Pub Date : 2023-01-02DOI: 10.1080/2222582X.2023.2173628
C. Hansen
Abstract This article contends with the multitude of suggestions that have been raised recently as to the origin of Tacitus's information on Christians and Jesus, and concludes that, contrary to much popular opinion, the theory that Tacitus's information is a reliable independent witness is likely faulty. It first discusses previous theories that have been proposed, including the hypothesis that Tacitus was reliant on Josephus, official Roman documents, etc., and finds all suppositions for Tacitus being independent of Christian tradition to be specious and reliant on faulty arguments and a lack of convincing evidence. The article presents an alternative solution which is that Tacitus was reliant on the work of his friend Pliny the Younger, both his Letter 10.96 sent to Trajan and likely also discourses he had with him, noting that Tacitus relied on Pliny's works elsewhere and the close relationship the two had, even exchanging each other's works for review and criticism. A number of verbal parallels between Tacitus's work and Pliny's letter also points in this direction. As a result, Tacitus's information on Christians and Jesus likely stemmed from Pliny, who in turn gained it from interrogations of and hearsay from Christians. This has ramifications such as that Tacitus is then not a useful source for establishing the historicity of Jesus or the historicity of the Neronian persecution, as it looks as though he melded Christian tradition with the Great Fire of Rome, which Christians make no reference to for centuries.
{"title":"The Problem of Annals 15.44: On the Plinian Origin of Tacitus's Information on Christians","authors":"C. Hansen","doi":"10.1080/2222582X.2023.2173628","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/2222582X.2023.2173628","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This article contends with the multitude of suggestions that have been raised recently as to the origin of Tacitus's information on Christians and Jesus, and concludes that, contrary to much popular opinion, the theory that Tacitus's information is a reliable independent witness is likely faulty. It first discusses previous theories that have been proposed, including the hypothesis that Tacitus was reliant on Josephus, official Roman documents, etc., and finds all suppositions for Tacitus being independent of Christian tradition to be specious and reliant on faulty arguments and a lack of convincing evidence. The article presents an alternative solution which is that Tacitus was reliant on the work of his friend Pliny the Younger, both his Letter 10.96 sent to Trajan and likely also discourses he had with him, noting that Tacitus relied on Pliny's works elsewhere and the close relationship the two had, even exchanging each other's works for review and criticism. A number of verbal parallels between Tacitus's work and Pliny's letter also points in this direction. As a result, Tacitus's information on Christians and Jesus likely stemmed from Pliny, who in turn gained it from interrogations of and hearsay from Christians. This has ramifications such as that Tacitus is then not a useful source for establishing the historicity of Jesus or the historicity of the Neronian persecution, as it looks as though he melded Christian tradition with the Great Fire of Rome, which Christians make no reference to for centuries.","PeriodicalId":40708,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Christian History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2023-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47275981","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-01-02DOI: 10.1080/2222582x.2023.2209299
David L. Eastman
Abstract The Passion of Perpetua and Felicity is one of the most well-known texts from the earliest Christian centuries. However, at its heart lies a paradox. The story describes the arrest, imprisonment, torture, and violent deaths of two young women. If events such as these were to happen right in front of us, most of us would turn away. Our sense of fear and horror might be magnified by a sense that we could also become victims of this kind of senseless violence. However, this literary account has held the attention and admiration of Christians since the third century. There has been an abiding desire to enter into this story, to live it (at least allegedly) through the eyes of one of the victims, and to relive and celebrate it through various cultic practices. How can we explain this? This paper explores the psychological appeal of the Passion through the lens of horror theory and what has been called the paradox of horror, associated with the paradox of painful art. By applying insights from horror theory, the paper explores the irresistible draw of a story full of elements that should provoke revulsion.
{"title":"Perpetua, Felicity, and the Paradox of Horror","authors":"David L. Eastman","doi":"10.1080/2222582x.2023.2209299","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/2222582x.2023.2209299","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The Passion of Perpetua and Felicity is one of the most well-known texts from the earliest Christian centuries. However, at its heart lies a paradox. The story describes the arrest, imprisonment, torture, and violent deaths of two young women. If events such as these were to happen right in front of us, most of us would turn away. Our sense of fear and horror might be magnified by a sense that we could also become victims of this kind of senseless violence. However, this literary account has held the attention and admiration of Christians since the third century. There has been an abiding desire to enter into this story, to live it (at least allegedly) through the eyes of one of the victims, and to relive and celebrate it through various cultic practices. How can we explain this? This paper explores the psychological appeal of the Passion through the lens of horror theory and what has been called the paradox of horror, associated with the paradox of painful art. By applying insights from horror theory, the paper explores the irresistible draw of a story full of elements that should provoke revulsion.","PeriodicalId":40708,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Christian History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2023-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46603260","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-02DOI: 10.1080/2222582x.2022.2131589
C. Stenschke
The comprehensive Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception (2009–) endeavours to cover comprehensively not only the Bible, but also its varied reception in Judaism, Christianity
《圣经及其接受百科全书》(2009 -)不仅全面涵盖了圣经，还涵盖了犹太教、基督教对圣经的各种接受
{"title":"Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception. Vol. 20, Mouse, Mice–Nefesh, edited by Constance M. Furey, Joel M. LeMon, Brian Matz, Steven L. McKenzie, Thomas Römer, Jens Schröter, Barry Dov Walfish, and Eric Ziolkowski","authors":"C. Stenschke","doi":"10.1080/2222582x.2022.2131589","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/2222582x.2022.2131589","url":null,"abstract":"The comprehensive Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception (2009–) endeavours to cover comprehensively not only the Bible, but also its varied reception in Judaism, Christianity","PeriodicalId":40708,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Christian History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46785859","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-02DOI: 10.1080/2222582X.2022.2146520
Johnathan Jodamus
Abstract Feminist and gender critical biblical scholarship has shown how texts ideologically function as products of their ancient social and cultural norms. In my dissertation work on Pauline texts, through isolating the ideological component of socio-rhetorical-interpretation, I demonstrated how these texts are “ideologically textured” within their ancient social context. In this article, I bring a combination of approaches from ideological criticism and theoretical insights from feminist criticism to bear on both the biblical text of 1 Timothy 2:8–15 and contemporary interpretations of this text. The latter is exemplified by the conservative Christian blogger, “The Transformed Wife.” Beginning with an examination of how both Paul and the blogger establish authority amongst believing communities, I then interrogate three areas of focus within their ideological purview: modesty, authority, and childbearing. I conclude that (con)texturing (a taxonomy of approaches that I propose which reads for ideological texture within text and context) provides a productive way to engage with the enduring influence of biblical texts and their harmful interpretations for wo/men.
{"title":"(Con)texturing Ideologies of Modesty, Authority, and Childbearing in 1 Timothy 2:8–15","authors":"Johnathan Jodamus","doi":"10.1080/2222582X.2022.2146520","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/2222582X.2022.2146520","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Feminist and gender critical biblical scholarship has shown how texts ideologically function as products of their ancient social and cultural norms. In my dissertation work on Pauline texts, through isolating the ideological component of socio-rhetorical-interpretation, I demonstrated how these texts are “ideologically textured” within their ancient social context. In this article, I bring a combination of approaches from ideological criticism and theoretical insights from feminist criticism to bear on both the biblical text of 1 Timothy 2:8–15 and contemporary interpretations of this text. The latter is exemplified by the conservative Christian blogger, “The Transformed Wife.” Beginning with an examination of how both Paul and the blogger establish authority amongst believing communities, I then interrogate three areas of focus within their ideological purview: modesty, authority, and childbearing. I conclude that (con)texturing (a taxonomy of approaches that I propose which reads for ideological texture within text and context) provides a productive way to engage with the enduring influence of biblical texts and their harmful interpretations for wo/men.","PeriodicalId":40708,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Christian History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49035992","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-02DOI: 10.1080/2222582X.2022.2131998
C. Stenschke
Considered by many scholars to be the oldest witness in Latin for an authorised canon of New Testament books, the so-called Muratorian Canon has attracted much attention since its discovery in 1740. In the context of different issues of New Testament introduction, this canon is regularly referred to as evidence in establishing the early existence of a New Testament canon and in reconstructions of the history of ancient Christianity. Despite its significance, the text has not been examined with sufficient critical acumen, as Rothschild points out:
{"title":"The Muratorian Fragment: Text, Translation, Commentary, by Clare K. Rothschild","authors":"C. Stenschke","doi":"10.1080/2222582X.2022.2131998","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/2222582X.2022.2131998","url":null,"abstract":"Considered by many scholars to be the oldest witness in Latin for an authorised canon of New Testament books, the so-called Muratorian Canon has attracted much attention since its discovery in 1740. In the context of different issues of New Testament introduction, this canon is regularly referred to as evidence in establishing the early existence of a New Testament canon and in reconstructions of the history of ancient Christianity. Despite its significance, the text has not been examined with sufficient critical acumen, as Rothschild points out:","PeriodicalId":40708,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Christian History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45307684","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-02DOI: 10.1080/2222582X.2022.2129403
David C. Harris
Abstract This article is a brief discursive comparison of the eschatological maritime battles of 4Q285 (Sefer haMilhamah) and John’s Apocalypse. The depictions of eschatological warfare in these texts share elements which indicate common traditions, a shared catalogue of sacred authoritative writings, and together speak to the Jewish underpinnings of Christian apocalypticism. While legitimate textual comparisons of nearly any sort may be made across vast differences in genre, culture, and historical periods, the connective lines between the yahad community of the Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS) and that of the early Christian movement are not so distant as to render such comparisons insignificant to the interests of the study of Christian origins and early Christian history.
{"title":"The Maritime Wars of 4Q285 and Revelation","authors":"David C. Harris","doi":"10.1080/2222582X.2022.2129403","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/2222582X.2022.2129403","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This article is a brief discursive comparison of the eschatological maritime battles of 4Q285 (Sefer haMilhamah) and John’s Apocalypse. The depictions of eschatological warfare in these texts share elements which indicate common traditions, a shared catalogue of sacred authoritative writings, and together speak to the Jewish underpinnings of Christian apocalypticism. While legitimate textual comparisons of nearly any sort may be made across vast differences in genre, culture, and historical periods, the connective lines between the yahad community of the Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS) and that of the early Christian movement are not so distant as to render such comparisons insignificant to the interests of the study of Christian origins and early Christian history.","PeriodicalId":40708,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Christian History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46205062","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-02DOI: 10.1080/2222582X.2022.2146519
Constantine A. Bozinis
Abstract The present study treats one of the most well-known and discussed texts of the apocryphal Bible: the Acts of Paul and Thecla. By analysing the narrative structure of this apocryphal text and the behaviour of its protagonists, I shed light on its philosophical background, which has been largely ignored by contemporary scholarship. More specifically, my analysis focuses on the motif of divine eros, which is continuously present throughout the entire narrative. It goes without saying that the testimonies found in early Christian literature showing the influence of Platonic philosophy on the growing religion constitute the point of departure for a thorough examination of Thecla’s Acts and a systematic treatment of this aspect of their narration. From Ignatius’s epistle To the Romans up to Clement of Alexandria’s Stromata, a period of approximately 100 years passes, during which the Platonic conception of love makes it presence ever more prominent within the ecclesiastical scene, until it is finally identified with the highest expression of faith and reverence towards God in the writings of the Alexandrian theologians. It is no coincidence that it is precisely to this period of time that contemporary scholars date the composition of the Acts of Paul and Thecla.
{"title":"Divine Eros in the Apocryphal Acts of Paul and Thecla","authors":"Constantine A. Bozinis","doi":"10.1080/2222582X.2022.2146519","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/2222582X.2022.2146519","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The present study treats one of the most well-known and discussed texts of the apocryphal Bible: the Acts of Paul and Thecla. By analysing the narrative structure of this apocryphal text and the behaviour of its protagonists, I shed light on its philosophical background, which has been largely ignored by contemporary scholarship. More specifically, my analysis focuses on the motif of divine eros, which is continuously present throughout the entire narrative. It goes without saying that the testimonies found in early Christian literature showing the influence of Platonic philosophy on the growing religion constitute the point of departure for a thorough examination of Thecla’s Acts and a systematic treatment of this aspect of their narration. From Ignatius’s epistle To the Romans up to Clement of Alexandria’s Stromata, a period of approximately 100 years passes, during which the Platonic conception of love makes it presence ever more prominent within the ecclesiastical scene, until it is finally identified with the highest expression of faith and reverence towards God in the writings of the Alexandrian theologians. It is no coincidence that it is precisely to this period of time that contemporary scholars date the composition of the Acts of Paul and Thecla.","PeriodicalId":40708,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Christian History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46564096","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-02DOI: 10.1080/2222582X.2022.2132000
C. Stenschke
In this comprehensive study, Austrian scholar Christian Hofreiter offers an excellent survey of the Christian reception of the highly problematic Old Testament passages (in Deuteronomy, Joshua, and 1 Samuel 15) which demand the extinction of people. The Jewish reception of these passages is not in view.1 In this review, I focus on the sections of the study in which Hofreiter describes and analyses the reception by early Christian and late ancient authors. Hofreiter seeks to address the following questions:
{"title":"Making Sense of Old Testament Genocide: Christian Interpretations of Herem Passages, by Christian Hofreiter","authors":"C. Stenschke","doi":"10.1080/2222582X.2022.2132000","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/2222582X.2022.2132000","url":null,"abstract":"In this comprehensive study, Austrian scholar Christian Hofreiter offers an excellent survey of the Christian reception of the highly problematic Old Testament passages (in Deuteronomy, Joshua, and 1 Samuel 15) which demand the extinction of people. The Jewish reception of these passages is not in view.1 In this review, I focus on the sections of the study in which Hofreiter describes and analyses the reception by early Christian and late ancient authors. Hofreiter seeks to address the following questions:","PeriodicalId":40708,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Christian History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46979216","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-08-19DOI: 10.1080/2222582X.2022.2109052
D. R. Edwards
Abstract I revive a chronological approach to the hymn in 1 Timothy 3:16, a reading which has frequently been dismissed on the basis of the alleged misplacement of the ascension after the Gentile missionary movement. Behind the rejection of a chronological reading has been the normativity of the narrative of Luke- Acts—or at least a conventional reading of it. This study argues that the peculiar chronology of the hymn arose from attempts to harmonise the multiple ascension reports in Luke 24 and Acts 1 along with the tradition reported by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15. Lying behind the hymn is an interpretation of Luke- Acts as implying multiple and ongoing post-resurrection appearances and ascensions which culminate in a final ascension after the appearance to Paul, which occurs in the narrative of Luke-Acts just after the Christian proclamation expands to Gentiles through the baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch.
{"title":"“Taken Up in Glory”: Early Christian Traditions of the Ascension in Light of 1 Timothy 3:16","authors":"D. R. Edwards","doi":"10.1080/2222582X.2022.2109052","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/2222582X.2022.2109052","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract I revive a chronological approach to the hymn in 1 Timothy 3:16, a reading which has frequently been dismissed on the basis of the alleged misplacement of the ascension after the Gentile missionary movement. Behind the rejection of a chronological reading has been the normativity of the narrative of Luke- Acts—or at least a conventional reading of it. This study argues that the peculiar chronology of the hymn arose from attempts to harmonise the multiple ascension reports in Luke 24 and Acts 1 along with the tradition reported by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15. Lying behind the hymn is an interpretation of Luke- Acts as implying multiple and ongoing post-resurrection appearances and ascensions which culminate in a final ascension after the appearance to Paul, which occurs in the narrative of Luke-Acts just after the Christian proclamation expands to Gentiles through the baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch.","PeriodicalId":40708,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Christian History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-08-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49150688","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-04DOI: 10.1080/2222582X.2022.2085133
J. Punt
Abstract The incorporation of whiteness studies in New Testament research and interpretation involves more than demographic composition, or prejudice and social justice, or even coming to terms with terminology and its appropriateness for the ancient context. This is a theoretical study of the importance of race in whiteness discourse characterised by exnomination, universality, and normativity, in relation to identity politics and othering, and understood through the lens of intersectionality within the broader field of New Testament studies. In the closing reflections, possible connections between whiteness and anti-Jewish interpretations are considered.
{"title":"Race, Texts, and Contexts: Whiteness and Anti-Judaism","authors":"J. Punt","doi":"10.1080/2222582X.2022.2085133","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/2222582X.2022.2085133","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The incorporation of whiteness studies in New Testament research and interpretation involves more than demographic composition, or prejudice and social justice, or even coming to terms with terminology and its appropriateness for the ancient context. This is a theoretical study of the importance of race in whiteness discourse characterised by exnomination, universality, and normativity, in relation to identity politics and othering, and understood through the lens of intersectionality within the broader field of New Testament studies. In the closing reflections, possible connections between whiteness and anti-Jewish interpretations are considered.","PeriodicalId":40708,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Early Christian History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2022-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43796672","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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