Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
John 18, 19: Latter Prophets and the Writings John 18 and 19 record the arrest, trial, torture, and death of Jesus as laid out in detail in Isaiah 53. After the Roman soldier pierces Jesus’ side, John quotes Zechariah: “They shall look at him whom they pierced” (Zech 12:10). In…
John 12.12 – John 17: Latter Prophets In the Hebrew Scriptures, Kings is followed by the Latter Prophets. John 12:15 quotes Zechariah 9:9 as having prophesied Jesus’ triumphal entry: “Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.” [1] N.T. Wright…
John 6.16-70: Joshua The book of Joshua documents the nation of Israel entering the Promised Land. Consider the order of events: (1) Israel is still receiving the daily miracle of manna; (2) Israel miraculously crosses the Jordan on dry foot; (3) The day after Passover , Israel eats produce of…
Since my educational and professional training have revolved around story and narrative structure, I approach John’s Gospel from a literary and narrative perspective. In doing so, I have noticed structural story patterns and followed them where they seem to lead: the Gospel of John parallels the ordering of the books…
The Mt. Sinai Hospital was neolithic on the black hill of Hollow, New Hampshire. Winter dampened the trees and the wind bit at the sparse branches, the sidewalks and stairs were perilous with soggy leaves, and the dim yellow light cast a pallor upon the milky stone building. Ambling inside…
The Revelation can only be understood in the light of Old Testament symbols and sequences. The same is true of the epistle of Jude, which serves as a blistering hors d’oeuvre to John’s fiery feast. Possibly written by the apostle Judas Thaddaeus (Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13; John 14:22), the epistle…
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Sage cautions from de Lubac: In speaking of the generous giving of God, “one must, a fortiori , be careful to correct - if not wholly to avoid - the neo-Platonist metaphors of flux, of gushing, of ‘effluence,’ of emanation, of soaking into things. God is not, as one might…
In the sequence of miracles in Matthew 8:23-9:8, the shaking of the sea parallels the violence of the demoniacs and this parallels . . . what? The sin of the paralytic? Perhaps, but it seems more likely that Matthew is working out a parallel between the demons and the scribes.…
From Nicolas of Cusa: “The more I comprehend that you are incomprehensible, O my God, the more I attain to you, because I attain better the object of my desire . . . . The eternal principle which has given birth to my desire leads it to an unending, infinite…
De Lubac blames Cajetan for the distortions of Thomas prevalent in modern theology. While claiming to interpret Thomas, Cajetan in fact broke with Thomas in fundamental ways. Most centrally, Cajetan and his modern followers assumed, against Thomas, that no nature can have a desire for any finality that is not…
Anatole France said, “It is rare for any master to belong to the school he has founded as firmly as his disciples do.”
A partial self-review of Solomon Among the Postmoderns : Ironically, while I problematize beginnings at the outset of the book, I don’t do the same with endings. I treat the “end” as a simple end. Several recent encounters - including a fine paper from my student Ryan Handermann - exposed…
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