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Books and Articles on the Theology of Grace and Eschatology

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Apocalypse

New Books on Eschatology & the Theology of Grace in Christian History

January 1, 2018 by Frank Leave a Comment

Happy New Year!  In this post I want to inform our readers of some new books on eschatology and the theology of grace in early and medieval Christian history.  On eschatology, they are:

T.C. Schmidt, transl., Hippolytus of Rome:  Commentary on Daniel and ‘Chronicon’ (Georgias Press, 2017).

Peter of John Olivi, Commentary on the Apocalypse. Translation, Notes, and Introduction by Warren Lewis (Franciscan Institute Publications, 2017).  This is a large commentary written in the year 1298.

On the theology of grace, most of which relate to the ninth-century controversy over divine predestination, are the following books:

Matthew Bryan Gillis, Heresy and Dissent in the Carolingian Empire:  The Case of Gottschalk of Orbais (Oxford University Press, 2017).

Rachel Stone and Charles West, eds., Hincmar of Rheims:  Life and Work (Manchester University Press, 2015).

Jared G. Wielfaert, Prudentius of Troyes (d. 861) and the Reception of the Patristic Tradition in the Carolingian Era (Ph.D. dissertation, University of Toronto, 2015).  Available from ProQuest.

Guido Stucco, The Doctrine of Predestination in Catholic Scholasticism (2017).

Also, the following articles on the Gottschalk controversy may be of interest:

Brian Matz, “Augustine in the Predestination Controversy of the Ninth Century, Part 1:  The Double Predestinarians Gottschalk of Orbais and Ratramnus of Corbie,” Augustinian Studies 46:2 (2015):155-184.

Jenny Smith, “As if Augustine Had Said:  Textual Interpretation and Augustinian Ambiguity in a Medieval Debate on Predestination,” Past Imperfect 19 (2016)

Jenny Smith, “The Rebellious Monk Gottschalk of Orbais:  Defining Heresy in a Medieval Debate on Predestination.”  Both of Ms. Smith’s articles can be found on line.

Happy reading and wishing all of our readers a blessed 2018.

Frank

Filed Under: Biblical Commentaries, Early Christian Studies, Eschatology, Medieval theology, Patristics, Reformed theology, Theology of Grace, Translated Texts Tagged With: Apocalypse, Augustine, Brian Matz, Charles West, Daniel, Gottschalk of Orbais, Guido Stucco, Hincmar of Rheims, Jared Wielfaert, Jenny Smith, Matthew Gillis, ninth-century, predestination, Prudentius of Troyes, Rachel Stone, Warren Lewis

Tyconius, Exposition of the Apocalypse

June 20, 2017 by Frank Leave a Comment

My English translation of Tyconius’s Exposition of the Apocalypse has been published.  It is in Volume 134 of the Fathers of the Church series.  I hope you get a copy and enjoy reading his explanations of the Book of Revelation.

Tyconius wrote this Exposition about 380 AD.  It is useful in many ways. He interpreted John’s visions to make them relevant for the church of all times, similar to modern “idealist” interpretations.  He also believed that some passages in Revelation were symbolic of the future persecution of Antichrist, the Second Coming, and the Last Judgment.

He believed that the Book of Revelation is recapitulatory, rather than visions of events that reflect chronological order.  On some familiar passages and themes, Tyconius saw the 144,000 as a symbol of the whole church. Likewise, the two witnesses are symbolic of the church prophesying in both testaments. Those sitting on thrones and reigning for a thousand years represent the present reign of the saints; and the first resurrection “is in this life through forgiveness of sins.”

The introduction and notes to the translation of Tyconius were written by David Charles Robinson of Toronto.

For a review of our book in Augustinian Studies 50:2 (2019), click here.

tyconius of carthage - The Fathers of the Church

To order Tyconius of Carthage, Exposition of the Apocalypse from Amazon, click here.

I leave you with an encouragement from a Syriac commentator: “Let us spiritually refresh ourselves in the Apocalypse of the Son of God which is very dear and wonderful.”

Filed Under: Biblical Commentaries, Early Christian Studies, Eschatology, Featured, Millennialism, Patristics, Translated Texts Tagged With: Antichrist, Apocalypse, Apocalypse commentaries, Biblical Commentaries, Early Christianity, Idealist, Last Judgment, Millennium, Recapitulation, Second Coming, Syriac, Translated Texts, Two Witnesses, Tyconius of Carthage

Chromatius of Aquileia on John 21:22 and Rev 10:11

December 31, 2015 by Frank Leave a Comment

An essay entitled “Chromatius of Aquileia on John 21:22 and Rev 10:11 against a Legend about the Apostle John” by Francis X. Gumerlock was recently published as Chapter Two in The Book of Revelation and Its Interpreters:  Short Studies and an Annotated Bibliography, Ian Boxall and Richard Tresley, eds. (New York: Rowan & Littlefield, 2016).The-book-of-Revelation-and-its-Interpreters_thumbnail

In early Christianity there was a legend that the apostle John never died, but was alive in Paradise with Enoch and Elijah.  It continued that when the Antichrist comes upon the world scene, John will return to earth and preach again.  Believers in this legend used John 21:22 and Rev 10:11 for support.  This essay shows how Chromatius (d. 408) interpreted these passages of Scripture to show that John really died and that he prophesied again (Rev 10:11) after his release from the island of Patmos, by returning to Ephesus and writing the Gospel of John.  The essay provides the first English translation of Chromatius’ Sermon 21 and also a translation of a preface to the Book of Revelation from the sixth century.

Other chapters in the book are about John of Patmos in Christian history, the reception of the Book of Revelation, Tyconius’ exegesis, and the Book of Revelation in visual art.  Half of the book is an extensive bibliography of commentaries that were written on the Apocalypse up to the year 1700.

Besides Boxall, Tresley, and myself, other contributors include Christopher Rowland, Sean Michael Ryan, and Natasha O’Hear.

For those interested in the Book of Revelation, its reception and interpretation in Christian history, commentaries on Revelation, Tyconius, and visual representations of the Apocalypse, I trust you will find The Book of Revelation and Its Interpreters to be a great read and a useful resource. To purchase a copy from Amazon, click here.

Filed Under: Biblical Commentaries, Early Christian Studies, Eschatology, Patristics, Translated Texts Tagged With: Apocalypse, Chromatius of Aquileia, Ian Boxall, Natasha O'Hear, Richard Tresley, Sean Michael Ryan, the Book of Revelation, Tyconius

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