Theological Reading Research Articles

The Incomparable God: Readings in Biblical Theology by Brent A. Strawn (review)

The Incomparable God: Readings in Biblical Theology by Brent A. Strawn (review)

Anatomizing God?

Abstract This essay analyses Francesca Stavrakopoulou’s God: An Anatomy with reference to some general questions about the nature of biblical interpretation. Stavrakopoulou’s core contention is that Persian-period theological editing has obscured the original nature of Yahweh, who was not different from any other ancient male deity of southwest Asia. That is, Yahweh was bodily with the desires and practices of a violent and sexually active male, no more than a human projection. Four questions are put to her thesis. First, how well does she understand the kind of classic theological reading which she rejects? Secondly, is her outworking of her core thesis self-consistent, or does it function to warrant a distinctive reading strategy for what has not been editorially obscured but is rather the plain sense of the biblical text? Thirdly, does she do justice to the metaphorical dimensions of language in Hebrew and religious language generally? Fourthly, does she appropriately distinguish the nature of Israel’s scriptures from the religious history that may underlie them? Finally, an analogy is drawn with the work of Robin Lane Fox, in exploring the differences that an interested approach may, or may not, make to ancient historical and biblical interpretation.

(Un)likely Allies: Public Theology and Theological Interpretation in Conversation

Abstract Theological interpretation of Scripture and public theology have so far said very little to one another. To a certain extent, this is understandable, as the two are involved in separate projects with differing priorities and questions. However, a mutually beneficial dialogue is possible. Public theology has yet to devote significant attention to the role of Scripture in public engagement and theological interpretation provides a framework better suited than historical criticism for allowing the Bible to speak to current situations. In return, public theology can help theological interpretation to clarify the public nature of the ecclesial community through the development of a public ecclesiology in order to better hear the voice of God in Scripture through a more holistic theological reading, one with a thicker defense against ecclesial tendencies toward authoritarianism and privatism. In establishing the possibility of a mutually beneficial relationship, this article provides a rationale for the relationship between public theology and theological interpretation to begin outright.

Where Are My Roots? Reading Jeremiah 17:5–10 with Karl Rahner

Abstract A theological approach to reading Scripture advocates that biblical interpretation should not only shape our theological commitments but also be shaped by them. From within this hermeneutical framework, I wish to address Jer 17:5–10, a section where one can find two contrasting images. On the one hand, vv. 5–8 speak about blessed and cursed persons; their differing fates arise from the way these individuals orient their hearts. On the other hand, vv. 9–10 stress that the human heart is devious, and only God knows it. However, how can the human heart be both decisive for one’s destiny and at the same time deceitful and unknowable? While diachronic and synchronic approaches present their own solutions to this interpretative crux, I hope to contribute to the ongoing discussion by evoking the work of Karl Rahner, whose understanding of grace and truth deeply resonates with both polarities of Jeremiah’s passage. The resulting theological reading then not only amplifies the subject matter of Jeremiah’s perplexing oracles but also offers a construal of faith that honestly engages the complexities inherent in our pluralistic culture.

Readings in Biblical Theology

Readings in Biblical Theology

A theological reading of the ‘welcome’ offered by God and Christ in Romans 14–15 using the Septuagint

AbstractThis article proposes a theological emphasis to the definition of προσλαμβάνω in Romans 14–15. Previous accounts have emphasised the domestic and social implication of Paul's imperative—‘welcome one another’ (Rom. 15:7a). The result has been that what Paul might have meant by God's and Christ's ‘welcome’ (Rom. 14:3 and 15:7b) has been governed by the ethical imperative. In order to investigate the ‘welcome’ of God and Christ, this article proposes a context of three important Septuagintal antecedents as yet unconsidered: 1 Samuel 12, Psalm 18, and Psalm 65: In this context, God's and Christ's ‘welcome’ in Rom. 14–15 incorporates notions of justification, election, salvation, and unified worship. A theological reading of προσλαμβάνω, using these intertextual resources, therefore provides a stronger position from which to understand Paul's imperative—‘welcome one another’.

The Importance of the Nicean Creed for Christian Identity: A Theological–Pastoral Reading from the Philosophy of Austin and Lakatos

The act of believing implies an inner assent, but it is neither limited to a blind acceptance of certain arguments nor to an empty repetition, without practical consequences, of a set of concepts that one claims to defend. This article, allied with the philosophy of language (Austin) and the philosophy of science (Lakatos) will aim, on the one hand, to present a philosophical–theological reading of believing and, on the other hand, an understanding of the implications of the assent of faith regarding the Nicean Creed for Christian identity. The research briefly presented here will refer to the firm core of Christianity, as well as the arguments that aid its defence and understanding vis-à-vis believers and non-believers.

Carl Schmitt’s Political Theology: Legitimizing Authority after Secularization

In the last years, a theological turn had a pervasive influence in the reception of Carl Schmitt’s writings. According to this view, his thought has a strong, substantial religious foundation. With regards to understanding not only Schmitt’s position but also his current influence in authoritarian countries, this essay argues that this interpretation is misleading and proposes a different and comprehensive analysis of Schmitt’s concept of political theology that replaces it in a political-legal framework. Against the theological reading, it argues that Schmitt’s concept of “political theology” refers to his own conception of legal theory as an attempt to relegitimize authority in a secular context. As “political theology,” this legal theory is designed to overcome normativism and parliamentarism by “substantializing” the legal form. Using Schmitt’s post-1933 works as an example, the essay shows that, as theology translates faith into a written doctrine, legal theory must, according to Schmitt, substantialize the legal form by translating the political idea into jurisprudence. Hence, this article concludes that Schmitt’s theory might be described as “political theology” but only in a formal, ideological sense. It is part of an authoritarian theory that is not religious but uses theology to revive an appearance of absolute legitimacy.

A Theological Reading of the Russian Regime: Sergei Bulgakov and the Theocratic Principle in 1917 and Today

A Theological Reading of the Russian Regime: Sergei Bulgakov and the Theocratic Principle in 1917 and Today

Recent Theological Approaches to the Johannine Epistles

Abstract1 John has been rather roughly handled in recent exegesis, notably in Raymond Brown's Anchor Bible commentary, which sees the epistle as badly written, logically incoherent, full of nasty polemics and bereft of any claim to be considered a mystical text. The two books here reviewed mix exegesis and theology in a kind of pincer movement, which succeeds only partly in closing in on the treasures of Johannine contemplation. Despite their limits, the two books reveal a major desideratum of Johannine studies, namely, the need of a theological reading which will both do justice to the power of Johannine thought and connect it with the questions that occupy, or should occupy, theologians today.

Against theological readings of Sartre

AbstractThis essay addresses ‘the God‐haunted Atheist paradox’ in Sartre's early philosophy and argues against a series of efforts to show that Sartre maintains a ‘secular theology’. It shows that if Sartre's ontology is correct, the God of ‘classic theism’ cannot possibly exist. It argues against two sophisticated efforts to show that theological influences infiltrate Sartre's early ontology and permeate his moral psychology. It also rejects the claim that Sartre's (Existentialism is a Humanism, 1946/2007, Yale University Press) distinction between secular and religious existentialism ‘has no basis in fact’. It shows that Sartre appropriates religious language in order to give debunking secular explanations for religious phenomena and that he inverts traditional Christian values. It concludes that Sartre is an anti‐theologian.

TEOLOGI BELASKASIH ALLAH DALAM PUISI “SEPOTONG HATI DI ANGKRINGAN” (2022) KARYA JOKO PINURBO

Every human being longs for intimacy with God, receiving His merciful grace. Many of Joko Pinurbo's poems raise the theme of the closeness of human relations. One of Pinurbo's articulate poems voicing social compassion is entitled "A Piece of Heart in Angkringan." However, the theological reading of God's mercy in the poem "A Piece of Heart in Angkringan" has not been explored among professional Indonesian theologians. Pope Francis encouraged pastoral theologians as "influencers of the Gospel" to utilize narrative, aesthetic and digital sources to communicate the Catholic faith to the world. Theological research on this poem can contribute to deepening the theology of God's mercy amidst the challenges of globalization of indifference. Both authors are interested in exploring the theology of God's mercy in the poem "A Piece of Heart in Angkringan" by Joko Pinurbo. How does poet Joko Pinurbo describe God's mercy in the poem "A Piece of Heart in Angkringan?" The two authors want to connect the social compassion implied in the poem "A Piece of Heart in Angkringan" with the theology of God's mercy. This research applies a theological reading method to poetry. The research results show the theological content of God's mercy in the words and metaphors that poet Joko Pinurbo explores in the poem "A Piece of Heart in Angkringan." The poet Joko Pinurbo's poetic exploration aligns with Pope Francis' exploration of the theology of God's mercy: "God is present amid His people, a presence that expresses His compassion and solidarity" (Misericordiae Vultus).

Theology and politics in Northeast India: Interpreters in an evolving intellectual terrain

Theology from the northeast of India draws heavily from the cultural capital of its constituents. As an unintended consequence, tribal theology invokes a past that renders its theological discourse as rather distant from the evolving political economy of faith communities in the northeast of India. A turn from legislating what tribal theology is to interpreting the politics of tribal communities provides an important intervention. Interpreting politics as significations and management inevitably necessitates self-reflexivity to render an honest reading of theology in the northeast of India.

Friendship as ecclesial binding. A reading of St Augustine's theology of friendship from his In Iohannis Evangelium Tractatus. By Phillip J. Brown. (Studia Traditionis Theologiae; Explorations in Early and Medieval Theology, 48.) Pp. 201. Turnhout: Brepols, 2022. €65 (paper). 978 2 503 59924 3

Friendship as ecclesial binding. A reading of St Augustine's theology of friendship from his In Iohannis Evangelium Tractatus. By Phillip J. Brown. (Studia Traditionis Theologiae; Explorations in Early and Medieval Theology, 48.) Pp. 201. Turnhout: Brepols, 2022. €65 (paper). 978 2 503 59924 3

Adamic Christology and its Implications for Christian Soteriology

The subject of Christology is indispensable in Christianity because the entire Christian gospel centers on the person and works of Jesus Christ. One of the Christological models espoused in the New Testament is Adamic Christology with its focus on the striking analogy between Adam’s sin and Christ’s atoning sacrifice. While allusions of the Adam-Christ comparison appear elsewhere in the New Testament (Luke 3–4; Heb. 2:5–18), the most explicit articulation is found in Romans 5 and 1 Corinthians 15. Most of the existing literature on the subject focus more on exegetical issues and fail to provide adequate theological analysis on the Adam-Christ comparison. Current interest in theological implications of the Adam-Christ comparison has prompted this paper which explores Adamic Christology based on a theological reading of Romans 5:12-21 and other relevant texts on subject. The researcher used a literary research design comprising textual, theological and historical analyses of data collected from commentaries, articles, books, and dissertations/theses. The main thesis of the paper is that despite remarkable continuities between Adam and Christ on the basis of an ontological inclusivity of all humankind in their vicarious humanity, Christ exceeds Adam in all soteriological respects as the one who reverses the effect of Adam’s sin and its effect on humanity by bestowing salvific benefits on all who express belief in his saving person and works. The paper is an interdisciplinary study that contributes to the fields of Systematic theology (particularly on the issues of hamartiology and soteriology) and New Testament studies (especially Pauline studies).

The God of Julian of Norwich: A Christological reading in a follow-up key

This article presents some of the results of the research on the God that Julian of Norwich makes known to us through her Christological revelations. This woman left a writing about her revelations, in which Jesus Christ is the centre of her theology. In this document, the motherhood of God is manifested as the foundation of human nature. In this research, we wanted to answer the question about what the keys to the theological reading are that we find in Julian of Norwich, which are able to contribute to rethinking current Christology. We turn to hermeneutics as the method that offers an understanding that the theological exercise of interpreting is an art, a practice and a science, a reading and a rewriting based on the existing sources. The results allow us to rethink Christology from a mystical point of view and following Jesus, with an understandable, questioning, propositional and narrative language.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This article contributes to research regarding women and their theological production. It highlights the Christological reading that Juliana of Norwich made and that becomes a point of reference for analysing and interpreting the action of God from a vision of Verbo incarnation as our mother. The novelty that this research offers is in the identification and deepening of three important categories for theology: a Christology that re-signifies sin and suffering; a Christology of trust, supplication and petition; and a Christology of Jesus’ motherhood.

‘The Bible is not “like any other book”’: Katherine Sonderegger and the Bible as Vestigium Trinitatis

AbstractThe second volume of Katherine Sonderegger's Systematic Theology is a daring attempt to do something new in trinitarian dogma: find a fulsome, technically sophisticated doctrine of the Trinity in key Old Testament texts using an interpretive approach, and employing assumptions, that might be recognizable to certain Jewish theological readings of the same texts. This paper situates this project in Sonderegger's longstanding belief in a need for Christianity to overcome its pervasive anti‐Judaism, and shows how, to achieve this aim, Sonderegger constructs a highly unique and provocative understanding of the Bible as the creaturely site wherein God's immanent, holy life is manifest. The author commends Sonderegger's ontology of scripture as stimulating and compelling, while also raising some questions for further consideration.

Losing Salvation

This essay argues that critiques of redemption in contemporary black theory necessitate a rethinking of black theology in terms of loss so as to upend the political theological order of redemption and damnation that justifies antiblack governance of thought and existence. Through an immanent reading of political theology's appearance in ostensibly secular black feminist thought, the article shows how these wayward metabolizations of black theology's internal and external contradictions—specifically, those that illuminate a fundamental crisis of meaning at its heart—reveal black theology's abjection and alienation from its own stated desires for redemption. The article argues that this debasement of black theology opens onto its significance for black thought. As a form of black thought, black theology and its ongoing crisis of meaning crystallize the political theological crisis of illegitimacy and alienation generated by the failed announcement of redemption in racial slavery's wake. Through a reading of Saidiya Hartman and Christina Sharpe's work, the article shows how a wayward form of black theology is immanent in the ostensibly secular work of these and other radical black theorists. Taking their critiques of the redemptive theology that undergirds antiblackness as instructive, the article argues that a wayward, rather than confessional, form of black theology is already operative in realms of black studies that might be called nontheological. Recasting black political and theological desire for the coherence of redemption as a failure, the article proposes a loss of salvation and heretical appropriation of Christian theological materials as a demand for black thought. By critically reoccupying the sense of damnation that marks blackness, radical black reproductions of theological knowledge can insist on a disinherited procedure of thought—a rebellious gnosis in blackness—that disfigures the romance of redemption.

Resepsi Al-Qur’an di Media Sosial (Studi atas Pengamalan QS. Yūsuf/12: 4 di Tiktok)

Performances of the Qur’an that appear irrelevant to authoritative interpretation discourses, such as the practise of QS. Yūsuf: 4 by a number of Tiktok users, can occasionally be found on social media. This qualitative study employs a field research design to examine these trends by observing and interviewing five Tiktok users as data sources. The researcher describes how Tiktok users practise QS. Yūsuf/12: 4 and investigates its relationship with the function of the verse’s meaning, as well as analyses the motives and sources of their behaviour using the Qur’an Reception approach. According to the findings of the study, Tiktok users perceive QS. Yūsuf/12: 4 functionally with various practises and utilising a variety of media to obtain submission, obedience, appreciation, and even love from the party he desires. This motivation stems from their understanding of the meaning of the phrase “lī sājidīn” in the verse. They claim that such acceptance refers to various interpretive sources as well as formal and informal teachers. Despite the fact that there is a semantic correlation between practise and the meaning of the verse, the intent, purpose, and message of the Prophet Yusuf's story are not represented in their practise. The rise of social media information has influenced this phenomenon, reinforcing the lack of interpretation literacy. The performance of social media users who are dominated by simplistic theological readings must be coloured by strengthening interpretation literacy and authoritative sources so that the dimension of worship in practising the Qur’an is more scientific and can be developed professionally

Rethinking the Panata to the Nazareno of Quiapo

Filipino Catholicism’s hallmark is its festive and colorful celebrations of popular piety, which exhibit the Catholic faith’s embeddedness in people’s lives and culture. One of the most renowned Filipino devotions is rendered to Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno of Quiapo, Manila. The devotion of making a pledge to the Nazareno, known as panata, is commonly understood as a sacred promise that must be kept in return for a request that is granted. In this paper, I propose a theological reading of panata performance that unites devotion to the Nazareno and commitment to the wellbeing of others. This interpretation aims to orient panata as a form of lived Filipino Catholicism that converges popular spirituality and socio-political responsibility. I flesh out this constructive proposal using three steps. I begin by tracing the historical roots of the Nazareno devotion. Then, I consider narratives of Nazareno devotees about the confluence of their devotion and their socio-political engagement. Finally, based on these narratives, I theologically reframe the panata to the Nazareno as a catalyst for mystical-political praxis. Through this fresh outlook, the panata’s theological significance is reconsidered beyond popular piety towards becoming a vehicle for Christ’s saving work amid the Philippine society.