LITERARY FORMS IN THE SCRIPTURES



LITERARY FORMS IN THE SCRIPTURES

VOCABULARLY LIST

|TERM |DEFINITION |

|Apocalyptic | |

|Creed | |

|Epic | |

|Figurative | |

|Fundamentalism | |

|Gospel | |

|Law | |

|Legends | |

|Letter | |

|Literal | |

|Maxim | |

|Myth | |

|Narrative | |

|Parable | |

|Poetry | |

|Prophecy | |

|Sermon | |

|Speech | |

|Wisdom | |

| | |

LITERARY FORMS IN THE SCRIPTURES

Human experience recognizes that things can be true in many different ways. People also communicate these truths in many different ways. One way is writing. In everyday life people encounter many different forms of writing. For example, prose, poetry, newspapers, letters, songs, email, ads, etc. The writer will choose the best way at their disposal to tell others of an experience, and does so according to his or her mood, ability, audience and purpose.

EXERCISE:

Collect a range of literary forms in the newspaper provided such as movie reviews, letters, financial reports, etc. Analyse each of these identifying their key features, purpose, expected audience, style and basis (fact or opinion). Complete the table below:

| |EXAMPLE 1 |EXAMPLE 2 |EXAMPLE 3 |EXAMPLE 4 |EXAMPLE 5 |

|FORM | | | | | |

| | | | | | |

|FEATURES | | | | | |

| | | | | | |

|BASIS | | | | | |

| | | | | | |

|PURPOSE | | | | | |

| | | | | | |

|AUDIENCE | | | | | |

| | | | | | |

|STYLE | | | | | |

| | | | | | |

FORMS OF TRUTH

Provide other examples:

HISTORICAL

➢ World War One ended on 11 November 1918

➢

➢

MATHEMATICAL

➢ 1 + 1 = 2

➢

➢

SCIENTIFIC

➢ Theory of inertia

➢

➢

PROVERBIAL

➢ A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush

➢

➢

SYMBOLIC

➢ The cross symbolizes Christianity

➢

➢

MORAL

➢ You should not take other people’s property

➢

➢

RELIGIOUS

➢ Jesus rose from the dead

➢

➢

WHAT DOES THE CATHOLIC CHURCH SAY ABOUT TRUTH

IN THE BIBLE?

The Catholic Church teaches the divine inspiration of the Bible and its freedom from fundamental error. However, Biblical fundamentalism, unlike Catholic Biblical interpretation, pays no attention to literary form, human way of thought, language and figurative expressions found in Biblical texts. As a result, fundamentalism often confuses the divine substance of the Biblical message by separating the interpretation of the Scriptures from the tradition of the faith community.

Read Gen 1:1-9 and state what a Biblical fundamentalist would say about this story. What do you think the story is about?

The Importance of Literary Form

Biblical Interpretation in the Christian Churches

Taken from: The Bible in the Churches: how various Christians interpret the Scriptures. Ed. Kenneth Hagen, 2nd edition, Milwauke, Wisconsin: Marquette University Press, 1994.

Catholic

Biblical scholars must note the literary form, look for intended meaning, consider customary and characteristic patterns of perception, speech and narrative that prevail at the time of the writer and cultural conventions.

Orthodox

Scripture is liturgical and experienced primarily as a liturgical celebration other than in private readings and study. It is from the liturgical context that the Bible primarily gets its meaning.

Lutheran (Protestant)

The Bible is the final authority and is read in its literal sense. Scripture can only be interpreted within the Church. There are ‘five slogans’: Christ alone, Grace alone, Faith alone, Cross alone, Scripture alone.

Evangelical

Scripture alone must dictate our faith. Biblical interpretation does exist, though a more literal reading is the norm.

KINDS OF WRITING IN THE BIBLE

The Bible contains many different kinds of writing. In order to understand a particular piece of writing, the reader must be aware of the literary form being used. This is simply the type of writing an author uses, distinguished by form and structure. In the Bible, God communicates through the written word and this written word takes on many forms. However,

❖ the Bible has only one story to tell:

The acts of God in human history

❖ the Bible has only one purpose:

To teach people about God

LITERARY FORMS IN THE BIBLE

|FORM |DEFINITION |EXAMPLE |REFERENCE |

|Creeds | | |Deut 26:5-10 |

| | | | |

| | | |1 Cor 15:1-8 |

|History | | |2 Sam 9-20 |

| | | | |

| | | |Joshua |

|Laws | | |Ex 20-27 |

| | | |Lev 11 |

| | | |Deut 5 |

|Legends | | |Gen 13: |

| | | | |

|Letters | | |Titus and |

| | | |1 and 2 Tim |

|Maxims | | | |

| | | |Pro 10 |

|Myth | |Creation PBC comment |Gen 6-9 |

| | | |Gen1:1-2:25 |

|Narrative | | |Lk 1:5-2:52 |

| | | |Mk 14:1-15:47 |

| | | |Acts |

|Parables | | |Lk 5:4-7 |

| | | |Mt 25:1-13 |

|Poetry | | |Psalms |

| | | |Phil 2:6-11 |

| | | |Wisdom |

|Prophecy | | | |

| | | | |

|Sermons | | |Js 23:2-16 |

| | | |Mt 5 |

|Speeches | | |Jud 9:7-20 |

| | | |Acts 2:14-36 |

|Wisdom | | |Wis 19:13-17 |

| | | |Wis 3:1-13 |

LITERARY MYTH

Myths are stories that tell of popular beliefs, ideas, persons or things. In the Scriptures, myths communicate basic and eternal truths about God and humanity. The setting of the action is often ‘before’ time as we know it (prehistory) and in a world marked by very different relationships between gods, people, animals and nature. Biblical examples include the Creation (Gen 2:4b-3:24) and the Flood (Gen 6:1-9:28). See also the Epic of Gilgamesh.

Write or find a myth that interests you.

COMPARISON OF THE BABYLONIAN AND

HEBREW FLOOD STORIES

Read Gen 6-9 and complete the table below:

|GILGAMESH EPIC |THE STORY OF NOAH |

|The gods plan to destroy humans because they have gone astray | |

|The god Ea warns Utnapishtim to build a boat and use pitch | |

|Every species of animal and of skilled craftsmen are to be saved, as well as | |

|his family | |

|The flood comes and destroys all life from the earth | |

|The waters subside slowly and Utnapishtim sends out a dove, swallow and raven | |

|The boat comes to rest on the top of Mt Nisir | |

|Utnapishtim builds an altar and sacrifices to the gods | |

|The gods smell the sweet odor | |

|Enlil is reconciled with Utnapishtim and repents of his rash decision to | |

|destroy the earth | |

|Enlil blesses Utnapishtim and his wife with immortality on the far western | |

|isles | |

A great flood is common to many ancient cultures. In 1872 the Epic of Gilgamesh was revealed to the world. A Babylonian myth that contains a flood story, it has become popular and influential since 2000-1000BCE. On a search for immortality, Gilgamesh comes across Utnapishtim who tells Gilgamesh the story of the flood and how the gods had specially blessed him for his role in saving humanity. Early models of the same story are known from about 2000BCE in Sumeria, and the setting is always somewhere in Mesopotamia, so that there is no question that the biblical account is a development or offshoot from the Babylonian. In the case of a flood, it is seen as a chance to renew or recreate as everything is washed clean by the waters. Where Israel’s vision was unique was in its understanding of God. Israel affirms a God who is always the same, always faithful, always just and always loving toward the creatures he has made. He punishes only for clear moral evil, and he is quick to forgive. The flood, then is symbolic of a rejection of sin that implies conversion, to and reconciliation with, God. In Gen 9, a new world order and return to original blessing and command. God makes a berit olam – an everlasting covenant, and the rainbow is a symbol of this (Gen 9:12-17).

EPIC

These are stories about heroes and/or heroines. Biblical epics are stories about crucial events and people in salvation history. Biblical examples include Abraham, Moses, Joshua and Samson.

THE LIFE OF SAMSON

SAMSON’S BIRTH

( (13:12)

( (13:14)

( (13:15)

SAMSON’S MARRIAGE

( (14:2)

( (14:4)

( (14:8)

SAMSON’S COMBAT

( (15:2)

( (15:7)

( (15:9-20)

SAMSON’S DEATH

( (16:4, 15)

( (16:17, 21)

( (16:22, 28, 30-31)

EXERCISE FOR STUDENTS:

Samson’s birth was foretold. A prior announcement tells of a very special mission. Can you think of any other people in Christian Scriptures whose birth has been foretold?

SAMSON, SIN AND LENT

Samson is presented as one who falls outside the behavioural norms of Israelite society. While Samson is motivated by personal vengeance, it is often concluded that his heroic death transcends the sins of his life. Samson’s questionable morality also can be seen to be superseded by his heroic death. Sin and its consequences are important themes of the Lenten period. Penance is the expression of our repentance for sin.

TYPES OF POETRY

Poetry is elevated expression of thought or feeling in metrical form. In the Scriptures, poetry occurs mainly in the book of Psalms. This is not to say poetry is not to be found in other books. In fact, poetry is used throughout the Old and the New Testaments:

❑ Lyric poetry is song-like, light, easy and flowing

❑ Dramatic poetry tells a story and is often quite solemn

❑ Songs and hymns are found in the Song of Songs book of the Bible

❑ Didactic poetry is instructional, for example many of the proverbs.

CHARACTERISTICS OF HEBREW POETRY

Poetry that is found in the Hebrew Scriptures comes from an oral/aural people. In other words, this Hebrew poetry is designed to be spoken and to be heard. Because of this oral tradition, the words used and the way things are said is very important. Therefore, there are a few distinctive characteristics for Hebrew poetry:

❑ Parallelism: this is where lines/words/phrases balance each other.

Importantly, THIS IS NOT MERE REPETITION

eg: Hab 2:1

❑ Sounds: this is largely lost in the translation from Hebrew, but includes

alliteration and word play

❑ Imagery: this is a particular use of simile and metaphor (and what

largely distinguishes poetry from prose)

eg: Hos 14:6 (Sim) and Is 5:1-7 (Met)

❑ Metre/Rhythm: rhythm is a flow of sounds, patterned, repeatable. Metre is

measured, ordered rhythm. Hebrew poetry uses rhythmic patterns

rather than metre, which is a Greek/English emphasis

eg: Hos 10:1

Hebrew poetry has no real rhyme, except by accident (it would be the nature of the beat rather than the design of the poet). It is, then, the rhythm and the parallelism that we are looking for.

LYRIC POETRY AND PSALM 137

The word psalm is derived from the Greek word meaning ‘song’. The Hebrew title Tehillim means hymns or songs of praise. Psalm 137 is a prayer of the community for God to destroy its oppressors and enemies. It refers to the Babylonian Exile.

Read the Ps 137 and answer the questions below:

1. Can you see any examples of parallelism?

2. What are the key points of the poem?

3. What do you think the poet is trying to say?

Now listen to the psalm as it is sung and read the lyrics.

4. Is the parallelism maintained? Give examples.

5. What is the message? Is it the same?

THEMES OF THE PSALMS

Read each of the psalms in the table below, and state which type of psalm they are.

|THEME |PSALM NUMBER |

| |42 |

| |63 |

| |66 |

| |110 |

Psalm 22: The Sufferings and hope of the virtuous man

1. Psalm 22 is an individual lament. Give an example from the psalm that shows this.

2. Read Ps 22:1. Which person in the New Testament uses this line? When? Give the N.T. references

Proverbs

Choose any three of the proverbs listed below and explain how they ‘ring true’ (or otherwise) when you reflect on your past experiences or someone else’s experience that you are familiar with.

← Pro 10:4

← Pro 11:22-24

← Pro 12:1

← Pro 13:11

← Pro 14:30

← Pro 15:23

← Pro 17:22

← Pro 27:19

PSALM 23: THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD

Psalm 23 is a psalm of confidence in that it expresses trust in God’s love and help. This psalm is reflective of the Lenten themes of hope and new life as well as purification and joyfulness.

Read the psalm and answer the question.

1. How does the psalm specifically reflect the themes of lent?

PROPHECY

Prophecy simply refers to the preachings of the prophets in written form. The prophet’s role was to remind the people about the importance of keeping the covenant and they appeared when the Jewish people no longer saw Yahweh as the central focus in their lives. The prophet’s central message concerned righteousness – a blend of compassion and justice.

It is important to realize that the Israelite prophet did not focus on predicting the future! They were speaking God’s word for the present and when they did speak of the future it was usually about the consequences that could come out of the present behaviour and policies. They were charismatic figures receiving their ministry from God, and not from inheritance or political appointment.

The classical Israelite prophets:

← Experienced a call by God (eg: Amos 7:14-16)

← Did not belong to professional bands of prophets who inherited the role, nor were they political appointments

← Were ‘forthtellers’ rather than foretellers

← Spoke God’s word that they received, not their own message

The Israelite prophet became like a conscience of the nation, reminding the whole people of their covenant relationship with God.

40 DAYS OF LENT

The forty days of Lent commemorate the significant ‘forty’ periods in Scripture. The story of Jonah is but one example. Jonah preached to Nineveh that God’s judgment would come to them in forty days. During that time the people repented and thus were spared God’s judgment:

‘Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, ”Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on a sackcloth…When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.’

(Jon 3:4-5, 10)

There are many examples of 40 being used in a symbolic way in the Old Testament. Can you think of 3 others?

1.

2.

3.

There are also examples of 40 being used in a symbolic way in the New Testament. Can you think of three examples here?

1.

2.

3.

LITERARY FROMS IN THE GOSPELS

Within the literary form of the gospel are contained many other literary forms influenced by both Greek and Hebrew literature. The evangelist to communicate something of the mystery of the divine and the human revealed in Jesus, the Christ, uses each form.

Some of the literary forms are listed in the box below. Complete the box by listing examples from the Gospels where appropriate.

Announcement stories

These stories foretell something. In the case of the Gospels, the announcement stories foretell the birth of both John the Baptist ( ) and Jesus himself( ).

Narratives

Each evangelist constructs the narrative or story, in a unique way from various sources. Within these narratives the identity and mission of Jesus are developed. Examples of types of narrative include: infancy (eg: ) and passion (eg: ).

Genealogies

Luke’s genealogy ( ) relates Jesus to Adam and so to all of humanity;

Matthew’s ( ) relates Jesus to the great patriarch Abraham, and to David, the King who established the Kingdom of Israel.

Miracles

Miracles show the power of Jesus as a divine being and point to the Kingdom of God. The miracles of Jesus were usually either a command over nature ( ), a healing miracle

( ) or an exorcism ( ).

Parables

Jesus’ parables vary from sayings to brief stories. Through the use of parables, the prophetic Jesus challenged hypocrisy, prejudice and injustice. His vision of the reign of God is expressed in parables. List three examples of parables:

Sermons

Many of Jesus’ teachings have been gathered together in ‘sermons’ such as the Sermon on the Mount (Mt ). List five of the topics and issues that Jesus addressed during this sermon:

LENTEN THEMES IN THE GOSPELS

In the Sermon on the Mount, located in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus makes comment on almsgiving, prayer and fasting. Read Mt 6:1-18. What does Jesus say about how each of these should be done?

Fasting, particularly, demonstrates this inner conversion to God. Fasting has a long history in the Christian tradition.

LETTERS

A letter is a written communication. They were used in the early Christian community to teach, instruct, reassure and guide, especially in reference to Jesus’ teachings. The majority of Letters in the New Testament were either written by or have been attributed to St Paul. Paul’s letters are named after the people or the community to whom they are addressed and contain inspired reflections on various aspects of Christian faith and practice including Christian freedom in Christ and the Jewish Law. Paul’s letters also follow the Greco-Roman letter writing style of the time.

PAULINE LETTERS AND THE

GRECO-ROMAN STRUCTURE

The structure of the Greco-Roman letter was:

← Address and Greeting

← Thanksgiving prayer

← Exposition of teaching

← Exhortation

← Salutation

← Final blessing

We can see this structure quite clearly in Paul’s Letter to the Romans:

← Address and Greeting

Rom 1:1-7

← Thanksgiving prayer

Rom 1:8-15

← Exposition of teaching

Rom 1:16-11:36

← Exhortation

Rom 12:1-15:33

← Salutation

Rom 16:1-23

← Final blessing

Rom 16:25-27

St Paul’s Letters to the Romans and the Hebrews

Read Rom 13:14.

1. What is Paul saying about fasting?

2. How is this linked to Jesus Christ?

Now read Heb 5:8.

3. How is suffering linked to lent and, specifically, fasting?

4. How does this practice of fasting reflect the Lenten themes of inner conversion, of repentance and hope (you may wish to refer to Mt 6:16-18).

DREAMS AND THE SCRIPTURES

In the Bible we find the dreams of prisoners, patriarchs and pharaohs together with the visions of prophets. Interpreting dreams and visions is a little like decoding cryptic messages, in so far as we need to know the meaning of the Jewish symbols and images used.

In the book of Daniel, the prophet interprets the dreams of the king of Babylon as a message of hope to persecuted Jewish people. In his first dream, four beasts represent four great empires that dominated the Near East. The vision also speaks of an ‘Ancient One’ who judged and destroyed these kingdoms and ‘one like a human being coming with the clouds of heaven’ to whom was given authority, glory and power in an everlasting kingdom. The writers of the Christian Scriptures believed Jesus to be the ‘Son of Man’ described in this visionary dream, and the kingdom he preached to be the one established by God.

The last book of the Christian Bible is the Book of Revelation, or the Apocalypse. The dreams and visions of the prophet John, its author, again offer hope to persecuted Christians in the first century after Jesus’ death and resurrection. This book is filled with bizarre images including a baby eating dragon, beasts, plagues, angels, golden lampstands and coloured horses, to name but a few. Knowing, for example, that Jesus is the Lamb or that 666 refers to one of the Roman emperors, helps the reader to begin to interpret the text.

Read the Introduction to the Book of Revelation.

1. Why was the Book of Revelation written?

2. What is the main theme or message of the Book?

Read the following references in the Book of Revelation and decide how a Catholic might interpret them and how a fundamentalist might interpret them. To do this, complete the table below. You have been provided with a clue.

|REFERENCE |CATHOLIC INTERPRETATION |LITERAL INTERPRETATION |

|Rev 13:1-3 |Clue: Roman Empire | |

| | | |

| | | |

|Rev 20:7-10 |Clue: Victory over evil | |

| | | |

| | | |

|Rev21:1-2, 5-6 |Clue: Hope | |

| | | |

| | | |

WASHING OF THE FEET

Read Jn 13:1-20.

It was once commonly held that the John who wrote the Gospel, the John who wrote the Letters, and the John who wrote the Book of Revelation was the same person. While the opinion of Biblical scholars today is that these are three different people, their connection through a common name remains.

In the Gospel of John the reader will not find a Last Supper narrative. Instead of the institution of the Eucharist (John 6 Theology of the Eucharist) you will read about Jesus washing the feet of his disciples. In the times of Jesus, washing of the feet was a task even the slaves did not have to perform. Therefore, it is not something the disciples would have expected from their 'master' (as they saw Jesus).

Peter misunderstands Jesus thinking that this is just another purification ritual. Jesus explains the real meaning of the action: as an act of love – Jesus was sent to manifest the love of God by giving his life in service of others. It is an act of humility on the part of Jesus and portrays him very much as the servant. By doing this for the disciples, Jesus is showing/teaching them how he wants them to live when he is no longer with them. Jesus encourages his disciples to do as he has by loving one another and giving their lives to the service of others. In other words, he wants them to be servants - of each other and of God.

This is the reading from the Gospel at the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday. Re-read the Gospel passage.

Reflection:

1. What does this reading say to you?

2. Have you ever had someone serve you? How did you feel?

3. Have you ever served another person? What was it like? How did you feel?

4. What do you think Jesus means by saying to serve one another?

5. How is the author using the phrase ‘not all of you are clean’?

TOPIC TEST – LITERARY FORMS

SECTION 1: DEFINITIONS

1. Define the following terms:

Myth

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Epic

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Parable

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Apocalyptic

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Letter

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

SECTION 2: TRUTHS

2. Give an example of the following types of truth:

Mathematical:________________________________________________________

Historical: ________________________________________________________

Scientific: ________________________________________________________

Religious: ________________________________________________________

Proverbial: ________________________________________________________

SECTION 3: SCRIPTURAL INTERPRETATION

3. Read the excerpt of the Sydney Morning Herald article and answer the questions:

What is the term given to how these people are reading the Scriptures?

_____________________________________________________________________

What does the Catholic Church say about reading the Bible?

_____________________________________________________________________

4. Read 1 Sam 31:4 and Jud 9:54 and highlight the difficulties these verses raise for an individual who has a literal reading of the Scriptures.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

SECTION 4: LITERARY FORMS

5.

SECTION 5: LITERARY FORMS IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

6. Read Ex 14:15-15:1

What type of literary form is this?

_____________________________________________________________________

What are some of the visual details that are conveyed that demonstrates the emotion of the people of God and the terror of the Egyptians?

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

What is the mood of the excerpt?

_____________________________________________________________________

Does it change within the reading?

_____________________________________________________________________

What promise does God make to Moses?

_____________________________________________________________________

What must Moses do in return?

_____________________________________________________________________

What does this story tell us about how God’s promise to save His people will be fulfilled?

_____________________________________________________________________

7. The Book of Genesis contains examples of the literary form known as?

_____________________________________________________________________

8. In Ps 23, we have an example of?

_____________________________________________________________________

9. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea and Daniel were all?

_____________________________________________________________________

10. The Book of Proverbs applies God-based common sense to everyday life. Ecclesiastes is about suffering and the meaning of life. The literary form of these books is?

_____________________________________________________________________

11. Lev 12:1-4 is an example of?

_____________________________________________________________________

SECTION 6: LITERARY FORMS IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

12.

13. In the New Testament, there are four?

_____________________________________________________________________

14. Paul, James, Peter, John and Jude wrote?

_____________________________________________________________________

15. Lk 15:8-10 is an example of?

_____________________________________________________________________

16. Lk 8:22-25 is an example of?

_____________________________________________________________________

17. Lk 1:5-20 and Lk 1:26 – 38 are examples of?

_____________________________________________________________________

SECTION 7: APOCALYPTIC LITERATURE

18. Read Rev 21: 9-27

List 5 symbols used and state what you believe they represent/link to. For example, Jerusalem is representative of the new life in heaven with God.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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