The Living Word

By James D.G. Dunn

1987

First Published

4.15

Average Rating

232

Number of Pages

7H04M

Audio Length

Few scholars have thought so long or so carefully about the role of biblical authority in the light of historical- and literary-critical scholarship as has James D. G. Dunn. Even fewer are as capable of communicating profound respect for the biblical witness with genuine insight into its complexity and pluriformity. Avoiding easy - and possibly misleading - answers, Dunn offers precise responses to questions about the history behind the Gospels and their consequent trustworthiness; the original scandal presented by Jesus' teaching, and by Paul's; the problem of pseudonymity in the Pauline letters and elsewhere; and what weight should be given to what the Bible itself says about scriptural authority, and to the final shape of the biblical canon. This Second Edition includes new essays on "bridging the gap between the academy and the church," the hallmarks of "good exposition" of scripture, and a concluding chapter on the Bible as living tradition.

Avg Rating

4.15

Number of Ratings

5 STARS

30%

4 STARS

56%

3 STARS

15%

2 STARS

1 STARS

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Author

James D.G. Dunn

Author · 25 books

James D. G. ("Jimmy") Dunn (born 1939) was for many years the Lightfoot Professor of Divinity in the Department of Theology at the University of Durham. Since his retirement he has been made Emeritus Lightfoot Professor. He is a leading British New Testament scholar, broadly in the Protestant tradition. Dunn is especially associated with the New Perspective on Paul, along with N. T. (Tom) Wright and E. P. Sanders. He is credited with coining this phrase during his 1982 Manson Memorial Lecture. Dunn has an MA and BD from the University of Glasgow and a PhD and DD from the University of Cambridge. For 2002, Dunn was the President of the Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, the leading international body for New Testament study. Only three other British scholars had been made President in the preceding 25 years. In 2005 a festschrift was published dedicated to Dunn, comprising articles by 27 New Testament scholars, examining early Christian communities and their beliefs about the Holy Spirit. (edited by Graham N. Stanton, Bruce W. Longenecker & Stephen Barton (2004). The Holy Spirit and Christian origins: essays in honor of James D. G. Dunn. Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co. ISBN 0-8028-2822-1.) Dunn has taken up E. P. Sanders' project of redefining Palestinian Judaism in order to correct the Christian view of Judaism as a religion of works-righteousness. One of the most important differences to Sanders is that Dunn perceives a fundamental coherence and consistency to Paul's thought. He furthermore criticizes Sanders' understanding of the term "justification", arguing that Sanders' understanding suffers from an "individualizing exegesis".