The Irony of Power: The Politics of God within Matthew's Narrative (Studies in Peace and Scripture: Institute of Mennonite Studi) - Softcover

Weaver, Dorothy Jean

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1625648863 ISBN 13: 9781625648860

Publisher: Pickwick Publications, 2017

Synopsis

This volume engages the Gospel of Matthew in full awareness of its inherently political character. Weaver situates Matthew's version of the "good news of the kingdom" squarely within the "real world" of first-century Palestine and its occupying power, the Roman Empire. The essays here focus prominently and collectively on the issues of power and violence that not only pervade the historically occupied Jewish community of first-century Palestine, but also are clearly visible throughout Matthew's narrative account. A "lower-level" reading of the Matthean text offers a bleak portrait of the overwhelming power and violence exerted by the Roman occupying authorities and their upper-echelon Jewish collaborators against the wider Jewish community of first-century Palestine. But an "upper-level"/"God's-eye" reading of Matthew's narrative consistently reveals the fundamental irony at the heart of the New Testament as a whole, of the Jesus story broadly conceived, and of Matthew's narrative account in specific. This irony overturns all humanly recognized definitions of "power" and demonstrates the astonishing "politics of God," which defeats evident power through apparent powerlessness and overcomes violence through nonviolent initiatives.

About this title

About the Authors

Dorothy Jean Weaver is Professor of New Testament at Eastern Mennonite Seminary, Harrisonburg, VA. She holds a PhD in New Testament from Union Presbyterian Seminary, Richmond, VA. Her publications include Matthew's Missionary Discourse: A Literary Critical Analysis (1990, 2015); Bread for the Enemy: A Peace & Justice Lectionary (2001); and numerous academic essays. Weaver leads regular tours to Israel/Palestine and has taught and/or lectured in Beirut, Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Cairo, and Debre Zeit, Ethiopia.

David Rhoads is emeritus Professor of New Testament at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. He is author of Reading Mark: Engaging the Gospel (2004).

Edition details

• Publisher: Pickwick Publications
• Publication date: 2017
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1625648863
• ISBN 13: 9781625648860
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 360