In the Mail: The New Testament and Homosexuality by Robin Scroggs
Many thanks to Augsburg Fortress Publishers for sending a review copy of The New Testament and Homosexuality (publisher link) by Robin Scroggs, who is Edward Robinson Professor of Biblical Studies Emeritus at Union Theological Seminary in New York. This one goes back quite a few years, published in 1983. If you google “Robin Scroggs”, you will find all sorts of folks in the homosexuality debate using his book for various purposes. Scott Bartchy has required the text for his seminar this fall, “Spirituality and Sexuality in the Early Christian Movement” and I am intrigued. Here’s an excerpt from the preface:
For better or worse, I decided that somebody needed somehow to provide resources that would give both clarity and honesty: clarity about the real issues with which the Bible dealt, and honesty about how the Bible could or could not appropriately inform the debate [regarding homosexuality]. . . .
Perhaps this “personal confession” will signal my own interests and involvement with the topic. I am not a homosexual. Nor do I write this book as an advocate either for or against the ecclesiastical rights of homosexuals. I confess to a confusion about the merits of psychological arguments concerning homosexual inclinations, a confusion I know I share with many people. I just do not know whether homosexuality is or can be normal or whether it can be as fulfilling to the human person as heterosexuality.
At the same time I confess equally that I see no way of reading the Christian gospel except that it is one which totally accepts in love all persons, regardless of inadequacies or moral failings. And I have seen too many tragic rejections of homosexual persons in the name of Christian righteousness or even love. I thus offer these pages in the hope that, in addition to bringing clarity and honesty to issues of the relevance of the Bible, it may bring as well a little more light and a little less heat to the discussion, a little more acceptance of all persons on the “other side,” and maybe even an awareness that in Christ there is really no “other side” at all.
Ultimately, however, my purpose in writing is to make it as clear as possible what are the issues in the use of the Bible in Christian debates about the acceptance of homosexuals. Just what is a proper use of the Bible, especially the New Testament, in these discussions?
I don’t know if it’s possible for anyone to really bring “a little less heat” to this discussion, but I’m interested to see what Scroggs has to say nonetheless!
More Scholer
My previous tribute to David Scholer has become the most read post I have ever written; most of the visits are from those searching for “David Scholer” and variations. This in itself is a tribute to a man who left an enormous impact on the world.
Blog posts about him keep popping up. I would just like to mention a few notable locations:
- Biblioblogger Judy Redman encountered David’s teaching during one of his trips to Australia
- Mark provides several links to sermons, articles, and the like on his blog (he also has several thoughts on David’s legacy himself–David officiated at Mark’s wedding)
- The LA Times has their obituary up for David [One note: they mention homosexuality on there, but I don't recall ever hearing him talk about homosexuality. I don't know if that is a mistake on their part or if I just missed it.]
- Fuller has a tribute to his legacy up as well
- You may want to check out two of his writings of interest: an article on his journey with women and ministry (what he is so known for) and a sermon on his struggle with cancer.
Prof. David M. Scholer (1938-2008)
Last week, we lost a great New Testament scholar, seminary professor, advocate for women in ministry, and one of the kindest, most beautiful persons I have ever known. Though he lived longer than all expectations, David Scholer passed away on Friday morning after a six-year battle with colorectal cancer. David has had a tremendous influence upon me in my Fuller career and I feel so blessed to have known him. Without knowing it (and even though I took more classes with some other NT professors), David helped me find my “niche” in New Testament studies: social history. His interest in the area is evidenced in the volume he recently edited, Social Distinctives of the Christians in the First Century: Pivotal Essays by E. A. Judge.
David was a lover of books and history. He often told us of his pursuit in finding rare books, particularly those of interest in biblical studies and women’s roles. In his courses, he not only focused on the biblical texts themselves, but also went through the history of interpretation as few people could. He was a noted bibliographer–I have been helped by his Basic Bibliographic Guide for New Testament Exegesis put out by the Fuller Seminary bookstore (see the list of his titles printed by them). He also produced the two volume Nag Hammadi Bibliography (volume one covering 1948-1969 and volume two covering 1970-1994). Some may know him for editing a popular version of the works of Philo.
I do know that David was working with Hendrickson Publishers on publishing his collection of writings on women in the New Testament and early Christianity. This collection has been used in his course, “Women, the Bible, and the Church,” for a number of years. It would truly be a shame if the collection was not made available to a wider audience. I hope we’ll be hearing more from Hendrickson in the near future on this!
I will deeply miss David’s generous spirit. He would always say hello as he passed by, even if he was clearly having a difficult time getting around. He would joke with me about sparring with him in class from time to time, particularly when I would show my Anabaptist leanings. When I had requested his recommendation for doctoral programs and he was not able to fulfill the request while he was in the hospital, he nevertheless composed a brief letter to be sent to all the programs to which I was applying. I will always be deeply grateful for such generosity. I hope my debt to him can be paid, at least in part, by trying to live out his legacy as a humble, but passionate academic educator.
Please remember David’s wife Jeannette, their daughters Emily and Abigail and their daughter’s families in the coming days and weeks. Memorial gifts may be made to the David M. Scholer Scholarship Fund at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, CA 91182.
Other remembrances of David:
- Fuller Theological Seminary Professor Dies of Cancer
- Remembering Dr. David Scholer
- Prof. David Scholer Passes Into Glory
- Remembering David
- “Apparently David Scholer . . . has crossed the finish line. . . .”
And don’t miss last year’s story on him in the LA Times. If you’d like to get a glimpse of the man in a very moving sermon for Fuller’s 2008 Baccalaureate, you can find it at Fuller’s page on iTunes U. I may upload it to YouTube later, but for now, check it out at iTunes, under “All Seminary Chapel,” entitled “It Is About God . . . Not About Us (Baccalaureate 2008)”.
Update (Same Day): Fuller has posted an excellent tribute to the legacy of David Scholer on its website. If you’d like to keep track of blog posts on David, try this link.
In the Mail: Peter Brown's The Body and Society
Another thank you is due. I extend my enormous gratitude to Columbia University Press for sending to me the twentieth anniversary edition of Peter Brown’s work on marriage and sexual practices in early Christianity, The Body and Society: Men, Women, and Sexual Renunciation in Early Christianity (or see the book at CUP’s website). Here is the back cover blurb:
First published in 1988, Peter Brown’s The Body and Society was a groundbreaking study of the marriage and sexual practices of early Christians in the ancient Mediterranean and Near East. Brown focuses on the practice of permanent sexual renunciation–continence, celibacy, and lifelong virginity–in Christian circles from the first to the fifth centuries A.D. and traces early Christians’ preoccupations with sexuality and the body in the work of the period’s great writers.
The Body and Society questions how theological views on sexuality and the human body both mirrored and shaped relationships between men and women, Roman aristocracy and slaves, and the married and the celibate. Brown discusses Tertullian, Valentinus, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Constantine, the Desert Fathers, Jerome, Ambrose, and Augustine, among others, and considers asceticism and society in the Eastern Empire, martyrdom and prophecy, gnostic spiritual guidance, promiscuity among the men and women of the church, monks and marriage in Egypt, the ascetic life of women in fourth-century Jerusalem, and the body and society in the early Middle Ages. In his new introduction, Brown reflects on his work’s reception in the scholarly community.
Brown’s book is a required text for Scott Bartchy’s seminar this fall, “Spirituality and Sexuality in the Early Christian Movement.” I have requested other textbooks for the fall so that I can assess the books’ value not only in and of themselves but also for their usefulness in these kinds of courses. More thanks may be coming . . .
My Amazon Store
I was inspired by Nick Norelli’s aStore and thought it might be a good idea to put together this online bookstore powered by Amazon. It’s a bit like coming up with a shoppable bibliography. So, you can check out the beginnings of my own store, the kata ta biblia bookstore, but don’t read too much into things (e.g., don’t assume that just because one book comes before another book that I like it or agree with it more–even if that may be true in some cases!). I’m trying to make it a mix of both academic and accessible books and I’m including things that I think people would be interested in purchasing.
Nick’s store has very different emphases than mine. He’s a more theological fellow and his books reflect that. I’m big on social history, so I’m working on developing that area more. Even when we have similar categories of books, many of our books are very different. Of course, he doesn’t have a category for Anabaptism.
It’s a work in progress. Let me know if there are things you think should be included in any given category or categories you think are missing. And, of course, feel free to buy a book while you’re looking at my store 
In the Mail: Malina's The New Testament World
Many thanks to Westminster John Knox Press for sending over a review copy of Bruce Malina’s unique New Testament introduction, The New Testament World: Insights from Cultural Anthropology! This is a standard text for Scott Bartchy for many of his classes at UCLA. I actually haven’t read the book yet, so I thought it’d be a good opportunity to review it while I also get to see how it’s used in a class for undergrads this fall.
"How do you like Fuller Seminary?"
Over the three years that I have been in my Master of Divinity program, I have been asked variations on this question a number of times. For many, the underlying question is: would I recommend Fuller to others? The short answer is yes, I would. If you are interested in an academic career, you would obviously have an advantage snagging a degree from YDS, PTS, or Duke. But Fuller folks do end up at world class doctoral programs and are well trained if they use their time well.
But what about the actual logistics of my time here? How has that been? The best part has been my opportunity to take doctoral seminar courses with New Testament PhD students, which were all about 5-7 people. In all of them, I was either the only or one of two non-PhD students in the seminars. That was when I felt really engaged in my studies.
Another positive for me, though it has been somewhat laborious, is Fuller’s great resources for cutting edge ministry conversations. I am glad I didn’t just go for the academic M.A. for two reasons: (1) I want to be better trained to serve the church even as an academic and (2) I imagine myself someday teaching students who are training for ministry and I want to be able to relate to them.
The worst part of Fuller, for me, was not it’s reputation as a “conservative” place in academia (it is actually an interesting middle ground). No, the aspect of my education here that frustrates me the most is its quarter system and class requirements. In order to finish the M.Div. in three years, a student must go full time, all four quarters (summer included), for three years. After three years of jockeying into the proper position for doctoral studies, with no real break to speak of, I am exhausted! How about a sabbath, Fuller? I don’t know of any other M.Div. programs that require so much time.
A close second to that frustration is the huge class sizes for the basic survey courses. But I think you’d find that with comparable institutions.
So, yes, Fuller is a good place and I would recommend it. I have felt envigorated academically and have made great friends. And had I not gone to Fuller, I would not have had the opportunity to meet Scott Bartchy and other folks at UCLA. Without that, I may not be going to UCLA next year, which is a great fit for my interests.
In the end, Fuller worked for me and I liked it quite a bit.
Five years!
My amazing wife and I have been married for five years today. What adventure it has been. And with our first baby on the way . . . the adventure continues!
Slightly new look…
I have decided to adapt the look of my blog a little bit. The main motivation is the fact that my comments box on the old theme was way, way, way down below the text (especially on short posts). I think that made for fewer comments. Most recently, I got a few hundred views for a post on Messiah College being mentioned on the Daily Show, but no comments. That was enough motivation for me. I’d like to get some conversation going!
So, feel free to stop by, check out some recent posts, and tell me what you think.
(By the way, the book in the image header is my Greek New Testament.)
Scored a Readership: History of Early Christians
Today I have learned that I will be the reader for Prof. Scott Bartchy’s course, “History of the Early Christians“. The reader at UCLA is basically a grader. I’ll be grading the mid-terms and finals. Actually, I’ll be both enrolled in the course and grading it. Obviously, I won’t be grading my own work!
I graded similar topics for a course called New Testament 2: Acts-Revelation at Fuller, though there were more assignments for that course. I look forward to getting more pedagogical training, even if the grading might not always be fun. Here’s a description of the course:
Christian movement from its origins to circa 160 C.E., stressing its continuity/discontinuity with Judaism, various responses to Jesus of Nazareth, writings produced during this period, movement’s encounters with its religious, social, and political world, and methods of research.
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Elsewhere . . .- Blog titles beginning with "A" to "Z" on your reader Mark Goodacre
- Of making many books there is no end Chris Brady
- Free Online: The Liddell-Scott Jones Lexicon S and C
- Does Higher Criticism Attempt to “Destroy the Bible”? II agathos
- Steven J. Friesen and the Identity of Satan’s Throne in Pergamum alan
- Does Higher Criticism Attempt to “Destroy the Bible”? agathos
- Bloomsbury buys Continuum Mark Goodacre
- Imperial America Peter J. Leithart
- C.F.D. Moule on the Birth of the New Testament d. miller
- Responding to Kostenberger (with comparisons to Marshall) Jeremiah
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