Reading Luke-Acts in its Mediterranean milieu /
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This volume pulls together thirteen essays written by the author since the late 1970's which give a distinctive, coherent reading of Luke-Acts. Twelve of the essays focus on the theological perspectives of Luke and Acts as they can be discerned from the angle of vision of the \'authorial audience\' as delineated by the non-biblical literary critic, Peter J. Rabinowitz. The final essay focuses on the possible historical value of Acts and the methodology involved in judging that possibility.
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1 online resource (xii, 255 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 219-231) and indexes. :
9789047401988 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The adaptable Jesus of the fourth gospel : the pedagogy of the logos /
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In The Adaptable Jesus of the Fourth Gospel , Jason S. Sturdevant argues that the Gospel of John portrays Jesus as an adaptable teacher, who accommodates to different people in various ways to a singular end, to bring each to faith. In the same way, the Logos accommodates to humanity via the incarnation. Adaptability serves as both an interpersonal and universal category. Early Christian interpretations of John, especially that of John Chrysostom, describe the Jesus of John by echoing characterizations of the ideal Greco-Roman pedagogue, adapting to his diverse students. By looking to such interpretations, as well as illumination from the milieu of the Fourth Evangelist, Jason S. Sturdevant provides a new lens through which to understand the characterization of the Johannine Jesus.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004304239 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Studien zur Entstehungsgeschichte und Intention des Kolosserbriefs /
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This volume examines the Epistle to the Colossians as a pseudepigraphic letter. It is concerned with how different traditions associated with Paul and his thought were appropriated by Pauline communities in the aftermath of his death. Extensive attention is paid to the possibility of Colossians' interaction with oral traditions, which includes consideration of the oral context for Paul's own correspondence and ministry. In recovering these traditions, Colossians creates a heavenly letter and a testament, designed so as to assure readers of the apostle's ongoing aid and to interpret the theological significance of his death. The analysis of different literary and rhetorical characteristics of Colossians (pseudephigraphy, orality, et cetera) is placed within the context of both contemporaneous Jewish (esp. Sapiential) traditions and the traditions of the Greco-Roman philosophic schools. One chapter deals with the origin and purpose of the 'Haustafel'.
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Originally presented as the author's Habilitationsschrift--Frankfurt am Main, 1998. :
1 online resource (viii, 362 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 291-330) and indexes. :
9789004267428 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Paul and Philodemus : adaptability in Epicurean and early Christian psychagogy /
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As Paul guides and educates his converts he functions as a psychagogue ("leader of souls"), adapting his leadership style as required in each individual case. Pauline psychagogy resembles Epicurean psychagogy in the way persons enjoying a superior moral status and spiritual aptitude help to nurture and correct others, guiding their souls in moral and religious (re)formation. This study relates Epicurean psychagogy of late Republican times to early Christian psychagogy on the basis of an investigation which places the practice in the wider socio-cultural perspective, contextualising it in Greco-Roman literature treating friendship and flattery and the importance of adaptability in moral guidance. Pauline studies are advanced by the introduction of new material into the discussion of the Corinthian correspondence which throws light on Paul's debate with his recalcitrant critics.
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1 online resource (xiv, 414 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 337-353) and indexes. :
9789004267275 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Sight and blindness in Luke-Acts : the use of physical features in characterization /
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The ancient world often thought in terms of physiognomics-the idea that character can be discerned by studying outward, physical features. That physical descriptions carry moral freight in characterization has been largely missed in modern biblical scholarship, and this study brings that to the forefront. Specifically, this is a study of one particular physical marker-blindness. When we look at Greco-Roman literature, a kind of literary topos begins to emerge, a set of assumptions that ancient audiences would typically make when encountering blind characters. Luke-Acts makes use of such a topos in a way that becomes programmatic, serving as a kind of interpretive key to Luke-Acts that is generally unnoticed in modern scholarship.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789047432968 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Moral education for women in the pastoral and Pythagorean letters : philosophers of the household /
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In Moral Education for Women in the Pastoral and Pythagorean Letters: Philosophers of the Household , Annette Bourland Huizenga examines the Greco-Roman moral-philosophical "curriculum" for women by comparing these two pseudepigraphic epistolary collections. The analysis is organized around four elements: textual resources, teachers and learners, instructional strategies, and subject matter. Huizenga shows that the author of the Pastorals has adopted nearly all of the "pagan" aspects of this curriculum, but has supplemented these with theological justifications drawn from Pauline literature and traditions. The letters attributed to female Pythagoreans have long been suggested as comparanda for the Pastorals, but are not well-known as sources. This volume provides a Greek edition, a new English translation, and a text history of these letters.
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1 online resource (x, 435 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789004245181 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The book of Genesis in late antiquity : encounters between Jewish and Christian exegesis /
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The Book of Genesis in Late Antiquity: Encounters between Jewish and Christian Exegesis examines the relationship between rabbinic and Christian exegetical writings of Late Antiquity in the Eastern Roman Empire and Mesopotamia. The volume identifies and analyses evidence of potential 'encounters' between rabbinic and Christian interpretations of the book of Genesis. Each chapter investigates exegesis of a different episode of Genesis, including the Paradise Story, Cain and Abel, the Flood Story, Abraham and Melchizedek, Hagar and Ishmael, Jacob's Ladder, Joseph and Potiphar and the Blessing on Judah. The book discusses a wide range of Jewish and Christian literature, including primarily rabbinic and patristic traditions, but also apocrypha, pseudepigrapha, Philo and Josephus. The volume sheds light on the history of the relationship between Jews and Christians in Late Antiquity, and brings together two scholars (of Rabbinics and of Eastern Christianity) in a truly collaborative work. The research was funded by an award from the Leverhulme Trust at the Centre for the Study of Jewish-Christian Relations, Cambridge, UK, and the Centre for Advanced Religious and Theological Studies of the Faculty of Divinity, University of Cambridge, UK.
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Description based upon print version of record. :
1 online resource (x, 537 pages) :
9789004245556 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Justifying Christian Aramaism.
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In Justifying Christian Aramaism Eveline van Staalduine-Sulman explores how Christian scholars of the sixteenth and early seventeenth century justify their study of the Targums, the Jewish Aramaic translations of the Hebrew Bible. She focuses on the four polyglot Bibles - Complutum, Antwerp, Paris, and London -, and describes these books in the scholarly world of those days. It appears that quite a few scholars, Roman-Catholic, protestant, and Anglican, edited Targumic books and translated these into Latin. The book reveals a stimulating and conflicting period of the Targum reception history and is therefore relevant for Targum scholars and historians interested in the history of Judaism, Church history, the history of the book, and the history of Jewish-Christian relationships.
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1 online resource (xiv, 376 pages) :
9789004355934 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Mark at the threshold : applying Bakhtinian categories to Markan characterisation /
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The discussion concerning Markan characterisation (and Markan genre) can be helpfully informed by Bakhtinian categories. This book uses the twin foci of chronotope and carnival to examine specific characters in terms of different levels of dialogue. Various passages in Mark are examined, and thresholds are noted between interindividual character-zones, and between the hearing-reader and text-voices. Several generic contacts are shown to have shaped the text's 'genre-memory' - in particular, the Graeco-Roman popular literature of the ancient world. The resultant picture is of an earthy, populist Gospel whose "voices" resonate with the "vulgar" classes, and whose spirituality is refreshingly relevant to everyday concerns.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references (p. [241]-262) and indexes. :
9789047433613 :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Public reading in early Christianity : lectors, manuscripts, and sound in the oral delivery of John 1-4 /
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In Public Reading in Early Christianity: Lectors, Manuscripts, and Sound in the Oral Delivery of John 1-4 Dan Nässelqvist investigates the oral delivery of New Testament writings in early Christian communities of the first two centuries C.E. He examines the role of lectors and public reading in the Greek and Roman world as well as in early Christianity. Nässelqvist introduces a method of sound analysis, which utilizes the correspondence between composition and delivery in ancient literary writings to retrieve information about oral delivery from the sound structures of the text being read aloud. Finally he applies the method of sound analysis to John 1-4 and presents the implications for our understanding of public reading and the Gospel of John.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789004306639 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
The despoliation of Egypt in pre-rabbinic, rabbinic and patristic traditions /
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This work examines the role played by the biblical motif of the despoliation of Egypt in the understanding Gentiles had of Jews, and how Jews defended themselves, their heroes and their God in the face of anti-Jewish slander. It also examines the manner in which Christians learned from their rabbinic counterparts how to defend Moses and his God against the gnostic challenge. Beginning with Philo and based on haggadic additions, the embarrassment of the episode was 'healed' through allegory and became a critically important biblical justification for the Christian appropriation of the 'Egyptian treasures' of their Greco-Roman cultural heritage. This work describes how Christians borrowed exegetical traditions from rabbis not only to defend their sacred texts against gnostic attacks but to justify their interest in and appropriation of non-Christian philosophy in their theological understandings.
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1 online resource (viii, 305 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 281-298) and indexes. :
9789047433569 :
0920-623X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Friendship, flattery, and frankness of speech : studies on friendship in the New Testament world /
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This volume deals with the topics of friendship, flattery, and frankness of speech in the Greco-Roman world. The three topics were often related, with candor or frank criticism viewed as the trait that distinguished the true friend from the flatterer. The book's eleven essays are divided into three parts. The first part introduces the volume and discusses the three topics in the thought of Philodemus and Plutarch. Part two deals with Paul's use of friendship language in his correspondence with the Church at Philippi. Part three examines the concept of frankness (parrhesia) in Paul, Luke-Acts, Hebrews, and the Johannine corpus. The volume will be particularly useful to NT Scholars, classicists, and modern theologians and ethicists who are interested in the theory and practice of friendship in antiquity.
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1 online resource (xiv, 291 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789004267282 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Philodemus and the New Testament world /
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The fifteen essays in this volume, rooted in the work of the Hellenistic Moral Philosophy and Early Christianity Section of the SBL, examine the works of Philodemus and how they illuminate the cultural context of early Christianity. Born in Gadara in Syria, Philodemus (ca. 110-40 BCE) was active in Italy as an Epicurean philosopher and poet. This volume comprises three parts; the first deals with Philodemus' works in their own terms, the second situates his thought within its larger Greco-Roman context, and the third explores the implications of his work for understanding the earliest Christians, especially Paul. It will be useful to all readers interested in Hellenistic philosophy and rhetoric as well as Second Temple Judaism and early Christianity.
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1 online resource (xiv, 432 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789047400240 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Paulus und Barnabas in der Provinz Galatien : Studien zu Apostelgeschichte 13f. ; 16,6 ; 18,23 und den Adressaten des Galaterbriefes /
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This study poses and answers two questions: 1. What is the basis in the tradition for the Acts 13 and 14 narrative about Paul's and Barnabas' mission on Cyprus and in southern Galatia? 2. Who are the addressees of the letter to the Galatians? Using the extant inscriptions and literary sources that relate to the provinces of Cyprus and Galatia in the early Roman Empire, the above questions are addressed to Acts and Galatians, and answered as follows: 1 Acts 13-14 contains so much local colour as to rule out the thesis that the so-called first missionary journey is fictional. 2. Paul's letter to the Galatians is addressed to the churches in southern Galatia - Antioch, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe. The hypothesis of a north-Galatian setting is shown to be improbable in the light of the geographical, archaeological and epigraphic evidence.
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1 online resource (xvi, 215 pages) : illustrations, maps (some color) :
Includes bibliographical references and indexes. :
9789004332485 :
0169-734X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Intertextuality in the second century /
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This volume offers an appreciation of the value of intertextuality-from Greek, Roman, Jewish, and biblical traditions-as related to the post-apostolic level of Christian development within the second century. Not least of these foundational pillars is the certain impact of the Second Sophistic movement during this period with its insipient influence on much of early Christian theology's formation. The variety of these strands of inspiration created a tapestry of many diverse elements that came to shape the second-century Christian situation. Here one sees biblical texts at work, Jewish and Greek foundations at play, and interaction among patristic authors as they seek to reconcile their competing perspectives on what it meant to be "Christian" within the contemporary context.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004318762 :
1542-1295 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
From Judaism to Christianity : tradition and transition : a festschrift for Thomas H. Tobin, S.J., on the occasion of his sixty-fifth birthday /
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As a far reaching tribute to the distinguished career of Thomas H. Tobin, S.J., a team of outstanding biblical scholars has joined to offer essays on the religious milieu of the ancient Mediterranean region. Challenged by Hellenistic and Greco-Roman cultural and political domination, the religious struggles of Jewish and, later, Christian communities sought to maintain tradition as well as mitigate transition. Jewish responses to a Hellenistic world are revealed anew in the Dead Sea Scrolls and the works of Artapanus and Philo. Also, Christian views on the transitory world of the early centuries of the Common Era are brought to light in the New Testament literature, apocryphal texts, and Patristic writings. Professors and students alike will benefit from the depth and breadth of this fresh scholarship.
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Includes a biographical note on Thomas H. Tobin and a bibliography of his works (p. [xvii]-xxxii). :
1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references (p. [289]-311) and indexes. :
9789004214859 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Abrahamic descent, testamentary adoption, and the law in Galatians : differentiating Abraham's sons, seed, and children of promise /
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In this volume, Bradley R. Trick argues that Hellenistic testamentary adoption provides the key to understanding Abrahamic descent and its implications for the law in Galatians. By thoroughly analyzing the Greco-Roman and Jewish contexts of Paul's references to testaments/covenants (διαθῆκαι) and adoption, Trick establishes that Gal 3-4 portrays the Abrahamic διαθήκη as a Hellenistic testament through which God adopts Abraham. This insight enables a coherent and collectively consistent interpretation of Paul's Abrahamic appeals to emerge, one in which "sons" (3:7) designates Jews, "children of promise" (4:28) designates gentiles, and "seed" designates Christ (3:16) and the interdependent union of Jews and gentiles in Christ (3:29). The need to preserve the singularity of this seed then grounds God's giving of the law.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references. :
9789004323872 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Mine and yours are hers : retrieving women's history from rabbinic literature /
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This book discusses the interaction between history, rabbinic literature and feminist studies. Recent approaches to rabbinic literature have overturned the traditional view of these writings and new literary methods were suggested, mostly denying them all historical value. But rabbinic literature constitutes the main source for the lives of Jews in Palestine and Babylonia during the late Roman period, and thus should not be totally rejected. This study suggests a new post-literary approach, id est it discusses the residue of the texts after these have been analyzed and dissected by literary critics. But mainly this is a book about women's history, adopting many assumptions of feminist criticism about the androcentric nature of all ancient texts, and approaches them with due suspicion. The Rabbis treated women differently from the way they treated men. This resulted in the former's marginalization and manipulation by the texts. On the other hand, however, it created an ironic situation whereby principles useful for the recovery of historical information on women, are useless when applied to men. This study describes such principles and demonstrates them with the help of many examples.
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1 online resource (xiii, 346 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 319-331) and indexes. :
9789004332454 :
0169-734X ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Fourth Ezra and Second Baruch : reconstruction after the fall /
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The two Jewish works that are the subject of this volume, 4 Ezra and 2 Baruch , were written around the turn of the first century CE in the aftermath of the Roman destruction of the Second Temple. Both texts are apocalypses, and both occupy an important place in early Jewish literature and thought: they were composed right after the Second Temple period, as Rabbinic Judaism and early Christianity began to emerge. The twenty essays in this volume were first presented and discussed at the Sixth Enoch Seminar at the Villa Cagnola at Gazzada, near Milan, Italy, on June 26-30, 2011. Together they reflect the lively debate about 4 Ezra and 2 Baruch among the most distinguished specialists in the field. The Contributors are: Gabriele Boccaccini; Daniel Boyarin; John J. Collins; Devorah Dimant; Lutz Doering; Lorenzo DiTommaso; Steven Fraade; Lester L. Grabbe; Matthias Henze; Karina M. Hoogan; Liv Ingeborg Lied; Hindy Najman; George W.E. Nickelsburg; Eugen Pentiuc; Pierluigi Piovanelli; Benjamin Reynolds; Loren Stuckenbruck; Balázs Tamási; Alexander Toepel; Adela Yarbro Collins
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Includes index. :
1 online resource (xvi, 456 pages) :
9789004258815 :
1384-2161 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.
Christus Militans : Studien zur politisch-militarischen Semantik im Markusevangelium vor dem Hintergrund des ersten judisch-romischen Krieges /
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In Christus Militans knüpft Gabriella Gelardini an Interpretationen an, die das Markusevangelium im Kontext des jüdisch-römischen Krieges und des Aufstiegs der Flavier interpretieren. Von Interesse sind darin aber nicht nur "ideologische Macht- oder Herrschaftsdiskurse" und damit "politische Theologie," sondern insbesondere auch die militärischen Zusammenhänge und die Kriegssemantik im engeren Sinn. Dies erfolgt eingedenk der großen Bedeutung, die das Militär und der Krieg für die Herstellung und Aufrechterhaltung von Herrschaft in der Antike hatten, besonders bei Dynastiewechseln, etwa wie hier von der julisch-claudischen zur flavischen Dynastie. Diesen Wechsel zur flavischen Dynastie zeichnet die Autorin zunächst in einer umfassenden kontextuellen Analyse nach, nicht allein auf der Basis des Werkes von Josephus und antiken Historikern, sondern erstmals auch unter Einbezug zeitnaher Militärhistoriker. Die Rekonstruktion dieses durch Militär und Krieg erzielten Aufstiegs, der seinen krönenden Abschluss in der Machtergreifung und einem den Krieg beendenden Triumph in Rom fand, trägt sie dann an den Evangelientext heran, und stellt in der Erzählung des Protagonisten Jesus Christus vergleichbare politisch-militärische Inkodierungen fest, nicht zuletzt auch in Form von "hidden transcripts," welche diesen Herrschaftsantritt ebenfalls als einen Dynastiewechsel darstellen, nämlich von der herodianischen zur davidisch-messianischen Dynastie. Politisch-militärische Inkodierungen ließen sich in jeder Szene finden, so dass die Autorin das Repertoire von Anknüpfungsmöglichkeiten des markinischen Texts an den literarisch-historischen Kontext des ersten jüdisch-römischen Kriegs um viele, neue und oft auch plausiblere Deutungsangebote erweitert konnte. Inkodierungen stellte sie aber auch auf lexikalischer Ebene fest; denn nicht weniger als ein Drittel des markinischen Lexikons trägt im Blick auf seine Semantik auch oder ausschließlich militärische Bedeutung. Eine zentrale Rolle misst sie der sogenannten Passion Jesu zu. Denn zwar steht der Kreuzestod als Sinnbild für die militärische Niederlage, interpretiert man seinen Tod jedoch konsequent im Kontext des "Triumphzugs," dann wäre er auch als sühnendes und von Kriegsschuld reinigendes Opfer zu deuten. Und als solches - lässt sich schließen - hätte Jesus die religiös zwingende Voraussetzung für eine gottgewollte und siegreiche, durchaus auch militärisch zu verstehende Rückkehr geschaffen. In Christus Militans , Gabriella Gelardini builds on interpretations that construe the Gospel of Mark in the context of the Jewish-Roman War and the rise of the Flavians. She explores not only "ideological discourses of power and domination," but also military contexts and the semantics of war. This book thus acknowledges the great importance of the military and warfare for establishing and maintaining power in antiquity.
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1 online resource. :
Includes bibliographical references and index. :
9789004309340 :
0167-9732 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.