2 Corinthians Reference library
Margaret MacDonald and Margaret MacDonald
The Oxford Bible Commentary
...348–50 ). In v. 13 Paul offers an interesting insight into the nature of the comparisons the Corinthians were making. ‘Madness’ here perhaps refers to religious ecstasy ( Furnish 1984 : 308 ). His rivals probably displayed ecstatic experiences in public, and accused Paul of failing to produce these experiences as evidence of his apostleship. Paul seems to be claiming that ecstatic experiences should be reserved for private worship ( cf. 12:1–7 ). The text invites comparison with 1 Cor 14:18–19 where Paul claims to speak in tongues frequently, but where...
The Necessity of Renewing Islamic Thought and Reinvigorating Religious Understanding Reference library
Nurcholish Madjid
Liberal Islam: A Sourcebook
...in him. What then is the tangible form of that sublime character? None other than actions (or ‘amal ) and deeds that are harmonious and consonant or salih [appropriate] in their comprehensive relationship with the living environment, especially in interpersonal relationships. . . . But how does man understand and know the Godcreated laws that control the domain of life, whose vastness is unlimited? Since the universe is limitless, the laws which govern it must also be limitless. Such indeed is the case: God's laws repose...
Introduction to the Pentateuch Reference library
G. I. Davies
The Oxford Bible Commentary
... ( 1983 ). This actually has very little to say about the Pentateuch—it is mostly about the Deuteronomistic History. But in it Van Seters draws numerous comparisons between Old Testament history-writing and comparable literature from other cultures, and he particularly emphasizes the similarity with ancient Greek historians such as Herodotus, who lived in the fifth century bce . From these comparisons Van Seters argued for a greater appreciation that the Deuteronomistic History was a literary work whose author was ready to write creatively where his...
Judges Reference library
Susan Niditch and Susan Niditch
The Oxford Bible Commentary
...chronology but of the subsequent monarchic periods as well. Israel's fortunes depend not upon pragmatic matters such as economic strength, political unity, or military preparedness but rather upon the health of the covenantal relationship with God. Notice the language of interpersonal relationship through which covenant is expressed. Israel ‘abandons’ YHWH ( vv. 12–13 ) to follow other gods, especially the Canaanite Baal and his consort. YHWH in turn becomes ‘angry’ and ‘incensed’ with them ( vv. 12, 14, 20 ), while they ‘lust after’ these foreign gods ( v....
Ephesians Reference library
The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Books of the Bible
...tension is usually called that of “indicative” and “imperative,” and it will be dealt with in the remainder of this section. In chapters 4–6 the author of Ephesians unfolds by means of practical ethical instructions how the God-intended unity materializes in the realm of interpersonal relationships (e.g., in the household, 5:21–6:9 ). For this reason, scholars frequently designate this part of the letter as “ethics” or “imperative,” whereas chapters 1–3 are viewed as “theology” or “indicative.” However, while the formal structure of the epistle appears...
Word of God Reference library
Jens Wolff
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Martin Luther
...The Word of God and the image of Christ are the only medial possibilities for proclaiming the presence of God with the prevalence of the oral word over the written word (scripture). Christ is understood as the personal Word of God, which can be communicated only through interpersonal mediality and polysemy. The cultural technique of communication makes faith possible (e.g., through the sermon, Lord’s Supper, or baptism). Rhetoric is the effective and affective way to communicate this Word of God. The rhetoric of the crucified as the imaginative Word of God...
Naikan: A Meditation Method and Psychotherapy Reference library
Clark Chilson
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Buddhism
...Naikan and the Ajase Complex through Buddhist Thought,” Ethos 35 (2007): 411–446. 49. Yoshimoto Ishin , Naikanhō (Tokyo: Shunjūsha, 2007). 50. Two of the few translations of Yoshimoto’s writings can be found in Yoshimoto Ishin , “The Naikan Introspection Exercise,” Interpersonal Development 5 (1974/75): 164–170; Georgios Halkias , and Richard K. Payne , eds. Pure Lands in Asian Texts and Contexts: An Anthology. Pure Land Buddhist Studies (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2019). The latter source gives a translation of Yoshimoto’s description...
Abortion Reference library
Gilla K. Shapiro and Jonathan K. Crane
Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World: Digital Collection
...Sufism addresses “conditions of the heart” and holds that “the same act can have different ethical evaluations depending on the subjective spiritual state of the actor” (Katz, 2003, p. 41). Sufism thereby permits a degree of interpersonal relativism where an abortion may be acceptable on the particular circumstance and the intent (Shapiro, 2014). Furthermore, other interrelated Islamic juristic principles that have been vibrant in both classical and contemporary...
Forensic Psychiatry Reference library
Bilal Ali and Hooman Keshavarzi
Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World: Digital Collection
...1:207). Legal Restrictions and Interdiction For the permanently insane, restriction upon the ability to deal with some or all interpersonal transactions, or interdiction ( ḥajr ), is automatic, opinions diverge as to how the interdiction is to be decided and publicly declared. The legal guardian bears the responsibility for approving commercial transactions and...
Law Reference library
Risto Saarinen and Derek R. Nelson
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Martin Luther
...the post-conversion Paul as “continent” in doing the works of the law, neither weak-willed nor perfectly virtuous. Law is necessary for doctrine, but it is also important for the “Christian life” because it helps the believer to understand the reciprocity that underlies interpersonal relationships, seen especially in the “golden rule” that functions as the epitome of the Christian life. The radical receptivity (i.e., passivity ) that characterizes the life of faith in believers enables the experience of God’s will, understood as law or command, in a...
Baptism Reference library
Kirsi Stjerna
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Martin Luther
...for Luther is a personal and all-encompassing matter as a spiritually transformative event that has the potential to shape one’s orientation in life. Baptism involves an existential and an ontological shift. 42 It does not remain inner-personal but should also transform one interpersonally, in relation to others. It does so with the power of grace-filled water of life, which grants a “bath of the new birth in the Holy Spirit.” 43 In Luther’s teaching of justification, the transformation realized in baptism does not promise unfailing progress in the new life....
Psychological Interpreters of Buddhism Reference library
Ira Helderman
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Buddhism
...of Buddhist meditative experiences can be elucidated by tracking gamma and alpha waves or not, researchers herald scientific research for demonstrating the positive health effects of Buddhist practice. To a collaborator at the Mind and Life Institute such as psychiatrist and interpersonal-neurobiology researcher Dan Siegel, scientific studies that purportedly prove the health benefits of Buddhist practices legitimate their use in secular-designated psychotherapy. 70 Cognitive behavioral therapists have translated multiple items from Buddhist traditions, items...
Trial Procedure Reference library
Shalom E. Holtz
The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Law
...is important to note, however, that terms related to rîb/mādôn do not occur in all descriptions of interpersonal disputes, and that not all ancient disputes eventuated in adjudicatory proceedings. Nevertheless, speeches in dispute narratives do seem to follow patterns that suggest forensic conventions of some kind, even if the connections between these conventions and formal adjudicatory procedures are difficult to determine ( Bovati, 1994 ). Interpersonal disputes begin with a spoken complaint. This can be expressed as a simple declarative sentence, such...
Punishment Reference library
Jože Krašovec
The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Ethics
...this sense it is justifiable to speak of collective retribution. This is not a pathway to forgiveness, nor does it touch on interpersonal relationships. No wonder, then, that most ancient cultures and religions tend to fatalism and collectivistic views of humankind. The depth dimensions of human beings remain essentially untouched. Hebrew religion holds the belief that punishment of wrongdoers is an attribute of divine justice. Comparisons of laws in the ancient Near East with the Bible show that biblical law is not the product of secular jurisprudence....
Philippians and Philemon Reference library
Jae Won Lee
The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Ethics
... 7 , Paul introduces the topos of friendship, an appeal to the love between Philemon and himself as followers of Jesus. He reiterates this topos in verse 17 where he evokes a relationship of mutuality ( koinos ) with Philemon. Paul appeals to Philemon on the basis of their interpersonal friendship. But he also draws the circle around their friendship to include Onesimus. The strength of this last relationship is reflected in kinship language—father and child. What is more, Paul twice refers to Onesimus as his very “heart” ( splanchna , vv. 12 , 10 ),...
Torts Reference library
David Partlett
The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Law
...law was widened to allow adequate protection of these interests, imposing legal responsibility on persons who acted either intentionally or negligently to invade protected interests. The courts instilled attitudes of virtue in the form of prudence, charity, and benevolence in interpersonal relationships. Tort law and the Bible. The early law of torts had close affinity with the “law” as expressed in the Hebrew Bible. This law was expressed in the Torah, the first five books of Moses in the Hebrew Bible. In terms of its intent, biblical law shared much in common...
Decalogue Reference library
Edward L. Greenstein
The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Law
...to fellow humans. The fifth command, enjoining respect for one’s parents, is understood as transitional, since parents are the creators of the child as God is the creator of humanity. While there is no denying the divine focus of the first several commands and the interpersonal focus of the last six, the first five commandments are distinguished, as said above, by the fact that they are justified. These elaborations account for a large part of the disparity in length between the first and second parts of the Decalogue. The Justifications. The first ...
Monotheism Reference library
James McGrath
The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Ethics
...that did not mean that such a practice could not be pleasing to another deity. It is arguable that the move in the direction of monotheism in the religion of the people of Judah led naturally to the expectation that certain practices—whether cultic ones or matters of human interpersonal interaction—could be defined in stark terms as either pleasing or abhorrent to the one God. We see the challenges this created for those involved in reimagining God and ethics in this framework in the contrasting statements about child sacrifice offered by the prophets...
Genesis Reference library
Andreas Schuele
The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Ethics
...materialize. What they do, where they go, how they interact with each other and with foreigners is presented as a consequence of this walking with and before God. Although not entirely accurate, one could call this a virtue ethics, although the virtues are not so much interpersonal forms of behavior as, for example, Aristotle defines it, but flow from a particular religious experience, namely the encounter with God. One might even say that Genesis is, at least to some extent, quite critical of any reliance on the character (or character formation) of...
Faith Reference library
Douglas A. Campbell
The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Theology
...specific. We can observe in the data, corresponding to the person trusted, a notion that can be trusted and hence is true or reliable. Greek did not generally denote this with a pist - term, preferring signifiers like alētheia (“truth,” and this could cross over into the interpersonal situation to denote someone who was true in the sense of being reliable and faithful; see Rom 3:3–4 ). The act of trust at the other end of this truth relationship is the act of “belief,” that is, the affirmation of something as true, for which the verb pisteuō and the noun...
