Explores how the Fourth Gospel's use of Scripture contributes to its characterization of Jesus and how it functions as a part of the Gospel's rhetoric

In this study in three-dimensional character reconstruction, Cornelis Bennema presents a new theory of character in the New Testament literature. Although character has been the subject of focused literary-critical study of the New Testament since the 1970s, Bennema observes that there is still no consensus regarding how character should be understood in contemporary literary theory or in biblical studies. Many New Testament scholars seem to presume that characters in Greco-Roman literature are two-dimensional,”Aristotelian”; figures, unlike the well-rounded, psychologized individuals who appear in modern fiction. They continue nevertheless to apply contemporary literary theory to characters in ancient writings. Bennema here offers a full, comprehensive, and non-reductionist theory for the analysis, classification, and evaluation of characters in the New Testament.

This volume is the fourth in a set of volumes, which together explore current approaches to the study of scripture in the Gospels. Thomas R. Hatina's latest edited collection begins with an introduction surveying methodological approaches used in the study of how scriptural allusions, quotations, and references function in John, with subsequent essays grouped into four categories that represent the breadth of current interpretive interests. The contributors begin with historical-critical approaches, before moving to rhetorical and linguistic approaches, literary approaches, and finally social memory approaches. Each study contains not only recent research on the function of scripture in John, but also an explanation of the approach taken, making the collection an ideal resource for both scholars and students who are interested in the complexities of interpretation in John's context as well as our own.

John's Gospel is best known for its presentation of Jesus as the Word of God made flesh. But as the narrative unfolds, readers discover that the identity of Jesus is surprisingly complex. He is depicted as a teacher, a healer, a prophet, and Messiah. He is Jewish and Galilean, a human being who is Son of Man and Son of God. Portraits of Jesus in the Gospel of John considers each of these roles in detail, showing how each makes a distinctive contribution to the Gospel's rich mosaic of images for Jesus. John's multifaceted portrait of Jesus draws on a broad spectrum of early Christian traditions, and the contributors to this collection of essays explore the ways in which these traditions are both preserved and transformed in the Fourth Gospel. The writers draw us more deeply into the questions of the way in which traditions about Jesus developed in the early church and how the Gospel of John might contribute to our understanding of that dynamic process.

This volume examines characters in the Fourth Gospel and provides an in-depth look at different approaches currently employed by scholars working with literary and reader-oriented methods. Divided into two sections, the book first considers method and theory, followed by exegetical character studies using a literary or reader-oriented method. It summarizes the state of the discussion, examines obstacles to arriving at a comprehensive theory of character in the Fourth Gospel, compares different approaches, and compiles the diverse methodologies into one comparative study. Through this detailed exegesis, the various theories will come alive, and the merits (or deficiencies) of each approach will be available to the reader. This volume is both a comprehensive study in narrative/reader-oriented theories, and a study in the application of those theories as they apply to characterization. Summing up current research on characters and characterization in the Fourth Gospel, this book also provides a comprehensive presentation of different approaches to character that have developed in recent years.

Anatomies of the Gospels and Beyond is an edited volume structured around essays that focus on one of the four canonical Gospels (and Acts) and/or theoretical issues involved in literary readings of New Testament narrative. The volume is intended to honor the legacy of R. Alan Culpepper, Emeritus Professor and Former Dean at Mercer University’s McAfee School of Theology. The title of the volume (which alludes to the title of Culpepper’s ground-breaking monograph, Anatomy of the Fourth Gospel) and the breadth of the essays are apt reflections of his research interests over his academic career of over forty years. The twenty-five contributors are internationally recognized experts in New Testament studies; thus, the essays represent a snapshot of current research.

An enlightening look at the surprising connections between spirituality and progressive thought in the United States. Religious liberalism in America is often associated with an ecumenical Protestant establishment. This book, however, draws attention to the broad diversity of liberal cultures that shapes America’s religious movements. The essays gathered here push beyond familiar tropes and boundaries to interrogate religious liberalism’s dense cultural leanings by looking at spirituality in the arts, the politics and piety of religious cosmopolitanism, and the interaction between liberal religion and liberal secularism. Readers will find a kaleidoscopic view of many of the progressive strands of America’s religious past and present in this richly provocative volume.

In this collection of essays, Seyoon Kim analyses the structure and function of 1 Thess 1-3, which leads to a new reading of 1 Thessalonians. He devotes several essays to a comprehensive exposition of Paul's gospel for the Thessalonians by fully unfolding several summaries of the gospel in the epistle, by detecting and analysing various Son of Man sayings of Jesus that are alluded to or echoed in it, and by a thorough discussion of the unity and continuity of Paul's gospel between this early epistle and his later epistles. This exposition is augmented by a new observation of Paul's doctrine of justification in 2 Thess 1-2 and a new explanation of to katέχov and o katέχwv (2 Thess 2:3-8).

Embodied Hope explores implications of an embodied theology of hope for preachers' ability to nurture imaginative abundance and purposeful hope-filled action in the most chaotic of times. Embodied hope is grounded in a theological anthropology that foregrounds humanity's inherent identity as imago Dei and capacity to live as a nondistorting nondestructive reflection of God's presence in the earth. The conceptual metaphor embodied Hope represents that which creates within each of us yearning for wholeness and well-being, the always-speaking voice of God's Spirit assuring us of God's power, faithfulness, and redemptive presence and calling us toward loving, just, and restorative action in our world today. Humans possess the capacity to imagine and live toward a qualitatively better state of existence for all creation, but overwhelmed by the despairing realities of life, we often feel despondent and drained of imaginative potential. Preaching amplifies the voice of Hope, bearing witness and inviting us to imagine the possibility and efficacy of a new reality grounded in Jesus's gospel proclamation. Embodied Hope invites us to stand at the intersection of Hope and despair as we explore the contours and possibilities of living with Hope in times such as the present.