The Word Leaps the Gap: Essays on Scripture and Theology in Honor of
Richard B. Hays (Eds: J. R. Wagner, C. K. Rowe, A. K.
Grieb). Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2008 (710pp).
It is unusual to
have a festschrift extending beyond 700 pages such as the one for Richard B.
Hays. The length of the festschrift with a total of thirty-three contributors
is a testimony of the greatness of the honoree. It does not take too long to
recognize that Hays is not only a brilliant scholar, but one who is influential
in New Testament scholarship. His publications and speeches are often like a
breath of fresh air. Hays' discussion on the Bible, especially the New
Testament, has made significant contributions in the areas of hermeneutics,
ethics, and Christian faith (Bockmuehl, p. 498). Hays' interest extends to the
relationship between the Old and the New Testament which is adeptly captured by
John Barclay (p. 409). Apart from being an active member of the academy, Hays
is a person who possesses an interesting personality, a wide network of friends
and contacts, and good interpersonal skill. Most importantly, apart from the
Bible, the New Testament, literature and art in general, Hays loves his family
very much and this is something that is not normally mentioned in a festschrift.
The list of contributors includes his friend George Hobson who wrote a poem entitled 'For Richard Hays,' his daughter Sarah Hays Coomer who wrote a touching testimony on her amazing experience with her father and her unpredictable journey of faith, and his wife of more than 40 years, Judith Hays, who co-authored with Hays on 'The Christian Practice of Growing Old' at the end of the book. The rest of the contributors are former students, colleagues, and New Testament scholars. Six contributors are from the United Kingdom: five of them reside in Durham, the other being Markus Bockmuehl of Oxford . Four of these five scholars are associated with the Department of Religion and Theology at the University of Durham. The Durham group is made up of James D. G. Dunn, John M. G. Barclay, Walter Moberly, Francis Watson, and Nicholas T. Wright. Two other contributors are from the Catholic University, Notre Dame, while another three come from Fuller at Pasadena. More than one third of the contributors are Hays' colleagues at Duke.
The contributions span a range of issues like hermeneutics, the relationship between the Old and the New Testament, ethics, and Pauline theology. The resources used in the essays cover the canonical literature, the apocrypha, as well as ancient and classic literature. Some of the issues raised have been a long standing debate in the area of New Testament studies, for example, the issue and interpretation of 'the faith of Christ' is discussed by James D. G. Dunn. This issue has been an on-going point of debate between Dunn and Hays since 1991. Ed Sanders' essay on the development of Paul's theology moves into another area exemplifying the classic tension between the conservative wing and the liberal wing. N. T. Wright's proposal on virtue as the direct implication or definition of faith is another example of reaching a conclusion after years of discussion and debate. The length of the book does not permit a comprehensive review of all the essays and only a few can be highlighted here. Some of the contributions in this festschrift are important to help us understand the issues involved as well as the honoree himself.
The following selected reviews are taken from Stanley Hauerwas’, Ed Sanders’, James Dunn’s, N. T. Wright’s and Sara Hays Coomer’s contributions.
The festschrift begins with a reflection from Hays' colleague, Stanley Hauerwas, on the issue concerning hermeneutics and scripture reading (pp. 1-19). Without a doubt, Hays' art of scripture reading is extraordinary (p. 543). Hauerwas views Hays' approach in reading and interpreting scripture as very strict and less contextual. Such a comment is expected since Hays is a Biblicist while Hauerwas is not (though he now claims that he is a biblical scholar upon the completion of his 2006 commentary on Matthew in the BTCB Series). Hauerwas expresses his worry that hermeneutics can become too theoretical and less contextual (p.2). In appreciating of John Howard Yoder's work, Hauerwas seems to view the Bible as a 'means' to confront the contemporary context of our world. Hauerwas is not against Hays' approaches and interpretation methodologies of the Bible. He only warns that such approaches may place the Bible far from the real needs of the world. Hauerwas notices the importance of building a bridge between hermeneutics and theology to avoid an isolated reading and interpretation of scripture.
Ed. P. Sanders also contributes to the classic issue of the development of Paul's thought and theology. In his essay, 'Did Paul's theology develop?' (pp. 325-350), Sanders lucidly explains the development of Paul's theology by using three significant terms: consistency, coherence, and systematic. Sanders carefully analyzes the meaning of the three words and argues that (1) Paul was not ‘systematic’ in that he did not write a systematic theology book (p. 326); (2) Paul was consistent in his theological view, but he was not too consistent in practical level. According to Sanders, there is at least one instance where Paul was inconsistent and Sanders shows this by comparing 1 Cor 11.5 and 14.33-34. For Sanders, inconsistency at the practical level is something that is not unnatural. In page 326, Sanders strongly says that perfect consistency is inhuman mainly because the context is always changing. In Sanders’ viewpoint, Paul thought from solution to problem rather than the reverse (p. 327). In other words, Sanders seems to place context as something that heavily drives Paul's theology; (3) Paul's thought is coherent. Paul's thought operates on two principles: (a) The God of Israel is the God of the whole world. He called out the Jewish people, brought them out of bondage, and gave them the law. Nevertheless, all creation is His. (b) In later days, God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to save the whole world from the wrath to come regardless of whether the person is Jewish or not (p. 328). Sanders believes that Paul's statements are heavily dependent on these two principles.
In pp. 330ff, Sanders tries to build his argument based on Douglas Campbell's monograph, The Quest for Paul's Gospel: A Suggested Strategy (London: T&T Clark, 2005). According to Campbell's argument, Sanders seems to be anti-theological, anti-rational, and anti-systematic, to which Sanders disagrees. For Sanders, Paul was a splendid creative theologian (p. 331). According to Sanders, Campbell uses the terms ‘systematic, coherence, and consistency’ without paying enough attention to the fact that each word has its own distinctive meaning. Despite the differences, it is interesting to read what Sanders says: 'Campbell's own view of Paul's theology is not all that different from mine' (p. 332).
Another notable contributor is James D. G. Dunn who is unquestionably one of the most productive New Testament scholars. Dunn has a long history of debate and friendship with Hays. This is seen in Dunn's essay which is both personal and academic (pp. 351-366). In it, Dunn disagrees with Hays on the interpretation of phrase 'the faith of Christ Jesus' (pistis Christou). The disagreement stretches back seventeen years and involves numerous articles and monographs. Dunn recognizes that Hays' position is persuasive as many younger scholars are in Hays’ side. Some senior scholars, such as Leander Keck, J. L. Martyn, and Morna Hooker, have also been persuaded by Hays' interpretation. This goes to show how influential Hays' interpretation is in the world of New Testament scholarship (p. 352)
According to Hays, the phrase pistis Christou should be translated as 'the faithfulness of Christ.' Christ is the subject; thus Christ is faithful (to die on the cross). The faithfulness of Christ is the prime cause of salvation. Dunn and the majority of German scholars offer a different interpretation which is along the traditional line. Dunn believes that pistis Christou should be understood as 'we have faith in Christ.' This is the ground of human salvation: we have faith in Christ.
The formerly Bishop of Durham, N. T. Wright, writes on the issue of virtue in relation to faith (pp. 472-497). By bringing virtue closer to faith, Wright is building a bridge between the two extreme poles of faith and work. This is a classical issue which has been discussed for many years by both Wright and Hays.
The final essay to note is the public personal testimony written by Hays' daughter, Sara (pp. 646-648). Sara tells us that Hays has always been a caring father who loves her very much. Though Hays brought Sara up in Christian tradition from her childhood, Sara decides to hold a different religious view as she wants to be honest to herself. Hays does not force Sara to follow his religious view but actually encourages her to continue to search for the truth. It is not a normal trend to include a personal testimony like this in a festschrift, but from my perspective, this significantly adds value to the festschrift. Readers are thus invited not only to know about Hays' academic achievements, but also his life as a Christian and as a loving father to his daughter.
The focus of the festschrift is rather lacking, but it is understandable, especially because Hays is influential in so many areas in Biblical studies. The various topics included in this festschrift in fact shows how wide Hays' contributions have been. The names of the contributors to this festschrift show how influential Hays has been among other biblical scholars. The high quality of the essays will appeal to those who love biblical hermeneutics and ethics; those who search for the meaning of faith; those who seriously study the relationship between the Old and the New Testament; those who love literature; and those who want to know Hays and his work better.
The list of contributors includes his friend George Hobson who wrote a poem entitled 'For Richard Hays,' his daughter Sarah Hays Coomer who wrote a touching testimony on her amazing experience with her father and her unpredictable journey of faith, and his wife of more than 40 years, Judith Hays, who co-authored with Hays on 'The Christian Practice of Growing Old' at the end of the book. The rest of the contributors are former students, colleagues, and New Testament scholars. Six contributors are from the United Kingdom: five of them reside in Durham, the other being Markus Bockmuehl of Oxford . Four of these five scholars are associated with the Department of Religion and Theology at the University of Durham. The Durham group is made up of James D. G. Dunn, John M. G. Barclay, Walter Moberly, Francis Watson, and Nicholas T. Wright. Two other contributors are from the Catholic University, Notre Dame, while another three come from Fuller at Pasadena. More than one third of the contributors are Hays' colleagues at Duke.
The contributions span a range of issues like hermeneutics, the relationship between the Old and the New Testament, ethics, and Pauline theology. The resources used in the essays cover the canonical literature, the apocrypha, as well as ancient and classic literature. Some of the issues raised have been a long standing debate in the area of New Testament studies, for example, the issue and interpretation of 'the faith of Christ' is discussed by James D. G. Dunn. This issue has been an on-going point of debate between Dunn and Hays since 1991. Ed Sanders' essay on the development of Paul's theology moves into another area exemplifying the classic tension between the conservative wing and the liberal wing. N. T. Wright's proposal on virtue as the direct implication or definition of faith is another example of reaching a conclusion after years of discussion and debate. The length of the book does not permit a comprehensive review of all the essays and only a few can be highlighted here. Some of the contributions in this festschrift are important to help us understand the issues involved as well as the honoree himself.
The following selected reviews are taken from Stanley Hauerwas’, Ed Sanders’, James Dunn’s, N. T. Wright’s and Sara Hays Coomer’s contributions.
The festschrift begins with a reflection from Hays' colleague, Stanley Hauerwas, on the issue concerning hermeneutics and scripture reading (pp. 1-19). Without a doubt, Hays' art of scripture reading is extraordinary (p. 543). Hauerwas views Hays' approach in reading and interpreting scripture as very strict and less contextual. Such a comment is expected since Hays is a Biblicist while Hauerwas is not (though he now claims that he is a biblical scholar upon the completion of his 2006 commentary on Matthew in the BTCB Series). Hauerwas expresses his worry that hermeneutics can become too theoretical and less contextual (p.2). In appreciating of John Howard Yoder's work, Hauerwas seems to view the Bible as a 'means' to confront the contemporary context of our world. Hauerwas is not against Hays' approaches and interpretation methodologies of the Bible. He only warns that such approaches may place the Bible far from the real needs of the world. Hauerwas notices the importance of building a bridge between hermeneutics and theology to avoid an isolated reading and interpretation of scripture.
Ed. P. Sanders also contributes to the classic issue of the development of Paul's thought and theology. In his essay, 'Did Paul's theology develop?' (pp. 325-350), Sanders lucidly explains the development of Paul's theology by using three significant terms: consistency, coherence, and systematic. Sanders carefully analyzes the meaning of the three words and argues that (1) Paul was not ‘systematic’ in that he did not write a systematic theology book (p. 326); (2) Paul was consistent in his theological view, but he was not too consistent in practical level. According to Sanders, there is at least one instance where Paul was inconsistent and Sanders shows this by comparing 1 Cor 11.5 and 14.33-34. For Sanders, inconsistency at the practical level is something that is not unnatural. In page 326, Sanders strongly says that perfect consistency is inhuman mainly because the context is always changing. In Sanders’ viewpoint, Paul thought from solution to problem rather than the reverse (p. 327). In other words, Sanders seems to place context as something that heavily drives Paul's theology; (3) Paul's thought is coherent. Paul's thought operates on two principles: (a) The God of Israel is the God of the whole world. He called out the Jewish people, brought them out of bondage, and gave them the law. Nevertheless, all creation is His. (b) In later days, God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to save the whole world from the wrath to come regardless of whether the person is Jewish or not (p. 328). Sanders believes that Paul's statements are heavily dependent on these two principles.
In pp. 330ff, Sanders tries to build his argument based on Douglas Campbell's monograph, The Quest for Paul's Gospel: A Suggested Strategy (London: T&T Clark, 2005). According to Campbell's argument, Sanders seems to be anti-theological, anti-rational, and anti-systematic, to which Sanders disagrees. For Sanders, Paul was a splendid creative theologian (p. 331). According to Sanders, Campbell uses the terms ‘systematic, coherence, and consistency’ without paying enough attention to the fact that each word has its own distinctive meaning. Despite the differences, it is interesting to read what Sanders says: 'Campbell's own view of Paul's theology is not all that different from mine' (p. 332).
Another notable contributor is James D. G. Dunn who is unquestionably one of the most productive New Testament scholars. Dunn has a long history of debate and friendship with Hays. This is seen in Dunn's essay which is both personal and academic (pp. 351-366). In it, Dunn disagrees with Hays on the interpretation of phrase 'the faith of Christ Jesus' (pistis Christou). The disagreement stretches back seventeen years and involves numerous articles and monographs. Dunn recognizes that Hays' position is persuasive as many younger scholars are in Hays’ side. Some senior scholars, such as Leander Keck, J. L. Martyn, and Morna Hooker, have also been persuaded by Hays' interpretation. This goes to show how influential Hays' interpretation is in the world of New Testament scholarship (p. 352)
According to Hays, the phrase pistis Christou should be translated as 'the faithfulness of Christ.' Christ is the subject; thus Christ is faithful (to die on the cross). The faithfulness of Christ is the prime cause of salvation. Dunn and the majority of German scholars offer a different interpretation which is along the traditional line. Dunn believes that pistis Christou should be understood as 'we have faith in Christ.' This is the ground of human salvation: we have faith in Christ.
The formerly Bishop of Durham, N. T. Wright, writes on the issue of virtue in relation to faith (pp. 472-497). By bringing virtue closer to faith, Wright is building a bridge between the two extreme poles of faith and work. This is a classical issue which has been discussed for many years by both Wright and Hays.
The final essay to note is the public personal testimony written by Hays' daughter, Sara (pp. 646-648). Sara tells us that Hays has always been a caring father who loves her very much. Though Hays brought Sara up in Christian tradition from her childhood, Sara decides to hold a different religious view as she wants to be honest to herself. Hays does not force Sara to follow his religious view but actually encourages her to continue to search for the truth. It is not a normal trend to include a personal testimony like this in a festschrift, but from my perspective, this significantly adds value to the festschrift. Readers are thus invited not only to know about Hays' academic achievements, but also his life as a Christian and as a loving father to his daughter.
The focus of the festschrift is rather lacking, but it is understandable, especially because Hays is influential in so many areas in Biblical studies. The various topics included in this festschrift in fact shows how wide Hays' contributions have been. The names of the contributors to this festschrift show how influential Hays has been among other biblical scholars. The high quality of the essays will appeal to those who love biblical hermeneutics and ethics; those who search for the meaning of faith; those who seriously study the relationship between the Old and the New Testament; those who love literature; and those who want to know Hays and his work better.
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