Download or read book John and Thomas Gospels in Conflict written by Christopher W. Skinner and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2009-06-01 with total page 270 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The hypothesis that the Fourth Gospel is a theological response to the Gospel of Thomas is a recent development in the study of the New Testament and early Christianity. Assuming an early date for the Gospel of Thomas, the proponents of this hypothesis argue that the supposed "polemical" presentation of Thomas in the Fourth Gospel is evidence of a conflict between the early communities associated respectively with John and Thomas. However, a detailed narrative study reveals that the Fourth Gospel portrays a host of characters--disciples and non-disciples--in an equally unflattering light where an understanding of Jesus's origins, message, and mission are concerned. The present study attempts to demonstrate that the Fourth Gospel's presentation of Thomas is part and parcel of its treatment of "uncomprehending" characters. If this thesis is correct, it poses a significant challenge to the assumption that the Fourth Gospel contains a polemic against Thomas, or that it was written in response to the Gospel of Thomas or the community associated with Thomas.
Download or read book John and Thomas Gospels in Conflict written by Christopher W. Skinner and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2009-06-01 with total page 271 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The hypothesis that the Fourth Gospel is a theological response to the Gospel of Thomas is a recent development in the study of the New Testament and early Christianity. Assuming an early date for the Gospel of Thomas, the proponents of this hypothesis argue that the supposed polemical presentation of Thomas in the Fourth Gospel is evidence of a conflict between the early communities associated respectively with John and Thomas. However, a detailed narrative study reveals that the Fourth Gospel portrays a host of characters--disciples and non-disciples--in an equally unflattering light where an understanding of Jesus's origins, message, and mission are concerned. The present study attempts to demonstrate that the Fourth Gospel's presentation of Thomas is part and parcel of its treatment of uncomprehending characters. If this thesis is correct, it poses a significant challenge to the assumption that the Fourth Gospel contains a polemic against Thomas, or that it was written in response to the Gospel of Thomas or the community associated with Thomas.
Download or read book Beyond Belief written by Elaine Pagels and published by Vintage. This book was released on 2004-05-04 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Beyond Belief, renowned religion scholar Elaine Pagels continues her groundbreaking examination of the earliest Christian texts, arguing for an ongoing assessment of faith and a questioning of religious orthodoxy. Spurred on by personal tragedy and new scholarship from an international group of researchers, Pagels returns to her investigation of the “secret” Gospel of Thomas, and breathes new life into writings once thought heretical. As she arrives at an ever-deeper conviction in her own faith, Pagels reveals how faith allows for a diversity of interpretations, and that the “rogue” voices of Christianity encourage and sustain “the recognition of the light within us all.”
Download or read book What are They Saying about the Gospel of Thomas written by Christopher W. Skinner and published by Paulist Press. This book was released on 2012 with total page 132 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Since its discovery the Gospel of Thomas has been the subject of intense study for those with interests in the developments of earliest Christianity. Three questions remain unanswered in contemporary scholarship: (1) When was Thomas composed?; (2) What is the relationship between Thomas and the canonical Gospels?; (3) What theological outlook is presented in the Gospel of Thomas? This volume provides a comprehensive overview of recent scholarly opinions on these three questions" -- Amazon.com.
Download or read book What Are They Saying About the Gospel of Thomas written by Christopher W. Skinner and published by Paulist Press. This book was released on 2012-05-01 with total page 132 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A comprehensive overview of recent scholarly research on the Gospel of Thomas.
Download or read book The Gospel of John written by Paul L. Metzger and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2010-10-18 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the Resonate series the stories and insights of each book of the Bible are brought into conversation with contemporary voices of hope and lament. In this volume we journey through the Gospel of John with Paul Louis Metzger who wrestles with the question of what happens when God, who is love, comes to town and takes up residence among us.
Download or read book The Oxford Handbook of the Synoptic Gospels written by Stephen P. Ahearne-Kroll and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2023 with total page 633 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The field of Synoptic studies traditionally has had two basic foci. The question of how Matthew, Mark, and Luke are related to each other, what their sources are, and how the Gospels use their sources constitutes the first focus. Collectively, scholarship on the Synoptic Problem has tried to address these issues, and recent years have seen renewed interest and rigorous debate about some of the traditional approaches to the Synoptic Problem and how these approaches might inform the understanding of the origins of the early Jesus movement. The second focus involves thematic studies across the three Gospels. These are usually, but not exclusively, performed for theological purposes to tease out the early Jesus movement's thinking about the nature of Jesus, the motivations for his actions, the meaning of his death and resurrection, and his relationship to God. These studies pay less attention to the particular voices of the three individual Synoptic Gospels because they are trying to get to the overall theological character of Jesus"--
Download or read book The Composition of the Gospel of Thomas written by Simon J. Gathercole and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2012-03 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This groundbreaking study argues that the Gospel of Thomas was written in Greek and influenced by New Testament writings.
Download or read book Myths Martyrs and Modernity written by Jitse Dijkstra and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2010-01-11 with total page 762 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume in honour of Jan N. Bremmer contains the contributions of numerous students, colleagues, and friends offered to him on the occasion of his 65th birthday. Throughout his career, Bremmer has distinguished himself as an internationally renowned scholar of religion both past and present, including first and foremost Greek and Roman religion, but also early Christianity and post-classical developments in religion and spirituality. In line with these three main areas of Bremmer’s research, the volume is divided into three parts, bringing together contributions from distinguished scholars in many fields. The result is a diverse book which provides a broad spectrum of original ideas and innovative approaches in the history of religions, thus reflecting the nature of the scholarship of Bremmer himself.
Download or read book Paul and the Gospels written by Michael F. Bird and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2013-05-01 with total page 146 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume, which collects together the work of several established scholars attempts to situate the Apostle Paul, the Pauline writings, and the earliest Christian Gospels together in the context of early Christianity. It addresses the issue of how the Christianity depicted in and represented by the individual Gospels relates to the vision of Christianity represented by Paul and the Pauline writings.This raises such questions as to what extent did Paul influence the canonical and non-canonical Gospels? In what way are the Gospels reactions to Paul and his legacy? A comparison of the Gospels and Paul on topics such as Old Testament Law, Gentile mission, Christology, and early church leadership structures represents a fruitful area of study. While a number of volumes have appeared that attempt to assess the relationship between the historical Jesus and the Apostle Paul relatively few studies on Paul and the Gospels have been published. This volume excellently fills this gap in New Testament Studies and makes a valuable contribution to studies on Christian Origins, Pauline research, and the Gospels.
Download or read book Configuring Nicodemus written by Michael R. Whitenton and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2019-01-24 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Michael Whitenton offers a fresh perspective on the characterization of Nicodemus, focusing on the benefit of Hellenistic rhetoric and the cognitive sciences for understanding audience construals of characters in ancient narratives. Whitenton builds an interdisciplinary approach to ancient characters, utilizing cognitive science, Greek stock characters, ancient rhetoric, and modern literary theory. He then turns his attention to the characterization of Nicodemus, where he argues that Nicodemus would likely be understood initially as a dissembling character, only to depart from that characterization later in the narrative, suggesting a journey toward Johannine faith. Whitenton presents a compelling argument: many in an ancient audience would construe Nicodemus in ways that suggest his development from doubt and suspicion to commitment and devotion.
Download or read book Gnostic Morality Revisited written by Ismo Dunderberg and published by Mohr Siebeck. This book was released on 2015-06-18 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While the early Christian texts discussed in this book are often treated as "gnostic" ones, they are here approached as witnesses to the views of educated Christians engaged in dialogue with philosophical traditions. Following the idea that ancient philosophical schools provided their adherents with ways of life, Ismo Dunderberg explores issues related to morality and lifestyle in non-canonical gospels and among groups that were gradually denounced as heretical in the church. He deals with the soul's progress from material concerns to a life dominated by spirit, the control of emotions, the avoidance of luxury, the ideal "perfect human" as a tool in moral instruction, classifications of humankind into distinct groups based on their moral advancement, and Christian debates about the value of martyrdom. In addition, he offers a critical review of some recent trends and attitudes in New Testament scholarship.
Download or read book Seeking the Imperishable Treasure written by Steven R Johnson and published by James Clarke & Company. This book was released on 2010-06-24 with total page 183 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book tracks the use of a single saying of Jesus over time and among theologically divergent authors and communities and identifies six different versions of the saying in the canonical gospels and epistles, as well as the Gospel of Thomas and Q. After tracing the tradition and redaction history of this wisdom admonition, the author observes at least two distinctly different wisdom themes that are applied to the saying: the proper disposition of wealth and the search for knowledge, wisdom, or God. What he discovers is a saying of Jesus with roots in Jewish wisdom and pietistic traditions, as well as popular Greek philosophy that proved amazingly adaptable in its application to differing social and rhetorical contexts of the first century.
Download or read book It is the Spirit that Gives Life written by Gitte Buch-Hansen and published by Walter de Gruyter. This book was released on 2010-05-27 with total page 521 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since Origen and Chrysostom, John’s Gospel has been valued as the most spiritual among the New Testament writings. Although Origen recognizes the Stoic character of John’s statement that “God is pneuma” (4:24), an examination of the gospel in light of Stoic physics has not yet been carried out. Combining her insight into Stoic physics and ancient physiology, the author situates her thesis in the major discussions of modern Johannine scholarship – e.g. the role of the Baptist and the function of the Johannine signs – and demonstrates new solutions to well-known problems. The Stoic study of the Fourth Gospel reveals a coherent narrative tied together by the spirit. The problem with which John’s Gospel wrestles is not the identity of Jesus, but the transition from the Son of God to the next generation of divinely begotten children: how did it come about? A reading carried out from a Stoic perspective points to the translation of the risen body of Jesus into spirit as the decisive event. The provision of the spirit is a precondition of the divine generation of believers. Both events are explained by Stoic theory which allows of a transformation of fleshly elements into pneuma and of multiple fatherhood. In fact, in his Commentary on John, Origen described Jesus’ ascension as an event of anastoixeiôsis, which is the Stoic term for the transformation of heavily elements into lighter and pneumatic ones.
Download or read book Thomas Love as Strong as Death written by Dennis Sylva and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2013-02-14 with total page 191 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Thomas appears only four times in John's Gospel, yet despite this he is crucially important in understanding the function of the Johannine message. Dennis Sylva provides the first major study which examines the paradox that Thomas is both opposed to a dominant theme in the Fourth Gospel - the eternal life that is a gift to Jesus' followers - and yet is in support of Jesus himself. Thomas appears to have a foot on both sides of the Johannine dualistic divide. He seems to be existentially at home on one side and yet ideologically at home on the other. No other character in John's Gospel so tenaciously hold on to companionship with Jesus while just as resolutely distancing himself from Jesus' central teaching. Thomas breaks down the barriers between the disciples (those who walk in the light) and the world (those who walk in the darkness) that John takes pains to establish. Sylva's new work demonstrates the importance of Thomas in fully understanding the message of the Fourth Gospel.
Download or read book The Conceptual Worlds of the Fourth Gospel written by Charles B. Puskas and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2021-01-08 with total page 394 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over, under, and through John’s story of Jesus are unforgettable ideas and concepts, profoundly simple and simply profound, for the author’s own audience and beyond. These ideas did not originate in a vacuum. They have recurred and been repeated before and after the writing of the Fourth Gospel. For this reason we will examine the meaning of its words and themes in the context of its Jewish-Greco-Roman milieu. Much of our intertextual understanding will be derived from alleged parallels that involve comparisons of similar vocabulary and phrases, as well as parallel concepts and images from the Old Testament, the Dead Sea Scrolls, Philo, and other relevant writings. Such parallels will help to determine the meaning of a word or expression, the translation of a particular language, determining any direct influences upon the Fourth Gospel, parallel traditions, or the influence of its ideas, as a creative and inspiring work of later antiquity.
Download or read book The Nag Hammadi Library after Fifty Years written by Turner and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2020-10-26 with total page 552 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume contains 22 papers originally delivered at the Society of Biblical Literature's 1995 commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the discovery of the Nag Hammadi Library. Of these papers, five focus on the theme "Past, Present, and Future Research on the Nag Hammadi Codices" (J.M. Robinson, S. Emmel, B.A. Pearson, H.-M. Schenke, E.M. Yamauchi); thirteen stem from three seminars respectively devoted to the Apocryphon of John (M. Waldstein, F. Wisse, K.L. King, and S. LaPorta), the Gospel of Thomas and the Thomasine tradition (P.-H. Poirier, P.H. Sellew, J.-M. Sevrin, I. Dunderberg, S.R. Johnson, A. DeConick), and the Gospel of Philip ( E. Pagels, E. Thomassen, M. Turner); and two deal with the Valentinian school (C. Markschies, L. Painchaud & T. Janz).
