Search

Using a model based on concepts in Jungian psychology, the author argues that the center of the First Testament shifted within the developing canonical process, moving from a pair of mountain top theophanic experiences on the part of Moses and Elijah (as depicted in Exodus 33:1-17 and 1 Kings 19) to the book of Deuteronomy within the so-called 17-book canon of the sixth century B.C.E. Prior to the time of Josephus, the center had moved to the classical prophetic literature, interpreted messianically. And when that Messiah actually appeared, so far as the Second Testament community of faith was concerned, the center shifted once again to the Gospels plus Acts as a "New Torah" in the Christian Bible. This "New Torah" constitutes the fulfillment of the First Testament and stands between the two halves of the Christian Bible, belonging to both—each of which is made up of 27 books. A similar "canonical process" is traced within the deutero-canonical literature in terms of the so-called "Axiom of Maria" in Jungian psychology.

To the Editor. — We appreciate Dr Meshberger's 1 article and would like to extend his suggestion that Michelangelo's Creation of Adam portrays God giving intellect to Adam. Most art historians, as well as Dr Meshberger, identify Eve as the figure held in God's left arm, probably because the face is virtually identical to the face of Eve in a nearby section of the Sistine ceiling. We would like to propose an alternative identity for that figure. The eighth chapter of Proverbs identifies Wisdom as a feminine presence with God at creation. Further, Wisdom's presence at creation is inherent in the eloquent opening passage of John's gospel: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (Revised Standard Version). The "Word" in the Greek text is logos , understood either as the Greek philosophical ideal of rationality or as divine wisdom. Michelangelo was

Interest in topography and historical geography has led to careful study of the various place names in the Old Testament, and the list in Isa. x 27c-34 is no exception. The first modern topographer to trace in detail the ancient track from Geba to Jerusalem, as reflected here, was Federlin who published his conclusions in 1906 1). Hagemeyer carried the discussion further in 1909 in his study of Gibeah 2). Dalman followed in 1916 with an important work, based in part on his earlier studies of the Michmash pass and the Wadi es-Swenit, which remains the standard topographical study of the passage in question 3). Dalman attempted to locate the place names cited in Isa. x and to reconstruct in some detail the precise route taken. His map is still in use, having been reproduced by Kaiser in his commentary in Das Alte Testament Deutsch 4). The Swedish scholar Linder carried the topographical analysis still further in his study of Gibeah published in 1922 5). In 1924 Albright went a step beyond his predecessors in his attempt to reconstruct the text of Isa. x 28-32 on the basis of prosodic structure as well as topographical detail 6). Albright's treatment of the Hebrew text was rather arbitrary involving several relocations and minor emendations. Nonetheless, it is his use of Hebrew prosody as an analytical tool which forms the basis of the present study. During the fifty years since Albright published his brief article, much has been learned about Hebrew poetry. In particular, the Ugaritic texts dis

In his suggestion of a “concatenous literary pattern” in Amos 1–2, S. Paul has drawn attention once again to the prosodic structure of the oracles against foreign nations preserved in Amos. His argument is most provocative but is seriously weakened by that troublesome verse, Amos I:II. As Paul has implicitly noted, the key to a proper reconstruction and interpretation of Amos 1–2 lies in a more accurate understanding of its prosodic structure.