The Orthodox Study Bible: A Chosen Generation: A Holy Nation

The Orthodox Study Bible: A Chosen Generation: A Holy Nation

Preface

From my academic review of this Orthodoxy Study Bible. This article was originally published on Blogger, 20200523. Revised 20240915 and 20260726.

The Orthodox Study Bible, New Testament and Psalms, (1993) Saint Athanasius Orthodox Academy, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. 

Interpreting the Scriptures 

Jack N. Sparks-A Chosen Generation: A Holy Nation

Sparks explains that the Scriptures are centred on Jesus Christ and his Church. (836). It is not about nations, governments, societies, or about incidental themes which appear. (836). It is not about the earth, history, the sky, the heavens or any other thing. (836)  I agree with these comments from Spark, in that I view the Hebrew Bible and New Testament witness as not primarily world history, or simply history, but in context they offer specifically, religious history. Via progressive revelation, in my theology, the New Testament introduces the God-man, Jesus Christ that was the prophesied Messiah in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament.

If the scriptures through manuscript evidence, offered primarily, modern, secular, history, we might expect more biblical focus on early, pre-modern, science, as one example. But, the focus of biblical, religious history is not scientific, but rather, salvific. If the scriptures through manuscript evidence, offered primarily modern, secular, history, we might expect more focus on political history, but the focus is not political, but rather, salvific. In evaluating the Bible, the context in which biblical books are written, verse by verse, is always a key. I highly value science as an academic discipline, but do not use the Bible as a science textbook. I value the importance of politics and political science, as tainted as they are, in our present, imperfect realm, but I do not use the Bible as a political science textbook. By salvific, this is documenting the revealed plans of God to save certain persons for everlasting post-mortem, life within an eventually culminated a Kingdom of God.  

The New Testament and Old Testament texts are no doubt ancient texts, written in ancient contexts. But, the God being described is infinite and eternal that exists within and outside of time. Within the context of time, this includes past, present and future.

Sparks reasons that from 1 Peter 2:9, 10, those in the Church are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. (836). The Church is made up of all peoples, nations and tongues, in the one and only Christian nations (836). Sparks reasons this is the only 'Christian nation', the 'people of God'. Old Israel was a 'type' of the New Israel, the Church. (836). I will add that the subject of Israel and the Church is one of much theological debate. Sparks opines the scripture was not discussing the United States of America, present-day Israel, or any other nation, past, present or future. (836). In other words, the Hebrew Bible discusses Israel and in the New Testament, through progressive revelation, this culminates in Jesus Christ and his Church. (836). 

Bible Hub: ἅγιον

Englishman's Concordance

1 Peter 2:9 Adj-NNS 

GRK: ἱεράτευμα ἔθνος ἅγιον λαὸς εἰς 

NAS: PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, 

KJV: priesthood, an holy nation, 

INT: priesthood a nation holy a people for

ἅγιον Adjective, Nominative, Neuter, Singular

Bible Hub: ἔθνος 

Englishman's Concordance

Cited 

1 Peter 2:9 

GRK: βασίλειον ἱεράτευμα ἔθνος ἅγιον λαὸς (a royal priesthood a nation holy a people, my add) 

NAS: A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE 

KJV: an holy nation, a peculiar 

INT: a royal priesthood a nation holy a people 

ἔθνος Noun, Nominative, Neuter, Singular

Bible Hub: 1 Peter 2:9

Englishman's Concordance

Cited

ἅγιον, hagion, holy

ἔθνος ethnos, a nation

---

For clarity, I will add that the culminated Kingdom of God is not of this world (John 18: 36); it is not of this present world system within the fall (Genesis 1-3). Instead it is of a future culminated realm within the new creation (2 Peter, Revelation 20-22). The Kingdom of God is in a sense in the believer, as these people are in Jesus Christ (Luke 17: 20-21). The Kingdom would culminate, internally, in a sense, in the resurrection of the citizen of the Kingdom of God. At that point being without sinful nature, and therefore lacking sinful desires, will or choices. Sparks explains that neither the United States of America nor 'Holy Russia' (please keep in mind that this is an Orthodox study bible) is accurately the culminated, Christian nation. The holy nation and priesthood of believers are the Church. (836).

Practical theology

Certainly, there is no theological room for racism or any kind of ethnic prejudice within biblical, Christian faith and philosophy. The theology of a holy nation and the priesthood of believers embraces the Kingdom of God, which progressed from the Hebrew Bible covenant with Israel, to the New Testament covenant with the Church. This Church contains various ethnic peoples as citizens. All citizens are equally covered by the atoning and resurrection work of Jesus Christ for their sins as transformed resurrected citizens (1 Corinthians 15), regardless of ethic origins.

BARCLAY, WILLIAM (1976) The Letters of James and Peter, Philadelphia, The Westminster Press. 

BROWNING, W.R.F. (1997) Dictionary of the Bible, Oxford, Oxford University Press.

DUNNETT, WALTER M. (2001) Exploring The New Testament, Wheaton, Crossway Books.

ELWELL, WALTER AND YARBROUGH, ROBERT W., Third Edition (2013) Encountering The New Testament, Grand Rapids, Baker Academic.

FEE, GORDON D. (1987) The First Epistle To The Corinthians, Grand Rapids, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

GUNDRY, ROBERT (1981) A Survey of the New Testament, Grand Rapids, Zondervan.

HAMILTON, VICTOR P. (1988) Handbook on the Pentateuch, Grand Rapids, Baker Book House.

LA SOR, WILLIAM SANFORD, DAVID ALLAN HUBBARD, AND FREDERIC WILLIAM BUSH. (1987) Old Testament Survey, Grand Rapids, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

MARSH, PAUL, W. (1986) ‘1 Corinthians’, in F.F. Bruce, (ed.), The International Bible Commentary, Grand Rapids, Marshall Pickering/Zondervan.

MCDONALD, H.D. (1996) ‘Bible, Authority of', in Walter A. Elwell (ed.), Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Grand Rapids, Baker Books.

MCRAY, J.R. (1996) ‘Bible, Canon of', in Walter A. Elwell (ed.), Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Grand Rapids, Baker Books.

MOUNCE, ROBERT H. (1990) The Book of Revelation, Grand Rapids, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

PAYNE. DAVID F.(1986) ‘2 Peter’, in F.F. Bruce, (ed.), The International Bible Commentary, Grand Rapids, Marshall Pickering/Zondervan.

PORTER, L.E. (1986) Luke, in F.F. Bruce (gen.ed.), The International Bible Commentary, Grand Rapids, Marshall Pickering/ Zondervan.

SCHULTZ SMAUEL J, AND GARY V. SMITH, (2001) Exploring the Old Testament, Wheaton, Illinois, Crossway Books.

The New American Standard Bible (1984) Iowa Falls, Iowa, World Bible Publishers.  

The Orthodox Study Bible, New Testament and Psalms, (1993) Saint Athanasius Orthodox Academy, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. 

Well-done, friend, I do look like...

A good friend just emailed me to inform me that I look like this actor in an "Oh Henry!' 'Bite Sized', commercial, that as of yet I have not personally seen.

I agree with my friend there is a resemblance with the hair (pre-pandemic as my hair has since gone 'Frankennuts'). I agree with the glasses being similar to mine.

I will add that this actor's jawline looks similar to mine.

Physical differences include that I am older, and the fact that with my muscle build-up and age, I have not recorded a similar weight to that actor since I lived in England. I always scale down when I am there for a while. I think it is a difference in the food, even with my very low carbohydrate diet, and the fact I am walking much here in British Columbia, I am still not as light as I was in England.
My weight is higher before England, goes down, and then goes up again in 'Oh Canada'.

I also dress in more solid colours.

I also do not share his 'deer in the headlights' facial expression.

Reply to Miss Cia: Soft determinism, indeterminism, hard determinism, fatalism

Preface 

Edinburgh: 1995

I find a rare Jazz Fusion unofficial CD, featuring an artist I was looking for at a flea market. I explain this to the seller and he states. ‘It was fate’ with a strong Scottish accent.

‘Pardon’ I said, ‘It was fate’, he stated. I thought he had said ‘It was fiit’.

Reply to Miss Cia: Soft determinism, indeterminism, hard determinism, fatalism

My friend, Miss Cia, cited the article below on Facebook and made a request to me for a reply:

Eric W. Dolan May 18, 2020: PsyPost

Psy Post Cited

New research published in the Journal of Research in Personality provides evidence that belief in determinism plays an important role in right-wing authoritarianism.

Miss Cia cited 

Believing in "your life being predetermined by fate" causes individuals to believe in determinism and possibly more authoritarian governments. This appears similar to Presbyterian predestination theology. Russ Murray - I want to hear from your brain about this.

Of course, only God knows the inner views of persons, but I attended and was a member of a Presbyterian church in Vancouver for over a decade and I knew many of the leaders personally. I would deduce that generally most attendees, members and leaders were politically moderately left or moderately right. The church was respectfully, biblically Christian and embraced far from what could be philosophically reasoned as authoritarian theology, authoritarian philosophy, or authoritarian political views.

Within this Presbyterian Church, the bible was taken seriously, as the ultimate, inspired, spiritual authority for those within the Christian Church. The bible as the word of God.

As far as Presbyterian theology, overall, I would deduce that most Canadian, American and British devotees, within a Reformed worldview, hold to forms of democracy.

Archives, Definitions and Analysis

Wednesday, July 11, 2012 Fatalism Revisited 

Sunday, November 11, 2007 Fatalism

Compatibilism (Soft determinism)

P.S. Greenspan writes that compatibilism holds to the philosophical concepts of free will and determinism being compatible. Greenspan (1998: 1). Louis P. Pojman defines compatibilism as the concept that an act can be entirely determined and yet be free in the sense that it was done voluntarily and without compulsion. Pojman (1996: 596).

John S. Feinberg explains that compatibilism does not allow for coercion or force (for there to be significant human moral accountability with human will and actions, my add), but holds that God, or some outside force, can simultaneously determine, with the use of persuasion, that actions will or will not take place. Feinberg (1986: 24). Feinberg writes that certain nonconstraining conditions could strongly influence actions, in conjunction with human free will performing these actions. Feinberg (1994: 60). With this viewpoint, there will be no contradiction in stating that God would create human beings who were significantly free, unconstrained, and yet these were committed actions that God willed. Feinberg (2001: 637).

W.T. Stace (1952)(1976) explains that moral responsibility is consistent with determinism in the context of soft determinism and requires it. Stace (1952)(1976: 29). If human actions are uncaused then reward or punishment would be unjustified. Stace (1952)(1976: 29). Stace reasons that there must be at least some human cause within human actions to make them morally responsible acts. Stace (1952)(1976: 30).

I personally embrace, what I named limited free will, within compatibilism. Human beings through nature, consciousness, desire and will embrace as secondary causes, thoughts, acts and actions. Simultaneously, God, within theistic compatibilism, is the primary cause of all things, but with holy, pure and good motives.

Incompatibilism (Indeterminism)

Indeterminism is equated with incompatibilism which states that God, or any other being, cannot cause by force or coercion, any human action, nor can any action be simultaneously willed by God or any other being, for the human action to remain significantly free. This would include concepts of libertarian free will.

Philosopher Tim Mawson reasons that incompatibilism, which is also known as libertarianism or libertarian free will, concerning human free will, believes that true human free will must be uncaused by preceding states. Mawson (1999: 324). In other words, no external force must cause a legitimate and truly free act of the human will. Within incompatibilist theory, human actions would never truly be free because God or another external force (non-deistic view) would have willed and determined it, before being simultaneously willed to a given person. Mawson (1999: 324). Pre-determined before committed by the human being.

Compatibilism would agree with incompatibilism that God or any other being cannot cause by force or coercion any significantly free human action, but contrary to incompatibilism thinks that God can simultaneously will significantly free human actions.

Determinism (Hard determinism)

Simon Blackburn comments that this is the doctrine that human action has no influence on events. Blackburn (1996: 137). Blackburn gives the opinion that fatalism is wrongly confused with determinism, which by itself carries no implications that human actions have no effect. Blackburn (1996: 137).

In other words, there are forms of determinism where human actions are significant.

Tomis Kapitan notes that determinism is usually understood as meaning that whatever occurs is determined by antecedent (preceding cause) conditions. Kapitan (1999: 281).

Pojman states that hard determinism holds that every event is caused and no one is responsible for actions, whereas soft determinism holds that rational creatures can be held responsible for actions determined, as long as they are done voluntarily and without force or coercion. Pojman (1996: 586).

Fatalism

Fatalism should not be equated with compatibilism/soft determinism, but if fatalism states that no human actions can influence or cause events, and hard determinism holds that human beings do not cause actions or are morally responsible, there is clearly a similarity in definitions.

D.G. Bloesch explains that fate is not chance, but instead is cosmic determinism that has no meaning or purpose. Bloesch (1996: 407). He writes that fate/fatalism would differ from a Christian idea of divine providence and its implied use of determinism, in that fatalism is impersonal and irrational, whereas providence is personal and rational. Bloesch (1996: 407).

In contrast to 'fate' or fatalism, biblical, theological determinism, has divine meaning.

Thiessen comments that fatalism is not determinism because fatalism holds that all events are caused by fate and not natural causes, and nothing can change these events. Determinism, in contrast, holds that all events occur by necessity. Thiessen (1956: 186).

Compatibilism and soft determinism do hold that what God determines must happen by necessity, but within this view, rational beings with significant use of (limited) free will are not coerced or forced to commit acts, for which they are morally accountable, which must occur by necessity.

A person can hold to hard determinism and believe that God determined all events without the significant use of free will of rational creatures, and a fatalist can also believe that events are determined without the use of significant free will of rational creatures, and yet this is caused without any meaning, and without the understanding that God or any rational entity is behind these events.

Practical realities

Ph.D. Viva 

I was challenged on the similarities between fatalism and my view of determinism, which is soft-determinism/compatibilism in Wales in January 2009 at my Ph.D. Viva. I used the material from the 2007 post in the defence. I think I was successful. The reviewer noted that there are definite similarities in that both determinism and fatalism bring about events by necessity without libertarian free will from a secondary cause. Fair enough.

But I did note correctly that determinism was theistic, at least in the context discussed. In contrast, fatalism was not for certain, theistic (In our Christian context). Fatalism more likely exists in a naturalistic philosophical context.  Fatalism is not Christian philosophy, although fate and determinism are also aspects of Islam, which was beyond the scope of my thesis.

Edinburgh, 1995

BLACKBURN, SIMON (1996) ‘Fatalism’, in Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy, p. 137. Oxford, Oxford University Press.

BLOESCH, D. (1996) ‘Fate, Fatalism’, in Walter A. Elwell (ed.), Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Grand Rapids, Baker Books.

FEINBERG, JOHN S. (1986) Predestination and Free Will, David Basinger and Randall Basinger (eds.), Downers Grove, Illinois, InterVarsity Press.

FEINBERG, JOHN S. (1994) The Many Faces of Evil, Grand Rapids, Zondervan Publishing House. 

FEINBERG, JOHN S. (2001) No One Like Him, John S. Feinberg (gen.ed.), Wheaton, Illinois, Crossway Books.

GREENSPAN, P.S. (1998) Free Will and Genetic Determinism: Locating the Problem (s), Maryland, University of Maryland.

KAPITAN, TOMIS (1996) ‘Free Will Problem’, in Robert Audi (ed.), The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

MAWSON, TIM (1999) ‘The Problem of Evil and Moral Indifference’, in Religious Studies, Volume 35, pp. 323-345. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

POJMAN, LOUIS P. (1996) Philosophy: The Quest for Truth, New York, Wadsworth Publishing Company.

STACE, W.T. (1952)(1976) Religion and the Modern Mind, in John R. Burr and Milton Goldinger (eds), Philosophy and Contemporary Issues, London, Collier Macmillan Publishers.

THIESSEN, HENRY C. (1956) Introductory Lectures in Systematic Theology, Grand Rapids, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.

White house versus black house

Lampeter, Wales

LANGER, SUSANNE K (1953)(1967) An Introduction to Symbolic Logic, Dover Publications, New York. (Philosophy). 

The review continues:

Key symbols

≡df = Equivalence by definition
: = Equal (s)
ε = Epsilon and means is
⊃ = Is the same as
⊨ is Entails
˜ = Not
∃ = There exists
∃! = There exists
∴ = Therefore
. = Therefore
< = Is included
v = a logical inclusive disjunction (disjunction is the relationship between two distinct alternatives)
x = variable
. = Conjunction meaning And
0 = Null class
cls = Class
int = Interpretation
∧ = Logical conjunction
---

White house versus black house

This book review of sorts, since 2016, has now advanced to Chapter X: Abstraction and Interpretation. Philosopher Langer explains that logic is the study of forms and these forms are derived within systems from common human experiences, reality and life. (240). This is done by abstraction. (240).

She further explains that the science of logic is a continued progression from the concrete to the abstract. (240). That would be concrete ideas and things to abstract symbolic logic.

'From contents with certain forms to those forms without contents, from instances to kinds, from examples to concepts.' (240).

Langer explains that the first step is to the replacement of individual elements by formalized elements of variable meaning. (240). These are formalized elements, as in symbols within symbolic logic. The meaning of these elements is 'presently fixed.' (240). Not to be interpreted by their original terms. (240). Langer states that the symbolic logic has them interpreted in 'an entirely new way.' (240).

From Langer's explanation, what the symbolic logic provides is through quantifiers, are the old elements (which set meanings in contexts, my add), by new terms, which are general terms. (240). Symbolic logic provides a degree of formation from specific elements to quantified variables that are general terms. (240).

Encyclopaedia Brittanica

Cited

Quantification, in logic, the attachment of signs of quantity to the predicate or subject of a proposition.
---

Langer continues by explaining that it has been established in her text (and my reviews) that K =int as houses. (241). K (a, b, c, d...etc) is various types of houses. (241). At the same time, in her text (and my reviews) nt =interpretation as north of. (241).

It could be written that:

wh= White house

bh= Black house

wh ˜ ⊃ bh

The white house is not the same as the black house.

(wh) ˜ ⊃ (bh)

The white house is not the same as the black house.

(wh) . nt (bh)

The white house is therefore north of the black house.

(bh) ˜ nt (wh)

The black house is not north of the white house.

(bh) ˜ ⊨ (wh)

The black house does not entail the white house.

Practical philosophy

Ten Chapters and over four years into this textbook review:

Positive: Philosophically, the book assists the reader to better understand the technical differences between logic and truth, the logical and the true.

I now have a greater familiarity with the terms and symbols. I can decently read the equations in Langer's textbook, correctly. Potentially reading symbolic logic, more than the limited amount I read for my MPhil/Ph.D. work, in philosophical journals and books was a reason I bought the Langer textbook for review.

Negative: It is quite clear that most commonly for typical readers, academics, and most philosophers, written prose and standard language is generally a more clear, reasonable and proficient method for presenting concepts, premises and conclusions than is symbolic logic.

Langer states that the symbolic logic has them interpreted in 'an entirely new way.' (240).

Many times in everyday writing and in academia, explaining the concrete reasonably and in truth is more beneficial for most readers than creating an abstraction with its own internal rules that requires significant new learning from the reader. I reason that symbolic logic does have its merits at some technical points.

Laurel Bern photoshop via online websites. There is nothing
 politically intended by me as it just fits this section of the Langer text.