Paul: Apostle to the Nations, An Introduction

Glossary

311 Glossary admonition individual paraenetical statement; in the plural, refers to such statements strung loosely together without a common theme aedile city official who handled revenue, streets, and public buildings; contributed much of own money for the upkeep of the city amanuensis secretary; scribe analogy the Hebrew term is gezerah shawah; an exegetical method in which authors connect biblical statements that share the same word(s) or phrase(s) and make their point by interpreting them together Antony, Marc Roman politician and general; Octavian and he defeated the assassins of Julius Caesar; Octavian in turn defeated Antony in 31 b.c.e. apocalyptic understanding that God will soon end the present evil age apologia apology or defense apostle one who is sent with a message; especially for designated representatives of Christ understood to be sent by him; Paul was an apostle ascetic / asceticism disciplining oneself to minimize bodily pleasures, such as sexual expression, alcohol consumption, or eating; self-denial atonement effect of Jesus’ death in reconciling God and humanity 312 | Glossary atrium; plural, atria room near the front of a Roman house with open roof at the center Augustus The “revered one”: title given by the Senate to Octavian, the first Roman emperor; sole ruler from 27 b.c.e. to 14 c.e. call God’s invitation to be a follower of Jesus; more narrowly, invitation to a specific ministry canon a list of authoritative writings canonical belonging to a canon captatio benevolentiae literary device: “capturing” listeners by praising them catechetical referring to the teaching ministry of the church, which is called catechesis challenge and riposte in honor-and-shame cultures, public verbal exchanges in which the winner gains honor from the loser chiasm reverse parallelism christ Messiah promised in Israel’s Bible; to be a descendant of King David of Israel; some Judeans believed he would come to restore to the people of Israel their previous glory; others anticipated a powerful spokesperson for God; in the New Testament, identified with Jesus; same as Messiah church (a) local gathering of Christ-believers designed for worship, service, and mutual support; (b) collective terms for individual churches seen as one entity, as in “the worldwide church” or “the church in Macedonia” circumcise; circumcision surgical removal of the foreskin of a male’s penis; sign of the covenant God made with Israel circum-Mediterranean lands around the Mediterranean Sea confession / confessional statement abbreviated statement of complex beliefs; same as creed covenant in the Bible, an agreement between God and the people of Israel in which God would protect and lead Israel and Israel would worship God and follow God’s Law creed abbreviated statement of complex beliefs; same as confessional statement cultural anthropology the social-scientific study of human culture Dead Sea Scrolls a collection of Judean writings, many of which are apocalyptic; discovered starting in 1947 at Qumran; produced ca. 150 b.c.e. to 70 c.e. deliberative rhetoric type of rhetoric designed to persuade or dissuade; focus is on the future Glossary | 313 deuteropauline describing letters ascribed to Paul but that scholars believe were written after his death by others wanting to update him for a new place and time; Ephesians, Colossians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, and Titus diaspora dispersion; designates the phenomenon of Judeans living outside Israel diatribe literary device in which the author or speaker debates an imaginary opponent domus private home for wealthier people doxology ascribing glory (Greek: doxa) to God dyadic personality orientation in which a person’s sense of self and worth is dependent on others elites those at the uppermost levels of the population epideictic rhetoric type of rhetoric designed to praise or blame; focus is on the present epistle a letter eschatology; eschatological the study of end-time events and life after death Essenes a Judean sect active during the lifetimes of Jesus and Paul; often identified as the authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls ethos a sort of rhetorical appeal to the character or credibility of a speaker or author exegesis; exegetical scholarly, scientific study of the Bible feminist study a method of Bible study that challenges patriarchal values in the texts and/or patriarchal interpretations of texts fictive family a surrogate family united not by blood but by common commitments form a pattern of discourse used to enhance communication gentile a non-Judean. glossolalia ecstatic speech inspired by the Holy Spirit; the Spirit speaks through the...