Tag: New Testament

Watched Lecture 19. The "Household" Paul: The Pastorals by Dale B. Martin from RLST 152: Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature

Introduction to New Testament (RLST 152) In the undisputed Pauline epistles, marriage is seen as a way to extirpate sexual desire - neither as a means for procreation nor as the preferred social status. The Pastoral Epistles, written to instruct in the pastoring of churches and appointing of church offices, presents quite un-Pauline attitudes. In the Pastoral Epistles, the church, rather than an ecclesia, becomes a household, a specifically patriarchal structure in which men hold offices and women are not to have authority over them. They present a pro-family, anti-ascetic message in contrast to the Pauline epistles.

  • 00:00 - Chapter 1. Marriage, Family, Sex, and Women in Paul's Letters
  • 21:01 - Chapter 2. The Pro-Family and Anti-Ascetic Stance in the Pastoral Epistles
  • 26:50 - Chapter 3. The Pastoral Epistles and the Jewish Law
  • 29:53 - Chapter 4. The Church as Household
Been a while since I was on about this. Quick review to hopefully delve back in and finish out the series.
Watched Lecture 19. The "Household" Paul: The Pastorals by Dale B. Martin from RLST 152: Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature

Introduction to New Testament (RLST 152) In the undisputed Pauline epistles, marriage is seen as a way to extirpate sexual desire - neither as a means for procreation nor as the preferred social status. The Pastoral Epistles, written to instruct in the pastoring of churches and appointing of church offices, presents quite un-Pauline attitudes. In the Pastoral Epistles, the church, rather than an ecclesia, becomes a household, a specifically patriarchal structure in which men hold offices and women are not to have authority over them. They present a pro-family, anti-ascetic message in contrast to the Pauline epistles.

  • 00:00 - Chapter 1. Marriage, Family, Sex, and Women in Paul's Letters
  • 21:01 - Chapter 2. The Pro-Family and Anti-Ascetic Stance in the Pastoral Epistles
  • 26:50 - Chapter 3. The Pastoral Epistles and the Jewish Law
  • 29:53 - Chapter 4. The Church as Household
Watched Lecture 18: Arguing with Paul? by Dale B. Martin from RLST 152: Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature

Early Christianity presents us with a wide diversity in attitudes towards the law. There were also many different Christologies circulating in different communities. The book of James presents one unique perspective. It seems to be written in the tradition of Jewish wisdom literature in its presentation of sayings and its concern for the poor. James also presents a view of works and faith that seems to oppose Pauline teaching. However, the terms "faith" and "works" function differently in Paul's writings and in the book of James

  • 00:00 - Chapter 1. Diversity in Early Christianity: Attitudes towards the Jewish Law
  • 03:57 - Chapter 2. Diversity in Early Christianity: Christology
  • 21:03 - Chapter 3. James as Jewish Wisdom Literature
  • 27:47 - Chapter 4. Faith and Works in James in Comparison to Paul

Complete course materials are available at the Open Yale Courses website: http://open.yale.edu/courses

Interesting to think about how much of our culture is built on the writings of the rich and privileged and the compounding effect it has had over the millennia. 
📖 14% done with The History of the English Language, 2nd Edition by Seth Lerer

cover of The History of the English Language by Seth Lerer

Listened to Lecture 5 and the first several minutes of 6 today while cooking in the kitchen.

There’s some interesting history about the ideas of law, ligatures, and links. He also has an interesting history of the words ‘apocalypse’ and ‘revelation’ which ultimately mean the same thing. Apocalypse essentially means to ‘take away the cover’. He doesn’t go into it, but this word also has historical relation to the removal of the curtain within the holy of holies, or in the New Testament the rending of said curtain at the death of Jesus. Subsequently there has obviously been a lot of semantic shift to create our modern day meaning of apocalypse.

Acquired The New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocrypha: New Revised Standard Version 5th Edition

Acquired The New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocrypha: New Revised Standard Version 5th Edition by Michael Coogan (Editor), Marc Brettler (Editor), Carol Newsom (Editor), Pheme Perkins (Editor) (Oxford University Press)

For over 50 years students, professors, clergy, and general readers have relied on The New Oxford Annotated Bible as an unparalleled authority in Study Bibles. This fifth edition of the Annotated remains the best way to study and understand the Bible at home or in the classroom. This thoroughly revised and substantially updated edition contains the best scholarship informed by recent discoveries and anchored in the solid Study Bible tradition.

· Introductions and extensive annotations for each book by acknowledged experts in the field provide context and guidance. 
· Introductory essays on major groups of biblical writings - Pentateuch, Prophets, Gospels, and other sections - give readers an overview that guides more intensive study.
· General essays on history, translation matters, different canons in use today, and issues of daily life in biblical times inform the reader of important aspects of biblical study.
· Maps and diagrams within the text contextualize where events took place and how to understand them.
· Color maps give readers the geographical orientation they need for understanding historical accounts throughout the Bible.
· Timelines, parallel texts, weights and measures, calendars, and other helpful tables help navigate the biblical world.
· An extensive glossary of technical terms demystifies the language of biblical scholarship.
· An index to the study materials eases the way to the quick location of information.

The New Oxford Annotated Bible, with twenty new essays and introductions and others--as well as annotations--fully revised, offers the reader flexibility for any learning style. Beginning with a specific passage or a significant concept, finding information for meditation, sermon preparation, or academic study is straightforward and intuitive.

A volume that users will want to keep for continued reference, The New Oxford Annotated Bible continues the Oxford University Press tradition of providing excellence in scholarship for the general reader. Generations of users attest to its status as the best one-volume Bible reference tool for any home, library, or classroom.

Hardback book cover in red with white/red text
Ordered on Amazon on 6/13/19 for use as reference with Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature (Yale-RLST152) which I’ve been watching recently.
Watched Lecture 10: The Acts of the Apostles by Dale B. Martin from RLST 152: Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature

The speech that Stephen gives before his accusers in Acts shows how the author of Luke-Acts used and edited his sources. So, also, does the description of the destruction of Jerusalem in Luke, as compared to that in Mark. The major themes of Luke-Acts are 1) the Gospel going first to the Jews and then to gentiles and 2) that of the prophet-martyr, with Jesus as the prophet-martyr par excellence.

  • Stephens Speech in the Acts of the Apostles [00:00:00]
  • The Destruction [00:19:18]
  • Luke's Gospel to the Jews First [00:24:18]
  • The Prophet-Martyr in Luke and Acts [00:38:19]

Apparently Christians have been bending their stories to suit their point of view since the very beginning. Interesting to hear some of these story-telling traditions and viewpoints and compare them with current political and religious traditions. Not much has changed in 2000 years. I can’t help but think: “Do as I say and not as I do.”

📺 Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature RLST 152 – Lecture 9: The Gospel of Luke | Open Yale Courses

Watched Lecture 9: The Gospel of Luke by Dale B. Martin from RLST 152: Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature

Luke and Acts, a two-volume work, are structured very carefully by the author to outline the ministry of Jesus and the spread of the Gospel to the gentiles. The Gospel of Luke emphasizes the themes of Jesus’ Jewish piety, his role as a rejected prophet, and the reversal of earthly status. The Gospel ends in Jerusalem, and the Acts of the Apostles begins there and then follows the spread of the Gospel, both conceptually and geographically, to Samaria and the gentiles. By closely analyzing the Gospel and Acts, we see that the author was not concerned with historicity or chronological order. Rather, he writes his “orderly account” to illustrate the rejection of the Gospel by the Jews and its consequent spread to the gentiles.

Acquired Apostle: Travels Among the Tombs of the Twelve by Tom Bissell

Acquired Apostle: Travels Among the Tombs of the Twelve by Tom Bissell (Faber & Faber (2016))
The story of Twelve Apostles is the story of early Christianity: its competing versions of Jesus’s ministry, its countless schisms, and its ultimate evolution from an obscure Jewish sect to the global faith we know today in all its forms and permutations. In his quest to understand the underpinnings of the world’s largest religion, Tom Bissell embarks on a years-long pilgrimage to the apostles’ supposed tombs, traveling from Jerusalem and Rome to Turkey, Greece, Spain, France, India, and Kyrgyzstan. Along the way, Bissell uncovers the mysterious and often paradoxical lives of these twelve men and how their identities have taken shape over the course of two millennia. Written with empathy and a rare acumen—and often extremely funny—Apostle is an intellectual, spiritual, and personal adventure fit for believers, scholars, and wanderers alike.
Purchased at UCLA Store for $6.99+tax

📺 Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature RLST 152 – Lecture 8: The Gospel of Thomas | Open Yale Courses

Watched Lecture 8: The Gospel of Thomas by Dale B. Martin from RLST 152: Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature

We have known of the existence of the Gospel of Thomas from ancient writers, but it was only after the discovery of the Nag Hammadi Codices that the actual text became available. The Gospel of Thomas is basically a collection of sayings, or logia, that sometimes seem similar, perhaps more primitive than sayings found in the canonical Gospels. Sometimes, however, the sayings seem better explained as reflecting a “Gnostic” understanding of the world. This involves a rejection of the material world and a desire for gnosis, a secret knowledge, in order to escape the world and return to the divine being.

The best part here is the background material on the gnostics and the general tenor of the movement which, once consumed, gives much more insight into the writings in the Gospel of Thomas. The idea of multiple types of Christianities is intriguing. Though we have a few today, they’re not as obviously different as earlier incarnations in the first several centuries in the common era.

I just heard a snippet of a radio show recently in which the interview guest would be talking about practicing multiple faiths simultaneously could be interesting and fruitful. Obviously this is not a new ideas…

🔖 Gospel Parallels: A Comparison of the Synoptic Gospels, New Revised Standard Version by Burton H. Throckmorton, Jr.

Bookmarked Gospel Parallels: A Comparison of the Synoptic Gospels, New Revised Standard Version by Burton H. Throckmorton, Jr. (Thomas Nelson)

A classic since 1949, Gospel Parallels presents Matthew, Mark, and Luke printed side-by-side for easy and enlightening comparative study. Now fully revised and updated using the NRSV, it features a more readable type face and a new, even more effective system for comparison.

book cover of Gospel Parallels by Throckmorton

🔖 The Five Gospels Parallels by John W. Marshall

Bookmarked The Five Gospels Parallels by John W. Marshall (sites.utoronto.ca)
This HTML presentation of the Five Gospels is designed to be a teaching tool for introductory level classes in New Testament and Christian Origins. For this reason, and because of the particular constraints of HTML, it does not offer the same level of detail as a printed synopsis (i.e. Throckmorton 1979, 1992; Aland 1985). Its advantage is that it allows more "play" than a printed synopsis and that it presents the materials in the same order as the canonical Gospels. Moreover, it offers texts that are not commonly included in the synopses designed for classroom use: Thomas and Paul. Others may follow.
An interesting website, but could use with some additional UI tweaks to make it more interesting/usable. It’s certainly got a lot of the data in place.

📺 Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature RLST 152 – Lecture 7 – The Gospel of Matthew | Open Yale Courses

Watched Lecture 7 - The Gospel of Matthew by Dale B. Martin from RLST 152: Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature

The Gospel of Matthew contains some of the most famous passages that both Christians and non-Christians are familiar with. However, Matthew also presents itself paradoxically as preaching a Torah observant Christianity and a Christian mission that seeks to reach gentiles. The figure of Jesus in Matthew is that of a teacher, the founder of the Church, and the model for the apostles and Matthew’s own community. Matthew seems to be writing for a church community that needs encouragement to have faith in a time of trouble.

Lecture Chapters

  1. Matthew: The Most Famous Gospel [00:00:00]
  2. Jesus and the Torah in Matthew [00:12:29]
  3. The Foundations of the Church in Matthew [00:22:08]
  4. Jesus as a Model for the Disciples [00:27:51]
  5. The Stilling of the Storm in Matthew [00:35:44]

📺 Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature RLST 152 – Lecture 6 – The Gospel of Mark | Open Yale Courses

Watched Lecture 6: The Gospel of Mark by Dale B. Martin from RLST 152: Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature

The Gospels of the New Testament are not biographies, and, in this class, they are read through a historical critical lens. This means that the events they narrate are not taken at face value as historical. The Gospel of Mark illustrates how the gospel writer skillfully crafts a narrative in order to deliver a message. It is a message that emphasizes a suffering messiah, and the necessity of suffering before glory. The gospel’s apocalyptic passages predict troubles for the Jewish temple and incorporate this prediction with its understanding of the future coming of the Son of Man.

00:00 - Chapter 1. The Gospels Not As Biographies
13:44 - Chapter 2. A Historical Critical Reading of Mark
22:18 - Chapter 3. Mark's Messiah
30:26 - Chapter 4. The Apocalyptic in Mark