Cleansed Lepers Cleansed Hearts
$49.00
Illnesses are perceived and understood differently across cultures and over time. Traditional interpretations of New Testament texts frame the affliction lepra (“leprosy”) as addressed either by ritual cleansing or miraculous healing. But as Pamela Shellberg shows, these interpretations are limited because they shift modern ideas of “leprosy” to a first-century context without regard for how the ancients themselves thought about lepra. Reading ancient medical texts, Shellberg describes how Luke might have perceived lepra and used the language of “clean” and “unclean” and demonstrates how Luke’s first-century understandings shaped his report of Peter’s dream in Acts 10 as a warrant for Gentile inclusion.
For Luke, “cleansing” was how the favor of God announced by Isaiah was extended to Gentiles, and the stories of Jesus’ cleansing of leprous bodies in the Gospel are the pattern for the divine cleansing of Gentile hearts in Acts. Shellberg illuminates Luke’s understanding of “cleansing” as one of his primary expressions of the means of God’s salvation and favor, breaking down and breaking through the distinctions between Jew and Gentile. Shellberg’s conclusions take up the value of Luke’s emphasis on the divine prerogative to declare things “clean” for discussions of inclusion and social distinction today.
in stock within 3-5 days of online purchase
SKU (ISBN): 9781451485240
ISBN10: 1451485247
Pamela Shellberg
Binding: Trade Paper
Published: February 2015
Emerging Scholars
Publisher: Augsburg Fortress Publishers – 1517 Media
Print On Demand Product
Related products
-
Great Divorce
$17.99Add to cartC.S. Lewis takes us on a profound journey through both heaven and hell in this engaging allegorical tale. Using his extraordinary descriptive powers, Lewis introduces us to supernatural beings who will change the way we think about good and evil. In The Great Divorce C.S. Lewis again employs his formidable talent for fable and allegory. The writer, in a dream, finds himself in a bus which travels between Hell and Heaven. This is the starting point for an extraordinary meditation upon good and evil which takes issue with William Blake’s The Marriage of Heaven and Hell.
-
Screwtape Letters
$17.99Add to cartWormwood, a demon apprentice, must secure the damnation of a young man who’s just become a Christian. He seeks the advice of an experienced devil, his uncle Screwtape. Their correspondence offers invaluable—and often humorous—insights on temptation, pride, and the ultimate victory of faith over evil forces. Paperback with French flaps and deckled page edges.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.