becoming

Through FB, Ed Hird points me to this wonderful interview with Richard Hays of Duke University:

I was saying that “love” cannot function as a focal image or common denominator to bring the diverse NT witnesses into a relation of unity. There are two reasons for this: (1) several of the major NT writings have very little to say about love (Mark, Acts, Hebrews, Revelation); (2) “love” by itself is a concept, not an image; it must be given narrative specification by the story of the cross. (That is why I propose the cross as one of three focal images for NT ethics, along with community and new creation.) Otherwise, “love” cannot be distinguished from whatever the Beatles vaguely meant when they sang, “All you need is love.”

Any of you interested to understand this world renowned Pauline scholar, this is a good place to start.

[Read it all here]

FFR: Online Lectures by Richard Hays

Via BW3:

Audio Recordings of the April 25 Discussion on “The Da Vinci Code”
Talk at the divinity school featured Duke Professor Richard Hays, UNC Professor Bart Ehrman

April 28, 2006

Audio recordings of the April 25 discussion by professors Richard Hays and Bart Ehrman on “The Da Vinci Code” are now available.

Audio Recordings
Listen to:
An excerpt of the discussion (6 min)
The entire Beyond the Da Vinci Code event (1 hour, 45 min)

To save the event mp3 (24.3 Mb) to your computer:

• right click on: download Beyond the Da Vinci Code event
• choose “Save Target As…”
• save the file “ehrman_hays.mp3”

The discussion by Hays, George Washington Ivey Professor of New Testament at Duke Divinity School, and Ehrman, James A. Gray distinguished professor and chairman of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, was meant to address questions raised by the bestselling book, soon to be released as a film. The reliability of portrayals of Jesus in the Bible and other ancient texts was among the topics addressed.

The talk was sponsored by Duke Divinity School, Duke Chapel, Duke Socratic Club, Graduate Christian Fellowship, InterVarisity Christian Fellowship, Navigators, Westminster Presbyterian/UCC Fellowship and the Congregation at Duke Chapel.

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Duke’s site: http://www.divinity.duke.edu/news/noteworthy/060428davincicode