Parable, Parables Peshat

The projected thirty-volume Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception (EBR) is intended to serve as a comprehensive guide to the current state of knowledge on the background, origins, and development of the canonical texts of the Bible as they were accepted in Judaism and Christianity. Unprecedented in breadth and scope, this encyclopedia also documents the history of the Bible’s interpretation and reception across the centuries, not only in Judaism and Christianity, but also in literature, visual art, music, film, and dance, as well as in Islam and other religious traditions and new religious movements.

The EBR is also available online.

Blogger’s Choice – Articles recommended by biblioblogger Jim West (https://zwingliusredivivus.wordpress.com):

As I have done for a number of years, I’ve randomly selected some of the entries in the latest volume of the Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception (EBR) to look over and review. The following are the selections made from volume 23.

In the interest of full disclosure, I have written three entries in this volume, but I chose not to review them.

Innocent Himbaza (Fribourg, Switzerland), Patriarchy I. Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. In a wildly intelligent and brilliantly executed essay Himbaza leads readers through the Hebrew Bible’s vision of patriarchy, concluding, "In the HB/OT, although men seem to have an advantage over women, women are never totally excluded. Thus, if patriarchy is defined as male dominance with a total exclusion of women, then we are obliged to admit that the HB/OT does not reflect such a society. And furthermore, the HB/OT reflects both evolution and diversity, so that it is possible to speak of different levels of patriarchy, depending on the historical context or the field of activity." Both of these statements are illustrated fully. The great benefit of the entry is that it refocuses our attention on the facts and not on the politically motivated rhetoric of the present moment.

Renate Pillinger (Vienna, Austria), Paul and Thecla, Acts of II. Visual Arts. One of the best things about the EBR is that it is not merely an encyclopedia of things frozen in the past. It is a series whose very soul is the demonstration of the living and breathing nature of the biblical texts and related literature and their long afterlife once they’ve left the page and entered life. Pillinger’s entry opens a window on the way the ancient text we call "The Acts of Paul and Thecla" and its contents have been explicated in the visual arts. Pillinger remarks, "At the beginning of the chapter (Acts of Paul 3:3), Paul is described as having a receding hairline. From approximately the mid-4th century CE onward, the entire scope of visual art reflects this description." Art influences our reading of biblical and extra-biblical texts whether we like it or not. One need simply think of Da Vinci’s "Last Supper." Historically inaccurate as can be, it still holds sway in the minds of countless Christians as the way the Last Supper took place.

W. Derek Suderman (Waterloo, ON, Canada), Peace, Peacemaking I. Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. Nominal uses of the root š–l–m are first discussed by Suderman and then follows a description of the verbal uses. Summarily put, "Verb forms from the root š–l–m primarily relate to making restitution or payment, paying vows, enacting reward or punishment for actions, including association to divine judgment, and ceasing hostility between groups." Naturally not all instances are examined, but there is enough information given to readers to provide them with a very good idea of how the verbal and nominal forms are used throughout the Old Testament.

David M. Young (Wrexham, United Kingdom), Peake, Arthur Samuel. "We stand on the shoulders of giants" is a well-used term among scholars and that term certainly applies to Arthur Samuel Peake. He was one of the most influential Methodist scholars of his era, producing numerous volumes of widespread significance. "Arthur Samuel Peake was a leading influence for liberal theology in Primitive Methodism." Further, in small part, "He wrote extensively on the nature of scripture. He taught that it was not necessary to argue for the truth of all the opinions in the Epistles, that Daniel is history masquerading as prediction, that much in Genesis is of mythical origin, that Jonah’s mission was purely imaginative, that the Pastoral Epistles were probably not forgeries, that part of Revelation was ‘not from a Christian writer at all’ … and that each individual may decide concerning the virgin birth." A remarkable man of remarkable genius and one of the more interesting of the essays I selected for this series of reviews.

Siobhán Dowling Long (Cork, Ireland), Penitential Psalms III. Music. The Psalms are one of the richest reserves for both Jews and Christians in terms of the expression of spirituality. Believers have reached back to the Psalms over the ages countless times, for encouragement, assistance, and song and prayer. Long’s wonderful contribution focuses on how some of the penitential psalms have been used or received in music. She points out that "While settings of individual penitential psalms are numerous, their setting as a group first occurred during the Renaissance, most notably by Franco-Flemish composer Orlande de Lassus (1532–1594), whose Psalter Davidis poenitentiales was composed in the late 1550s." But she doesn’t stop there. She notes the fertile use of these psalms up to our own day, noting that they have inspired modern psalmitization: "A more recent composition, Alfred Schnittke’s Twelve Penitential Psalms (1988) for mixed choir a cappella, is a setting not of the seven biblical psalms but of ancient Russian texts, celebrating the 1000th anniversary of the Christianization of Russia." Her contribution is not to be missed.

Allan Varghese Meloottu (Wilmore, KY, USA), Pentecostalism III. Asia and Africa. Pentecostalism is the fastest growing denomination within the Christian tradition at the present day. In Meloottu’s article, Pentecostalism in Asia and Africa is brought to the fore. "Through the lens of World Christianity, Pentecostalism is seen as a polycentric phenomenon that contextualizes according to the local ethno-religious imaginations of the people. The local nature of Pentecostalism can be attributed to the rise of revivals coinciding with the vernacularization of the Bible, enabling Pentecostals to employ an experiential hermeneutics towards scripture, expecting the manifestation of the Holy Spirit in their day-to-day life as similar to that of the apostles in the New Testament (Acts 19:11–12)." Pentecostalism is context-sensitive, in short, we learn from Meloottu’s very insightful contribution.

Luc Bulundwe (Regensburg, Germany), Perdition I. New Testament. After carefully defining "perdition" on the basis of the underlying Greek text and discussing the use and the occurrences of the term in the New Testament, Bulundwe suggests that "perdition" frequently has a dual meaning: both punishment and exhortation with the aim of encouraging the avoidance of punishment. The whole piece is nicely written.

Christine Shea (Muncie, IN, USA), Persia (Ancient) V. Film. The way the Bible and its ancient world have appeared over and over again in film is one of the most intriguing aspects of their reception. Major biblical characters and events have made their way to the silver screen. But they are not alone. Ancient empires too have been Hollywood-ized. The Persian Empire, Shea tells us "… is a staple of filmmakers in search of an evil empire come from the East to battle innocent pioneer farm boys in the West, like the half-nude Spartans in 300 (dir. Zack Snyder, 2007, US/CA/BG). Furthermore, Other filmmakers, in a quest for sword-and-sandal blockbusters, mined the book of Esther, one of only a few ancient sources which feature a heroic Jewish woman. Their customary choice is to reconcile a good king of Persia (like Cyrus) with an evil empire (of Persian apparatchiks)." Persia, in short, appears as a Rorschach blot. Filmmakers can see it to be whatever sort of entity they need it to be. There is much more here to read, and all of it fascinating.

Jens Schröter (Berlin, Germany), Person I. Hebrew Bible/Old Testament and New Testament. How does the word "person" function in the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament? Although "person" is used frequently, seldom do we pause to think about its meaning, or rather, how it is used (since words have usage, not meaning). There is no proper Hebrew equivalent and "face" is as close as the Hebrew Bible gets, while the Greek equivalent "prosopon" has a slightly broader usage though it means essentially the same thing. Schröter observes correctly, "… the Bible does not contain a distinct philosophical conception of ‘person’ …" That conception is developed later and dependent on philosophical speculations. Nonetheless, what is used of God is used of mankind and thus mankind is granted a certain dignity. Or as Schröter writes, "the Jewish and Christian conception of the human as ‘person’ is closely related to the conception of God and – in Christian theology – of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit as ‘persons.’" The whole essay is quite informative.

Each essay that I looked through (and there were many more than the small selection mentioned above) offered readers useful facts and helpful insights. EBR continues to impress.