Reviews
Judaism for Gentiles: Reading Paul beyond the Parting of the Ways Paradigm (2022)
In collaboration with Rebecca Runesson.
Matthew V. Novenson, University of Edinburgh
"The Paul-within-Judaism movement is here to stay, and Anders Runesson is arguably its most hermeneutically sophisticated spokesperson. In this remarkable book, Runesson expertly guides us through difficult questions of social history, exegesis, ancient reception history, and modern constructive theology, all of which we need in order to understand Paul ‘beyond the parting of the ways paradigm."
Paula Fredriksen, author of »Paul, the Pagans’ Apostle«
"In this compelling book, Anders Runesson incarnates Roman-period types of Judaism—thus, the seedbed of later Christianities—within their institutional matrix, the ancient synagogue. Radically reconceiving the so-called “parting of the ways,” he traces a developmental arc from Paul through Theodosius I to explore how and why this apocalyptic Jewish movement, with its odd outreach to ethnic others, became the anti-Jewish arm of the late Roman state. If new ideas are food for thought, Runesson has served a feast."
Kathy Ehrensperger, Abraham Geiger Kolleg, Potsdam
"This is the mature fruit of intensive research over a significant period of time, drawing together Runesson’s explorations on Paul and Pauline theology, locating him firmly within his Jewish context on the one hand, and taking seriously that he is addressing gentiles. The historical depth and methodological rigor as well as the key awareness of hermeneutical presuppositions render this a rich and challenging source for scholars and students alike. But this is not only another academic contribution to the important field of Pauline studies, Runesson demonstrates how this approach to Paul is also relevant for theologizing in contemporary churches and interreligious interaction today. Thus the volume is a must for all engaged in Pauline Studies as well as in contemporary church and interreligious work."
Terence L. Donaldson, Professor Emeritus, Wycliffe College, University of Toronto
"In recent years, Anders Runesson has emerged as a leading voice in the (distinct but related) projects of reading Matthew and Paul »within Judaism.« In this significant volume on Paul, he draws on material from a number of his previous articles and book chapters, working it into a cohesive and comprehensive account of Paul's »Judaism for gentiles« and its place within a larger interpretive horizon. Over against approaches that see Paul as the architect of a »parting of the ways,« Runesson understands him as working towards a »joining of the ways«-mixed groups of Jewish and gentile Christ-believers existing within the larger environment of Jewish diaspora synagogues. An impressive achievement, highly recommended."
Matthew Thiessen, McMaster University, Hamilton
"In these important essays, Anders Runesson provides readers with an account of a thoroughly embodied and socially embedded Paul, a first-century Jewish Messiah follower seeking to live in the Roman world. The volume is a must read for anyone interested in thinking about the historical Paul."
Mark D. Nanos, PhD, University of St. Andrews, Scotland, author of »Reading Paul within Judaism«
"Anders Runesson takes his readers beyond the familiar constructions of Paul, significantly advancing the discussion of how to understand him and his movement. Historical and textual details are interrogated with clear, methodological discipline. The investigation is thoughtful, engaging, and accessible to informed non-specialists as well as scholars."
Markus Öhler, University of Vienna
"Anders Runesson's essays impress for three reasons: First, by breaking with classical models of explanation, his handling of the reconstruction of early Christianity is not only innovative, but when set against the backdrop of historical and hermeneutical considerations, opens up further approaches and new perspectives. Second, because he is well-versed in dealing with literary and archaeological sources, Runesson is skillfully able to reorganize and interpret these factors. And finally, his contributions provide such a welcome interest in historical and theological research that even those who do not agree with all the results are constantly challenged to revisit well-trodden paths in search of fresh insights."
Karl Olav Sandnes, MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society.
"Anders Runesson here presents a must-read for Pauline scholars. It is remarkable how much ground this book covers and masters in a thought-provoking way. It is almost like an advanced handbook on several issues pertaining to Paul. This is an in-depth study on matters of method, history of interpretation, historical context, Pauline mission, women in the letters, the Pauline legacy and hermeneutics, to mention some key issues being addressed. The book achieves the purpose of a scholarly book as it triggers questions and further discussions. These questions and discussions may not always embrace Runesson’s conclusions, but they will certainly be refined if this book is a constant dialogue partner, setting an agenda for how Paul’s theology and mission can be adressed."
In collaboration with Rebecca Runesson.
Matthew V. Novenson, University of Edinburgh
"The Paul-within-Judaism movement is here to stay, and Anders Runesson is arguably its most hermeneutically sophisticated spokesperson. In this remarkable book, Runesson expertly guides us through difficult questions of social history, exegesis, ancient reception history, and modern constructive theology, all of which we need in order to understand Paul ‘beyond the parting of the ways paradigm."
Paula Fredriksen, author of »Paul, the Pagans’ Apostle«
"In this compelling book, Anders Runesson incarnates Roman-period types of Judaism—thus, the seedbed of later Christianities—within their institutional matrix, the ancient synagogue. Radically reconceiving the so-called “parting of the ways,” he traces a developmental arc from Paul through Theodosius I to explore how and why this apocalyptic Jewish movement, with its odd outreach to ethnic others, became the anti-Jewish arm of the late Roman state. If new ideas are food for thought, Runesson has served a feast."
Kathy Ehrensperger, Abraham Geiger Kolleg, Potsdam
"This is the mature fruit of intensive research over a significant period of time, drawing together Runesson’s explorations on Paul and Pauline theology, locating him firmly within his Jewish context on the one hand, and taking seriously that he is addressing gentiles. The historical depth and methodological rigor as well as the key awareness of hermeneutical presuppositions render this a rich and challenging source for scholars and students alike. But this is not only another academic contribution to the important field of Pauline studies, Runesson demonstrates how this approach to Paul is also relevant for theologizing in contemporary churches and interreligious interaction today. Thus the volume is a must for all engaged in Pauline Studies as well as in contemporary church and interreligious work."
Terence L. Donaldson, Professor Emeritus, Wycliffe College, University of Toronto
"In recent years, Anders Runesson has emerged as a leading voice in the (distinct but related) projects of reading Matthew and Paul »within Judaism.« In this significant volume on Paul, he draws on material from a number of his previous articles and book chapters, working it into a cohesive and comprehensive account of Paul's »Judaism for gentiles« and its place within a larger interpretive horizon. Over against approaches that see Paul as the architect of a »parting of the ways,« Runesson understands him as working towards a »joining of the ways«-mixed groups of Jewish and gentile Christ-believers existing within the larger environment of Jewish diaspora synagogues. An impressive achievement, highly recommended."
Matthew Thiessen, McMaster University, Hamilton
"In these important essays, Anders Runesson provides readers with an account of a thoroughly embodied and socially embedded Paul, a first-century Jewish Messiah follower seeking to live in the Roman world. The volume is a must read for anyone interested in thinking about the historical Paul."
Mark D. Nanos, PhD, University of St. Andrews, Scotland, author of »Reading Paul within Judaism«
"Anders Runesson takes his readers beyond the familiar constructions of Paul, significantly advancing the discussion of how to understand him and his movement. Historical and textual details are interrogated with clear, methodological discipline. The investigation is thoughtful, engaging, and accessible to informed non-specialists as well as scholars."
Markus Öhler, University of Vienna
"Anders Runesson's essays impress for three reasons: First, by breaking with classical models of explanation, his handling of the reconstruction of early Christianity is not only innovative, but when set against the backdrop of historical and hermeneutical considerations, opens up further approaches and new perspectives. Second, because he is well-versed in dealing with literary and archaeological sources, Runesson is skillfully able to reorganize and interpret these factors. And finally, his contributions provide such a welcome interest in historical and theological research that even those who do not agree with all the results are constantly challenged to revisit well-trodden paths in search of fresh insights."
Karl Olav Sandnes, MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society.
"Anders Runesson here presents a must-read for Pauline scholars. It is remarkable how much ground this book covers and masters in a thought-provoking way. It is almost like an advanced handbook on several issues pertaining to Paul. This is an in-depth study on matters of method, history of interpretation, historical context, Pauline mission, women in the letters, the Pauline legacy and hermeneutics, to mention some key issues being addressed. The book achieves the purpose of a scholarly book as it triggers questions and further discussions. These questions and discussions may not always embrace Runesson’s conclusions, but they will certainly be refined if this book is a constant dialogue partner, setting an agenda for how Paul’s theology and mission can be adressed."
Negotiating Identities: Conflict, Conversion, and Consolidation in Early Judaism and Christianity (200 BCE–600 CE) (2022)
Michael Tilly, University of Tübingen
"This impressive collection of contributions by leading international experts provides comprehensive, thorough, and methodically innovative insights into the intersections and complex relationships between Judaism and Christianity in their historical, social, cultural, and religious contexts. This remarkable book is indispensable for anyone interested in the multifaceted identity formation and early interaction of both world religions from the Hellenistic-Roman period to Late Antiquity."
Michael Tilly, University of Tübingen
"This impressive collection of contributions by leading international experts provides comprehensive, thorough, and methodically innovative insights into the intersections and complex relationships between Judaism and Christianity in their historical, social, cultural, and religious contexts. This remarkable book is indispensable for anyone interested in the multifaceted identity formation and early interaction of both world religions from the Hellenistic-Roman period to Late Antiquity."
Jesus the New Testament, and Christian Origins: Perspectives, Methods, Meanings (2021)
Paula Fredriksen, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, author of From Jesus to Christ: The Origins of the New Testament Images of Christ and Paul: The Pagans’ Apostle
“Panoramic in scope, sensitive in exposition, richly informed by illustrative detail: Jesus, the New Testament, and Christian Origins offers the reader a wonderful introduction both to the field of New Testament Studies and to the ancient world from which its texts sprang.”
Carl R. Holladay, Emory University
“Jesus, the New Testament, and Christian Origins is an impressive multi-authored work that combines several discrete subdisciplines: the history of New Testament scholarship; the political, social, and literary milieux within which early Christianity originated and developed; New Testament introduction and theology; early church history; and methods of biblical interpretation. Although a collective effort, the work is clear and coherent, reflecting strong editorial leadership. Special strengths include comprehensive reviews of current scholarly thinking on major interpretative issues such as Life-of-Jesus research, the ‘new perspective’ on Paul, the ‘parting of the ways,’ and the delineation of six identifiable streams of early Christian thought. Ample bibliographies, along with numerous diagrams, tables, and boxes of supplementary material, enhance its pedagogical value. A remarkable synthesis that deserves to become a ‘pull-down’ book for biblical scholars, theological students, and pastors.”
Amy-Jill Levine, Vanderbilt University
“Classroom reader, comprehensive encyclopedia, exegetical handbook, and more, this engaging, up-to-date volume attends to issues that mattered both in antiquity and today including Jewish-Christian relations, gender and sexuality, the Roman empire, and the means by which texts and interpretations become authoritative. A splendid achievement.”
Donald A. Hagner, author of The New Testament: A Historical and Theological Introduction
“The editors and contributors of this book are to be congratulated for producing a unique and invaluable volume, containing an enormous amount of essential, up-to-date information for the interpretation of the New Testament. Here students will not only learn of the history of the New Testament but also discover helpful paths through the dense thicket of contemporary hermeneutics—all excellently done and attractively presented.”
Chris Keith, St. Mary’s University, Twickenham
“Mitternacht, Runesson, and their contributors have produced a magnificent introductory textbook on the earliest social, historical, and textual contexts of devotion to Jesus, with due attention given also to the intricacies of interpretation. This book is comprehensive and authoritative, but never at the expense of accessibility. I will be assigning this book to my students at the first opportunity.”
Matthew V. Novenson, University of Edinburgh
“New Testament scholarship is and has always been international and multilingual. Consequently, for more than a decade now, one of the very best introductions to the New Testament has been available only in Swedish: Dieter Mitternacht and Anders Runesson’s Jesus och de första kristna (2006). But now, thanks to Rebecca Runesson and Noah Runesson’s deft translation, it is accessible to those of us who speak English but not (yet) Swedish. The twenty-two contributors are a who’s who of Scandinavian biblical scholarship, and the emphasis on hermeneutics as well as history is an especially inspired feature. Many of our students read the New Testament itself in English translation. Why not an excellent New Testament textbook in English translation, too?”
Todd D. Still, George W. Truett Theological Seminary, Baylor University
“Whereas the vast majority of introductions to the New Testament are more than content simply to describe the contents and contexts of the twenty-seven documents that comprise the same, in Jesus, the New Testament, and Christian Origins, twenty-two skillful Scandinavian scholars, led by editors Dieter Mitternacht and Anders Runesson, not only orient students to the New Testament and its bewildering world but also illustrate how these fascinating texts can continue to be interpreted and appropriated in variegated ways. The upshot of this expansive, extensive edited volume is nothing less than a valuable, accessible reference resource for those who are wanting and willing to grapple with the meaning(s) of the New Testament.”
Matthew Thiessen, McMaster University
“This wonderful book expertly invites students into the academic study of the New Testament not simply surveying the contents of the New Testament but also introducing the historical contexts that gave rise to these writings and their collection into a canon. Best of all, it will empower students to dive into New Testament interpretation by modeling various methodological approaches to its study.”
Joel B. Green, Fuller Theological Seminary
“Not a New Testament introduction in the usual sense, this impressive text nonetheless provides a well paved, well-lit path into serious New Testament study. The authors cultivate historical, textual, and readerly interests, all in the service of equipping their own readers with competence and confidence for interpreting these canonical texts.”
Matthew within Judaism (2020)
Dale C. Allison, Jr., Princeton Theological Seminary
Unlike most collections by multiple authors, this volume displays remarkable unity. The contributors consistently argue for understanding Matthew in its entirety as a thoroughly Jewish text…. The chapters are unfailingly informative and provocative, and they move the discussion forward in multiple, significant ways.
Layang Seng Ja, Kachin Theological College and Seminary Myitkyina, Myanmar
This volume is a challenge to biblical scholars, theologians, students, and preachers to see Matthew’s Gospel for what it is, a Jewish gospel…. The topics covered locate Matthew within a developing multifaceted late Second Temple and post-temple Judaism. It also covers the broader first-century context as well as updating us on the current state of New Testament studies. As such it will provide a rich and valuable source for anyone who longs to hear the historical voice of Matthew.
Paul Foster, School of Divinity, University of Edinburgh
Matthew’s Gospel represents a form of Judaism. That is the radical position argued with great clarity and force in this incisive set of essays. Together these studies seek to provide better arguments for locating the Gospel of Matthew within the matrix of diverse expressions of Judaism that existed during the late Second Temple period. Carefully assessing a wide-range of topics using evidence from the comparanda of broadly contemporary Jewish texts, the authors advocate the revolutionary idea that Matthew’s Gospel is best understood as a Jewish rather than a Christian text. For those wanting to interact with the best articulation of this idea, there is no better assembly of arguments for this Matthew-within-Judaism point of view than this magnificent collection of studies.
Catherine Sider Hamilton, Wycliffe College, University of Toronto
In this rich volume, Anders Runesson and Dan Gurtner bring together an impressive array of scholars to propose “a new historical paradigm,” an approach to reading Matthew which treats it not merely against the background of Second Temple Judaism but as an expression of it. Essays by leading voices old and new in the study of Matthew and Second Temple Judaism tackle key questions: torah, temple; Israel and the nations and ethnic identity; kingship and the crowds; purity and eschatology; receptions of Matthew both Jewish and Gentile. While the essays are not univocal—there is debate within the volume as to the precise location of Matthew within Judaism—they are always insightful, throwing new light, often from new angles, on first-century Judaism and Matthew within it. It is a volume to spark debate and carry Matthean studies forward; in its contribution to the study of both Matthew and Second Temple Judaism it is essential.
Michael P. Barber, Augustine Institute
The past decade or so has seen a renaissance of sorts in Matthean Studies. This book, edited by two of the most important Matthew scholars writing today, is over 500 pages long and is full of outstanding essays on important topics.
The book’s Table of Contents reads like a “who’s who” of the leading Matthean scholars. Any book on Matthew that contains pieces from Dan Gurtner, Anders Runesson, A. J. Levine, Loren Stuckenbruck, John Kampen, and Nathan Eubank is definitely a must-read for a serious student of Matthew.
The Sacred Page: https://thesacredpage.com/2020/07/16/new-book-matthew-within-judaism-israel-and-the-nations-in-the-first-gospel-eds-anders-runesson-and-daniel-m-gurtner/
Divine Wrath and Salvation in Matthew (2016) – see also Awards
Terrence Donaldson, Wycliffe College, University of Toronto
“Matthew’s Gospel has often been read as a story of rejection and replacement—the rejection of the Jews for their rejection of Jesus, and the replacement of Israel by the (largely or exclusively) gentile church. In this brilliant and groundbreaking work, Anders Runesson tackles this ‘gentile bias’ reading of Matthew head-on. Moreover, he does so by focusing on an element that has often played a central role in such anti-Jewish readings—the heightened emphasis on divine judgment in the First Gospel. With Divine Wrath and Salvation in Matthew, Runesson takes his place at the forefront of a growing group of scholars who want to repatriate Matthew—to read the First Gospel from a position ‘within Judaism’ rather than within gentile ecclesiasticism. Essential reading for all who are interested in the Synoptic Gospels, the question of anti-Judaism in the New Testament, and related matters.”
Amy-Jill Levine, Vanderbilt University
“By demonstrating Matthew’s deep immersion in late first-century Jewish thought, this brilliant study offers multiple insights into the Gospel's soteriology, political views, missionary strategy, and narrative coherence. Anders Runesson both breaks new ground in historical-critical analysis and opens new possibilities in contemporary Jewish-Christian dialogue.”
Dale C. Allison, Jr., Princeton Theological Seminary
“Anders Runesson’s creative effort to read Matthew in its first-century Jewish context, without anachronistic assumptions and prejudices, is most welcome. Divine Wrath and Salvation in Matthew is a major contribution that is historically well-informed, theologically thoughtful, and hermeneutically perceptive.”
Paula Fredriksen, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
“What happens if we attend to Matthew’s inception history, rather than to its reception history? If we read it not within the New Testament, but alongside of other late first-century Jewish texts (4 Ezra, 2 Baruch)? If we see this ‘passionately angry’ gospel not as an instance of ‘Christian origins,’ but as a witness to Jewish origins? In Divine Wrath and Salvation in Matthew, Anders Runesson offers exactly such an accomplishment at historical reimagining. The result is a profound work of ethical reasoning, and a clear summons to theological courage.”
David C. Sim, Australian Catholic University
“In this provocative but carefully-researched book, Anders Runesson invites the reader to enter into the narrative world of Matthew’s Gospel and to engage with the Evangelist’s very Jewish understanding of God’s salvation and judgement. A critical aspect of his argument is that Matthew distinguishes between the judgement of the Jews and the judgement of the Gentiles, and that each group is judged according to different criteria. Runesson has produced a study of Matthew’s scheme of divine judgement that is original and challenging, and replete with fresh insights. It will take its rightful place in the corpus of important modern studies that deal with the Gospel’s distinctive vision of the end-times.”
Donald A. Hagner, Fuller Theological Seminary
“I know of no book that approaches the Gospel of Matthew from a strictly historical point of view in the consistent and masterful way that Runesson does. He shows that Matthew can be explained as a document whose origins lie fully within its first-century Jewish context. This is a stimulating and insightful book that the next generation of Matthean specialists will not be able to ignore.”
Donald Senior, Catholic Theological Union
“For students of Matthew’s Gospel, Anders Runesson’s, Divine Wrath and Salvation in Matthew: The Narrative World of the First Gospel presents a strong and challenging interpretation. Matthew, he insists, originates as a thoroughly Jewish text and, contrary to many later Christian readings, is primarily concerned with the salvation of Israel, particularly those ‘lost sheep’ so led astray by their leaders who in a particular way have earned God’s judgement. Not all will agree with Runesson’s assessment but no one should ignore it.”
Professor David J. Neville, St Mark’s National Theological Centre and Charles Sturt University
"Anders Runesson is currently Professor of New Testament Studies at the University of Oslo, Norway, and already a recognized authority on Matthew’s Gospel and other New Testament writings in their historical, sociocultural, and religious contexts. Over two decades in gestation, Divine Wrath and Salvation in Matthew is a landmark work, not only in Matthean or even gospel studies but also in New Testament theology more broadly. It explores a major and also distinctive Matthean theme with historical and hermeneutical integrity, offering sagacious suggestions for making good—because responsible—sense of Matthew’s peculiar thematic structures in our own vastly different context(s). Although one cannot know in advance what impact a scholarly work may have, this is a potentially agenda-shaping book. [...]
Turning over the final pages of this book, one senses that its author has unlocked decisive exegetical and interpretive portals for comprehending Matthew’s Gospel better. This is a profoundly significant study that not only reveals Runesson’s erudition, which runs deep, but also opens up new avenues for exploration. Whether or not each and every one of the author’s interpretive inferences proves correct is less important than the basic hermeneutical stance he articulates and defends."
For the full review, published in Review of Biblical Literature, 06/2018, click here.
Boris Repschinski, University of Innsbruck
“Anders Runesson has been working in Matthean studies for many years. The present volume is the result of over twenty years of engaging with Matthew’s gospel, and it is one of the most important Matthean studies published in recent memory. The reason for this is that Runesson attempts a paradigm shift for the interpretation of Matthew. He proposes to read the text entirely “from within a Jewish interpretive culture” (p. 63) in order to show that it would be misleading “to call this text a ‘Christian’ text” only because it is included in a later collection of Christian texts (p. 203). Runesson dispenses with labels current in more recent scholarship such as “Jewish-Christian” or “Christian-Jewish.” […]
There can be no doubt that Runesson has produced an erudite book that needs to be read by every serious student of Matthew’s gospel. Some of Runesson’s discussions are truly remarkable. They make valuable contributions to scholarship. Particularly impressive is the very fine discussion about the complete and continuing validity of Jewish Law and the way it is configured in terms of criteria of judgment. With fascination I also read through Runesson’s analysis of the relationship between the destruction of the temple and the death of Jesus. He argues that the temple’s destruction is not seen by Matthew as divine punishment for the Jews’ rejection of Jesus; rather, the destruction becomes the rationale for the death of Jesus. […]
It is demanding, too, in its erudition and complexity of argument. But it is extremely rewarding reading even for those not fully convinced by Runesson’s arguments. It is sure to influence Matthean scholarship for years to come.”
Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations, 13, no. 1 (2018): 1-3
Bible Today
This thorough and innovative study of Matthew’s gospel by Anders Runesson, professor of New Testament at the University of Oslo, Norway, takes its place alongside a number of recent interpretations that situate Matthew’s gospel in an intra-Jewish rather than a Gentile-Jewish context. That is, Matthew’s community considered itself as thoroughly and essentially Jewish, with its belief in Jesus as the Messiah the culmination of its Jewish faith and identity. Runesson’s focus is on the characteristic passages in Matthew dealing with divine judgment and related condemnation of the Jewish authorities. It is Matthew’s intra-Jewish conflict with these authorities, rather than a Jewish-Gentile polarity, that best explains this motif in the gospel.
Brian Allen
Divine wrath, also significant to euangelion, however, has been unappreciated, neglected and forgotten. Anders Runesson, professor of New Testament at the University of Oslo, and expert in ancient Jewish synagogues, seeks to remedy this negligence, specifically in the Gospel of Matthew, maintaining that “divine judgment is at the center of the proclamation of the good news” (7).
In a passionate preface to Divine Wrath and Salvation in Matthew, Runesson introduces his methodology in an innovative way, prioritizing Matthew’s inception history above its reception history. He uncouples Matthew from the multifarious anachronisms common in the history of interpretation, and situates it within a Second-Temple Jewish context alongside contemporary Jewish texts.
...
Runesson has effectively situated Matthew within a Second Temple Jewish context. His investigation is a welcomed addition to Matthean scholarship and the ongoing endeavor to reread much of early Christian literature as part and parcel of its original Jewish matrix.
Reviews of the Enoch Seminar 2019.11.12 (http://enochseminar.org/review/16527)
Michael P. Barber, Augustine Institute
Anyone interested in serious scholarship on Matthew should pick up a copy of Anders Runesson’s recent book, Divine Wrath and Salvation in Matthew.
... the book contains numerous insights that are worthy of consideration. It represents a major contribution to Matthean scholarship. I have mentioned before that Runesson has done ground-breaking work on synagogues in the first century, which has important implications for Matthew studies. He briefly draws on some of this research. Here, however, he turns his sharp mind to various other issues in the Gospel according to Matthew, offering a comprehensive synthesis of numerous themes found in it. The result is a very stimulating and insightful read.
It seems to me that Runesson has helpfully put his finger on a key issue, namely, the way the loss of the temple poses a problem within the logic of the Mosaic covenant.
The Sacred Page: https://thesacredpage.com/2020/04/14/recent-book-divine-wrath-and-salvation-in-matthew-anders-runesson/
Purity, Holiness, and Identity in Judaism and Christianity (2013)
Jonathan Klawans, Boston University
“Susan Haber (z“l ) passed away in 2006, while pursuing a PhD at McMaster University. Scholars interested in purity in ancient Judaism should already have made acquaintance with Haber’s work. While only a few pieces were published in her lifetime, Adele Reinhartz edited a compilation of Haber’s essays, which the Society of Biblical Literature published in 2008.[1] The volume under review offers a different kind of tribute, bringing together essays by her teachers, colleagues, and friends–clearly, in many cases, these are overlapping categories. Altogether the contributors comprise an international assembly of the first order. The present work is therefore not only a fitting tribute to its dedicatee, but a contribution in its own right to one of Haber’s main interests, purity in ancient Judaism. […] Because of its thematic coherence, the volume holds together well, and therefore constitutes a much better read than the average memorial volume or festschrift. […] So purity enthusiasts, adventure-seekers, and cherry-pickers will all find this volume eminently usable for their needs. The level of scholarship runs high throughout the volume […] Upon reaching the end of the book, readers will do well to reread Rabbi David Seed’s essay, pausing on the last line: “Even in death, Susan’s words and deeds will continue to speak to many for generations to come, and we are the better for it” (p. 6). This statement–the volume’s thesis–is indisputable.”
(H-Net Reviews in the Humanities & Social Sciences, July 2014 [URL: http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=41898])
Peter H. Davids, Houston Baptist University
“Susan Haber (1957–2006) had an abiding in the subject of purity in Judaism, whether expressed in the Hebrew Scriptures, in the Dead Sea Scrolls, in Early Christian documents, or in later Jewish materials. This memorial volume of essays honors her interest in both breadth and depth. […] It is clear that the essays that are included do give fresh insights into the NT, for often the purity aspect of an NT work is overlooked or a scholar writing on a passage thinks that he or she knows what it means, but is actually incorrect. […] This is an intriguing volume. There is something here for many if not most scholars of Judaism, Hebrew Scriptures, or the NT. The essays are thoughtful, whatever position one takes on the issues. One can conclude from this volume that Susan Haber has been well-honored.”
(Bulletin for Biblical Research 24.2 [2014], 294-295.)
Christian Grappe, Faculté de Théologie Protestante Palais Universitaire, Bureau du doyen
Dédié à la mémoire de Susan Haber, décédée prématurément alors qu'elle travaillait à sa thèse, le présent volume honore les champs qu'elle s'employait à explorer et à mettre en relation autour de questions se rattachent à la pureté Quatorze études sont regroupées en trois parties.
...
Un bel ensamble.
(Revue D´Histoire et de Philosophie Religieuses 94 (2014), 337–338).
Jason A. Myers, Ashbury Theological Seminary
“The volume consists of many excellent and accessible articles that discuss a wide range of topics.”
(Religious Studies Review 41.1 [2015], 31)
John C. Poirier, Kingswell Theological Seminary
“The three areas covered by the title—purity, holiness, and identity—are reflective of Haber’s interests and contributions. It undoubtedly helps the volume that all three areas are experiencing increased interest within scholarship, so that nearly every essay brings to mind a current debate. […] Holiness, purity, and identity are important areas of investigation in recent scholarship. Purity, Holiness, and Identity in Judaism and Christianity draws on the best of recent scholarship in these areas and delivers intelligent, well-argued contributions in return. Anyone interested in ritual purity, holiness, or the dynamics of religious identity will want to read this book.
(RBL 08/2015)
Mark and Matthew. Comparative Readings II (2013)
Craig A. Evans, Acadia Divinity College
“Mark and Matthew II is the second of two volumes that grew out of conferences held at Aarhus University in Denmark and McMaster University in Canada in 2008 and 2009. […] The editors and contributors have attempted to study Mark and Matthew as two early gospels, comparatively and contextually, in order to further “our understanding of the rise and development of gospel literature in the first century C.E.” (1:1).The papers in the first volume focus on the two gospels in their first-century settings. The papers in the second volume, the volume under review, focus on the reception history of these two gospels. Becker and Runesson note in their introduction to volume 2 that the “constant presence of oral tradition alongside the written documents complicates any theory aiming at exact descriptions of the intricate web of interconnections between Mark and Matthew,” interconnections that contributed in significant ways to the reception history (3–4). They later remind readers of the important fact that Mark and Matthew present us with “an intertwined history entangled in the realities of the first-century Mediterranean world” (12). The papers that follow tease out important aspects of this complicated reality. […]
This is a rich collection of studies that complements well the first volume. Scholars concerned with Matthew and Mark, as well as the Synoptic Gospels, the Synoptic Problem, and the reception history of this material will greatly appreciate the contributions of these learned scholars. […]
Mark and Matthew II constitutes another important contribution to the study of these gospels. The great value of the overall approach taken in this collection lies in its studying the two gospels together, taking into account their close relationship. Moreover, these studies take into account not only the origins of the gospels and the intentions of the two evangelists but also the subsequent history of interpretation, with respect both to meaning and to authority. These studies also reflect current trends and address pressing questions. The result is a rich and refreshing collection of research.”
(Review of Biblical Literature 08/2015)
Paul Foster, University of Edinburgh
“This is a rich collection, and offers helpful insights to those engaged in study of the synoptic gospels.”
(Expository Times 125.9 [2014])
Céline Rohmer, Institut Protestant de Théologie
Cet ouvrage présente différentes études comparatives menées sur les Evangiles de Marc et de Matthieu et qui portent principalement sur l'histoire de leur réception. Un premier volume, sous la responsabilité des mêmes éditeurs, avait déjà offert une collection d'articles posant davantage la question du contexte de rédaction de ces deux Evangiles. […] Ce volume insiste a l'évidence sur l'importance des lectures comparatives et interdisciplinaires concernant les Evangiles de Mc et Mt. La variété des méthodes employées démontre la richesse des travaux en cours dans plusieurs grandes universités. L'intérêt manifeste pour les différentes écoles de pensée et la mise en Lumière de leurs enjeux constituent le principal attrait de ce recueil. La riche bibliographie et les index extrêmement précis qui terminent le livre en font un ouvrage d'intérêt facilement consultable pour qui se met en quête d'idées fines, pointues et argumentées sur tel aspect d'une étude comparative entre les Evangiles de Mc et Mt.
(ETR 2015.1, 120-121)
Mark and Matthew. Comparative Readings I (2011)
Jeff Jay, University of Chicago
”Becker and Runesson […] suggest that a renewed look at the ’interconnected’ literary and theological ’competitiveness’ (9) of the earliest Gospels will advance the understanding not only of each individual text and age-old Synoptic issues, but also of the general Christian literary culture that produced Mark and Matthew in what was evidently the highly creative and formative period of 70 – 90 ce. One of the book’s strengths lies in the sweeping perspectival breadth of the contributions, which Becker and Runesson have organized in terms of several sensible rubrics.”
“The volume is successful because [the] contributors repeatedly demonstrate the value of the comparative approach as Becker and Runesson have construed it.”
“The collaboration of so many scholars has on the whole produced a book of impressive scope. One comes away not only with a conviction of the importance of comparing Mark and Matthew, but also with an up-to-date understanding of the current state of research into many aspects of both texts.”
“Clearly aware of the many tensions between the collected papers, Becker and Runesson judiciously dispatch this volume not as the final word, but as a provocation to a discussion that ‘continues beyond both the conference setting and the pages of this book’ (9).”
“[T]he volume rewards careful study because it incites genuine conversation, adduces the benefits of methodological diversity, presents the state of research, and advances a compelling case for new ways of comparing Mark and Matthew. For these reasons, we can eagerly anticipate the volume’s forthcoming companion, Mark and Matthew II (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck), which is a collection of the papers presented during a second conference at McMaster University in Canada in November of 2009 on hermeneutics, reception history, and theology.”
(Early Christianity 3 [2012], 259-264)
Helen K. Bond, Senior Lecturer, University of Edinburgh
“Together, the essays provide an excellent overview of recent scholarship on the first two Gospels.”
(Journal for the Study of the New Testament 34.5 [2012] 38-39)
Matthias Konradt, Theologische Fakultät, University of Heidelberg
In diesem Sammelband findet sich ein ganze Reihe lesenswerter Studien.
(Theologische Literaturzeitung 138:1 [2013] 30-32)
Tobias Hägerland, Lund University
“För den som önskar en inblick i aktuell Markus- och Matteusforskning genom ett antal djupdykningar i olika frågeställningar och ämnen kan boken anbefallas till läsning.”
(SEÅ 78 [2013], 207)
Craig A. Evans, Acadia Divinity College
“The stimulating papers that appear in this volume apply a number of disciplines. […] The Introduction helpfully abstracts each chapter in such a way that the reader gains a clearer sense of the logic and layout of the volume.”
(Bulletin for Biblical Research 24.2 [2014], 278)
Heinz Giesen, Philosophisch-Theologische Hochschule SVD St. Augustin
“Die auf eine Konferenz in Aarhus vom 25 - 27 Juli 2008 zurückgehenden Beiträge bieten vergleichende Interpretation des MkEv und MtEv auf dem historischen Hintergrund ihrer Entstehungszeit. Dabei suchen sie sowohl dem synoptischen Problem als auch dem individuellen Evangelium gerecht zu werden. […] Die vorliegende Band spiegelt die heutige Forschungssituation wider.”
(SNTU 39 [2014] 218-219)
Daniel M. Gurtner, Bethel Seminary
“This volume provides a good overview of critical issues in studying these two Gospels.”
(Religious Studies Review 41.2 [2015] 73)
Mark and Matthew. Comparative Readings I (2011)
Jeff Jay, University of Chicago
”Becker and Runesson […] suggest that a renewed look at the ’interconnected’ literary and theological ’competitiveness’ (9) of the earliest Gospels will advance the understanding not only of each individual text and age-old Synoptic issues, but also of the general Christian literary culture that produced Mark and Matthew in what was evidently the highly creative and formative period of 70 – 90 ce. One of the book’s strengths lies in the sweeping perspectival breadth of the contributions, which Becker and Runesson have organized in terms of several sensible rubrics.”
“The volume is successful because [the] contributors repeatedly demonstrate the value of the comparative approach as Becker and Runesson have construed it.”
“The collaboration of so many scholars has on the whole produced a book of impressive scope. One comes away not only with a conviction of the importance of comparing Mark and Matthew, but also with an up-to-date understanding of the current state of research into many aspects of both texts.”
“Clearly aware of the many tensions between the collected papers, Becker and Runesson judiciously dispatch this volume not as the final word, but as a provocation to a discussion that ‘continues beyond both the conference setting and the pages of this book’ (9).”
“[T]he volume rewards careful study because it incites genuine conversation, adduces the benefits of methodological diversity, presents the state of research, and advances a compelling case for new ways of comparing Mark and Matthew. For these reasons, we can eagerly anticipate the volume’s forthcoming companion, Mark and Matthew II (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck), which is a collection of the papers presented during a second conference at McMaster University in Canada in November of 2009 on hermeneutics, reception history, and theology.”
(Early Christianity 3 [2012], 259-264)
Helen K. Bond, Senior Lecturer, University of Edinburgh
“Together, the essays provide an excellent overview of recent scholarship on the first two Gospels.”
(Journal for the Study of the New Testament 34.5 [2012] 38-39)
Matthias Konradt, Theologische Fakultät, University of Heidelberg
In diesem Sammelband findet sich ein ganze Reihe lesenswerter Studien.
(Theologische Literaturzeitung 138:1 [2013] 30-32)
Tobias Hägerland, Lund University
“För den som önskar en inblick i aktuell Markus- och Matteusforskning genom ett antal djupdykningar i olika frågeställningar och ämnen kan boken anbefallas till läsning.”
(SEÅ 78 [2013], 207)
Craig A. Evans, Acadia Divinity College
“The stimulating papers that appear in this volume apply a number of disciplines. […] The Introduction helpfully abstracts each chapter in such a way that the reader gains a clearer sense of the logic and layout of the volume.”
(Bulletin for Biblical Research 24.2 [2014], 278)
Heinz Giesen, Philosophisch-Theologische Hochschule SVD St. Augustin
“Die auf eine Konferenz in Aarhus vom 25 - 27 Juli 2008 zurückgehenden Beiträge bieten vergleichende Interpretation des MkEv und MtEv auf dem historischen Hintergrund ihrer Entstehungszeit. Dabei suchen sie sowohl dem synoptischen Problem als auch dem individuellen Evangelium gerecht zu werden. […] Die vorliegende Band spiegelt die heutige Forschungssituation wider.”
(SNTU 39 [2014] 218-219)
Daniel M. Gurtner, Bethel Seminary
“This volume provides a good overview of critical issues in studying these two Gospels.”
(Religious Studies Review 41.2 [2015] 73)
O att du slet itu himlen och steg ner!
(O That You Would Tear Open the Heavens and Come Down!) (2011)
Bengt Holmberg, Lund University
”Boken…undersöker både dess [Jonas Gardells bok Om Jesus, 2009] historiska resultat och den underliggande filosofi och teologi som styr dessa resultat. På köpet får läsaren god insikt i både historisk metod och teologisk hermeneutik.”
”Del II slutar med två historiskt och teologiskt lysande kapitel om Jesu död och uppståndelse […] Att Runesson är en saklig och stringent kritiker står klart efter hans hundra sidors granskning […] Gardell har gett upp historikerns uppgift att eftersträva objektivitet och istället fallit för frestelsen att skapa Jesus till sin egen avbild. Det är inte bra teologi heller.”
”[Boken] inte bara demonstrerar vad historiskt-kritiskt arbete med bibeltexter verkligen är och kräver av sina utövare. Den visar också en författare som, ovanligt nog, fortsätter förbi detta första steg i en kristen bibeltolkning till en hermeneutiskt medveten och teologiskt genomtänkt syn på Skriften som Guds kommunikation med oss.”
(Svensk pastoraltidskrift, 21 (2011) 660-665)
Torbjörn Sjöholm, gymnasielärare i svenska och religion, sekreterare i Institutet för kontextuell teologi
”Runesson vill, i sanningssökandets tjänst och på ett respektfullt och dialogsträvande sätt, föra Gardells Jesusdiskussion vidare… [Han] pekar med grundlig, men aldrig respektlös, argumentering på bristerna i att bygga sin tro på enbart vetenskap, vars funktion ju inte är att vara grunden för religiös tro. Detta kullkastar mycket som Gardell kommer fram till och man kan undra över all den uppmärksamhet som Gardells bok fick – och frånvaron av problematisering…”
”O att du slet itu himlen kan läsas som en meditation över kristendomen, som en dialog med Gardell och hans bok, som en vetenskaplig översikt, som ett ’stigfinnande’ för Svenska kyrkan i nutid och framtid”.
(Dagen, 2 September, 2011)
Mikael Löwegren, präst i Svenska kyrkan
”Runesson blottlägger hur Jesus inte tillåts säga något som Gardell inte kan acceptera. Känner sig Gardell provocerad av någonting i Jesu budskap växlar han mellan tre olika strategier för att förklara att just detta inte är normativt. Runesson skriver: ’när dessa tre underliggande principer får utrymme blir inte ens historiens frampusslade Jesus kvar, utan bara den del av historiens Jesus som en modern västerländsk människa kan acceptera i enlighet med den världsbild som just nu råkar råda’”.
”Gardells böcker och teveprogram om Gud och Jesus har haft ett enormt genomslag. Bara detta motiverar denna kunniga och engagerade genomlysning av hans teologi. Anders Runessons kritik är mild i tonen men kan inte kallas för något annat än förödande. Dessutom visar han på ett annat sätt att närma sig den verklige Jesus: i tillit till att den Ande som uppväckte honom från de döda ännu verkar. Runesson säger att ’Anden är fri och verksam både i och utanför Bibeln, kyrkan och historien’. Här finns en helt annan rymd”
(Kyrkans tidning 24 November, 2011)
Gunnel Granmo, gymnasielärare, Vetlanda
”[Runesson] skriver boken ur två perspektiv, dels som nytestamentlig forskare, dels som troende kristen, prästvigd i Svenska kyrkan. Denna dubbelhet gör hans bok synnerligen spännande och intressant. Han för fram åtskillig kritik av Gardells både metoder och teologi. Men han gör det i en ödmjuk och respektfull ton, väl medveten om Gardells patos och brottning med djupa existentiella och teologiska frågor.
Runessons bok är välskriven och mycket läsvärd. Tillsammans med Gardells bok och andra publikationer om nutida Jesusforskning [borde den] vara ett givet underlag för samtal i prästkollegier och pastorssamlingar, gärna på ekumenisk bas”.
(VetlandaPosten, 17 November, 2011)
Tord Fornberg, Uppsala University
“De som skriver böcker om bibliska ämnen idag har fått vänja sig vid det faktum att man får mycket få recensioner, och att det allra mesta som skrivs också går de som i och för sig är intresserade spårlöst förbi. Så icke med Gardells nya bok: Anders Runesson har till och med gjort sig mödan att skriva en hel bok med utgångspunkt i Gardells framställning av Jesusgestalten. Detta framstår inte alls som omotiverat. Det är många grundläggande frågor som väcks vid läsningen av Gardells framställning.
Gardell har tydligen inte varit medveten om hur lätt man skapar en Jesusbild efter sitt eget subjektiva ideal, och här ligger svagheten i Gardells bok. Detta blir så mycket tydligare, eftersom Gardell i detta avseende representerar ett traditionellt lutherskt synsätt med Jesu person i centrum och tolkad enligt en variant av sola scriptura-principen. Men när en sådan läsning ger ett resultat som går på tvärs mot Gardells övergripande bild av Jesus, bortförklaras det bibliska vittnesbördet och sägs vara irrelevant. Runesson ger ett antal exempel där Gardell uppenbarligen missförstår den bibliska texten, eller där hans relativa obekantskap med det bibliska landskapet och bibliska realia leder honom på villovägar. Skillnaden i kompetens mellan den professionelle exegeten och den intresserade amatören (som godtyckligt väljer de tolkningskriterier som passar i varje enskilt fall) framstår här i öppen dager.
Runessons bok har en kryptisk titel: O att du slet itu himlen och steg ner! Det är ett citat ur Jes 64:1 och ges förklaringen att när ’himlen slits itu upphör de barriärer vi byggt mellan varandra att fungera; allt blir genomskinligt, allt knyts samman, allt hört ihop oavsett vika vi är och var vi är…’ (sid. 164). Gardell ger läsaren sin bild av historiens Jesus, inte kyrkans Jesus, som den som för människorna samman över mänskliga gränser. Runesson lyckas med konststycket att med rätta kritisera de exegetiska bristerna hos Gardell utan att fördenskull fördunkla det budskap Gardell vill föra fram med sin kärleksförklaring till Jesus.”
(Svensk exegetisk årsbok 77 [2012] 358-359).
(O That You Would Tear Open the Heavens and Come Down!) (2011)
Bengt Holmberg, Lund University
”Boken…undersöker både dess [Jonas Gardells bok Om Jesus, 2009] historiska resultat och den underliggande filosofi och teologi som styr dessa resultat. På köpet får läsaren god insikt i både historisk metod och teologisk hermeneutik.”
”Del II slutar med två historiskt och teologiskt lysande kapitel om Jesu död och uppståndelse […] Att Runesson är en saklig och stringent kritiker står klart efter hans hundra sidors granskning […] Gardell har gett upp historikerns uppgift att eftersträva objektivitet och istället fallit för frestelsen att skapa Jesus till sin egen avbild. Det är inte bra teologi heller.”
”[Boken] inte bara demonstrerar vad historiskt-kritiskt arbete med bibeltexter verkligen är och kräver av sina utövare. Den visar också en författare som, ovanligt nog, fortsätter förbi detta första steg i en kristen bibeltolkning till en hermeneutiskt medveten och teologiskt genomtänkt syn på Skriften som Guds kommunikation med oss.”
(Svensk pastoraltidskrift, 21 (2011) 660-665)
Torbjörn Sjöholm, gymnasielärare i svenska och religion, sekreterare i Institutet för kontextuell teologi
”Runesson vill, i sanningssökandets tjänst och på ett respektfullt och dialogsträvande sätt, föra Gardells Jesusdiskussion vidare… [Han] pekar med grundlig, men aldrig respektlös, argumentering på bristerna i att bygga sin tro på enbart vetenskap, vars funktion ju inte är att vara grunden för religiös tro. Detta kullkastar mycket som Gardell kommer fram till och man kan undra över all den uppmärksamhet som Gardells bok fick – och frånvaron av problematisering…”
”O att du slet itu himlen kan läsas som en meditation över kristendomen, som en dialog med Gardell och hans bok, som en vetenskaplig översikt, som ett ’stigfinnande’ för Svenska kyrkan i nutid och framtid”.
(Dagen, 2 September, 2011)
Mikael Löwegren, präst i Svenska kyrkan
”Runesson blottlägger hur Jesus inte tillåts säga något som Gardell inte kan acceptera. Känner sig Gardell provocerad av någonting i Jesu budskap växlar han mellan tre olika strategier för att förklara att just detta inte är normativt. Runesson skriver: ’när dessa tre underliggande principer får utrymme blir inte ens historiens frampusslade Jesus kvar, utan bara den del av historiens Jesus som en modern västerländsk människa kan acceptera i enlighet med den världsbild som just nu råkar råda’”.
”Gardells böcker och teveprogram om Gud och Jesus har haft ett enormt genomslag. Bara detta motiverar denna kunniga och engagerade genomlysning av hans teologi. Anders Runessons kritik är mild i tonen men kan inte kallas för något annat än förödande. Dessutom visar han på ett annat sätt att närma sig den verklige Jesus: i tillit till att den Ande som uppväckte honom från de döda ännu verkar. Runesson säger att ’Anden är fri och verksam både i och utanför Bibeln, kyrkan och historien’. Här finns en helt annan rymd”
(Kyrkans tidning 24 November, 2011)
Gunnel Granmo, gymnasielärare, Vetlanda
”[Runesson] skriver boken ur två perspektiv, dels som nytestamentlig forskare, dels som troende kristen, prästvigd i Svenska kyrkan. Denna dubbelhet gör hans bok synnerligen spännande och intressant. Han för fram åtskillig kritik av Gardells både metoder och teologi. Men han gör det i en ödmjuk och respektfull ton, väl medveten om Gardells patos och brottning med djupa existentiella och teologiska frågor.
Runessons bok är välskriven och mycket läsvärd. Tillsammans med Gardells bok och andra publikationer om nutida Jesusforskning [borde den] vara ett givet underlag för samtal i prästkollegier och pastorssamlingar, gärna på ekumenisk bas”.
(VetlandaPosten, 17 November, 2011)
Tord Fornberg, Uppsala University
“De som skriver böcker om bibliska ämnen idag har fått vänja sig vid det faktum att man får mycket få recensioner, och att det allra mesta som skrivs också går de som i och för sig är intresserade spårlöst förbi. Så icke med Gardells nya bok: Anders Runesson har till och med gjort sig mödan att skriva en hel bok med utgångspunkt i Gardells framställning av Jesusgestalten. Detta framstår inte alls som omotiverat. Det är många grundläggande frågor som väcks vid läsningen av Gardells framställning.
Gardell har tydligen inte varit medveten om hur lätt man skapar en Jesusbild efter sitt eget subjektiva ideal, och här ligger svagheten i Gardells bok. Detta blir så mycket tydligare, eftersom Gardell i detta avseende representerar ett traditionellt lutherskt synsätt med Jesu person i centrum och tolkad enligt en variant av sola scriptura-principen. Men när en sådan läsning ger ett resultat som går på tvärs mot Gardells övergripande bild av Jesus, bortförklaras det bibliska vittnesbördet och sägs vara irrelevant. Runesson ger ett antal exempel där Gardell uppenbarligen missförstår den bibliska texten, eller där hans relativa obekantskap med det bibliska landskapet och bibliska realia leder honom på villovägar. Skillnaden i kompetens mellan den professionelle exegeten och den intresserade amatören (som godtyckligt väljer de tolkningskriterier som passar i varje enskilt fall) framstår här i öppen dager.
Runessons bok har en kryptisk titel: O att du slet itu himlen och steg ner! Det är ett citat ur Jes 64:1 och ges förklaringen att när ’himlen slits itu upphör de barriärer vi byggt mellan varandra att fungera; allt blir genomskinligt, allt knyts samman, allt hört ihop oavsett vika vi är och var vi är…’ (sid. 164). Gardell ger läsaren sin bild av historiens Jesus, inte kyrkans Jesus, som den som för människorna samman över mänskliga gränser. Runesson lyckas med konststycket att med rätta kritisera de exegetiska bristerna hos Gardell utan att fördenskull fördunkla det budskap Gardell vill föra fram med sin kärleksförklaring till Jesus.”
(Svensk exegetisk årsbok 77 [2012] 358-359).
The Ancient Synagogue: A Source Book (2008/2010)
Lee Levine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
“This comprehensive compendium of literary, archaeological, epigraphical, and papyrological sources about the ancient synagogue, accompanied by insightful comments and up-to-date bibliography, is an essential tool for any student of Jewish and Christian life during the first centuries CE. Covering the Diaspora as well as Judaea, the volume is an invaluable reference book for gaining an in-depth picture of this multifaceted institution, which had a profound and lasting effect on the development of many aspects of both church and mosque as well.”
Sean Freyne, Trinity Colllege, Dublin, Visiting Professor of Early Christian History and Literature, Harvard Divinity School
“All students of early Judaism and early Christianity will find this volume an essential companion in their efforts to understand the origins and development of both religions. It is unique in that it brings together all the available evidence, both literary and archaeological from the Diaspora and the homeland, dealing with the synagogue as an institution and a building. The authors, experts in the field, introduce a vast amount of information in a user-friendly manner. Each entry, arranged in alphabetical order, has a site description, the relevant literary and inscriptional sources, provided with brief but pointed commentary, introducing the wider discussion about the various sites. A brief introductory chapter helps the reader to enter this relatively new and rapidly developing field of enquiry, as well as outlining the reasons in deciding the parameters of the volume. I can recommend it with enthusiasm.”
John S. Kloppenborg, Trinity College, University of Toronto
“A key methodological problem in constructing a picture of the development of ancient synagogues arises from the limited and perspectival nature of each of our data-sets: rabbinic rulings, other literary references, inscriptions, and archaeological remains. The Ancient Synagogue is a key resource in overcoming this problem: for the first time we have a comprehensive collection of literary, epigraphical, papyrological, and archaeological sources bearing on ancient synagogues. Each lemma comes with a brief but up-to-date bibliography and short commentary and the editors have supplied both primary texts and English translations, making this an indispensable resource for all who work on ancient synagogues. This is a splendid achievement of scholarship.”
Peter Richardson, University of Toronto
“This source book comes at a propitious time in the study of ancient synagogues and their origins. It is an invaluable resource for everyone interested in—and not infrequently puzzled by—the organizational and architectural development of synagogues prior to 200 CE. The combination of textual and archaeological material, with judicious commentaries and some well chosen drawings, are essential features of the book’s usefulness. It will be much referred to in the coming years, and its judgements will help shape the contours of the ongoing debates.”
James F. Strange, University of South Florida, Tampa
“… It has been put together by well-known scholars in the field, and their work is exhaustive and impeccable. We could not reasonably ask for more. It is simply an indispensable resource for the serious researcher and the student alike.”
Daniel M. Gurtner, Bethel Seminary
“This is an ideal resource. It is comprehensive, well written, concise, thoroughly referenced to both primary literature and the most important secondary literature, and easily used without burdening readers with less important secondary discussions. The book is an essential tool for anyone doing work that intersects with the ancient synagogue.”
(Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, Dec 2008)
Justin Winger, University of Michigan
“The Ancient Synagogue represents a remarkable contribution to what might become a renewed quest for the historical synagogue. For the first time all sources related to the synagogue prior to 200 CE – both literary and archaeological – have been collected together in one place.
…
[T]he comments provided by the authors have created a work that is much more than simply a compilation of source material
…
The Ancient Synagogue is an extremely useful compendium. The authors have achieved their goal (p.15) of providing a user-friendly compilation of all known sources related to the synagogue between the 3rd century BCE and 200 CE, and it is clear that this volume will be a required reference for all future synagogue studies.”
(http://www.enochseminar.org/henochjournal/editors/2008/RunessonEtc%20(Winger).doc)
Paul Foster, University of Edinburgh
“The volume presents the relevant source material related to synagogues with a terminus in the year 200 CE. The book is presented in five major sections: 1. A helpful overview of the state of research, available tools, and the aim of the volume. 2. Synagogues in the land of Israel – the majority of subsections discuss identified sites. 3. A similar treatment of Diaspora synagogue sites. 4. General references – primarily in literary sources. 5. A discussion of Jewish Temples outside Jerusalem. This is an outstanding reference tool that combines the data of primary texts, archaeological excavations, diagrams of conceptualized reconstructions of synagogue buildings and a map of synagogue locations around the Mediterranean world. This volume is a welcome addition to scholarship on the study of Second Temple Judaism.”
(Expository Times 119.8 [2008], 403)
Stephen P. Ahearne-Kroll
“With the advent of the source book under review, the evidence is now readily available in convenient book form. This is a monumental achievement and should change the face of synagogue studies at all levels of expertise.”
(Biblical Theology Bulletin 39 [2009])
Michele Murray, Bishop’s University, Sherbrooke, QC
”The goal of the authors is to facilitate their readers’ direct interaction with the primary material, and in so doing to combat two prevailing misconceptions about the synagogue, found even among academics: that the synagogue ‘‘has always, from the first century onwards, referred to an institution separate from the ‘church’ ’’ (3); and that the ‘‘synagogue’’ and ‘‘church’’ were ‘‘binary opposites in constant conflict’’ (3). Runesson et al. explain that one of the primary reasons for these assumptions is that ‘‘conflicting and totalising language’’ of certain second-century ce Christian writers have been read back into the first century. The authors convincingly assert that the more one understands the first-century ce realities behind the synagogue, the more this portrait of stark division and consistent clashes between ‘‘church’’ and ‘‘synagogue’’—a portrayal that is often, unfortunately, employed as the context for investigations of Jewish and Christian relations in late antiquity—is seen to be simplistic and inaccurate.”
In a brief but instructive introduction, the current state of synagogue research is summarized, topics and tools for research are provided, and the organization of the book is explained. The introduction notes in particular how research into the early synagogue has flourished in recent decades, and how, in the course of these recent studies, ‘‘most of the traditional views have been dismantled’’
One is hard pressed to come up with criticisms for such a fine, useful, and thorough sourcebook... . By gathering for the first time literary sources, papyri, inscriptions, and up-to-date archaeological data in a single volume, the authors have filled a conspicuous gap in scholarship on ancient synagogues. With this book, scholars and students are afforded the opportunity to deal directly with a diverse collection of primary materials, and thus readers are allowed to make up their own minds concerning the material. For those interested in the topic of synagogues in the ancient world specifically, or in the broader issues of the origins and historical developments of early Judaism and Christianity, this book is an indispensable resource.”
(Toronto Journal of Theology, 24.2 (2009), 283-284)
Kenneth Atkinson, University of Northern Iowa
“This volume by three well-known experts is a welcome addition to the burgeoning literature on the topic of the ancient synagogue.
…
For each synagogue site, text, or inscription, the authors include all relevant literary references, and a bibliography. All entries include a comment section that provides historical and literary background. The primary sources, whether Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, or Latin, are provided in the original languages followed by an English translation. The book is amply illustrated with maps, drawings, and photographs.
…
Scholars in the fields of New Testament, Classics, Archaeology, Jewish History, and biblical studies will find the present volume an important reference tool. This book is essential for research libraries, and well worth the investment for anyone interested in this fascinating topic.”
(Journal for the Study of Judaism 40/1 (2009) 134-135)
René Bloch, University of Bern
“At a time when research on the ancient synagogue is as prolific as ever, Runesson, Binder, and Olsson provide us with a most useful source book on the earliest evidence of the ancient synagogue.
…
200 C.E. is a well chosen “terminus ante quem” because it allows the authors to include the Mishnah as an important source for the early synagogue (even if, as the authors rightly stress [p. 3 n.5], rabbinic influence on the synagogue became truly important only later). By not choosing the year 70 as a cut-off date, the editors wisely avoid “taking a stance” (p. 15) with respect to the importance of the fall of the temple in Jerusalem for the development of the ancient synagogue. What makes the book unusual and incredibly helpful is that it brings together literary and archaeological sources
…
The comments, both on archaeological sites and on literary sources, are always sound and well argued…. I recently used this source book for a seminar on the ancient synagogue and I can only recommend it highly.”
(Journal of Hebrew Scriptures - Volume 9 [2009])
L. L. Grabbe, University of Hull
“Although there is room only for a short discussion of each, references to further studies are given in each case. Chapter 1 gives a general introduction, ch. 4 lists passages that refer to synagogues in general rather than to a specific site, and ch. 5 lists various Jewish temples apart from the one in Jerusalem. This will be a very useful tool for research.”
(JSOT 33.5 [2009], 217)
Dag Oredsson, Uppsala University
"För första gången har primärt källmaterial (texter och arkeologi) för de tidigaste synagogorna sammanställts i en och samma volym. Detta gör boken oundgänglig som utgångspunkt för den som vill göra jämförande studier av dessa synagogor. Den kommer att spara mycken tid och arbete i sökandet i olika publikationer och texter.
...
I bokens introduktion ges en utmärkt översikt av forskningsläget som tillsammans med den omfattande bibliografin i slutet av boken utgör en autostrada rakt in i synagogforskningen.
...
Boken avslutas, utöver redan nämnda bibliografi, av utmärkta index utifrån källor, namn- och ämnesregister, samt synagogterminologi på grekiska, hebreiska och latin. ... Många forskare och studenter i judaistik och den tidiga kristendomen kommer säkert att ha stor glädje av boken många år framöver."
(Svensk exegetisk årsbok 2011)
Adele Reinhartz, University of Ottawa
”The study of the synagogue is important for Jewish history and Jewish life in antiquity in general, but also more specifically because the synagogue provided the sociopolitical and religious setting for the formation of Judaism and Christianity (the “parting of the ways”). The Ancient Synagogue from Its Origins to 200 C.E. is the first comprehensive sourcebook to cover the full range of textual, archaeological, and epigraphical material pertinent to the origins and nature of this central Jewish institution.”
”[T]his sourcebook serves its purpose admirably. The book is user-friendly due to the numbering system, the detailed and well-organized table of contents, and the various indexes.”
”The book is a most welcome addition to the reference shelf of scholars working in the areas of Second Temple Judaism, early Christianity, archaeology, ritual, and many others, particularly now that it is available in paperback and therefore more affordable edition.”
(Review of Biblical Literature [http://www.bookreviews.org], 2012).
Pieter Lalleman, Spurgeon’s College
“This well-produced book gathers all available primary source material relating to synagogues up to 200 CE. The texts (inscriptions, papyri, New Testament, rabbis, Philo, Josephus etc.) are printed in the original languages with English translations and brief comments; archaeological discoveries are summarized and drawings provided; references to secondary literature have been added. The book’s aim is to facilitate readers to carry out their own research.”
James H. Charlesworth, Princeton Theological Seminary
The source book is timely; in the last two decades scholars have shown more interest in synagogues within and outside of Palestine than in the last two centuries. Extremely valuable to those devoted to Jesus research are the collections of literary sources, papyri, inscriptions and archaeological remains that inform us of the synagogues in the land of Israel and in the Diaspora, from the third century bce to 200 ce. The succinct notes are helpful. Also helpful are the discussions of the temples outside of Jerusalem. Ancient sources indicate the existence of Jewish temples at Casiphia in Babylonia, at least at Elephantine and Leontopolis in Egypt, at Lachish and Beersheva in Idumea, at Antioch in Syria and at ‘Araq el-Emir and other locations i Transjordan.
The perspectives presented are admirable. Finally, readers can imagine the life of the synagogue without denigrating it in contrast to ‘the Church’, a binary malady that probably began in the second century ce [but not on the Golan or in Syria where friendly relations existed in antiquity among Jews and Christians] and was legislated when Theodosius banned the building of synagogues in 438 ce. The collection of primary sources shows that some leaders in the synagogue were priests, hence the synagogue should not be assumed to be a place for anti-Temple ideology.
Those devoted to Jesus research have abundant evidence that synagogues were not only houses in which Jews gathered; they were, in many places, including Lower Galilee, specific purpose-built buildings in which Jews gathered to read Torah (and perhaps pray, but this dimension of Jewish life in the synagogue before 70 ce is still debated). In a rather inexpensive book, everyone interested in the ancient synagogue may benefit from all the available literary, epigraphic and archaeological evidence.
(Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus 14, 2016, s.272–273)
Lee Levine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
“This comprehensive compendium of literary, archaeological, epigraphical, and papyrological sources about the ancient synagogue, accompanied by insightful comments and up-to-date bibliography, is an essential tool for any student of Jewish and Christian life during the first centuries CE. Covering the Diaspora as well as Judaea, the volume is an invaluable reference book for gaining an in-depth picture of this multifaceted institution, which had a profound and lasting effect on the development of many aspects of both church and mosque as well.”
Sean Freyne, Trinity Colllege, Dublin, Visiting Professor of Early Christian History and Literature, Harvard Divinity School
“All students of early Judaism and early Christianity will find this volume an essential companion in their efforts to understand the origins and development of both religions. It is unique in that it brings together all the available evidence, both literary and archaeological from the Diaspora and the homeland, dealing with the synagogue as an institution and a building. The authors, experts in the field, introduce a vast amount of information in a user-friendly manner. Each entry, arranged in alphabetical order, has a site description, the relevant literary and inscriptional sources, provided with brief but pointed commentary, introducing the wider discussion about the various sites. A brief introductory chapter helps the reader to enter this relatively new and rapidly developing field of enquiry, as well as outlining the reasons in deciding the parameters of the volume. I can recommend it with enthusiasm.”
John S. Kloppenborg, Trinity College, University of Toronto
“A key methodological problem in constructing a picture of the development of ancient synagogues arises from the limited and perspectival nature of each of our data-sets: rabbinic rulings, other literary references, inscriptions, and archaeological remains. The Ancient Synagogue is a key resource in overcoming this problem: for the first time we have a comprehensive collection of literary, epigraphical, papyrological, and archaeological sources bearing on ancient synagogues. Each lemma comes with a brief but up-to-date bibliography and short commentary and the editors have supplied both primary texts and English translations, making this an indispensable resource for all who work on ancient synagogues. This is a splendid achievement of scholarship.”
Peter Richardson, University of Toronto
“This source book comes at a propitious time in the study of ancient synagogues and their origins. It is an invaluable resource for everyone interested in—and not infrequently puzzled by—the organizational and architectural development of synagogues prior to 200 CE. The combination of textual and archaeological material, with judicious commentaries and some well chosen drawings, are essential features of the book’s usefulness. It will be much referred to in the coming years, and its judgements will help shape the contours of the ongoing debates.”
James F. Strange, University of South Florida, Tampa
“… It has been put together by well-known scholars in the field, and their work is exhaustive and impeccable. We could not reasonably ask for more. It is simply an indispensable resource for the serious researcher and the student alike.”
Daniel M. Gurtner, Bethel Seminary
“This is an ideal resource. It is comprehensive, well written, concise, thoroughly referenced to both primary literature and the most important secondary literature, and easily used without burdening readers with less important secondary discussions. The book is an essential tool for anyone doing work that intersects with the ancient synagogue.”
(Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, Dec 2008)
Justin Winger, University of Michigan
“The Ancient Synagogue represents a remarkable contribution to what might become a renewed quest for the historical synagogue. For the first time all sources related to the synagogue prior to 200 CE – both literary and archaeological – have been collected together in one place.
…
[T]he comments provided by the authors have created a work that is much more than simply a compilation of source material
…
The Ancient Synagogue is an extremely useful compendium. The authors have achieved their goal (p.15) of providing a user-friendly compilation of all known sources related to the synagogue between the 3rd century BCE and 200 CE, and it is clear that this volume will be a required reference for all future synagogue studies.”
(http://www.enochseminar.org/henochjournal/editors/2008/RunessonEtc%20(Winger).doc)
Paul Foster, University of Edinburgh
“The volume presents the relevant source material related to synagogues with a terminus in the year 200 CE. The book is presented in five major sections: 1. A helpful overview of the state of research, available tools, and the aim of the volume. 2. Synagogues in the land of Israel – the majority of subsections discuss identified sites. 3. A similar treatment of Diaspora synagogue sites. 4. General references – primarily in literary sources. 5. A discussion of Jewish Temples outside Jerusalem. This is an outstanding reference tool that combines the data of primary texts, archaeological excavations, diagrams of conceptualized reconstructions of synagogue buildings and a map of synagogue locations around the Mediterranean world. This volume is a welcome addition to scholarship on the study of Second Temple Judaism.”
(Expository Times 119.8 [2008], 403)
Stephen P. Ahearne-Kroll
“With the advent of the source book under review, the evidence is now readily available in convenient book form. This is a monumental achievement and should change the face of synagogue studies at all levels of expertise.”
(Biblical Theology Bulletin 39 [2009])
Michele Murray, Bishop’s University, Sherbrooke, QC
”The goal of the authors is to facilitate their readers’ direct interaction with the primary material, and in so doing to combat two prevailing misconceptions about the synagogue, found even among academics: that the synagogue ‘‘has always, from the first century onwards, referred to an institution separate from the ‘church’ ’’ (3); and that the ‘‘synagogue’’ and ‘‘church’’ were ‘‘binary opposites in constant conflict’’ (3). Runesson et al. explain that one of the primary reasons for these assumptions is that ‘‘conflicting and totalising language’’ of certain second-century ce Christian writers have been read back into the first century. The authors convincingly assert that the more one understands the first-century ce realities behind the synagogue, the more this portrait of stark division and consistent clashes between ‘‘church’’ and ‘‘synagogue’’—a portrayal that is often, unfortunately, employed as the context for investigations of Jewish and Christian relations in late antiquity—is seen to be simplistic and inaccurate.”
In a brief but instructive introduction, the current state of synagogue research is summarized, topics and tools for research are provided, and the organization of the book is explained. The introduction notes in particular how research into the early synagogue has flourished in recent decades, and how, in the course of these recent studies, ‘‘most of the traditional views have been dismantled’’
One is hard pressed to come up with criticisms for such a fine, useful, and thorough sourcebook... . By gathering for the first time literary sources, papyri, inscriptions, and up-to-date archaeological data in a single volume, the authors have filled a conspicuous gap in scholarship on ancient synagogues. With this book, scholars and students are afforded the opportunity to deal directly with a diverse collection of primary materials, and thus readers are allowed to make up their own minds concerning the material. For those interested in the topic of synagogues in the ancient world specifically, or in the broader issues of the origins and historical developments of early Judaism and Christianity, this book is an indispensable resource.”
(Toronto Journal of Theology, 24.2 (2009), 283-284)
Kenneth Atkinson, University of Northern Iowa
“This volume by three well-known experts is a welcome addition to the burgeoning literature on the topic of the ancient synagogue.
…
For each synagogue site, text, or inscription, the authors include all relevant literary references, and a bibliography. All entries include a comment section that provides historical and literary background. The primary sources, whether Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, or Latin, are provided in the original languages followed by an English translation. The book is amply illustrated with maps, drawings, and photographs.
…
Scholars in the fields of New Testament, Classics, Archaeology, Jewish History, and biblical studies will find the present volume an important reference tool. This book is essential for research libraries, and well worth the investment for anyone interested in this fascinating topic.”
(Journal for the Study of Judaism 40/1 (2009) 134-135)
René Bloch, University of Bern
“At a time when research on the ancient synagogue is as prolific as ever, Runesson, Binder, and Olsson provide us with a most useful source book on the earliest evidence of the ancient synagogue.
…
200 C.E. is a well chosen “terminus ante quem” because it allows the authors to include the Mishnah as an important source for the early synagogue (even if, as the authors rightly stress [p. 3 n.5], rabbinic influence on the synagogue became truly important only later). By not choosing the year 70 as a cut-off date, the editors wisely avoid “taking a stance” (p. 15) with respect to the importance of the fall of the temple in Jerusalem for the development of the ancient synagogue. What makes the book unusual and incredibly helpful is that it brings together literary and archaeological sources
…
The comments, both on archaeological sites and on literary sources, are always sound and well argued…. I recently used this source book for a seminar on the ancient synagogue and I can only recommend it highly.”
(Journal of Hebrew Scriptures - Volume 9 [2009])
L. L. Grabbe, University of Hull
“Although there is room only for a short discussion of each, references to further studies are given in each case. Chapter 1 gives a general introduction, ch. 4 lists passages that refer to synagogues in general rather than to a specific site, and ch. 5 lists various Jewish temples apart from the one in Jerusalem. This will be a very useful tool for research.”
(JSOT 33.5 [2009], 217)
Dag Oredsson, Uppsala University
"För första gången har primärt källmaterial (texter och arkeologi) för de tidigaste synagogorna sammanställts i en och samma volym. Detta gör boken oundgänglig som utgångspunkt för den som vill göra jämförande studier av dessa synagogor. Den kommer att spara mycken tid och arbete i sökandet i olika publikationer och texter.
...
I bokens introduktion ges en utmärkt översikt av forskningsläget som tillsammans med den omfattande bibliografin i slutet av boken utgör en autostrada rakt in i synagogforskningen.
...
Boken avslutas, utöver redan nämnda bibliografi, av utmärkta index utifrån källor, namn- och ämnesregister, samt synagogterminologi på grekiska, hebreiska och latin. ... Många forskare och studenter i judaistik och den tidiga kristendomen kommer säkert att ha stor glädje av boken många år framöver."
(Svensk exegetisk årsbok 2011)
Adele Reinhartz, University of Ottawa
”The study of the synagogue is important for Jewish history and Jewish life in antiquity in general, but also more specifically because the synagogue provided the sociopolitical and religious setting for the formation of Judaism and Christianity (the “parting of the ways”). The Ancient Synagogue from Its Origins to 200 C.E. is the first comprehensive sourcebook to cover the full range of textual, archaeological, and epigraphical material pertinent to the origins and nature of this central Jewish institution.”
”[T]his sourcebook serves its purpose admirably. The book is user-friendly due to the numbering system, the detailed and well-organized table of contents, and the various indexes.”
”The book is a most welcome addition to the reference shelf of scholars working in the areas of Second Temple Judaism, early Christianity, archaeology, ritual, and many others, particularly now that it is available in paperback and therefore more affordable edition.”
(Review of Biblical Literature [http://www.bookreviews.org], 2012).
Pieter Lalleman, Spurgeon’s College
“This well-produced book gathers all available primary source material relating to synagogues up to 200 CE. The texts (inscriptions, papyri, New Testament, rabbis, Philo, Josephus etc.) are printed in the original languages with English translations and brief comments; archaeological discoveries are summarized and drawings provided; references to secondary literature have been added. The book’s aim is to facilitate readers to carry out their own research.”
James H. Charlesworth, Princeton Theological Seminary
The source book is timely; in the last two decades scholars have shown more interest in synagogues within and outside of Palestine than in the last two centuries. Extremely valuable to those devoted to Jesus research are the collections of literary sources, papyri, inscriptions and archaeological remains that inform us of the synagogues in the land of Israel and in the Diaspora, from the third century bce to 200 ce. The succinct notes are helpful. Also helpful are the discussions of the temples outside of Jerusalem. Ancient sources indicate the existence of Jewish temples at Casiphia in Babylonia, at least at Elephantine and Leontopolis in Egypt, at Lachish and Beersheva in Idumea, at Antioch in Syria and at ‘Araq el-Emir and other locations i Transjordan.
The perspectives presented are admirable. Finally, readers can imagine the life of the synagogue without denigrating it in contrast to ‘the Church’, a binary malady that probably began in the second century ce [but not on the Golan or in Syria where friendly relations existed in antiquity among Jews and Christians] and was legislated when Theodosius banned the building of synagogues in 438 ce. The collection of primary sources shows that some leaders in the synagogue were priests, hence the synagogue should not be assumed to be a place for anti-Temple ideology.
Those devoted to Jesus research have abundant evidence that synagogues were not only houses in which Jews gathered; they were, in many places, including Lower Galilee, specific purpose-built buildings in which Jews gathered to read Torah (and perhaps pray, but this dimension of Jewish life in the synagogue before 70 ce is still debated). In a rather inexpensive book, everyone interested in the ancient synagogue may benefit from all the available literary, epigraphic and archaeological evidence.
(Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus 14, 2016, s.272–273)
Jesus och de första kristna (Jesus and the First Christians) (2006)
Debatt om Jesus och de första kristna (in Swedish): klicka här.
Tord Fornberg, Uppsala University
“Det är mycket glädjande att vi med den här anmälda boken, Jesus och de första kristna. Inledning till Nya testamentet, red. Dieter Mitternacht och Anders Runesson, har fått ett modernt och mångsidigt verk, som introducerar den nytestamentliga exegetiken i all dess brokighet.
…
Det kan tryggt konstateras, att den nya boken under överskådlig framtid kommer att fungera som det akademiska standardverket på svenska om Nya testamentet och dess uttolkning.
…
[L]äsaren erbjuds prov på skilda metoder att arbeta med nytestamentligt textmaterial (historisk textorienterad, historisk analogisk, argumentationsanalytisk, retorisk-episto-lografisk, narrativ, receptionshistorisk, hermeneutisk, feministisk och postkolonial). Här ligger den viktigaste skillnaden mellan det nu anmälda verket och dess båda föregångare med deras strikt historiskt-kritiska fokus.
…
Förutom de gedigna avsnitten av historisk karaktär vill jag peka på kapitlen 1 och 6 med deras “inbjudan” till studiet och deras exempel på hur man kan (men inte behöver) arbeta med bibeltexter. Här har författarnas egna specialiteter och synsätt fått fritt spelrum och ställts sida vid sida med varandra på ett sätt som gör mångfalden tydlig men också öppnar vägen för den relativism som är så framträdande i vår tids Västeuropa: inget synsätt är riktigare än något annat. Läsningen är oundgänglig för envar som vill förstå vad som händer i dagens teologiska värld och rekommenderas därför varmt.” (Signum 33/7 [2007]: 56-58)
Stefan Snellman, prost Svenska kyrkan
“Det finns idag ett ökat intresse för den äldsta kristna tiden. Många välkomnar därför verket ”Jesus och de första kristna” under redaktion av Dieter Mitternacht och Anders Runesson. I boken medverkar aderton ledande forskare från olika länder.
…
[B]oken är lättläst och kan rekommenderas för alla intresserade. Den omspänner allt från judisk, grekisk-romersk religion och filosofi till postkoloniala och feministiska analyser. Den redovisar alla tänkbara källor och synsätt. Verket är mycket mycket digert” (Nya Åland; Kultur & nöje, 22/12/2007)
Donald A. Hagner, Fuller Theological Seminary
"This Lehrbuch, introducing the NT to university students, replaces the venerable En bok om Nya testamentet... . Just as a barometer indicates changes in weather, the present book serves as an effective indicator of the remarkable changes currently taking place in contemporary scholarship.
---
The book is filled with an enormous amount of useful information that is bound to aid students. Particularly valuable is the attention given to interpretation... The unusual amount of space given to the rigors of interpretation again reflects the complexity of our post-modern context and the current sensitivity to the requirements of the hermeneutical enterprise" (Svensk exegetisk årsbok 75 [2010] 217-221).
The Synagogue at Ostia (2001)
Eric M. Meyers, Duke University
“By far and away the most significant essay in this book is Anders Runesson’s “The Synagogue at Ancient Ostia: The Building and its History from the First to the Fifth Century” (pp. 29-100)… In every instance he is thorough, exacting, and full of fresh insights into the history of the synagogue building and its internal furnishings.” (BASOR 328 [2002] 97-99.)
David Noy, University of Wales
“The longest and by far the most significant article is Anders Runesson “The Synagogue at Ancient Ostia: The Building and its History from the First to the Fifth Century.” This represents the most thorough synthesis so far of all the published material on the synagogue, together with R.’s own observations from the site… R.’s [study] will remain the definitive work for the foreseeable future.” (The Classical Review (2003) 428-429)
Massimiliano Ghilardi, Università degli Studi di Roma
“Il ricco e accuratissimo saggio di Runesson — accompagnato da ben 422 note —, autore nel volume anche di un secondo importante articolo riguardante lo studio e le problematiche legate ai rituali della religione ebraica connessi all’elemento acquatico ad Ostia e nelle altre sinagoghe della Diaspora, dopo un sintetico quadro sulla storia degli studi della sinagoga ostiense, con particolare riferimento alle proposte interpretative di Maria Floriani Squarciapino, Fausto Zevi, Alf Thomas Kraabel e L. Michael White, affronta con grande lucidità e profondità analitica le questioni ancora oggi irrisolti legate all’architettura del monumento ed alle sue distinte e controverse fasi cronologiche.” (“La sinagoga di Ostia Antica e gli ebrei di Roma: riflessioni in margine ad un recente libro,” Mediterraneo antico. Economie società culture, VI:1 [2003] 311-324).
Susan Sorek, University of Wales
“This article is extremely well illustrated, the maps and plans of the Ostia synagogue being especially welcome.” (Journal of Roman Studies 93 [2003] 331).
The Origins of the Synagogue (2001)
Leonard V. Rutgers, Utrecht University
“Alle diese Ausführungen führen letztendlich zu einer Rekonstruktion der Entstehung der antiken Synagoge (395-400), die man zwar hier und dort kritisieren kann, die aber zum Besten gehört, was bis heute zu diesem Thema geschrieben worden ist. Etwas vergleichbares gilt auch für die Analyse des Begriffes „Proseuche“ (429-36)—ein Begriff, der nicht nur auf Gebetshäuser hinweisen kann, sondern, wie sich nun herausstellt, auch als Hinweis für Tempel verwendet worden zu sein scheint. Somit kann festgestellt werden, das R. ein Buch geschrieben hat, daβ jeder, der sich für die Erforschung der antiken Synagoge interessiert, lesen sollte, und zwar nicht nur wegen des inhaltlichen, sondern auch wegen des methodologischen Wertes des Vorgeführten.“
(Biblische Zeitschrift 50:2 [2006] 294-297.)
Jean Marcel Vincent, la Faculté libre de théologie protestante de Paris
“Une monographie de cette ampleur sur les origines de la synagogue dans la diaspora comme sur le territoire d’Israël répond aux desiderata de la recherche puisque depuis le De synagoga vetere de C. Vitringa en 1696, personne ne s’était lancé dans une telle entreprise. Il faut dire que la tâche exige des compétences en plusieurs domaines: philologie, exégèse biblique et rabbinique, histoire, sociologie et archéologie.”
(Études Théologiques et Religieuses 1 [2004] 107-108.)
Maurice Sartre, Université de Tours
Avec cette thèse suédoise, on tient un instrument de travail de première importance.”
(Revue des Études Anciennes, 106:2 [2004] 667-669.)
Heather McKay, University of Sheffield
“I am impressed by this book with its almost 600 pages packed with detailed and exacting analyses of data, interpretations, scholarly positions and debates…it is a ‘must’ for academic libraries and for scholars in this field of biblical and Jewish studies.” (The Expository Times 114:12 [2003] 426-427.)
Carsten Claußen, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, München
“R[unesson] hat eine frische Studie auf der Höhe der gegenwärtigen Forschung verfasst. Seine ausführliche Berücksichtigung archäologischer und literarischer Quellen stellt eine kompetente Aufbereitung des Materials im Kontext der aktuellen Synagogenforschung dar.“
(Theologische Literaturzeitung 128 [2003] 1281-1283.)
Stig Norin, Uppsala University, Sweden
“Den [dvs avhandlingen] handlar inte bara om det som titeln säger, utan vi får här också en grundlig genomgång och en nyansats när det gäller hela vår bild av Israels religion och kult från exilen och framåt, den tid vi kan säga att det som vi kallar judendom tog form… Runesson har en förmåga att bryta ner problemen i hanterbara delar som var och en sedan behandlas med en osedvanlig logisk stringens. Detta gör också att hans framställning blir pedagogisk och lätt att följa… Det socio-historiska perspektivet är nydanande och var och en som i framtiden ägnar sig åt den aktuella tidsperioden kan knappast gå förbi Runessons arbete.” (SEÅ 68 [2003] 230-233.)
For an English version of this review, click here
Stefan Reif, Cambridge University
“[T]here is much here to be commended. It is most helpful to have so many views carefully scrutinized and such a variety of sources cited and analysed. The attribution of a central role to Torah reading and study during the Second Temple Period, the differentiation between the position in the Holy Land and that outside it, and the postulation of a continuous process of evolution over a number of centuries are highly persuasive.”
(JTS 54:2 [2003] 657-660.)
J Radermakers, Institut d’Etudes Théologiques, Bruxelles
“Quoi qu’il en soit, cette magistrale étude nous aide à mieux situer le milieu d’origine de se qui deviendra peu à peu l’institution synagogale et l’institution ecclésiale. Bref, une recherche de grand intérêt!”
(Nouvelle Revue Théologique 125:3 [2003] 464-465.)
Peter Richardson, University of Toronto
“Runesson has made an attractive case the origin of synagogues in both town assemblies and voluntary associations…Students of synagogues as institutions and buildings are fortunate now in having several recent studies that argue from much the same data toward different conclusions. Runesson’s study will be the center of much subsequent research.” (RBL 3/22 [2003] [http://www.bookreviews.org])
Anders Klostergaard Petersen, Aarhus Universitet, Denmark
“Det är en I alle henseender ambitiøs afhandling. Forfatterens belæsthed og fortrolighed med en række discipliner er imponerende.”
(Dansk teologisk tidsskrift 65:4 [2002] 299-301.)
Lesslie Hoppe, Catholic Theological Union, Chicago
“This is the fourth major work on synagoguesto be published the last five years… It is an important work that anyone studying the institutions of early Judaism will welcome and consult.”
(CBQ 64 [2002] 776-777.)
Per Bilde, Aarhus Universitet, Denmark
“A[nders] R[unesson]s velskrivne afhandling er et vægtigt bidrag til vor tids synagogeforskning”
(STK 78:4 [2002] 188-189.)
Torry Seland, VID Specialized University
“This fine study, a dissertation written at the University of Lund, Sweden, and supervised by Prof. Birger Olsson, is part of a large-scale project directed by him on The Ancient Synagogue: Birthplace of Two World Religions. The author’s ambition is to present a socio-historical investigation of the origins of the ancient synagogue. After an introduction (pp. 21-66), he deals with Important Views and Theories over 2000 Years (pp. 67–168), The First Century Synagogue (pp. 169–236), The Origins of the Synagogue in the Land of Israel (pp. 237-400), The Origins of the Synagogue in the Diaspora (pp. 401-476), and a summary chapter on Some Decisive Stages in the Development of the Early Synagogue (pp. 477-490). He further presents his aim as to ‘define what is meant by ‘synagogue’ and trace its origins in the Land of Israel as well as in the Diaspora.’ […]
His main and partly innovative conclusions are that the origin of the ‘synagogue’ as a public assembly including Torah-reading rituals is bound to the administrative structure of the land of Israel and goes back to the Persian period, more specifically to the reign of Artaxerxes (p. 479). The first signs of non-official institutions dedicated to communal reading and study of Torah appeared somewhere in the final phase of the Early Hellenistic and the beginning of the late Hellenistic period. These voluntary associations were probably influenced by the general pattern of the Graeco-Roman thiasoi or collegia. The developments of the ‘synagogue’ in the Diaspora were, however, quite different from those in the land of Israel. In Diaspora countries with an ancient Jewish presence, the ‘synagogue’ grew from Jewish temples (p. 484).”
(T. Seland in David T. Runia, ed., Philo of Alexandria: An Annotated Bibliography 1997-2006 With Addenda for 1987-1996. Leiden: Brill, 2012, 180-181)
