The Post-Resurrection Appearance Stories of the Gospel Tradition' Although there are innumerable studies of the Easter event, the spectrum of New Testament research demonstrates an astonishing vacuum regarding a history-of-tradition analysis of the Easter appearance stories, especially in the application of the form-critical method. This study begins with a methodological review of the more recent literature and challenges the widely accepted view that the appearance stories are to be excluded from consideration of the origins of Easter faith. Because of the far-reaching confusion over the place of these stories within the complex of the resurrection traditions, Part Two scans the distinctions and relationships between them. In Part Three the author concentrates upon the appearance stories themselves and raises the following questions: Are pre-redactional forms discernible? If so, do such demonstrate by comparison similarities of form and content? Does a NT 'Gattung' stand behind them? And, finally, Part Four probes the matter of analogies in the world of primitive Christianity, while Part Five summarizes and asks provisionally if observations of a formal nature invite suggestive possibilities for further work on the question of historical experience behind the stories. An attempt at critical review of such questions is long overdue.
This book has grown out of a ministry that has spanned nearly four decades. It is built around the conviction that theology does matter for theology has to do with words from God, words spoken back to God and words spoken to the world. Luther once remarked something to the effect that the cross alone is our theology. Before Luther there was the Apostle Paul who came to the Corinthians with "the word of the cross" (1 Cor. 1:18) determined to know nothing among them but Jesus Christ and Him crucified (see 1 Cor. 2:2). In essays, sermons, and homiletical studies this volume seeks to continue that apostolic aim. A significant portion of this book is devoted to sermons. Sermons, of course, are written to be preached rather than published. None the less, there is value in reading sermons. Such reading is a way of meditating on God's Word. This reading might also prompt other preachers to explore an overlooked dimension of a text for their proclamation. Sermons are never generic; they always have a context. Many of these sermons were preached in Kramer Chapel on the campus of Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne where the author has served as a professor since 2000. These sermons are preaching for future preachers, equipping them in the way of Luther's oratio, meditatio, and tentatio for the burdens and joys of the pastoral office. There are occasional sermons from conferences, funerals, and ordinary congregations. Over the years, Prof. Pless has preached at over thirty ordinations or installations of pastors. A sampling of these sermons are included. They bear the imprint of the bond that exist between professor and student. More importantly they promote Jesus Christ as the Lord who calls men into the ministry and enlivens and sustains them there with His Gospel for the good of His flock. The remainder of the book is devoted to essays in pastoral theology covering the range of the author's interest from Hermann Sasse to vocation, liturgical practice to the Small Catechism, challenges to confessional Lutheranism in North America to the office of the ministry. Many of these essays originated at conferences both in the USA and abroad. The contents of this volume flow from the pulpit, desk, and podium of a man who seeks not novelty or creativity but faithfulness to the word of the cross.
A groundbreaking investigation of early Christ groups in the ancient Mediterranean As an urban movement, the early groups of Christ followers came into contact with the many small groups in Greek and Roman antiquity. Organized around the workplace, a deity, a diasporic identity, or a neighborhood, these associations gathered in small face-to-face meetings and provided the principal context for cultic and social interactions for their members. Unlike most other groups, however, about which we have data on their rules of membership, financial management, and organizational hierarchy, we have very little information about early Christ groups. Drawing on data about associative practices throughout the ancient world, this innovative study offers new insight into the structure and mission of the early Christ groups. John S. Kloppenborg situates the Christ associations within the broader historical context of the ancient Mediterranean and reveals that they were probably smaller than previously believed and did not have a uniform system of governance, and that the attraction of Christ groups was based more on practice than theological belief.
This work focuses on the appropriation and resignification of scripture in Joel and its NT "Nachleben," where Israel's literature functions as "an authoritative medium of refraction," The purpose is to recover the canon's unrecorded hermeneutics at the intersection of both diachronic and synchronic textual surfaces.
Allen and Holbert address what seems to be an insurmountable problem for preaching ministers: how the confession that Jesus is Lord affects our reading and preaching from the Old Testament. Their work attempts to explore how the Hebrew Bible is--and is not--instructive for the Christian church.
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