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As portrayed in Chronicles 11 – 12, King Rehoboam was both a good king and a bad one; wise and foolish, a strong leader of a prosperous country as well as a weak leader of a declining one. Although he was a skilled diplomat, his arrogance brought the wrath of God upon himself and his nation. The Chronicler clearly attempts to depict King Rehoboam within his own context, while acknowledging his temperament and proclivities. This paper provides a detailed examination and analysis of the Chronicler’s presentation of King Rehoboam and the Kingdom of Judah.
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This article is an attempt at showing the relationship between the signs made by Jesus and human faith on the basis of the fourth gospel. In the first stage, the author carries out an analysis of the biblical word ,,sign “. He contends that, due to its deeper meaning, it should not be equated with a miracle. In the Bible ,,sign” refers to an act of God’s intervention, aimed at leading man to faith. Further analyses reveal a specific understanding of the word ,,sign” as understood by the fourth evangelist. The signs made by Jesus do not impose faith on man but invite to it. The good will and openness on the part of man play a crucial role here.
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In reflection dedicated to the relations between theological arguments and parenesis in St. Paul’s epistolarium, there is a general agreement as to the fact that ethical exhortations are usually motivated by the doctrinal passages of the letters of the Apostle Paul, or, that they are woven into the argumentative substance of a given letter. Without denying this fact, it seems that the relationship between the two parts of the letters can be described in a different way. Namely, due to the fact that their doctrinal part presents the image of Christ and His work of salvation, we can characterize soteriology as iconic. This is possible because its agens is itself an icon. In other words, Paul’s Christology is iconic because Christ is the ‘image of God’ and, consequently, His work present in the cross, the sign of salvation, is also iconic. Soteriology remains related to the ethical part of the letters and, because St. Paul in different ways encourages his recipients to follow and to be like Christ, it will be justified to define his parenesis as mimetic.
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In the long history of interpreting Pauline epistolarium and, in particular, the Letters to the Galatians and Romans, some authors have discovered that both texts contain apocalyptic motives, or they have postulated their apocalyptic reading. As it has been contended, the main arguments in support of such an interpretation comprise, among other things, the linguistic style as well as imagery drawing on the apocalyptic writings associated with the traditions of the Old Testament. The author of the present article points to the use of terms πάσχω and πάθημα in the letters to the Galatians and Romans and puts forward a hypothesis that in the context of these texts, St. Paul used the theological topos of the Exodus and the means of expression characteristic of apocalyptic which was at the time a popular method of presenting both the meaning of past events and the imperatives arising from the truth about reconciliation with God.
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The article analyses the use of the adverbial participle in the 19th-century printed monument of the Komi-Permyak language — the translation of the Gospel of Matthew (published in 1882) performed in the absence of a standardized literary language. The translation contains participles with the following markers: -икöн/ -ыкöн, -ыкас, -тöн, -тöг and -öмöн. While recognising the positive role of the translation for the Komi-Permyak literary language, it should be noted that remarkably often literal translation or translation loans are used there to render Church Slavonic constructions.
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The article is an attempt at a synthetic perception of chosen aspects of the language used in the first Catholic translation of the whole Bible from original languages into Polish, published half a century ago, which is traditionally called Biblia Tysiąclecia. This translation assumed the role of an official text in the Polish Church after the 16th century Biblia Wujka. The first part of the paper concentrates on the most important facts connected with the origin, history and previous reception of this translation. The most significant part of the article contains an attempt at assessing the linguistic aspect of Biblia Tysiąclecia in terms of its reference totraditional features of Polish biblical style, which includes mainly lexical, phraseological and syntactic biblisms. Conclusions resulting from these assessments and analyses made it possible to determine the features of language and style used in Biblia Tysiąclecia, as well as to indicate its position and significance in the history and tradition of biblical Polish language.
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Stones have always been used in the everyday life of people living in Canaan. They have also served as witnesses of important events in the history of the Chosen People, carrying within themselves a certain message for people, both for those times and to future generations. An example of one such witness is the great stone which Joshua had set up under an oak in Shechem on the occasion of the renewal of the covenant between God and the Israelites. The stone was to remind them about the miraculous interventions of Yahweh in the story of the Chosen People, about solemn declarations which they had vowed to God (mostly the resignation of the worship of foreign gods and abiding by the Law, which was to guarantee God’s blessing), and about the covenant made, or renewed, on that spot.
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The commandments, in the context of biblical Israel, constituted a solid foundation for one’s relationship with both God and man, thus providing the basic element for the shaping of human society. In this regard, the commandment “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour” gained particular significance. The very quantity and variety of social and moral situations led naturally to legal specifications, as confirmed by the code of laws in the Books of Exodus and Deuteronomy. Beyond this, equally important for the chosen people was the process of formation and education through accumulated sapiential maxims and proverbs which contributed to the formation of right attitudes. References to the need for bearing true witness and ipso facto warnings against bearing false witness appear frequently in the Book of Proverbs, and they serve to confirm the great educational role of this commandment in the sapiential thought of biblical Israel.
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In the Greek version of the Book of Sirach the term martu,rion (testimony) appears twice. Besides Sir 36:14, the word appears also in the Praise of the Ancestors in reference to Aaron (Sir 45:17). Moses’ brother is described there as the one who is to teach Jacob the testimonies (dida,xai to.n Iakwb ta. martu,ria), an expression that is missing from all other Biblical texts referring to Aaron. Therefore, the context of this expression, i.e. the praise of Aaron in Sir 45:6-22, is first analyzed and then various textual versions of Sir 45:17 are compared. Understanding the meaning of the term testimony in this context is made possible by the analysis of this word in other Biblical contexts, both those connected with the history of Aaron and the Sinai covenant as well as other, unrelated texts. Finally, the expression referring to Aaron is placed within the times of Sirach and those of the translator of the Greek version of the book. The key to understanding Sir 45:17 is found in the function and significance of the post-exile high priest. He is – as understood in the Book of Sirach – the only mediator between God and his people, and thus becomes the living symbol of covenant, responsible for transmitting testimonies: the Word of God, the content and requirements implied by the covenant made with God.
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The subject of our analysis is an extract from the Book of Isaiah, 43:8-13, which represents a significant moment in a bilateral controversy (rîb) ordered by Yahveh against foreign nations and the gods they worship. The juridical controversy decides about powerful and dynamic narration in Deutero-Isaiah. There is an unexpected twist of action as the legal proceeding unfolds: Israel, once God’s witness, now becomes a nation accused of rejecting its primary vocation of being a witness. Our quest for the reasons behind Israel's failed testimony to God hinges on decoding the idealized content of that testimony. God does not renounce His revelation to the world but makes Yahveh’s Servant his witness. The Servant will not only lead the world to the truth about God but also justify Israel, as well as other nations, by forming a covenant with the people.
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The article aims at the exegetical analysis of the imagery of God as a “swift witness” (Malachi 3:5b), against a backdrop of the Jewish biblical, inter-testamental and rabbinic traditions. By its reference to the deuteronomistic institution of the witness, which guaranteed the observance of the Sinaitic covenant, the image implicitly indicates a crisis of religious identity, as well as the crisis of the institutions connected with the temple – which were supposed to safeguard and culti-vate this identity. The image of God as a “swift witness” who comes to his temple to execute judg-ment on those who break the Covenant, and to inaugurate the ultimate era of justice, is the prophet’s answer to all those who harbor doubt about God’s justice.
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The present article describes the meaning and function of John the Baptist as the witness to Jesus Christ in the Fourth Gospel. The author shows the activity of John the Baptist in the wider context of the Fourth Gospel, where the various witnesses of God-Father, Son and Holy Spirit all lend a fundamental value for better understanding the existential and theological message of the Fourth Gospel. The article consists of three parts: (1) Terminology and meaning of “witness” in the Fourth Gospel; (2) John the Baptist as the witness in the text of the Fourth Gospel; (3) the theological ramifications of the mission of John the Baptist as the witness of Jesus. In this article the author tries to describe the witness of John the Baptist as not merely historical but still active and current for the people of XXI century.
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The author of the present article is seeking to answer two questions: (1) Who is “the one who saw” and “bore witness” that from the pierced side of the crucified Jesus “came out water and blood” (John 19:34-35)? (2) What is the theological meaning of the reported witness? The author presents the arguments pointing to “the beloved disciple”, the ideal author of the Fourth Gospel, as the one who plays the role of the “witness” and “speaks truth”. The deepest message contained in his testimony regards the understanding of the death and resurrection of Christ. They signify the offering that, both to the “beloved disciple” and to all believers, is the source of Spirit (water), which in turn brings them Christ living in the filial relationship with the Father (blood), that is, Life.
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The theme of testimony is one of the most important theological motifs in the final book of the New Testament, the Apocalypse of John. The noun “testimony” appears there nine times (1:2-9; 6:9; 11:7; 12:11-17; 19:10[x2]; 20:4), always in the singular form. The noun “testimony” is accompanied three times by the verb “have”, with which it creates the syntagma “have the testimony” (6:9; 12:17; 19:10). This syntagma, according to some analysts, indicates “a deeper identity of the disciples” of Jesus. In the present article I suggest an analysis of the above-mentioned phrase, seeking to identify the essence of that deeper identity of Jesus’ followers, which is expressed by the analyzed constituent segment. I begin with a few remarks about the etymology of the noun “testimony”, understood as the memory of people and events. Next, I analyze the three fragments which feature the syntagma “have the testimony”. From that background, I finally seek to answer the question of the sense of such an expression within the context of understanding the identity of Jesus’ followers. The living memory of Jesus – kept, experienced and passed along – shapes the identity of Christ’s followers. It looks back to the past, but at the same time is open to the present and, through hope, allows believers to await the future. In this way Jesus’ followers become witnesses and prophets of Jesus in the modern world.
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The article explores the phenomenon of Christian testimony present in experiences of persecution and in the death of martyrs, those who have given their lives for Christ. The primary sources for our reflection are the preserved descriptions of martyrdom (passio, acta martyrum). Martyrdom is commonly considered as the highest form of Christian testimony, thus it is useful to examine how it is present in the direct testimonies of the passion and death of the Christians of the first centuries, in that period of persecutions when indeed the theology of martyrdom first awakened and the witness of a Christian’s life and death took on particular importance. The article discusses the issue of testimony from different points of view: the witness of written testimonies, the testimony of the earthly lives of the martyrs, the testimony of their faith, and testimony of the act of martyrdom itself.
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From the very beginning, within the community of Christian believers, there have been men and women who decided to follow Christ in His celibate style of life. Virginity and sexual renunciation in the early Church had distinct meanings and motives that differentiate it from similar practices within other religions and philosophies. For early Christians, the virginal ideal constituted a special way of life in which one was dedicated wholly and permanently, with love, to God and His kingdom (which truly was believed to be at hand). The Gospel message with its eschatological calling, and the new life in Christ with its transforming power, were the ultimate sources of this remarkable phenomenon. This article tries to present the topic in three steps: a brief account of the institution of virginity in the early Church; the motivations for this special form of devotion; and the meaning and the effects of virgins’ testimony. At the beginning virgins lived in their families without special tasks in the community. Gradually the importance of virginity increased. In III and IV century, virgins achieved almost the same status as martyrs had in the period of persecution. At that time virgins started to live together in monastic communities, and the great Fathers of the Church dedicated a considerable number of works to the subject. Early Christian ascetics looked backward, toward gaining a pre-Fall state of the heart, as well as forward to their resurrection. Through the renunciation of sexuality and gender, they condemned neither, but attempted to participate in the glory of the angels. The Fathers of the Church recognized that virgins were already being made a new creation. While on this earth we are still male and female, in the kingdom of heaven, they are already one in Christ. In the writings of early fathers, quite often the value of virginity was demonstrated in comparison with the value of marriage, not in contraposition but in a simple hierarchy of value: good and better.
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The homily is a natural place to give Christian witness. God’s self-revelation – the continuation of which is found in the preaching of God’s Word – is characterized by dialogue. God, in giving Himself through the preaching of the Word, witnesses about Himself and waits for man’s reply, which is born from man’s personal experience of meeting God. This response then takes on the character of man’s own witness about meeting God. The witness of a Christian’s life is the confirmation of the power of God’s Word, it’s verification and illustration. When preaching a homily, witnessing to the faith can be voiced in different ways, but is always to be proclaimed by the homilist. The preacher of God's Word can indirectly deliver experiencing God through one of the believers, or in his own words. The homilist is to witness that he "saw and heard" (experienced) God – in the Word of God, in the liturgy, and the lives of believers. Thus, the homily is listening to Christ who is present in Sacred Scripture, perceiving Him in the framework of the liturgy, and giving witness about His work in the life of the believer.
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