Praying The Language Of Enmity In The Psalter

How is it possible to hold a New Testament ethic to love one's enemies and pray for their physical infliction, shame, death, and suffering of family members? And yet, the Psalter, the prayer book of the Church, contains such prayers. In modern times, the Church has adopted a semi-Marcionite attitude towards these troubling texts, excluding whole psalms or parts from liturgies and private use. But as the age of "terror" dawns upon us, we are finding that these texts speak of unchanging realities that perhaps the ancients were abler to understand than moderns. Two great wars and a multitude of ideologies proved in the last century that the intellect cannot prevent these irrational impulses of destruction, and post-modern societies, of the present century, with their multitude of voices really offer no voice to counter moral evil. This study of six psalms with graphic language of enmity seeks to help the reader overcome shallow views of the mystery of evil, cultural blinkers of the use of language, and even personal prejudices. It attempts to recover the complete prayer book of the Church, as it once was, Israel's prayer book.

This collection of essays is a Festschrift for Naymond Keathley, honoring his many contributions to Baylor as Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, as Senior Vice-Provost, as Interim Director of the Center for International Education, as Interim Chair of the Religion Department, as Professor, and as Director of Undergraduate Studies. He also served as president of the Southwest Region of the NABPR and was a long-time member of the Society of Biblical Literature. The authors of the essays include Naymond's friends, colleagues, and students. All of the essays are (broadly) in biblical studies and biblical reception, including essays exploring the intersection between biblical studies and popular culture. Most of the essays take up various New Testament texts.

In Violence in the Hebrew Bible scholars reflect on texts of violence in the Hebrew Bible, as well as their often problematic reception history. Authoritative texts and traditions can be rewritten and adapted to new circumstances and insights. Texts are subject to a process of change. The study of the ways in which these (authoritative) biblical texts are produced and/or received in various socio-historical circumstances discloses a range of theological and ideological perspectives. In reflecting on these issues, the central question is how to allow for a given text’s plurality of possible and realised meanings while also retaining the ability to form critical judgments regarding biblical exegesis. This volume highlight that violence in particular is a fruitful area to explore this tension.

All human beings are made in the image of God, and form part of God’s creation. Families per se are valuable to God, and they can be infused with God-given solutions (biblically based) to the challenges they are facing. One of these challenges are father absence and it is a devastated social ill in many communities. Even so, missional fatherhood can be a buffer against father absence, un-involvement of fathers and numerous family issues. Missional fathers are filled with a God-given mission aiming to instil a love for Christ in the hearts of their children. They are not only called but obliged to lead sacrificial lives for the sake of their families. Their hearts engage with their children on aspects in life that matters the most. Transforming their minds by the Word of God and serving God the Father is far-reaching. Missional fathers are not only disciple-makers in their homes but also in their respective communities. This present-day notion is God’s calling on every father to be part of the Gospel and God’s holistic mission and is in response to Jesus’s Great Commission to make disciples of all people including families. All who decided and turn to the way of Jesus Christ form part of the mission that God had given the Son.

The increasing desire among Christians to pray in inclusive language has resulted in the publication of this inclusive language psalter. The editors have selected the 1979 Book of Common Prayer as the basis for their psalter. Techniques for changing all the non-inclusive language to inclusive language were carefully wrought and judiciously applied, in keeping with common sense, biblical scholarship, and the ancient Hebrew liturgical principle that holds in high respect the majesty of God's name. Every effort has been made to render the lines in a flowing, euphonious manner, well phrased for chanting. Since different communions practice variant methods of chanting, this volume includes an essay which offers instruction in four methods of pointing these psalms.

How should we pray? Do we believe God answers our prayers? Is it acceptable to complain to God? Should we bargain with him to receive the response we desire? Why do we praise God? Does our praise make him any more "God"? John Calvin argued basically that the purpose of prayer is to realign the petitioner's feelings and beliefs with God's. Many today seem to have adopted this idea. One says, "Why pray at all. God knows everything so my prayers cannot change his mind. I must pray to discover God's will for my life. I must realign my will with God's will for my life." In contrast, the psalmists assumed a reciprocal process. They believed they could bring pressures on God to answer their requests. They would bargain with God and promise him certain things if he would only grant their petitions. Indeed, this was part of the process. They would obligate themselves to praise God if he would grant their desires. Such bargaining was the foundation of their prayers. Comparisons of Calvin's views with the psalmists' allows the reader to investigate the nature of his or her prayer life and make improvements where necessary.