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  • Community Building in the Shepherd of Hermas: A Critical Study of Some Key Aspects by Mark Grundeken
  • Helen Rhee
Mark Grundeken
Community Building in the Shepherd of Hermas: A Critical Study of Some Key Aspects
Supplements to Vigiliae Christianae 131Leiden; Boston: Brill, 2015
Pp. v + 238. $142.00.

This book is a revised version of author’s dissertation at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven and reflects this origin in its scope and structure. Moving away from a reconstruction of historical community(-ies) behind the text of Hermas, this study focuses on the “constructed community,” i.e., the “image of the ‘actual’ (not the ‘ideal’) community” generated within the text (22). Using a historical-critical method, Grundeken seeks to demonstrate his thesis in eleven aspects, organized in three main groups: four aspects of identity—the relation to Judaism, the views on the resurrection, the stance on outsiders, and the position on the authorities; two social aspects—the role of women and “charity”; and five ritual aspects—baptism and metanoia, community meals, the Sunday collection, [End Page 324] dancing (and singing), and the “holy kiss.” Most of these aspects of Hermas’s textual community (perhaps except dancing/singing and the “holy kiss”) have already been extensively dealt with in Hermaic scholarship, but the strength of this book rests on Grundeken’s meticulous and innovative textual argumentation in light of the current scholarship, which thus contributes to further discussions. Throughout the study, the author is engaged in a “hermeneutic of suspicion” of some of the dominant positions in the field.

In Chapter One, rejecting the common designation of Hermas as “Jewish Christian” and adopting Garleff’s model of continuity and differentiation, Grundeken argues that Hermas’s community is more on the side of separation from Judaism rather than continuity with it. This separation is seen in Hermas’s Christology (Jesus as the adopted and exalted Son of God devoid of any Jewish categories such as Messiah, Son of David, or as fulfillment of biblical prophecies), silence on the Jewish law and any Jewish-Christian controversies (such as kashrut, Sabbath observance, or circumcision), and its interest in not Jewish heritage but community building as the church. Addressing a debated issue of resurrection in Chapter Two, Grundeken argues against a resurrection, an angelic afterlife, or an ascension of the soul to heaven in favor of a continued existence of the church as the community of believers into eternity. He locates this view on Christology and soteriology: Jesus as the adopted and exalted Son in Hermas is not due to his suffering and resurrection, but is a reward for his faithful and extraordinary service to God; likewise, all faithful servants will also live to God as part of the everlasting church.

Chapters Three and Four deal with the relationships with society and authorities. Hermas exhibits sectarian tendencies, understanding the community as exclusive and elect against “outsiders” who will not be saved. While the members are expected to uphold internal purity, the community is seen as a corpus mixtum on its way to perfection. With regard to the authorities, Grundeken points to Hermas’s moderate indifference rather than hostility, despite the community’s probable precarious social status because of its rejection of the veneration of the emperor.

Grundeken characterizes Hermas’s views on women as ambivalent in Chapter Five: while the “visionary” women (Rhoda, the woman church, and the virgins) speak authoritatively, the “real” women are silent; in fact, the male leaders in the narrative take charge as pater familias of the household and the house church, and the text envisions “traditional” androcentric gender roles. On charity in Chapter Six, Grundeken affirms an earlier perspective that for Hermas charity “is not so much an act of social help out of altruism, compassion or sympathy with the needy as an act of piety” (127) by the rich/giver for their salvation. This is in contrast to recent scholarship on the issue.

The final section is grouped under ritual aspects. Chapter Seven presents baptism and metanoia: the former as a sign of conversion of new believers and the latter as a necessary corollary to baptism for those converted to improve the present community. Metanoia, which is Hermas’s...

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