awaited sequel to the author's best-selling scholarly work of a decade ago, In Memory of Her: A Feminist Reconstruction of Christian Origins. Translated into eight languages, In Memory of Her is undoubtedly the best-known work throughout the world to date by a feminist biblical scholar. In her new book, Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza charts the rise and fall into amnesia of the liberating movement gathered around Jesus as the prophet and messenger of Divine Sophia, or Woman Wisdom, the all-powerful female figure in early Jewish Scriptures and theology. While teachings about Women Wisdom permeate the texture of the Christian (New) Testament, they were quickly clothed in what the author calls kyriocentric (ruling-male) language. Not simply a work of historical reconstruction, Jesus: Miriam's Child, Sophia's Prophet is a work of constructive feminist theology, showing how the historically unrealized possibilities of Woman Wisdom can offer the vision of a different world and a different church. Re-imagining the Jesus movement in a feminist key transgresses the boundaries set by history, gender, and doctrine. By assessing various Jesus traditions and interpretations as to whether they can engender liberating visions for today the book seeks to challenge and transform masculine Christian identity formations and exclusivist theological frameworks toward the basileia vision of justice and well-being for all.

What Shall We Say that Abraham Found? The Controversy behind Romans 4

In Romans 4 Paul appealed to the precedent of the patriarch Abraham to argue three points on the basis of the Jewish scriptures. First, righteousness was reckoned to Abraham because of his faith and not because of his observance of the law (Rom 4:1–8); second, righteousness was reckoned to Abraham before Abraham's circumcision (4:9–12); and third, God's promise to Abraham and his “seed” came through faith, not through the Mosaic Law (4:13–17a). All three points are based on Paul's interpretation of Gen 15:6 and closely related texts. Paul appealed to Abraham in order to show that Abraham was meant to be the father not only of the circumcised but also of the uncircumcised (Rom 4:11–12,16–17). Paul also insisted that what was written about Abraham was meant not only for Abraham but also for those who believe that God raised Jesus from the dead (4:23–25).

Creatio Ex Nihilo. The Doctrine of "Creation out of Nothing" in Early Christian Thought

A unique study challenging the assumption that the doctrine of 'creation out of nothing' was inherited by Christianity along with the Jewish scriptures which the Church adopted.

Habakkuk (review)

Book Reviews 135 to her "judging" Israel. Instead he assigns the role of leader to the less than impressive Barak: apparently "even a bad male leader is better than a good female leader" (p. 81). Josephus does not actually portray Jephthah 's daughter negatively, but neither does he give much attention to her story. He depicts her as dutiful toward her father and her country, and he subtly shapes this depiction to make it suit his particular audience (for example, by echoing the Greek story of Iphegenia, who was devoted to Artemis in exchange for her father's victory over the Trojans). Josephus adds the apologetic note that God did not approve ofJephthah's act, and that it was illegal according to the Jewish scriptures. In recounting the story of Hannah, Josephus omits any reference to the taunting of Peninnah, leaving the reader to infer that her vexation was due solely to her frantic obsession with having a child. He emphasizes Hannah's subordination to Elkanah, and he omits any reference to her nursing of Samuel. Josephus's expanded depiction of the witch of Endor, on the other hand, greatly magnifies her positive traits. In his account the witch exemplifies the Roman ideals of clementia and humanitas. Josephus even describes her slaughter of her fatted calf for Samuel in terms echoing Nathan's parable of the poor man and the ewe (2 Sam 12:1-14). He adds a lengthy epilogue in which he commends her virtues and encourages others to emulate her example. Brown suggests that Josephus depicts the witch so positively in an attempt to appeal to his educated pagan audience, "for which the occult was fashionable," and whose members "would have seen no incongruity in a necromancer being of such exemplary character" (p. 204). Brown reads the texts carefully, and ably correlates the data she uncovers with knowledge from other sources of this era. Some readers may find the book a bit repetitive (with numerous summaries and conclusions, perhaps reflecting the work's origin as a dissertation), but others will welcome these clear restatements of Brown's results. Brown has made a perceptive' and interesting contribution to our knowledge of attitudes toward women in the biblical world. Susan R. Garrett Yale Divinity School Habakkuk, by Robert D. Haak. ieiden: E. J. Brill, 1992. 177 pp. $57.25. This book is a revision of Haak's Ph.D. dissertation (University of Chicago Divinity School, G. W. Ahlstrom [advisor]). Firmly rooted in the 136 SHOFAR Spring 1994 Vol. 12, No.3 historical-critical approach, Haak searches for an understanding of the historical (original) message of Habakkuk. Since such a message is fully intelligible only in the context of the historical situation in which it was created, Haak also studies the social and historical circumstances of the late monarchic period, which is, according to Haak, the time of Habakkuk's message. Haak first discusses the state of the masoretic text of Habakkuk and compares it especially with ancient Hebrew texts and Greek versions. His goal here is to develop general guidelines for the reconstruction of the original text of Habakkuk. Haak's conclusions are similar to those ofD. N. Freedman and others who maintain the general priority of the consonantal masoretic text (hereafter MT), but not necessarily that of the vocalization tradition attested in the MT. Haak next approaches the issue of the genre of the prophecy of Habakkuk. He concludes that the prophecy should be characterized as a complaint, and that the woe oracles (2:6-19) and the psalm (3:2-19) are expanded sections that are integral to the complaint. Haak then presents a translation of his proposed late monarchic text of the prophecy of Habakkuk. He also provides a comprehensive set of notes (pp. 29-106) that explain the textual and interpretive decisions reflected in the translation. It is impossible to summarize in a few lines the many discussions presented there. It is worth noting, however, that Haak's translation of the reconstructed original text strongly disagrees in numerous instances with the "usual" English translations of Habakkuk. Haak then moves to discussion of the political and social history of the late monarchic period in order to...

The Book of God: A Response to the Bible (review)

Hebrew Studies 31 (1990) 178 Reviews and contributes to the length. Similarly, the reader must repeatedly make major transitions from the somewhat dry, scholarly, abstract style of most of the commentary to those sections which are not only more theological and reflective, but even didactic or homiletical. Eileen Schuller McMaster University Hamilton, Ontario LBS 4KJ THE BOOK OF GOD: A RESPONSE TO THE BmLE. By Gabriel Josipovici. Pp. xv + 350. New Haven: Yale University, 1988. Cloth. Gabriel Josipovici is the author of many works of fiction and nonfiction , and his articles include the essay on the Epistle to the Hebrews in The Literary Guide to the Bible, edited by Robert Alter and Frank Kermode. This book on the Bible is a stimulating conversation on reading and criticism. I would heartily recommend it to anyone concerned with biblical texts and Western literature. For me it was a good reading and, in my view, it would be an excellent secondary text to use for certain intermediate and advanced courses in the Bible. Yet my praise must be qualified. As interesting and instructive as this series of essays is, I find it flawed by its characteristically contemporary literary bias that gives the advantage to language in the form of narrative. To be fair, Josipovici does take into account the legal portions of the Torah and the genealogies, but I would argue that he neglects the very center of religion and culture, namely, the ritual of sacrifice and its various ramifications which include, above all, the role of the victim and the scapegoat. It will not do to rejoin that this is a treatise in literary criticism, not analysis of ritual and sacrifice, for the author's view of literature, particularly biblical literature (see below), is such that a given work's own mode of establishing a world, its own "truth," must be taken into account. Josipovici suggests this perspective graphically with the jacket cover image that is repeated on the page facing p. 3: an illustration from a late Ethiopic biblical manuscript that shows Moses receiving the tablets of the Law. Yet in spite of this pictorial epitaph, he is like most critics and biblical narratologists in his silence about the relation of Torah to sacrifice. In my opening statement I used the word "conversation" advisedly. Josipovici carries on a conversation with the reader, addressing the reader Hebrew Studies 31 (1990) 179 Reviews in the very mode of exploration, discovery, and understanding that he emphasizes in biblical narrative. In the best British fashion he is anecdotal without being disorganized, personal without being sentimental. I infer from the many conversation partners he acknowledges in the preface, as well as from the mention of certain periodicals where his essays have appeared, that he is Jewish. However, his discussion of the NT is quite fair, whether or not one agrees with his conclusions, and in fact he presents some of the most helpful insights on the themes of "gospe}"' and "incarnation " that I have encountered. Nonetheless, I think it is accurate to say that most of the positive influences on his thinking are Jewish, and the point of view he consistently asks us to consider is informed by an interplay of the Jewish Scriptures and the history of the modem novel. For Josipovici, the Bible both is and is not literature. It is not mere literature, but literature that speaks to us "authoritatively-about the nature of authority" (p. 26). But then any great literary work is not just literature. " ...No one would read [the Aeneid] 'with no interest in Rome', and yet no one would deny that it was a poem and not a sacred text" (p. 24). The difference between the Bible and other literary works is that the Bible is regarded as authoritative, that is, canonical-not only in the theological sense, but because it informs our cultural and religious presuppositions about how to read any book. Josipovici recognizes that the Hebrew Bible (HB) and the NT have entered into Western culture as two parts of one book. For the Christian tradition the HB is the OTt a kind of arch hanging in mid-air until completed by the NT. By contrast, the...

Jewish Bible personages in the New Testament

This unique book analyzes in a comprehensive manner all of the characters from the Jewish Bible who appear or are mentioned in the New Testament. The author traces the patterns and analyzes the possible reasons why the various writers of the New Testament used certain Jewish Bible personages to illustrate their theology. Beginning with an overview of the relationship of the New Testament to Jewish Scripture, including proof texting, allusion, allegory and typology and a spectrum of scholarship on this subject, this book suggests that the New Testament writers were attempting to affirm their authority and confirm their authenticity by elaborating this central relationship. The book then outlines the frequency with which individual Jewish Bible personages appear in the New Testament. Charts tabulate such appearances and map out their location in the various New Testament writings. The book's main task is a study of the 39 personages, in terms of their theological function in the New Testament. An invaluable resource for beginning and advanced students of New Testament.

Justin Martyr and the Restoration of Philosophy

Our knowledge of the life of Justin “the Martyr” depends almost entirely on what he himself tells us, especially in the introduction to theDialogue with Trypho, where he recounts his journey to the true philosophy, Christianity. It appears that he was born in the late first or early second century at Flavia Neapolis in Samaria into a Greek-speaking family. Although he refers to himself in one passage as a Samaritan by race (Dial. 120.6), this background seems unlikely, since there is no evidence that he was familiar with any Samaritan religious traditions. Rather, it appears that his ancestors were originally Greek or Roman colonists who settled in Flavia Neapolis after its establishment by Vespasian in A.D. 72. In any case, he certainly was not Jewish, for he did not encounter the Jewish scriptures until later in life.

The Use of Jewish Scriptures in 1 Thessalonians

The Use of Jewish Scriptures in 1 Thessalonians

Antiphons for the Benedicite at Lauds

The Canticle of the Three Children is the hymn sung by Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego when they were cast into the fiery furnace by order of Nebuchadnezzar. The episode is described in Daniel 3; but the canticle itself is not present in either Hebrew or Aramaic in the canonical form of the Jewish Scriptures. It was, however, present in the form of the Jewish scriptures from which the Septuagint and later the Vulgate were translated.

To Set the Record Straight: Biblical Women's Studies

In the early 1970's women's studies emerged as an independent discipline. In all areas of scientific knowledge courses and research projects were developed to expand our knowledge of women's cultural-scientific contributions as well as to challenge androcentric texts, scholarly frameworks, and scientific reconstructions that overlooked or marginalized women. Women's studies in religion participate in these intellectual and educational goals of the Women's Studies movement, while feminist theology and feminist studies in religion share in the liberative goals of the feminist movement in society and church. In the context of this two-fold movement, feminist Biblical studies have moved from the concentration on what men have said about women in the Bible and from the apologetic-thematic focus on “women in the Bible” to a new critical reading of Biblical texts in a feminist theological perspective. In this process we have moved from discussing statements of Paul or the “Fathers” and Rabbis about women to the rediscovery of Biblical women's leadership and oppression as crucial for the revelatory process of God's liberation reflected in the Jewish and Christian Scriptures.

Masturbation: Vice or virtue?

The Kinsey research team has clearly defined masturbation as "deliberate self stimulation which effects sexual arousal."1 This term is commonly used by social scientists in spite of its etymology. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, "masturbate" is a compound from the Latin roots manus (hand) and stuprare (to defile). Accordingly it is defined in that standard work as "to practice self abuse." That was certainly the meaning of the term when it was first used two centuries ago. Social scientists who are sensitive to etymology realize that the word "masturbation" carries too much manual association to be fully descriptive and, of more concern, has traditionally carried a negative moral judgment. Consequently, neologisms have been created for the phenomenon in recent years. But they also have their limitations and have not been accorded full acceptance. "Automanipulation" is too mechanical and vague; "autoerotism" is too broad, for it can also describe, for example, one's response to sensuous works of art; and "auto-orgasm" incorrectly assumes that orgasm is always the aim of this endeavor. Even though masturbation has a value-loaded etymology, it will be presumed that its original connotation can be disregarded?even as "manu facturing" is no longer associated with making by hand. It is often wrongly stated that masturbation is dealt with in the Bible. Kinsey, for example, claims that it is there treated as a greater sin than engaging in coitus outside of marriage.2 Also, the Catholic-edited Dictionary of Moral Theol ogy pronounced: "Direct voluntary pollution is properly called masturba tion. ... In the Holy Scriptures it is condemned as a sin which excludes a person from the Kingdom of Heaven."3 Actually masturbation is not mentioned in the Jewish Scriptures or in the New Testament. Why is it that that nonpru dish literature, which frankly refers to zo?philia, homosexuality, and other sexual variations, does not discuss masturbation? It is safe to assume that its omission displays that its practice was of no moral or cultic concern to the many writers of books now called the Bible. In this essay I shall first review in historical sequence the treatments of masturbation as a vice in the postbiblical Judaeo-Christian tradition. Then I shall focus attention on some benefits that can result from masturbation.

Pre-Islamic Monotheism in Arabia

The search for the presumed “sources” of Muhammad's religious ideas, as these are expressed in the Qur'an, has inspired a considerablerange of studies, varying in tone from tentative to polemical. Most writers on the topic seek to demonstrate either a predominantly Jewish or a predominantly Christian “influence.” It is relatively easy, of course, to compile a catena of passages from the Qur'an which can be paralleled by Scriptural texts or by haggadic or apocryphal materials or compared with the practices of Jewish or Christian communities. The argument tends to become inconclusive on the whole; Jewish scholars who argue for a Jewish source or sources are apt to forgetthat the Old Testament was as much a part of Christian as of Jewish Scripture and that even haggadic supplements had long since been taken up into Christian writings; Christian scholars who argue for a Christian source or sources are somewhat embarrassed by Muhammad's decisive rejection of Christological doctrine;and each side can produce valid arguments against the other.

Biblical Authority and the Continental Reformation

That the distinctively ‘Protestant’ understanding of biblical authority can be grasped only by seeing it against its medieval background, may appear to be a truism. But the affirmation is necessary, if for no other reason, at least because the relationship of Protestantism to Catholicism has too often been interpreted as one of simple opposition in every respect. In part, however, the Reformers' understanding of biblical authority arises directly out of scholasticism, not by conscious opposition, but by unquestioning acceptance. The differentia of Protestantism cannot be defined simply by appeal to the so-called ‘formal’ and ‘material’ principles, unless the twin principles be themselves carefully defined. There was nothing new in the mere fact that the Reformers resorted to the Bible for verification of their theological convictions, nor even in their affirmation of the necessity of grace for salvation. The medieval Church had a rigorous doctrine of biblical inspiration, and it found grace as indispensable for justification as did the Reformers themselves.No doubt the earliest disciples took their view of inspiration and authority from Judaism. To begin with, their Scriptures were the Jewish Scriptures, and they themselves were all Jews. But it was natural enough that the Jewish doctrine of ‘verbal inspiration’ should persist even after the Church had become predominantly Gentile. The authority of Scripture is made to rest upon a theory of inspiration: the words of Scripture are binding because, in the last analysis, they are the Words of God.

Early Jewish-Christian Writing

A N examination of the Jewish Apocrypha, Pseudepigrapha, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and Pirke Aboth reveals features which apparently were prevalent in Judaism contemporary with early Christianity. When this is followed by an examination of early Christian literature, one finds that these Jewish features occur much more frequently in some works than in others. The inference is that documents and pericopes containing many Jewish features were probably Jewish-Christian in origin, i.e., written by Jewish-Christian authors. Careful reading of documents from the pens of gentile Christians, such as the Epistle of Barnabas and Justin's First Apology and Dialogue with Trypho the Jew, reveals that their authors accepted some Jewish ideas, but nevertheless avoided other Jewish ideas and attitudes. At times gentile Christians interpreted the Jewish Scriptures or applied Jewish ideas in ways which are not found in either the Jewish or the Jewish-Christian writings of that period. Thus the writings of the Jewish Christians of the first and second centuries possess certain characteristics which are relatively rare in the literature of the gentile Christians of the same period. After the middle of the second century the line of distinction becomes much less definite. After that date gentile Christians accepted more Jewish ideas, largely as the result of (1) the gradual acceptance of the authority of New Testament books and (2) the dwindling of the friction between Judaism and Christianity. Some scholars believe that certain early Christian books, both within and without the New Testament, were written by Jewish Christians. Other scholars believe that the

Grundtvigs syn på forkyndelsen

Grundtvigs syn på forkyndelsen

The Jewish Scriptures. The Books of the Old Testament in the Light of Their Origin and History. Amos Kidder Fiske

Previous articleNext article FreeBook ReviewsThe Jewish Scriptures. The Books of the Old Testament in the Light of Their Origin and History. Amos Kidder Fiske George S. GoodspeedGeorge S. Goodspeed Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Volume 8, Number 1Jul., 1896 Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/471918 Views: 24Total views on this site Journal History This article was published in The Biblical World (1893-1920), which is continued by The American Journal of Theology (1897-1920). PDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.