The Book of Acts and the Kerygma 2023 updated to pass

The Book of Acts and the KerygmaWhat is the Kerygma Greek term for 'preaching' proclamation of an event within Acts 2 and 3- word Kerygma is used by Luke: 'he sent me to proclaim the release of the captives and recovery of the sight of the blind' C.H.Dodd view on the kerygma - should not confuse the kerygma with teaching or with historical facts (though is can include both of these) 'the Gospel is not a statement of the general truths of religion, but an interpretation of that which once happened' - C.H.Dodd -Kergyma is part of new testament which should not be thought of as a 'memoir' because at its heart it is a bold set of claims that confront its readers with a decision - The New Testament should not merely be seen as a call for moral improvement, but the speeches in acts are about being confronted with truths and experiencing a joyful transformation in our lives What are C.H.Dodd's six elements of the Kerygma Says that there are six main elements to the Kerygma and they are the announcements that: 1) the age of fulfilment has dawned 'spoken by the prophet Joel...The sun turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great glorious day of the lord' (the words of the new coming of age are used by the Apostles to explain the miracles that the crowds have witnessed) 2) The new age has come about through the ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus. The power of Jesus behind these events is confirmed by his Davidic descent, the power of his works during his ministry ('A man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs', God using his unfair death at the hands of men, and the raising of Jesus from the dead, ('God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death') 3) Jesus has ascended to the right hand of God ('Exalted to the right hand of God...') 4) God's Holy Spirit has been poured out on the Church so that it is now the sign of Christ's power and glory ('The promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear') 5) Christ will soon return to bring the messianic age to its full consummation 6) Everything should repent so that their sins can be forgiven and they can receive the Holy Spirit to participate in the church ('Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit') What did Hermann Samuel Reimarus think of the Kerygma - Accused the disciples of changing the view of Jesus -Said that Jesus accepted the Jewish viewpoint popular at the time that the world was about to end (Jewish apocalypticism - end of the world by God as an act of judgement) -Reimarus believed the disciples removed the apocalyptic viewpoint of Jesus, changing his message into timeless and spiritual truths (the Kerygma) -They did this because the world didn't end and they faked Jesus' resurrection and founded a new religion Is the book of Acts a trustworthy historical document? (yes) - Dodd argued that the authors of Acts is a careful historian due to the different accounts of the conversion of Paul - one would think that someone determined to create a unified literary work would have reworked this into a consistent account -Book of Acts must be historically correct if you believe the Bible is the inspired word of God (link?) -William Ramsay initially questioned the historicity of Acts, but after years of digging up the evidence in archaeological explorations, Ramsay became convinced that Acts was so remarkably accurate in its detail that it must be considered trustworthy -Luke's factual accuracy is further strengthened when Luke and Paul are compared e.g. Paul claims to belong to the tribe of Benjamin (Romans 11:1, Philippians 3:5), Luke says his name was 'Saul' which is the name of one of the most distinguished members of that tribe Paul says he was trained as a Pharisee (Philippians 3:5, Galatians 1:14) Luke says that he was trained under Gamaliel, one of the most eminent Pharisees of the day Paul says he persecuted Christians (Galatians 1:13) whilst Luke says he puts them to death (Acts 8:1) -Acts specifically mentions individuals by name and is accurate in describing their positions in society as well as their surrounding circumstances e.g. the proconsul, Gallio is named in Acts 18:12-16 -Although acts was written 40-50 years after the events took place, there is a clear tradition that Luke accompanied Paul on his missionary journeys in Colossians 4:14, philomena 24 and II Timothy 4:11 (thus he would have first hand accounts of what he witnessed) -Acts was not questioned by the early church - since the book reports on public events known to many, one would think that if they were seriously misinterpreted then there would've been a rejection (the book is confirmed by the Muratorian Canon, Tertullian, Clement, Origen and others) -C.H.Dodd examined the letters of Paul to see if they were compatible with the six main elements of the Kerygma and said that they were - he had no doubt that for Paul Jesus is the fulfilment of prophecy, and that his life, death, resurrection and future coming re all key elements of Christian faith, just as they are presented in the book of acts. Is acts a trustworthy historical document (no) - Luke is a gentile, not a Jewish-Christian, therefore he was not present at the event he was reporting, especially acts 2&3 (was probably written in the 80s CE, 40-50 years after the events were reported) -Many of Paul's most important themes from his letters (e.g. faith v works, spiritual gifts in the church, issues on keeping the law) are absent when Acts reports on his preaching (however could simply be because his aims for his audience were different in his speeches in Acts than in his letters & redaction criticism) -Acts can never be a trustworthy document because we always bring our own biases whenever we read/approach a text (WRIGHT) -Many accounts of miraculous events and sudden, dramatic reversals of points of view that we associate with ancient literature and legends Is the Kerygma irrelevant (yes) -some may see the Kerygma and finding the historical Jesus are irrelevant since the historical Jesus believed the world would end in his lifetime with the sudden coming of God (should be viewed as an 'eschatological figure') - early church believed this '...For the coming of the Lord is near' - James 5:8 -even though Luke wrote acts a long time after Jesus' crucifixion, the early church and Jesus still believed the world was going to end -Kerygma is irrelevant because the world did not end in Jesus' lifetime, instead Christianity was established and the Apostles were waiting for Jesus' return -Albert Schweitzer said that the one thing we know for sure about the historical Jesus is what makes him irrelevant today, his view that the world was going to end C.H.Dodd view on the relevance of the Kerygma - said that there was more going on than Jewish Apocalypticism (Kerygma is more concerned with the experience of forgiveness and living in the power of the Holy Spirit in the present, rather than the future) -said that Jesus believed not only in the coming of God at the end of the world, but that God had already broken into the world through his own life and ministry (realised eschatology) the idea that the quality of life normally associated with a relationship with God after death can be experienced now -the focus of the early church was not so much on the jewish apocalypticism but was on the power that God brings with forgiveness, community and renewed hope -the fact that Jesus had no returned was not significant to most Christians, as they could go on enjoying the full power of Christian living for the rest of their lives and the heart of Christian belief is in the saving power of Jesus, which can be experienced in this life -Dodd argues that the passages that may suggest the coming of the end of the world such as Mark 13, Matthew 24 and the Book of Revelation should be viewed as pictures not of the final judgement but as an interpretation of the challenges that come to all when faced with the power of the Kerygma -the passages that do present an apocalyptic point of view should be viewed as an 'eschatological fanaticism' which he says has always been on the fringe of the Christian Church -finally says that the Kerygma is what Jesus himself announced in Mark 1:15 'the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe the good news' - Jesus and the apostles were united by the same Kerygma says Dodd, a message relevant whether or not the end of the world was about to occur Rudolf Bultmann view on the Kerygma -saw NT as full of myths that are irrelevant to people living in a modern age -stressed the importance of distinguishing the Kerygma from the myth so that it becomes relevant to our lives. He says that when we do this, we will each be confronted with an existential decision about our faith -believed that we should find the deeper meaning in the myths of the Bible - 'I call demythologising...Its aim is not to eliminate the mythological statements but to interpret them.' - Bultmann -Saw two main mythologies at work in the NT 1) the Jewish Apocalyptic belief in the sudden and cataclysmic end of the world, brought about by the power of God (Bultmann says history triumphed over this myth) 2) Gnosticism - belief that each person is a 'spark of light' which has become trapped in the world through demonic forces - a being of light has been sent down from the highest God to bring people special knowledge so that the 'sparks' can be liberated believes that humans adapted this mythology to Jesus, leading them to believe in Jesus as a pre-existing being, born of virgin birth, a heavenly being who descended to Earth to redeem humanity