Dr. Michael Barber
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Presenting a Paper for the Matthew Section at SBL
Posted by Dr. Michael Barber on 04.04.11 |Gospel, Matthew, SBL, Scripture
I got word this week that the paper I proposed for the Matthew section at this year’s annual meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature was accepted. Here’s the abstract:
Jesus’ Teaching on the Law, Deuteronomic Concessions and Eschatological Righteousness: A Re-examination of the Teaching on Divorce and Remarriage in Matthew 5:31–32
In the Sermon on the Mount we find Matthew’s most explicit account… [Continue Reading]
Archbishop Gomez on the Pope's Book as the Model for Scripture Study
Posted by Dr. Michael Barber on 03.21.11 |Archbishop Gomez, Jesus of Nazareth, Pope Benedict XVI, Scripture, Scripture Study
Archbishop Jose Gomez has a piece in the latest Tidings, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, focusing on Benedict’s new book. This is fantastic stuff! Would that all Catholic bishops would write to their faithful about the need to follow Benedict’s example of Scripture study!
Pope Benedict’s attempt to implement the Catholic biblical renewal envisioned by the Second Vatican Council will… [Continue Reading]
Archbishop Gomez's Inspiring Inaugural Homily
Posted by Dr. Michael Barber on 03.07.11 |Archbishop Gomez
The new archbishop of Los Angeles delivered a stirring homily today. I just had to mention some of it here:
. . . this is not a future I could have ever imagined for myself [i.e., becoming the archbishop of the largest diocese in America, Los Angeles]. But our God is a God of surprises—un Dios de sorpresas—as well as a God of blessings and tender mercies!
As I mark the start of my ministry today in… [Continue Reading]
Sirach as Scripture in Judaism?
Posted by Dr. Michael Barber on 03.01.11 |biblical canon, Deuterocanonical, LXX, Septuagint, Sirach as Scripture, The canon
My good friend Dr. Jeff Morrow (Seton Hall) has an excellent post up over at the excellent blog Caritas et Veritas on the formation of the canon of Scripture.
It is astonishing to me the way certain myths persist in scholarship. One example is the traditional narrative about the formation of the canon. I don’t have time to write a long post on this topic. Years ago I covered the development of the… [Continue Reading]
Jesus as the Davidic Messiah in Matthew (Part 2 of 2)
Posted by Dr. Michael Barber on 03.01.11 |Davidic Christology, Davidic Messiah, Gospel of Matthew, Jesus
Following up from part 1. Am I missing any major piece of the puzzle here that wouldn’t require a lot of explanation?
- Jesus’ Davidic Exorcistic and Healing Powers. Jesus’ exorcisms and healings seem especially tied to his role as the Davidide. The blind healed by him address him specifically as “son of David” (cf. Matt 9:27; 20:31). Likewise, accounts of his exorcisms are linked with his role as the… [Continue Reading]
Jesus as the Davidic Messiah in Matthew (Part 1 of 2)
Posted by Dr. Michael Barber on 02.22.11 |David Messiah, Davidic Christology, Jesus, Matthean, Matthew, son of David
I am currently working up an article on the imagery of the “keys of the kingdom of heaven” in Matthew 16:18. As part of the article I’m discussing the Davidic Christology of Matthew. I’m trying to be as thorough as possible. I’m going to post the first five illustrations here and then follow-up with five more.
- “The Son of David” (Matt 1:1). Matthew begins his Gospel by connecting Jesus’ role as… [Continue Reading]
New USCCB Document Highlights Biblical Quotations in the Mass
Posted by Dr. Michael Barber on 02.02.11 |Bible, Liturgy, New Translation of the Mass, New Translation of the Missal, Scripture
The Catholic Mass draws heavily from Scripture—in every prayer you hear quotations and allusions to biblical texts. In fact, last year I did a series of presentations now available through Saint Joseph Communications here (shameless plug!) exploring the biblical backdrop for the prayers of the Mass.
Now the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has put out a footnoted version of the prayers… [Continue Reading]
Aquinas: The Biblical Approach of the Model Catholic Theologian
Posted by Dr. Michael Barber on 01.28.11 |Aquinas, biblical, catholic, feast day, Model, theologian
Today is the Feast Day of St. Thomas Aquinas! In honor of that, I thought I’d cover some ground I’ve been over before, namely, Thomas’ role as a model of Catholic theology and his primary focus on Scripture. Perhaps most striking—at least to some—is Thomas’ insistence on the priority of the literal-historical sense of Scripture.
In short, for Thomas Theology is a Scriptural enterprise. Since he’s… [Continue Reading]
