The First Professor of Biblical Philosophy

The notion of a particular is what makes the Bible (the reference is to the Hebrew Scriptures) an original position in philosophy. (Particulars are self-contained spatio-temporal entities, and hence, though present in the system that is nature, are not essentially parts of it.) The early chapters of Genesis develop a comprehensive (anti-pagan) conceptualization of reality that gives particularity its due. Whether particularity can be secured without a fully extra-natural anchorage (i.e., without God) is a live issue. As the case may be, the philosophy of the Bible is not a footnote, not even a substantial footnote, to Plato. Plato’s metaphysical discourse cannot handle the particular. An irreducibly different, ontological, discourse is needed for that. Having conceived the new notion (the act of conception is dramatized in the theophany of Genesis 12), Abraham, the philosopher of the paper’s title, ‘called…on the name of the Lord’ (Genesis 21:33) to the men and women of the world. The particularity of God, I explain, not God’s numerical uniqueness, is the essence of monotheism.     

Ishmael as Abraham's Sacrifice: Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Kathīr on the Intended Victim

This article examines how Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Kathīr shift the Islamic exegetical tradition towards accepting Ishmael as Abraham's intended sacrifice. Earlier exegetes, such as al-?abarī, maintained that Isaac was the intended sacrifice through a philological analysis of the qur'anic text. Contrary to expectations, Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Kathīr do not only use Prophetic reports (Hadith) to make their case but also employ biblical and philological arguments. The modern dominance of Ibn Taymiyya's qur'anic hermeneutic and the popularity of Ibn Kathīr's qur'anic exegesis have influenced Islamic orthodoxy to hold that Ishmael was the sacrificial son and to be more skeptical of biblical sources.     

The Sacrifice of Silence: Fear and Trembling and the Secret of Faith

This article examines the important hermeneutical and theological relation between silence and sacrifice in Søren Kierkegaard's (1813–55) divisively enigmatic Fear and Trembling. I contend that this relation becomes clearest when the silence of Abraham is explicated in relation to his esoteric proclamation that ‘God himself will provide a lamb for the burnt offering’. In Abraham's reply to Isaac, the secret of Abraham's faith is concomitantly revealed (as a trust in the notion that ‘with God all things are possible’) and concealed (as a paradoxically ‘impossible’ possibility which cannot be adequately conveyed to ‘the other’). This thereby proposes a qualitative distinction between Abraham's reverent silence before God and his aporetic silence before the other.     

Massignon,Vatican II and Islam as an Abrahamic religion

The qur'anic material about Abraham corresponds in broad outline to the biblical story although it contains some novel features, including the claim that Islam is the religion of Abraham and that together with Ishmael he rebuilt the Kaaba. The article surveys the largely negative responses of Byzantine polemicists, medieval Western authors, and later orientalists, to Islam's avowedly Abrahamic pedigree. It then examines the work of Louis Massignon and his circle, and discusses the extent to which his conviction that Islam was an Abrahamic religion, like Judaism and Christianity, influenced Vatican II. Some precursors of Massignon are mentioned, his attitude to the qur'anic representation of Abraham is criticized in the light of recent research, and his interest’ in Abraham is shown to have been intimately bound up with the peculiar circumstances of his own life.     

God So Loved the World

The account of the near sacrifice of Isaac in Genesis 22, often referred to as the Aqedah, has been profoundly influential, both directly and indirectly, in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim theological reflection. This article seeks to explore some Christian insights into the use of the motif of the sacrifice of Isaac, suggesting that its use is fundamental to understanding the theme of Christ’s love in the Gospel of John, in particular the link between love, sacrifice, and unity. With a brief exploration of two artworks by Marc Chagall, The Sacrifice of Isaac and the White Crucifixion, it will also raise questions as to what this might mean for the relationship between Christianity and Judaism.     

The Parent–Child Relationship as an Archetype for the Relationship Between God and Humanity in Genesis

This article explores the idea that the relationship between a parent and developing child may serve as an archetype for understanding the changing relationship between God and humanity in Genesis. With Adam, Abraham, Jacob, and Joseph representing successive stages of human development, the narrative structure of Genesis is said to portray the relationship between God and humanity as changing in a way that parallels a parent's changing relationship with his or her children across their growth toward psychological integration. This changing relationship with God, which starts out with a symbiotic union with the divine, progresses through separation and individuation, and culminates in reintegration with God, may offer a Biblical approach to psychological growth and healing, as well as a theoretical conceptualization for both the parental and mutable nature of God.     

Truthfulness and the permissibility of Falsehood in the Jewish tradition

Abstract

In this article, I deal with the concept of truth and lie in Jewish traditional literature, examining its development in the Hebrew Bible and rabbinic literature. An essential aspect in understanding this concept is the dualism of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ impulses and the free will of human beings, who were created in the image of God and have the choice to decide between right and wrong.     

Methuselah and Company: A Case of Male Envy of Female Longevity

The Bible says that Methuselah, a direct descendent of Seth, the third born son of Adam and Eve, lived to the ripe old age of 969 years. On the assumption that this is a gross exaggeration, we asked ourselves why the writer (or writers) of the book of Genesis felt a need to exaggerate his age? On the basis of evidence that women live longer than men because they bear children and engage in maternal activities toward their offspring, we argue that the exaggerated ages of men in the Bible are a case of male envy of women because women have a longer life expectancy than men do. We suggest that this is an issue that is no less relevant to gender relations today. We propose that one way that men may deal with their envy of women is to assume the role of the “good-enough mother,” and that if this does not have the desired results, there is always humor.     

Teaching the Bible in the Context of General Education

Three conceptions of general education developed under the titles ‘general,’‘generalist,’ and ‘generalizing’ are matched with appropriate strategies for teaching the Bible. These provide the basis for two points relevant to teaching the Bible in colleges and universities: first, that the prime object of attention is not the Bible, but rather a corporate agreement regarding an educational project; and second, that the ways in which the Bible might be taught will vary, appropriately, according to the ways in which that educational enterprise is understood. A corollary is stated: teachers of the Bible need to be as informed about research in teaching as they are in biblical research.     

Manifest Glory: Phenomenological Indications from the Hebrew Bible

I offer a phenomenological analysis of the syntagm ‘glory of Yhwh’ which appears in relatively few but significant places in the Hebrew Bible. I discuss the biblical sense of this syntagm and make the argument for understanding it as a ‘formally indicative’ concept, in Heidegger’s sense of ‘formale Anzeige’. I thereby make the case for understanding the anthropomorphic, amoral and numinous qualities of the biblical syntagm in a way that illuminates contemporary phenomenological senses of being, including contingency, unforeseeability, respect, dignity, sublimity and saturation. The biblical syntagm is thus shown to contravene and outstrip metaphysical theology while illuminating contemporary experience, both sacred and secular.     

The social life of the Samson Saga in Israeli religious Zionist rabbinic discourse

This article will explore how different contemporary groups of Israeli religious Zionists read and relate to the Biblical tales of Samson. Using current religious Zionist discourse (Bible lessons, newspaper articles and written opinion pieces) authored or delivered by leading rabbinic figures, this article will demonstrate how contemporary interpretations of the ‘Samson Saga’ (Judges 13–16) are used as a medium through which contemporary religious Zionists in Israel and the West Bank contest the meanings of political sovereignty, violence and personal ethics. More broadly, this article will argue that a focus on how sacred texts are interpreted, debated and contested in social contexts (or the ‘social life’ of a text) can offer scholars a thicker and more nuanced window into the varied ways in which religious nationalists grapple with competing political visions and desires.     

The Patience of God the Creator: Reflections on Genesis 1:1–2:4a

This article proposes that Genesis 1:1–2:4a be read in terms of an exercise of divine patience – an act of ‘letting be’ and ‘letting happen’ wherein God establishes, guides, waits on and endorses the free action of non‐human creatures. It first articulates a doctrine of creatio ex nihilo, affirming that God is solely responsible for the establishment of a dynamic, complex and valuable cosmos. Next, it contends that God's creative efforts include the empowerment of non‐human creatures who reward God's patience and commit themselves to the task of creatio cooperativa. It then argues that the emergence of human beings is a creative act undertaken by God and non‐human creatures, such that the human bears both the imago dei and the imago mundi. In conclusion, the article considers the relationship of divine and human action, the limits of the idiom of causality, and the possibility of developing a doctrine of creation in light of the witness of the Hebrew Bible.     

Returning to the Religion of Abraham: Controversies over the Gafatar Movement in Contemporary Indonesia

This article explores the idea of ‘Milah Abraham’, a term used and advocated by Ahmad Mushaddeq and Mahful Muis, the founders of Gafatar (Gerakan Fajar Nusantara/Archipelagic Dawn Movement). Mahful Muis, a prominent companion of Mushaddeq, has written many works about the idea of the religion of Abraham. This article answers the questions of how the idea of Milah Abraham emerged, and what are the implications of its emergence in the context of plural Indonesian Islam. Based on interviews and the written works of both Gafatar leaders, this study explores the idea of the religion of Abraham and how it can go beyond Judaism, Christianity and Islam to a new spirituality that combines the three religious traditions. The idea of Milah Abraham not only offers a new syncretism in the context of plural Indonesian Islam, but also challenges the establishment of Islamic orthodoxy in the country. Since the 1970s, the idea of returning to the religion of Abraham has contributed to the discussion of pluralism among many Indonesian Muslim intellectuals.     

Design and the digital Bible: persuasive technology and religious reading

This article analyses two ‘digital Bibles’, products that allow the user to engage with the Bible through the screen and speakers of his/her mobile phone, tablet or computer. Both products, ‘YouVersion’ and ‘GloBible’, have been created by Evangelical Christian companies. I argue that both are designed to train the user in traditional Evangelical Christian understandings of the work of reading. Digital media offer new opportunities to guide and influence the user, and this article applies the concepts of ‘persuasive technologies’ and ‘procedural rhetoric’ to analyse the design intentions of the two digital Bibles. This approach helps us to appreciate the significance of the material form of a sacred text as a vehicle for religious socialisation and raises important questions about the potential for digital media to re-shape traditional relationships of power in Evangelical Christian communities.     

Why Didn’t Freud Reject Pfister? A Response to Isabelle Noth and Christoph Morgenthaler

The Freud-Pfister correspondence is in some sense an Urtext for the most friendly debate imaginable between the self-identified “godless Jew” who founded psychoanalysis, and the liberal Swiss pastor who was drawn to psychoanalysis while retaining his belief in God. Why didn’t Freud reject Pfister? This article will probe this question using the tools of psychoanalysis itself. After reviewing Freud’s associations to childhood religion, the Bible, and his father (citing Rizzuto), I am proposing that Pfister functioned unconsciously for Freud not only as an admiring son and disciple, but also a father substitute—much like Freud’s beloved antiquities—who represented both a God and a father who would admire and love him, and carry Freud’s name forward in the Book of Life.     

Good Catholics: The Battle over Abortion in the Catholic Church

Abstract

Queer readings of the Bible are sometimes understood to be irrelevant for uses of the Bible in theology, theological education, and ministry. This address challenges that understanding by considering ways in which portions of the Bible take positions vis-à-vis religious tradition that parallel moves made in queer theory and queer theology. Using the task of preaching as an example, the address suggests that queer readings can be useful for the practice of Christian ministry even as such readings challenge certain ‘common-sense’ conceptions of ministry, theological education, and religious community.     

Metaphorical Mapping: The Arts in Graduate Theological Education

Doctoral students in Bible, theology, ethics, history, preaching, worship, pastoral care, and Christian education come together for a required seminar in teaching. Assignments include reading and discussion, student‐led teaching demonstrations, and the ‘metaphorical mapping’ of each student's field of study. In developing their ‘metaphorical maps’ students use artistic and expressive media to demonstrate their understanding of their field. The assignment has been successful in establishing an open and mutually respectful climate in the classroom, in fostering a pattern of critical reflection on teaching, and in demonstrating appropriate inclusion of personal experience in the academic classroom.