Understanding of failure and failure of understanding : aspects of failure in the Old Testament

dc.contributor.authorLoader, J.A. (James Alfred), 1945-
dc.date.accessioned2015-06-11T05:35:46Z
dc.date.available2015-06-11T05:35:46Z
dc.date.issued2014-08-22
dc.descriptionThe first A.S. Geyser Commemoration Lecture of the Department of New Testament Studies, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa, presented at 17 February 2014. Prof. Dr James Alfred Loader is an Honorary Professor of the Faculty of Theology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.en_ZA
dc.descriptionThis article was republished with the corrected second affiliation of the author and a correction to the note under the affiliations.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractTaking its cue from Rudolf Bultmann’s famous verdict that the Old Testament is a ‘failure’ (‘Scheitern’), the article reviews three influential negative readings of Israel’s history as told in the Former Prophets. It is then argued that awareness of the theological problem posed by Israel’s history enabled the redactors of both the former and the latter prophetic collections to deal with the element of human failure in a way that facilitated Israel’s retaining of her faith. Next, the sapiential insight in failing human discernment is drawn into the equation. Failure of human action is here interrelated with failure to comprehend God’s order. By virtue of its incorporation into the totality of the Tanak, this insight became a constructive part of Israel’s faith. Therefore the concept of failure comprises more than coming to terms with Israel’s catastrophic history. Since it is encoded in Israel’s Holy Scripture, ‘failure’ is a major concept within the Old Testament internally and is therefore not suitable as a verdict over the Old Testament by an external value judgement. ‘Failure’ thus becomes a key hermeneutical category, not merely so that the Old Testament could become a ‘promise’ for the New Testament to fulfil, but as a manifestation of limits in human religion and thought. Far from undermining self-esteem, constructive use of the concept of her own failure sustained Israel in her catastrophe and should be adopted by Christianity – not least in South Africa, where the biblical message was often misappropriated to bolster apartheid.en_ZA
dc.description.librarianam2015en_ZA
dc.description.urihttp://www.hts.org.zaen_ZA
dc.identifier.citationLoader, J.A., 2014, 'Understanding of failure and failure of understanding: Aspects of failure in the Old Testament', HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies 70(1), Art. #2657, 11 pages. http://dx.DOI.org/ 10.4102/hts.v70i1.2657en_ZA
dc.identifier.issn0259-9422 (print)
dc.identifier.issn2078-8050 (online)
dc.identifier.other10.4102/hts.v70i1.2657
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2263/45451
dc.language.isoenen_ZA
dc.publisherOpenJournals Publishingen_ZA
dc.rights© 2014. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS OpenJournals. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.en_ZA
dc.subjectUnderstanding of failureen_ZA
dc.subjectFailure of understandingen_ZA
dc.subjectOld Testamenten_ZA
dc.subjectIsrael’s historyen_ZA
dc.subjectHuman failureen_ZA
dc.subjectRudolf Bultmannen_ZA
dc.subjectMartin Nothen_ZA
dc.subjectDeuteronomistic Historyen_ZA
dc.subjectJames Crenshawen_ZA
dc.subjectProphetic literatureen_ZA
dc.titleUnderstanding of failure and failure of understanding : aspects of failure in the Old Testamenten_ZA
dc.typeArticleen_ZA

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