I do not think I am alone. She found so many bad interpretations from Christians, but I know of several others who would essentially agree with her. I think that more recent Christian scholarship on the parables and other teaching of Jesus takes the Jewish context and the simple fact that Jesus was a Jew always a good place to start much more seriously. In fact, several of my United Methodist colleagues see Jesus as not trying to correct Judaism as much as correct and reform the way it was lived out in His own time - much like the prophets before Him.
While not bad people, that wonderful duo of the scribes and Pharisees had become entangled with and influenced by the politics and rich of that day - not unlike far too many in the Christian church today. Going into details about neither writer, Levine nor Steiner, I did myself go into the archives to re-read Sue Clemmer Steiner's two articles on parables and their prismatic applications. The parable shimmers as it catches the light first from one angle and then from another, dependent not only on its placement in the text but also on our own location and receptivity as those who encounter it.
I would also commend the work of Dr. He is fluent in Arabic and a student of Aramaic and Syriac and has uncovered Arabic-language commentaries of more than a millennium. His special focus for a half-century is Luke Many thanks to Amy-Jill Levine for this excellent article, with its many new insights.
I am honored that she refers to my work on the Luke 15 parables, published in A Feminist Companion to Luke. However, her comment suggests that I discussed the parable of the father and two sons with Yemenite women. I want to make clear that I interviewed Arab Christian women immigrants to the U. My field research on Yemeni women, all of whom were Muslim, was intended to illuminate and correct some of the cultural models being used to understand family and gender dynamics in the biblical world.
The author approaches the parables in the same manner as do most teachers of the bible supposing that Jesus meant for the listeners to understand what He meant. This completely ignores His own testimony that He spoke in parables to the multitudes specifically so they would NOT understand the message - whether they were Jewish or otherwise.
The parable concludes with the father explaining that because the younger son had returned, in a sense, from the dead, celebration was necessary:. Keep up the good work Amy-Jill Levine! What does the father do next? Having grown up in a mostly secular environment and been pretty well educated, I thought that I had not entertained anti-Jewish interpretations of the Scriptures that I have come to love. Such interpretations not only yank the parable out of its historical context, they lessen the message of Jesus and bear false witness against Jews and Judaism.
This is a riddle I have yet to hear any teacher of scripture explain. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them. As she always does for me, Amy Jill Levine opens up the Christian text in ways I was not taught as a child and thank goodness for that. Understanding what was written in the context of the time is invaluable in forming an honest relationship with people of all faiths and in my becoming a better follower of Jesus.
I look forward to reading her new book, I know it will be enlightening. Amy Jill never disappoints And surprise of surprises, as Tom Wright also notes, folks would have clearly understood what Jesus was saying. Might they have agreed with him? Any more than we might agree or disagree with a Sunday-morning preacher.
Amy Jill clears away the accretions of a belligerent scholarship more intent on bashing Judaism than in really hearing Jesus As Amy Jill suggests - there's always time to come home, and we'll be well received Such careful analysis of the text, an analysis that attends to the historical context and does not import a pre-determined theological spin, is like water in the desert, it's so rare.
I am glad to see that Professor Levine has a new book from which this is excerpted, I am ordering a copy. I must confess that I waded into this article a bit defensively.
Having grown up in a mostly secular environment and been pretty well educated, I thought that I had not entertained anti-Jewish interpretations of the Scriptures that I have come to love. However, while I myself have not asserted the errors Dr. Levine points out, I now realize that I have heard them or their echoes from others.
Yet I did not refute them, in part because I do not have the training to make me an expert and also because I could not quite put my finger on what was wrong with these views.
Now I know a bit more, and where to look for further guidance. This is a wonderful use of scholarship, enabling lay Christians to see more clearly. Academics who fear that the fruits of their labors are not reaching the wider society need look no further for a role model than Dr. Thanks for you very interesting and informative article powered by intentional creativity. After years of rebellion, God was still loving and merciful to Manasseh, when he finally recognized that God alone was Lord. It's the story of a rebellious son who rejects his father's upbringing.
Prideful and strong, the son heads-off to a far-away land, leads a wild life of adventure, and squanders everything of value literally and symbolically. Not until he's confronted with failure and despair, does he return home, repentant and willing to do anything to win back his father's favor. To his surprise, and the surprise of others, he's welcomed, without question, into his father's loving and forgiving arms.
No amount of time, no amount of money, and no amount of rebellion could get in the way of the father's patience and unconditional love for his son. Of course, the awesome message of this parable is that God is patient and gracious with all of His children. He is willing to welcome each of us home into His loving and forgiving arms.
However, as the two stories above tell us, we should never give up - no matter how far away they seem! Luke 14 Luke Enrich your faith and grow in spiritual maturity with the incredible Bible study and devotional books listed below. Try it for 30 days FREE. Cancel at any time.
You must be logged in to view your newly purchased content. Please log in below or if you don't have an account, creating one is easy and only takes a few moments. After you log in your content will be available in your library. More on the NIV.
Print Twitter Facebook Email. Click the button below to continue.