What Is New Testament Theology? (Guides to Biblical Scholarship New Testament Series)
The "Guides to Biblical Scholarship" series aims to provide a popular presentation of major issues and developments in recent biblical scholarship. Here, Via (emeritus, Duke Divinity Sch.; The Ethics of Mark's Gospel) has written an updated version of a book of the same name by Hendrickus Boers that appeared in the series in 1979. Via examines major advances since then in the debate concerning the nature and structure of New Testament theology, especially regarding historical criticism, literary criticism, and existential interpretation. An introductory chapter discusses the contribution made by Boers's book, and Chapters 2 through 7 follow the same basic structure: Via presents a succinct overview of a significant issue (e.g., the objectivity of historical criticism, historical vs. hermeneutical structure, postmodernist interpretations) followed by a usually very brief but thorough overview of a dizzying array of contemporary scholars' contributions. At the end of each chapter, he summarizes the main issues and offers his evaluation. While constituting impressive scholarship, this book assumes too much of a general reader. It is geared to clergy or college students and is not recommended for public library purchase. Charlie Murray, C.S.S., Fordham Univ., NYCopyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.