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Review Article: Ablution, Initiation and Baptism in Late Antiquity, Early Judaism and Early Christianity Christoph Stenschke

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Review Article: Ablution, Initiation and Baptism in Late Antiquity, Early Judaism and Early Christianity Christoph Stenschke spine is set EU ROP E Contents / Table des matières / Inhalt A N J Articles / Articles / Artikel O EUROPEAN JOURNAL U R Editorial: Lines of influence – hypothetical Recovering the Missionary Memory: Russian N AL OF THEOLOGY and real 99 Evangelicals in Search of an Appropriate O Pieter J. Lalleman Missiology 137 T F Johannes Reimer H Did Matthew Know He was Writing E OLOG Scripture? Part 1 101 Belgian Protestantism from the Reformation JOURNAL EUROPÉEN Roland Deines to the Present: A Concise History of its Y The Apostles’ Creed, the God of Israel and Mission and Unity 149 the Jew Jesus of Nazareth 110 Colin Godwin DE THÉOLOGIE J Christoph Stenschke O Review Article: Ablution, Initiation and U R Wolfhart Pannenberg’s Concept of Baptism in Late Antiquity, Early Judaism and N Testimony as Natural Knowledge – AL EUROPÄISCHE Early Christianity 160 EU Implications for the Doctrine of Scripture Christoph Stenschke and the Church 124 ROP Pui Shum Ip THEOLOGISCHE E N D Book Reviews / Recensions / Buchbesprechungen E ZEITSCHRIFT T H FRANÇOIS BOVON, L’Évangile selon Saint Luc (19,28-24,53) JAMES EGLINTON, Trinity and Organism: Towards a New Reading FRANÇOIS BOVON, Luc le théologien of Herman Bavinck’s Organic Motif OLOG FRANÇOIS BOVON, L’Évangile selon Saint Luc Pierre-Sovann Chauny 180 Alistair I. Wilson 169 JITZE UIPERS T K , Abraham Kuyper: An Annotated Bibliography I E J. RAMSEY MICHAELS, The Gospel of John, New International 1857-2010 Commentary on the NT James Eglinton 181 EU Philipp Bartholomä 170 NICHOLAS WOLTERSTORFF, The Mighty and the Almighty: An Essay in ROP KLÁRA LENKEYNÉ SEMSEY, A Jelenések könyvének magyarázata, Political Theology 2 vols(A major commentary on Revelation in Hungarian) Asger Chr. Højlund 182 Laszlo Gallusz 172 IS GORDON W. LATHROP, The Four Gospels on Sunday: The W. GORDON CAMPBELL, Reading Revelation. A Thematic Approach New Testament and the Reform of Christian Worship CH Rob van Houwelingen 174 Robert S. Covolo 184 E T JOSEPH VERHEYDEN, ANDREAS MERKT, TOBIAS NICKLAS (eds), MARK S. KINZER, Israel’s Messiah and the People of God: H Ancient Christian Interpretations of “Violent Texts” in the Apocalypse A Vision for Messianic Jewish Covenant Fidelity E Pieter J. Lalleman 175 Henk Bakker 185 OLOG STEPHEN R. HOLMES, The Holy Trinity. Understanding God’s Life JOHN SWINTON, Dementia. Living in the Memories of God Jordan P. Barrett 176 Priscilla Oh 186 IS CH THOMAS H. MCCALL, Forsaken. The Trinity and the Cross, and Why ANNA FEDELE, Looking for Mary Magdalene: Alternative Pilgrimage It Matters and Ritual Creativity at Catholic Shrines in France E ZEITS Jordan P. Barrett 178 Sarah Bingham 188 WILLIAM M. SCHWEITZER, God is a Communicative Being: Divine Communicativeness and Harmony in the Theology of Jonathan Edwards CHR Michael Bräutigam 179 IFT (2013) 22:2, 97–189 XXII (2013) : 2 ISSN 0960-2720 EJT (2013) 22:2, 97–189 ISSN 0960-2720 EJT 22-2 cover outer.indd 1 22/08/2013 15:24 EJT (2013) 22:2, 160–168 0960–2720 Review Article: Ablution, Initiation and Baptism in Late Antiquity, Early Judaism and Early Christianity Christoph Stenschke David Hellholm, Tor Vegge, Oyvind Norderval, Christer Hellholm (eds.), Ablution, Initiation and Baptism: Late Antiquity, Early Judaism and Early Christianity (BZNW 176.1–3; Berlin, Boston: W. de Gruyter, 2011); three volumes, hb., xlvii + 763, xxviii + 767- 1782, xiv + 1786-2024; €279; ISBN 978-3-11-024751-0 RÉSUMÉ matiques et des contributions sur l’archéologie et l’his- Cet ouvrage de 1800 pages rassemble des contributions toire de l’art. Cette combinaison d’approches diverses, traitant des ablutions, des rites d’initiation et du bap- ainsi que de contributions à partir de différentes disci- tême, ainsi que des liens étroits entre ces pratiques, dans plines, fait ressortir la diversité des conceptions qui pré- le monde ancien. À partir d’un projet de recherche scan- valait dans le monde ancien. Cette diversité n’a pas été dinave, ces études rédigées en allemand et en anglais pleinement explorée par la théologie systématique, ni abordent des questions méthodologiques et traitent des prise en compte dans la liturgie et la pratique ecclésiales. sujets ci-dessus en considérant les religions de la fin de L’approche générale de l’ouvrage est descriptive : on n’y l’antiquité autres que le judaïsme et le christianisme, puis trouve pas d’essai d’analyse, ni d’indication concernant le judaïsme ancien, le christianisme primitif et la période des lignes directrices ou des thèmes communs aux diffé- patristique. L’ensemble s’achève avec cinq études thé- rentes parties. ******** ZUSAMMENFASSUNG der patristischen bzw. spätantiken Epoche. Der Band schließt mit fünf thematischen Aufsätzen und weiteren Diese umfangreiche Sammlung von Aufsätzen über Aufsätzen, die der Archäologie und Kunstgeschichte nahezu 1800 Seiten ist folgenden Themen gewidmet: gewidmet sind. Diese Verknüpfung von verschiedenen rituelle Waschung, Initiation und Taufe in der Welt der neuen Aspekten und Disziplinen zeigt die Vielfalt von Antike und ihre komplexen Zusammenhänge. Auf der Konzepten, die in der Welt der Antike vorherrschten. Grundlage eines skandinavischen Forschungsprojekts Diese Vielfalt wurde noch nicht voll erforscht durch die befassen sich die Aufsätze in deutscher und englischer systematische Theologie und auch noch nicht voll ausge- Sprache mit methodologischen Betrachtungen, ritueller schöpft durch Liturgie oder Gemeindepraxis. Der Ansatz Waschung, Einführungsriten und Taufe in den Religionen ist im Großen und Ganzen beschreibend; es lässt sich der Spätantike außerhalb von Judentum und Christentum kein Versuch erkennen, das Material zu analysieren und so wie im Frühjudentum, in der Urchristenheit und in Hauptgedanken oder allgemeine Themen aufzuzeigen. ******** SUMMARY German and English address the methodological consid- erations, ablution, initiation and baptism in the religions This substantial collection of essays of almost 1800 of late antiquity outside of Judaism and Christianity as pages is devoted to ablution, initiation and baptism in well as in early Judaism, in earliest Christianity and in the the ancient world and their intricate interrelationship. patristic/late ancient period. The volumes close with five Based on a Scandinavian research project, the essays in thematic essays and essays devoted to archaeology and 160 • EJT 22:2 • rEviEw articlE: ablution, initiation and baPtiSm in latE antiquity, Early JudaiSm and Early chriStianity • art history. This combination of different, fresh perspec- liturgy and practice of the Church. The overall approach tives and disciplines indicates the variety of concepts that is descriptive; no attempt is made to analyse the material were prevalent in the ancient world. This variety has not and to indicate major trajectories or common themes. yet been fully explored by systematic theology or in the ******** The present set of three volumes contains the ple the notorious question of the recognition results of a major research project entitled Ablution, of baptism conducted by heretics or schismatics Initiation and Baptism in Antiquity, organised by in the Western and Eastern churches which has Scandinavian scholars. The participants in the pro- not been addressed sufficiently for the third and ject met in 2008 and 2009; the papers read and fourth centuries. (ix) discussed on those occasions were later supple- Markschies also notes the large variations in liturgi- mented by other papers. The project involved 58 cal practices and the extent to which the norms (in scholars; it was international, church orders and liturgical books) and the actual interdisciplinary, with Historians of Religion, practice of the rite differed in individual churches Classicists, Egyptologists, Biblical and and congregations. In addition, the contributions Patristic scholars as well as Art Historians and to the project indicated Archaeologists; it should further be interde- that the application of ritual theory and other nominational with among others, Orthodox, quests from the various cultural sciences by Catholic and Protestant scholars (from the pref- scholars of liturgy to the procedure of baptismal ace in vol. 1, xlv–xlvii). preparation, the actual act of baptism and post- The essays are written in English and German. All baptismal rites as it can be reconstructed from essays, in particular the German ones, would have the pertinent sources is still in its beginnings, benefited from English abstracts. but promises rich rewards. (lxi) Volume 1 opens with an introductory essay by Furthermore, scholars have hardly addressed the patristic scholar C. Markschies who aptly sum- the nature of the relationship between bap- marises the contribution that the essays of both volumes make towards understanding the history tism and church membership on the way to the of Christian baptism, its pre-history and its imme- Constantinian or Theodosian Church of the empire diate reception history. He also lists the questions and its further developments after the fourth cen- and issues that are still open for further discussion tury. Markschies also suggests that there is a need despite this major research project, and sketches to examine the late ancient era in its entirety up to areas which need attention in future research. the eighth century (e.g. John of Damascus) based Markschies suggests that further inquiries into on the present essays and the methodology devel- the subject should use the methodology of ‘dense oped here. description’, which means in this case paying attention to the more quiet
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