2nd BMABC CROSS CULTURAL TRAINING Lesson 5

DOING THEOLOGY IN CONTEXT

The SHEMA

Deu 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

Deu 6:5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy
might.

Deu 6:6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:

The SHEMA

Deu 6:7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest
in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

Deu 6:8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between
thine eyes.

Deu 6:9 And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

The SHEMA

There is only one God, meditate on His Law and Don’t forget it!

Mishnah, Berakhot, Chapter One:

1. From what time (may people) recite the evening Shema? “ From the hour that the priests come in to
eat of the Heave-offering, until the end of the first watch”; 9 these are) R. Eliezer’s words, but the Sages
say, “ Until Midnight.” R. Gamaliel says, “ Until the first light of dawn.” There was a case when his sons
came back from the feast; they said to him, “ we have not recited Shem.”

Mishnah, Berakhot, Chapter One:

He said to them, “ if the first light of dawn has not appeared, ye are obliged to recite.” And not only (in)
this (case), but (in) every(case where’ the sages have said” Until midnight,’ the commandment ( applies)
until the first light of dawn… if so, why did the Sages say “ Until midnight”? In order to keep a man away
fro transgression.

Mishnah, Berakhot, Chapter One:

2. From what time ( May People) recite the morning Shema? From ( the time on can ) distinguish
between blue and white. R. Eliezer says, “ Between blue and green. And he ( must ) finish it by sunrise.”
R. Joshua says, “ Within three hours ( of sunrise), since it is the way of Princess to arise at the third
hour…”
Mishnah, Berakhot, Chapter One:

3. The house of Shammai say , “in the evening every man ( must ) recline and recite, and in the morning,
they (must) stand, as it is said, “When you lie down and when you rise up’” ( Deut. 6:7). But the house of
Hillel say, “ Every man reads in his (own) way, as it is said, ‘And as you go along the way

Mishnah, Berakhot, Chapter One:

If so , why does it say, “ And when you lie down and rise up’?- At the hour the people( generally) rise
up.” Said R. Tarfon, “ I was once travelling and I lay down to recite according to the opinion of the house
of Shammai, and I endangered myself on account of robbers.” They(house of Hillel) said to him, “You
deserved to lose your life, since you violated the opinion of the House of Hillel.”

The Pharisees and various schools of Pharisees argued over what these verses mean- when and how
where they to recite the Shema?

What might Jesus say to scholars and Pastors today who make “truth “ unaccessible to the common
person?

How did Jesus interpret the Old Testament?

Midrash :

“That is this ”

( that particular Bible verse relates directly to this present situation I or my audience am facing)

Lessons from the Past:

Interpretation of the Bible has been done for thousands of years in many different ways.

1. Jewish Interpretation

A. Beginning with Ezra( Nehemiah 8:7-8) in the Old Testament

B. Continued in the Qumran community ( 1st century B.C., or B.C.E)

C. Climaxed in the School of Hillel ( qualifying factors of surrounding circumstances) and Shammai ( strict
rigidity)

D. Formalized in Rabbinic Literature as the Talmud ( A.D 10 – A.D. 550 or C.E.)

E. Alexandrian Judaism

2. Emphasis on Allegory through Philo

Looking of a “ deeper sense”

Very influential in later Christian interpretation.

3. Christian Interpretation – the Patristic Period ( A.D. 95-590)

Beginning of the church as authoritative interpreter( through the church Fathers)

Influence of the school of Alexandria - 1000 years of allegory ( beginning at the end of the 2nd century)

Yet also the school of Antioch ( approx. A.D. 150-450)

Emphasized historical interpretation and context

Yet also allowed for the ” literal sense” and allegory

4. The Middle Ages: Church tradition stands supreme

Emphasis on the four fold interpretation

Literal: plain , evident meaning

Moral : tells what to do

Allegory: tells what they are to believe

Anagogical: Tell what they are to hope

5. Reformation : sixteenth Century

Bible as supreme and sole authority

Abandoned four fold and allegory

Stress on one fundamental meaning, combining

Literal sense

With Spiritual depth of meaning ( Holy Spirit)

D. The necessity of every believer to interpret the Bible for himself( Luther)

E. The necessity to interpret grammatically and historically ( Calvin)

Post Reformation Period to today

Rationalism and historical criticism

Strengths of Historical Criticism: Aiding interpretation

Weakness of historical criticism: cross culturally in non Western societies

The interpretation
of the
--- Good Samaritan---

The Early Church Fathers

( to 540A.D.)

Marcian ( 160 A.D.)

Good Samaritan = Jesus

Not born of woman , but appears for the first time between Jerusalem and Jericho

* Interpreted the parable allegorically and Chrsitologically, rather than literally and ethically

2. Irenaeus ( 140 to 220 A.D.)

Good Samaritan = Christ who had compassion on humankind

Two coins = image of the Father & Son

* Allegorical and Christological

3. Clement of Alexandria ( 150 to 215 A.D.)

Good Samaritan = neighbor = Christ

Thieves = rulers of darkness

Wounds = fear, lust, passion, pain , deceit, pleasure

Wine = blood of david’s vine

Oil = compassion of the father

Binding= love, faith , hope

* Allegorical and Christological

4. Origin ( also of Alexandria ( 184 to 254 A.D.)

* with him all Allegorical interpretation method became a “science”

Three senses

1. literal

2. Moral

3. Spiritual = Through allegory

Man going to Jericho = Adam

Jerusalem from which going = Paradise

Jericho = the world

Robbers = hostile influences and enemies of man

Wounds = disobedience or sins

Priest = Law

Levite = Prophets

Good Samaritan = Christ

Beast = Body of Christ

Inn = Church

Two Denarii= Knowledge of Father and son

Inn keeper = Angels in charge of the church

Return of the Good Samaritan = Second coming of Christ

The Middle Ages

( 540- 1500 A.D.)

* They added still another “ sense” to the 3 fold:

the “anagogical”= the heavenly or eschatological sense of the passage
* “Four fold” meaning of Jerusalem
1. literal= specific city in Judea
2. Moral = human soul
3. Spiritual / allegorical = the church
4. Anagogical =heavenly abode of the saints
* Essentially allegorical still ruled the day + anagogical

The Reformation and Post-Reformation

( 1550- 1888 A.D.)

1. Luther ( 1483-1546 A.D.)

Allegory = “clerical jugglers performing monkey tricks”

Origin = “ worthless than dirt”

In practice, though he still allegorized, and especially found justification faith in all

Samaritan = Christ

Oil = Grace

Man = Adam

Inn = Church

Wounds = Sins

2. Calvin ( 1509-1564 A.D.)

Allegory = “idle foolery”

Complete rejection of allegory consistent!

Parable of the Good Samaritan = “ neighborliness not just to friends and neighbors , but
the entire human race.”

* Emphasis on literal meaning; Jesus asking “ Who is my neighbor?”

3. Unfortunately other reformers, down to the 1800’s did not follow Calvin but went back to allegory

The Modern Period

( 1888 - Present)
 1. Julicher

Rejected Allegory

All parables have just one point of comparison

The details are meaningless; they only add local color to get the one point across.

2. Dodd

Followed Julicher but added that to understand the one main point you must understand the original
Sitz im Leben ( life situation) of Jesus

What did the parables mean to Jesus’ hearer’s?

3. Conzelmann & Marxsen

Built of Julicher & Dodd but added another Sitz im Leben : the life situation of the Evangelist writing for
the early Church

Redaction criticism

How the evangelist interpret and apply the parables for their own situations/ audiences

4. Stein

Using all of the above , ascertain what God is saying to you today through the parable.

The Good Samaritan interpreted using the Four Modern-day Methods:

Main point = Answering question, “ who is my neighbor?’ or “what does it mean to be a neighbor?”

Life situation of Jesus =

* Samaritan a despised Jew
* Neighbor debated in Judaism
Who is a Jew?
Jews and Proselytes
* Therefore an “ indictment of social , racial and religious superiority” ( Dodd)

Life situation of Luke=

* Luke throughout his Gospel has a concern for the poor, woman , outcasts
* Therefore he uses parable for his overall theological purposes
What is God saying today? =
* love of neighbor crosses all boundaries
 social ,religious, political etc.
* Different cultural context will find this acted out differently
Two modern translations:
1. Jordan, cotton patch
2. Stein, ( 2nd generation)

Seven last Words of

Bible interpretation:

“ This is what it means to me.”

Midrash :

“That is this ”

( that particular Bible verse relates directly to this present situation I or my audience am facing)

“Don’t bother me , I’m looking for a verse of Scripture to back up one of my Pre-conceived notions”