The Ascension in Luke’s Narrative

The bodily resurrection of Jesus—the reanimated, physical man—is an important part of New Testament theology, one beclouded by dogmatic accretion and in great need of disambiguation. The ascension seems to play right into this: Jesus, fully embodied, is lifted to the clouds. Yet I don’t think that bodiliness plays much of a role in early [...]

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The Finger of God and the Kingdom, 3

[Part 1]  [Part 2]
In Luke 11.14-21 the evangelist has demonstrated great fidelity in his work. His text is in close agreement with the independent Matthean tradition. Additionally, he has preserved an obscure word, a redundant clause, and a difficult Hebraism.
These last two things also tell us that Luke has gotten us very close to the [...]

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The Finger of God and the Kingdom, 2

[Part 1]
Having examined Mt 12.25,26 and Lk 11.17,18 it is readily apparent that Matthew and Luke preserve the same story of Jesus’ confrontation with his opposers. Close analysis reveals both the earlier, underlying form of the story and the proclivities of the individual evangelists. In this portion of the narrative Matthew leans toward editing his [...]

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The Finger of God and the Kingdom, 1

The Beelzebul controversy at Mt 12.22-31/Lk 11.14-21 and to a lesser extent Mk 3.23-30 provides an interesting window into Jesus’ life and thinking. I should like to explore at another time how a key phrase in this encounter, “the finger of God,” might inform our understanding of his pneumatology and theology proper, but here I’m [...]

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Postmodern Jesus

Silviu N. Tatu at WP weblog Studiul Vechiului Testament wrote something (in Romanian, be forewarned) here about yet another book attempting to wipe away the encrusted religious establishment and revealing a relevant Jesus. Tatu notes not only the myopia of emphasizing the brighter, easier biblical doctrines, but the danger of the church using this partial [...]

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Jesus and the Pharisees

Sometimes I wonder how Jesus kept getting invited to dinner, especially by the Pharisees. In Luke 14.1-24 he heals a man seemingly without any regard for the offense they would take (on the sabbath), lectures them on taking the most honored places at a meal because he had just observed them taking the most honored [...]

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John’s Christology: A Test Case

None of the synoptic gospels articulate as high of a christology as John does, and precisely because of this readers and exegetes are inclined to see implications of deity just about everywhere. I’d like to briefly consider a passage from John’s account of Jesus at the Feast of Dedication and suggest that theological predisposition obscures the more prosaic and natural understanding of [...]

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The Semantics of the Beatitudes

What does it mean to say “Blessed are those who mourn”?¹ Did Jesus mean to reveal a deeper psychological truth (you’re happy, even if you don’t realize it)? Was he telling them how they should feel (be happy even in mourning)? I am persuaded that these sayings are best seen as performative rather than simply [...]

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