British New Testament Society

This paper will propose a theologically attuned model of reading what 1 Thessalonians reveals: God's dominion over death. Reading 1 Thessalonians as an eschatological text, it will demonstrate how Karl Rahner's work on the hermeneutics of eschatology can clarify what it means to take seriously the subject matter of 1 Thessalonians, beyond the limits of historical inquiry and authorial intention. Equipped hermeneutically, we will turn to the business of exegesis. We will show that there is justification in using the whole of the letter to explore what Paul makes known climactically in 1 Thessalonians 4:13--5:11. Two images in particular will be explored in theological depth: the mysterious reference to the 'dead in Christ' (4:16) and the image of the parousia itself (4:16-17). The intention throughout will be to seek new ways in which to understand what Paul witnesses to in this text, in dialogue with the church's interpretative traditions and with a theological eschatology.

The proposed paper is dealing with the common scholarly assumption that communities exist behind the Gospels and the more recent debate concerning the validity of that assumption. The paper would involve two parts. The first part will discuss the current state of Gospel community literature and the various approaches taken to reconstruct the communities behind the Gospels. The second part will present the various hermeneutical approaches used to establish and define the communities behind the Gospels. The paper will present a general appraisal of the hermeneutics of the community-hypothesis, with a focus on the hermeneutical practices used to establish the community behind the Fourth Gospel.

The purpose of this paper is to examine Matthew's (royal) messianic use of the scripture. I suggest that Matthew's messianic use of the scripture can be categorized in three ways in view of early Jewish (royal) messianic use of the scripture:(1) Matthew's use of the scriptural texts which were popularly used as messianic texts in early Judaism, (2)Matthew's use of the scriptural texts which were not popularly used as messianic texts in early Judaism, (3)Matthew's use of the scriptural texts which were not obviously understood as messianic texts in early Judaism. In this paper, I will offer some examples belonging to each category and the way in which Matthew uses them. Then, I will also discuss the messianic theology which Matthew's messianic use of the scripture may suggest.

People who suffer from psychosis are amongst the most marginalized in society and the church. Much of the time, this is because of fear and misunderstanding. This paper suggests that recent developments in both psychology and Biblical Studies are indicative of an intellectual climate which might enable the church to work towards greater acceptance and understanding of those who suffer from psychosis. This is illustrated by drawing a parallel between an increasing awareness of psychosis as part of a spectrum of "normality", and the growing appreciation of the value of the book of Revelation as part of the canon of Scripture.