Hermann Gunkel
A well rounded scholar doesn’t achieve a holistic mindset by means of tunnel vision. By having a natural inquisitiveness into the bible and the right resources at hand Johannes Heinrich Hermann Gunkel was able to leave his footprint in the field biblical studies. Gunkel is mostly remembered for founding form-criticism. By incorporating form-criticism into his work he broke down Genesis and Psalms into types and sub-types or more specifically genres. Gunkel paved the way for a new era of biblical study as he opened the door for new interpretation. His focus was on the sit im leben which in English means, setting in real life. By using the sit im leben approach, founded by Sigmund Mowinckel, Gunkel came closer to the oral tradition of text which was his pursuit.
His works include; The Influence of the Holy Spirit, Creation and Chaos in the Primeval Era and Eschaton, Genesis, The Folktale of the Old testament, The Psalms: A Form-Critical Introduction and finally An Introduction to Psalms which was completed and published by Joachim Begrich. Joachim Begrich was one of Gunkel’s pupils and wrapped up Gunkel’s work after his death. Lastly, Gunkel was a co-editor in Die Religion in Geschite Und Gegenwart, or in English The Religion Past and Present. He contributed one hundred and fifty-one articles to it to the second version. The Religion Past and Present (RGG) is a Religious Enycyclopedia.
Gunkel’s resources came in the form of a Lutheran rearing, a formal education and communication with some of the big wigs of scholarship. Gunkel received his educational background from the University of Halle, where he later became a professor. He then moved on to professorships in Berlin and Giessen. But, throughout the year Gunkel re...
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...ual Thanksgiving the writer lets you know why he’s giving thanks, followed up by the situation, then ending with a vow or promise of an offering to God. Communal Laments, are written at times or communal suffering, meaning issues that were wide-spread. Communal Laments always praised god in the form. Lasty, The Royal Psalms addressed events centering on royalty or monarchal structures. Some of these categories were liturgic in that they were fashioned for use in public worship.
Hermann Gunkel towards the end I think was a lonely individual but I at least take some comfort in knowing that he lived, breathe, loved his field. None of his works individually changed the path of biblical studies but collectively they represent something bigger. The way in which he wrote them, the new perpective he pursuid and how he wrote his works were what put Herman Gunkel on the map;
The earliest member of the Bohrer Family, of which we can locate on records, was a man named Abraham Bohrer. He was born in Germany on December 14, 1717. He had a wife, Anna Lucy Schuster, and four children all by the name of “John.” They boarded an unidentified immigration boat and docked in Baltimore, Maryland on September 11, 1750. His occupation was a farmer and hoped for a better life and in search for religious freedom. He died on October 12, 1759. He was just 42.
Hagen W (2012). ‘German History in Modern Times: Four Lives of the Nation’. Published by Cambridge University Press (13 Feb 2012)
Peterson, Michael - Hasker, Reichenbach and Basinger. Philosophy of Religion - Selected Readings, Fourth Edition. 2010. Oxford University Press, NY.
On January 12 1998 in Georgia, Deputy Kyle Dinkheller made a traffic stop for speeding car driving at 98 mphs. Placed inside his car was a dashboard camera, the incident was all captured. The video showed Brannan purposely provoking the deputy while Dinkheller continued to get him to “calm down” and arrest him. After 30 seconds of taunting Brannan puts his hands in his walking while backing towards his vehicle. At that point Dinkheller drew his weapon while Brannan once again started taunting Dinkheller saying, “Here I am, shoot
René de Chateaubriand, François. The Beauties of Christianity. The Hebrew Bible In Literary Criticism. Ed. and Comp. Alex Preminger and Edward L. Greenstein. New York: Ungar, 1986. 445.
Alvin C. York who was an American war hero during WWI, was born on December 13, 1887, in Pall Mall, Tennessee. York was third out of eleven kids , he grew up in a small cabin and didn’t receive a lot of schooling as a child. When his father died in 1911, York, was forced to help his mother raise his younger siblings. Because of all the pressure he was under, of trying to fill his father’s shoes. York became a heavy drinker and was frequently involved in bar fights. York stayed a heavy drinker until 1914, when his friend Everett Delk was beaten to death during brawl in Static, KY. After that, he became a member of a Church. This is where York met his wife, Gracie Williams, through the church's Sunday school and singing in the choir. York then
Karl Rahner’s life was dedicated to his writings and teachings. From a young age he knew his calling for religion and until his death in nineteen eighty-four he did not stop doing what he loved. Because of his devotion to work and the many years he spent studying, he was able to be inspired by several different philosophers and theologians. Putting together the knowledge from both of these realms we have the modernist philosopher and the Catholic theologian Karl Rahner. His philosophical influence changed the Catholic church of the twentieth century and continues to have an influence on modern Christian thought.
Although he reads the Bible for its literary interest, his mind closed at the point where he felt God's foes were right. As he read on tears filled his eyes. He could not help comparing Christ's life with his.
Kirchner's life was not an easy one. He attempted to start an art school, but failed miserably, which showed in his art. Through his artwork in Berlin, he at...
Rahner, Karl. The Content of Faith: The Best of Karl Rahner’s Theological Writings. New York: 1999.
The key concept that Entwistle (2010) proposes for integrating psychology and theology is the model of the “Two Books.” This model recognizes that there are two sources, or “books” for knowledge, the book of God’s word, the Bible, and the book of God’s works, or creation. Entwisle’s (2010) understanding “holds that both Scripture and the natural world have their origins in God’s creativity and revelation” (p. 136). Whereas I believed this perspective, Entwistle’s analysis would reveal biases I was not aware I held.
...nd distorting, they can also be positive and clarifying and open up new insights to the realities of texts. Consider how many insights have come to light through the various interpretations of Scripture, Plato’s dialogues, and Augustine’s doctrines. As each interpreter faces the text, they bring with them their own questions and concerns related to their cultural context. These questions and concerns, along with the interpreter’s prejudices combine to make up a horizon. Finally, through the process of interpretation, the interpreter’s horizon will merge with the text’s horizon. Although this leaves the potential for distortions of the text’s interpretation, fusing the two horizons allows the text to take on new life and to begin a new dialogue. This dialogue may push the interpreter to question their own horizon, such that “Being that can be understood is language”.
Is the language in the New Testament problematic for the modern world view? Rudolf Bultmann’s argument in the article, “The Task of Demythologizing,” in Philosophy and Faith: A Philosophy and Religion Reader, believes it is. He challenges the theologian to strip away the elements in the language of the mythical world image and the event of redemption, and then, suggests theology needs to examine the truths in the New Testament. Theology must discover whether the New Testament offers people a better understanding of themselves leading them to a genuine existential decision. Keeping in mind, the New Testament was written for humankind’s comprehension of the world view during the pre-scientific age, Bultmann stipulates theologians may want to
(11) Walter Brueggemann, The Creative Word: Canon as a Model for Biblical Education, (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1986), p. 91.
The Bultmannian demythologization is a subject widely misunderstood by many prominent theologians and biblical scholars. The fault lies in the fact that Bultmann uses various philosophical concepts and the label attached as myth to the theory of demythologization itself is difficult to understand. Karkkainen’s understanding of the Bultmannian view shall dominate this paper to reveal how prominent scholars such as Karkkainen and Norman Geisler and various others misunderstood Bultmann’s true intentions. The essay shall focus on Karkkainen’s understanding of Bultmann’s theory. Language is limited as it fails to capture the true event, and as language itself is symbolic therefore the problem is how to separate myth from the text. Rudolph Bultmann 1884-1976 was a German scholar who revolutionized the questions regarding the Gospels with his form criticism. Myths are by nature historically unverifiable therefore the myths have been interpreted by the New Testament authors for theological purposes instead of presenting them as historical event according to Bultmann. Bultmann asserts that the incarnation, miracles, crucifixion, resurrection and ascension are key events that took place during the time of the apostles and contemporaries; therefore it is a myth for the modern believers as we put our faith in the trustworthiness of the disciple’s faith on the events about the person and work of Christ. The myth is presented by Bultmann as an event we cannot recreate; therefore it is a myth as the languages used in the text itself is symbolic in nature.