Peri Archon: An Analysis

The introduction deals with the ideas of authority and perspective, and how they function properly in the process of Biblical interpretation. A key idea is that reading is a dialogue between the text and the reader. Both sides have a role to play. If we acknowledge this, then we must also acknowledge that the perspective of the reader has some significance in how the Bible is interpreted and exercises authority. This dialogical reading transcends the categories of ‘objective’ and ‘subjective’, and

The central theme behind Origen’s theory is that the scripture should not be interpreted literally, instead, a deeper

In “A personal reflection: Biblical authority,” Walter Brueggemann writes about how an individual’s personal beliefs are influenced in their interaction with the bible and how they approach understanding it. Brueggemann brings attention to six facets that he believes shapes how an individual constructs their personal beliefs. His six main facets are inherency, interpretation, imagination, ideology, inspiration, and importance.

Bruce offers a solid explanation of the formation of the canon chronologically starting with the Hebrew scriptures (p. 21) until the 4th century where church councils started to present the first spoken finished canon (p. 97). Bruce shows the importance of the Old Testament scriptures, but writes most about the New Testament. He not only shows how the New Testament came to be a canon but offers a deep analysis of non-canonical scripture called the Apocrypha (pp. 48, 90-93).

Chapter 32 discusses the material and immaterial facets of man’s being. This is referred to by Ryrie as the bipartite unity of man, which refers to his material or bodily existence as well as his immaterial or spiritual existence. However, the trichotomy approach suggests that the body is not only material and immaterial but the immaterial is further split into the soul and the spirit. The theory of trichotomy often sights Hebrews 4:12, Thessalonians 5:23, and Corinthians 15:44 to support the existence of the both the soul and the spirit. The next section discusses the many facets of the human existence by discussing the soul, spirit, heart, conscience, mind flesh, and will.

Here, Origen is implying that Gregory should the natural intelligence “the entire natural intelligence of Gregory’ intelligence should be applied to Christianity”. Origen tries to reconcile Philosophy and Theology but above all “placing Theology in a superior position as he gives all the priority to Christianity” throughout his letter. The quote from Adolf Knauber coincides with the reason for Origen’ cautioning and passionate pleading with Gregory when he implies: “that he should extract from philosophy only what is essential, to have a better understanding to interpret Scripture”. “Working from the data provided by Gregory in the Address, Adolf Knauber arrived at the significantly different picture: the students were not Christians or even

By the time of the third century theologian, Origen, the concept of God as espoused by Greek philosophers’ prevailed in the then current Christian theology.

Then, the authority of scripture and its a priori usage is presented. Scripture provides a positive a priori, which is information that is useful when approaching new experiences (98) and negative a priori, which is that which provides boundaries to our understandings (102). Furthermore, our interpretation of scripture is monitored by reason. Reason (as logic) is necessary for a correct interpretation of scripture to Wesley (110). Without it, we would be unable to acquire tools for proper interpretation of scripture.

The purpose behind this paper is to offer a brief review on a book called “Reading Romans in Context: Paul and Second Temple Judaism” . This review will focus on four major components, first being the editor’s information. The editor’s information will cover education, any positions they hold today, and whatever scholarship information that is currently available. The second thing that will be reviewed will be a concise summary of the major theme of the book followed by the third, an honest and courteous evaluation of the book. The fourth thing that will be added is a bibliography at the end of the paper for reference of the book.

The book under review is titled, Reading Romans in Context: Paul and Second Temple Judaism, edited by Ben C. Blackwell, John K. Goodrich, Jason Maston with a foreword by Francis Watson.

His loss of hopes during the war led him to return to Scripture for his theological work (pg. 460). From this, he wrote the Commentary on Romans published in 1919 (pg. 460). Despite his own views of this work, the ideas that he wrote about in this writing gained the praise of many people. His most influential work titled Church Dogmatics became known as one of the most talented masterpieces of theological work in the 20th century (pg. 462). In this work, he states that in the bible, God supplied his people with both the questions and answers that they needed (pg. 461). His approach to theology as he was writing gave him the ability to stay consistent throughout all of his writings and never disconnected him with God’s Word and teachings (pg. 462). From these three people, one can see the dramatic changes that have taken place within the Roman Catholic Church during the 20th century. From each persons’ views in theology to their work in the issues surrounding Catholicism, one can see the breathtaking changes and influences they had within the Roman Catholic Church. These changes are some that gave Catholicism the ability to further expand into places beyond Europe during the 20th

Dr. Elmer Towns and his co-author Ben Gutierrez in their book “In Essence of the New Testament: A Survey” supports the idea and the importance of all Christians grasping the knowledge put forth in the book of Romans. Biblical educators such as Samuel Coleridge and Martin Luther holds Paul’s epistle to the Romans in high esteem (Towns & Gutierrez, 2012). They refer to as “the most profound work in existence and “the purest gospel (Towns & Gutierrez, 2012). These claims are evident when reading Paul’s epistles in the book of Romans, one can feel Jesus Christ’s inspiration in his words and message. In Romans 1:6 -7

The period known as “Medieval Exegesis” lasted from approximately A.D. 600 – 1500. Little original exegesis was done, with most biblical students concentrating on compiling the works of the patriarchal exegetes. During this period however, a four fold meaning of Scripture, originally developed by Augustine, became the primary method of biblical interpretation. The principles of this method stated that in each passage of Scripture there were four meanings, letter, allegory, moral, and anagogy (eschatological). During this

In the graphic novel Persepolis, written by Marjane Satrapi, the author tells her personal life story of growing up in Iran during the breakout of the Iraq and Iran War. Her use of black and white comic strips makes her story come to life in an entertaining and attention-grabbing way. Marjane growing up can be examined by using Erik Erikson’s theory of the eight stages of life. Persepolis shows how a young girl can overcome and turn into a woman that has self-love and finds who she is meant to be in life.

Biblical Interpretation is important and necessary so that we can understand what the text is saying, what the intended theological message is, and how to personally apply and teach these Scriptural truths to carry forward the Gospel in rescuing others from despair and death to hope and life, thus displaying His glory and growing His Kingdom. It is about finding what God is revealing about Himself and His Son Jesus Christ. Moreover, it is for us to know that God desires to have a relationship with us and for us to be set apart in a covenant relationship with Him to display holy lives that bring Him glory. Interpretation, using hermeneutical principles, help guide us in proper boundaries for interpreting Scripture so that we can reveal the intended meaning of the text. Without this, we run the risk of imposing our own ideas on the text, therefore misinterpreting. Misinterpreting can cause us to miss theological truths, administer the wrong application, and neglect or overlook the meaning of the text which weakens the impact of God’s truth in our personal lives as well as others we are teaching.