Thomas H. Olbricht – författare

All the essays in the collection focus on ethos and rhetoric. Biblical criticism as traditionally carried out seeks rigorous scrutiny of texts and backgrounds but fails to reflect upon the sociopolitical frameworks, cultural-religious implications, and symbolic universes of biblical texts and their interpretations. These essays argue that biblical critics need a more profound sense of critical rhetoric and ethic of inquiry to bring about a change in the ethos and ethics of biblical studies. Topics range from "the ethical appeal of the Chronicler" and "gendering moral discourse in Paul" to the "undercover ethos of Paul, God's double agent." Contributors include Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza, Rodney K. Duke, Anders Eriksson, Manfred Kraus, John W. Marshall, J. David Hester-Amador, Carol Poster, Thomas H. Olbricht, Roy Jeal, Frederick J. Long, Mark D. Given, Todd Penner, Russell B. Sisson, Troy Martin, Johan S. Vos, Rollin Ramsaran, Jerry L. Sumney, Walter Übelacker, Vernon K. Robbins

In the latest volume in the Emory Studies in Early Christianity series, the contributors seek a better understanding of how various biblical authors present their arguments, support their claims, and attempt to persuade their readers.A century ago the rhetorical analysis of texts focused on the study of rhetorical figures in texts (elocutio). In the mid-twentieth century, scholars such as James Muilenburg, Hans Dieter Betz, and Wilhelm Wuellner introduced biblical scholars to the illustrious tradition of rhetorical study. These scholars tended to focus on the arrangement of the texts themselves (dispositio).During the last ten years, however, interpreters have increasingly studied the rhetorical argumentation in texts. The authors in this volume examine rhetorical argumentation in the Hebrew Bible, the Gospels, the Pauline letters, and the Book of Revelation, offering striking new readings of these materials.Contributors include: J. David Hester (Amador), Center for Rhetoric and Hermeneutics; R. Dean Anderson, Valkenburg, The Netherlands; Harold W. Attridge, Yale Divinity School; L. Gregory Bloomquist, St. Paul University, Ottawa; Michael R. Cosby, Messiah College; Rodney K. Duke, Appalachian State University; Frans H. van Eemeren, University of Amsterdam; Anders Eriksson, Lund University; Alan J. Hauser, Appalachian State University; Roy R. Jeal, William and Catherine Booth College; Manfred Kraus, Eberhard-Karls-Universität, Tübingen; John W. Marshall, University of Toronto; Roland Meynet, Pontificia Università Gregoriana; Thomas H. Olbricht, Emeritus, Pepperdine University; Carol Poster, Florida State University; Rollin A. Ramsaran, Emmanuel School of Religion; Vernon K. Robbins, Emory University and University of Stellenbosch; Russell B. Sisson, Union College; Jerry L. Sumney, Lexington Theological Seminary; C. Jan Swearingen, Texas A & M; Lauri Thurén, Univeristy of Joensuu; Johan S. Vos, Vrije Universiteit; and Duane F. Watson, Malone College.

This is the third in a series of conference papers on rhetorical criticism. Held in July 1995 in London, the conference included participants from the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Germany, Italy, Switzerland and the Republic of South Africa. Part I is concerned with the past, present and future of rhetorical analysis; Parts II, III and IV are concerned with rhetorical analysis of scriptural texts; and Part V provides a conclusion reflecting on a number of questions raised in Part I. Most of the participants would characterize themselves as advocates of rhetorical criticism; but there were others less convinced that rhetorical criticism is developing as it ought.

What role did classical rhetoric play in the writing of the New Testament? What role does classical and modern rhetoric play in interpreting the New Testament today? What role should classical and modern rhetoric play in New Testament interpretation? These and related questions are asked in this collection of over twenty essays originally delivered as papers at the 1992 Heidelberg Conference on Rhetorical Criticism of Biblical Documents. This conference, the first of several scheduled to address fundamental rhetorical issues of increasing importance in New Testament study, drew scholars from three continents and over fourteen countries, making it a truly international scholarly event and this a truly cosmopolitan publication. The authors'' varying contexts resulted in a lively and challenging discussion well reflected in this volume''s essays. The first part discusses rhetoric in the light of extended interpretation of a variety of New Testament texts. Luke and Acts, most of Paul''s letters, and other New Testament documents are scrutinized using various rhetorical categories. In the second part, questions of rhetoric and methodology are raised. New approaches are tested in a number of essays that push the boundaries of traditional rhetorical study. These essays provide an excellent sampling of some of the major work being done in rhetorical study of the New Testament and suggest several avenues for future research.

Rhetoric, Scripture and Theology aptly describe the contents of this collection of essays from the 1994 Pretoria Rhetoric Conference. The conference marked a significant dialogue among scholars gathered from many nations to consider how rhetoric engages with the study of scripture and theology. South Africa provided a suitable context for such discussion. Although the contributors are not only from South Africa, the addressing of issues pertinent to a South African context shows through in many of the essays. Those that do not address particularly South African issues raise equally important issues regarding the topic of rhetoric and its relation to contemporary theological discourse.

Composed in 1809 in order to organize and direct a loosely assembled network of Scots-Irish Presbyterians on the Western Pennsylvania frontier, the Declaration and Address of the Christian Association of Washington never quite achieved the immediate objectives that compelled its composition. Yet the document's lofty vision of a unified Christian Church, restored to the peace and purity that the New Testament had preached and promised, has for generations fueled the imagination and fired the commitment of millions of Christians worldwide—with, often, quite contradictory results. Emerging from the work of an international online seminar, this truly monumental volume presents a definitive text with critical apparatus for a landmark document in the history of American religion and worldwide Christian ecumenism, along with eighteen insightful, incisive studies of the document's historical provenance, its theological and ecclesiological significance, and its continuing influence.

In his fifty-three years, Michael W. Casey made an indelible impact upon all his academic friends in the United States, Great Britain, and elsewhere in the world. His thirty some years of research and publications were multinational. Mike was especially adept at looking into archival details on the numerous subjects that interested him in communication, Scripture, and history, especially as they focused upon Churches of Christ and the Stone-Campbell Movement. If a scholar ever believed that the grandest project depends on the accuracy of the smallest component, it was Mike Casey. He believed that words were enfleshed in concrete persons. All his studies recognized the persuasive powers of committed humans. The title for this volume, therefore, is And the Word Became Flesh. The essays in this volume are divided into three sections. Those in the first section are on Restoration History. The second section is on communication studies. And the final section contains essays on a specialty of Casey''s, conscientious objection, just war, and Christian peacemaking.

"We offer this collection as a token of our affection and admiration of our friend and colleague James Weldon Thompson. . . . His studies of the letter to the Hebrews and of Paul in their intellectual contexts (especially Middle Platonism) have contributed significantly to the ongoing quest for placing the New Testament in its socio-intellectual setting. Although his publications in this area date back more than thirty years, his best work is occurring now, and we may anticipate path-breaking contributions ahead. His more recent work on preaching and pastoral care in Paul both situate the Apostle in his own world and, just as importantly, offer correctives of some contemporary ministerial practices and invitations for improvements. Since 1993 Thompson has served as the editor of Restoration Quarterly, a significant venue for research in biblical studies, church history (especially of the Stone-Campbell Restoration Movement), and contemporary theology. His more popular works make available to a lay audience thoughtful, well-informed, and spiritually rewarding interpretations of much of the New Testament. "His achievements, however, do not end at the printing press. For more than thirty years, he has taught ministers and others at the Institute for Christian Studies (now Austin Graduate School of Theology) and Abilene Christian University. Students of the past and the present speak of him as a prepared, stimulating, and creative teacher unafraid of experimentation for a new generation of learners. At both institutions he also served as an administrator, first as President of ICS and then as Associate Dean of ACU''s Graduate School of Theology. His colleagues respect his ability to enlist them for work as needed and otherwise to get out of their way, certainly a too rare set of skills in university administrators!" --from the Preface

Thomas H. Olbricht relishes his Missouri upbringing. In this book he narrates the details of his many experiences in the 1930s and 40s. The author was interested in multiple aspects of Ozark terrain, social life, and culture, and often situates them in their historical setting. He writes with multifaceted concretion regarding the influence of his mother, father, and his extended family, which included persons of Irish, Scottish, and German heritages. He not only helped with his grandfather''s gas station-grocery but also his uncle''s farming operations. Because of his commitment and education he has given special attention to religious activities in the Churches of Christ in the Ozarks. He ends by elaborating upon, in the region of his youth, what it was like to live through World War II and the peace that followed.

These essays are presented by the family, friends, and colleagues of David Worley of blessed memory. David Worley was an extraordinary man of many talents and interests. David was born and raised in Texas, and was educated at Abilene Christian and Yale. Upon receiving a PhD in New Testament, he and his growing family moved to Austin, Texas, where he lived until his untimely death by cancer. David''s family owned a series of broadcasting stations. Over his lifetime he was interested in the media, venture capital investments, church life and music, and mission efforts in Russia, Africa, New Zealand, and elsewhere. He taught courses as an adjunct professor at various colleges and served as president of the Austin Graduate School of Theology and chairman of the board of the Institute of Theology and Christian Ministry, St. Petersburg, Russia. Even his close friends knew little of the magnitude of his activities. What was clear, however, was that he served one Lord--the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Nothing can be more challenging to a complacent life than these essays about the activities and commitments of David Worley.

Dr. Hopkins played major league baseball, became an orthopedic surgeon, and obtained graduate degrees in the sciences and Biblical Studies. He perceived his central commitment to be to Jesus Christ. He has served as an elder in Churches of Christ and on the board of Christian Colleges. Dr. Hopkins’ life is told by admiring relatives and friends.

Thomas H. Olbricht grew up in Churches of Christ, has taught in several of their universities, and has given religious lectures on six continents and in most states in the United States. He has met most leaders in Churches of Christ globally. He has been active in several religious and rhetoric societies and has worked with leaders in all these organizations to bring about changes over the past sixty years. C. Clifton Black and Duane F. Watson wrote about Olbricht, Tom Olbricht possesses a memory of elephantine proportions. Not only does he have at his fingertips the names and places and dates; better than most he understands how the study of rhetoric has flourished among, while cross-pollinating, multiple disciplines in the humanities, classics, English, speech communication, and religion.

This volume is the fifth in a series that explores the use of rhetoric in the study of biblical literature. Contributions from scholars in North America, Britain, Continental Europe and South Africa focus here on four major categories: The Theory of Rhetoric and Biblical Interpretation, Rhetorical Interpretation of Luke's Gospel and Acts, The Rhetorical Interpretation of Paul's Writings, and Rhetorical Interpretation of Hebrews and Ignatius. Author include Tom Olbricht, Douglas Campbell, Arthur Gibson, Craig Evans, Vernon Robbins, Greg Bloomquist, Pieter Botha, Paul Danove, Gerrie Snyman, Anders Eriksson, K. K. Yeo, Lauri Thuren, G. A. van den Heever, Marc Debanne, J. N Vorster, and the editors.