Prophets Performance And Power

Identifies and describes performance modes of thought imbedded in the prophetic literature through performance analysis.

Identifies and describes performance modes of thought imbedded in the prophetic literature through performance analysis.

The biblical prophets and Biblical Performance Criticism are brought together in three case studies (Elijah, Ezekiel, Jonah) presented as performances. This book proposes a new method of reading the biblical prophets with a threefold focus on creativity, commentary, and connections. With this method the many and varied performances of the prophets can be better appreciated. Critical analysis of the quintessentially performative nature of the prophets as embodied spokespersons for YHWH aids us in understanding and clarifying YHWH’s message to audiences, situations, and communities of the past as well as engaging contemporary audiences.

The writings of the prophets make up over a quarter of the Old Testament. But perhaps no other portion of the Old Testament is more misunderstood by readers today. For some, prophecy conjures up knotted enigmas, opaque oracles and terrifying visions of the future. For others it raises expectations of a plotted-out future to be reconstructed from disparate texts. And yet the prophets have imprinted the language of faith and imagination with some of its most sublime visions of the future - nations streaming to Zion, a lion lying with a lamb, and endlessly fruiting trees on the banks of a flowing river. We might view the prophets as stage directors for Israel's unfolding drama of redemption. Drawing inspiration from past acts in that drama and invoking fresh words from its divine author, these prophets speak a language of sinewed poetry, their words and images arresting the ear and detonating in the mind. For when Yahweh roars from Zion and thunders from Jerusalem, the pastures of the shepherds dry up, the crest of Carmel withers, and the prophetic word buffets those selling the needy for a pair of sandals. The Dictionary of the Old Testament: Prophets is the only reference book of its kind. Not only does it focus exclusively on the prophetic books; it also plumbs their imagery of mountains and wilderness, flora and fauna, temple and Zion. It maps and guides us through topics such as covenant and law, exile and deliverance, forgiveness and repentance, and the Day of the Lord. Here the nature of prophecy is searched out in its social, historical, literary and psychological dimensions as well as its synchronic spread of textual links and associations. And the formation of the prophetic books into their canonical collection, including the Book of the Twelve, is explored and weighed for its significance. Then too, contemporary approaches such as canonical criticism, conversation analysis, editorial/redaction criticism, feminist interpretation, literary approaches and rhetorical criticism are summed up and assayed. Even the afterlife of these great texts is explored in articles on the history of interpretation as well as on their impact in the New Testament.

Modern study of biblical prophecy frequently defines prophecy as a message from God and has focused almost exclusively on prophets' words. But prophecy was always also embodied. Anathea E. Portier-Young insists on the synergy of word and body in biblical prophecy. Prophets did more than reveal knowledge: the prophetic body connected God and people, making them present to one another, channeling divine power, traveling between realms. Drawing insights from disciplines ranging from neurobiology to cultural studies, the author examines stories of prophetic commissioning, bodily transformation, asceticism and ecstasy, mobility and immobility, affect and emotion, revealing the body's centrality to prophetic mediation.

Scholars of the Hebrew Bible used to look at „Prophecy" and „Wisdom" as clearly distinct realms represented by antagonistic and mutually exclusive roles of their central characters: the loyal sage, the pillar of administration, on the one side and the rebellious prophet, criticizing the establishment, on the other. While the influence of wisdom thought on prophetic texts has been a topic in the scholarly debate, the complementary question of the influence of prophetic thought on wisdom texts has rarely been asked. The contributions in this volume look at both questions: They start from the assumption that texts from the Hebrew Bible and the cultures surrounding Ancient Israel all originated from a social stratum of educated scribes, who authored and transmitted these texts. It then seems plausible that wisdom texts might show similar traces of prophetic influence to those of wisdom thoughts found in prophetic texts. The essays give a multifaceted picture concerning the mutual perception of prophets and sages and thus provide a deeper understanding of both wisdom literature and prophecy.

Persepolis and Jerusalem reconsiders Iranian influence upon Jewish apocalyptic, and offers grounds upon which such study may proceed. After describing the history of scholarship on the question of Iranian influence and on Jewish apocalyptic, Jason M. Silverman reformulates the methodology for understanding apocalyptic and influence. Two chapters set the discussion firmly in the Achaemenid Empire, describing the sources for Iranian religion, the issues involved in attempting a historical reconstruction, the methodology by which one can date the various texts and ideas, and the potential loci for Iranian-Judaean interaction. The historical context is expanded through media-contextualization, particularly Oral Theory, and critiques the standard text-centric method of current Biblical Scholarship. With this background, pericopes from Ezekiel, Daniel, and 1 Enoch are analyzed for Iranian influence. The study then brings together the contexts and analyses to argue for an 'Apocalyptic Hermeneutic' which relates the phenomena of apocalypticism, apocalypse, and millenarianism-seeing the hermeneutic as a dialectical thread holding them all together as well as apart- and posits this as the best place to understand Iranian influences.

The Journal of Biblical and Pneumatological Research (JBPR) is a new international peer-reviewed journal dedicated to narratively and rhetorically minded exegesis of biblical and related texts. Topics include theological and pneumatological interpretation, the role of spiritual experience within authorial, canonical, and contemporary contexts, and the activity of Ruach Yahweh, Ruach Elohim, and various identifications of the Holy Spirit. The journal hopes to stimulate new thematic and narrative-critical exploration and discovery in potentially under-explored areas of research. Editor: Paul Elbert, Pentecostal Theological Seminary, 900 Walker Street, NE, Cleveland, Tennessee 37311. Professor Elbert, physicist-theologian and NT scholar, is currently the co-chair of the Formation of Luke-Acts Section with the Society of Biblical Literature. Editorial Board: There are twenty-seven biblical scholars in twelve countries serving the critical editorial process of JBPR: Guillermo Acero (Institution Biblico Pastoral Latinamericano, Universidad Minuto de Dios, Bogota, COLUMBIA); Mervin Breneman (Escuela de Estudios Pastorales, COSTA RICA); Christopher Carter (Asia Pacific Theological Seminary, PHILIPPINES); Blaine Charette (Northwest University, USA); Roger Cotton (Assemblies of God Theological Seminary, USA); Andrew Davies (Mattersey Hall, UK); David Dorman (Near East School of Theology, Beirut, LEBANON); Kay Fountain (Southern Cross College, Auckland, NEW ZEALAND); Jacqueline Grey (Alphacrucis College, Sydney, AUSTRALIA); Jon Huntzinger (King's Seminary, USA); William Kay (Bangor University, UK); Dongsoo Kim (Pyeongtaek University, SOUTH KOREA); William Kurz (Marquette University, USA); Leonard MarŽ (Auckland Park Theological Seminary, University of Johannesburg, SOUTH AFRICA); Lee Roy Martin (Church of God Theological Seminary, USA); Martin Mittelstadt (Evangel University, USA); David Norris (Urshan Graduate School of Theology, USA); Finny Philip (Filadelfia Bible College, Udaipur, INDIA); John Poirier (Kingswell Theological Seminary, USA); Janet Meyer Everts (Hope College, USA); Emerson Powery (Messiah College, USA); James Shelton (Oral Roberts University, USA); Rebecca Skaggs (Patton University, USA); Roger Stronstad (Summit Pacific College, CANADA); Robby Waddell (Southeastern University, USA); Keith Warrington (Regents Theological College, UK); and Willie Wessels (University of South Africa, Pretoria, SOUTH AFRICA).