Stimulus Vol 14 Issue 4 November 2006 |
Table of ContentsDangerous fiction The Da Vinci Code as myth The New Testament and “the feminine” Gnosticism then and now The Mary mergers St Imulus: Mary Christmas Mary of Nazareth as a disciple Da Vinci conspiracies Pulpit: The Da Vinci Code phenomenon A Churchless Faith? Alan Jamieson and palliative care for the Church in New Zealand Fare thee well? Five years on from Alan Jamieson’s A Churchless Faith Book reviews |
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November 2006 |
EditorialSomething of an indulgence?In this issue we look behind Dan Brown’s story and its pseudoscholarship at some of the considerations in scholarship implied by The Da Vinci Code. All but one of the “Christianity and the feminine: The Da Vinci Code phenomenon” articles were given as papers at a colloquium of the same name, organised by the Wellington Theological Consortium, on Saturday 8 July 2006, at the Mercy Centre, Wellington.
Philip Knight opens with an entertaining and insightful literary appreciation of The Da Vinci Code. Diane Morris considers Brown’s book as an example of contemporary religious myth-making. Elizabeth Julian contributes two helpful sketches that together indicate what may be said with respect to the identities of Mary of Magdala and Mary of Nazareth. Kathleen Rushton takes a sounding into recent discussion about the feminine in the New Testament. This is a huge area and Rushton notes that even within her field of research – John’s Gospel – her article is in no way exhaustive. However, her comparison of “the feminine” in relation to Jesus, as portrayed by John’s Gospel, via the sophia motif, provides a thumbnail for feminist readings of the Fourth Gospel.
Also, drawing upon Ross Shepard Kraemer and Reginald Witt, Rushton contends that the New Testament in general, and Paul in particular, sought to transfer to Jesus what the devotees of Isis attributed to her. This may seem somewhat narrowly drawn – surely the New Testament seeks to subvert the claims of all Greco-Roman powers, including the claims of Caesar himself. However, it is surely probable that a result of devotion to God, through Jesus Christ, which New Testament commends, was – as Rushton contends – the suppression of “the feminine” as it was found in the Isis cult.
Tim Cooper, drawing upon both Walter Bauer and Bart Ehrman, gives a helpful update concerning contemporary thought about “gnosticism”, which questions the way scholarship has constructed and used that label. Peter Lineham looks upon religious conspiracy theory making with suspicion. Graham Redding, who chaired the colloquium, contributes a DVC related sermon to Pulpit, delivered on a different occasion.
Jono Ryan critically reviews Alan Jamieson’s book, A Churchless Faith and Andrew Butcher also critically reviews Jamieson’s most recent work, Five Years On, a collaborative effort with Jenny McIntosh and Adrienne Thompson. Five Years On is a book of stories about people who have left Evangelical, Pentecostal, and Charismatic churches and records what has been happening to them faith-wise in the five years since they participated in the research upon which A Churchless Faith is based.
Hum? Certainly work such as Jamieson’s documents a trend. Significantly, many people in the individualistic first world have become dissatisfied and have forsaken meeting together (cf. Hebrews 10:25). For some, concern about Christianity and the feminine is a large part of why they have left the church. But one wonders how much the permission-giving received from western media creates and legitimates the trend. The Da Vinci Code is one, but certainly not the only, creator of the climate of suspicion and permission. But such suspicion is something of an indulgence born of affluence. One would be hard-pressed to find those suspicions and concerns registering with the myriads of wise women who are the backbone of the church and her gospel mission in the third world.
Gavin Drew for the editorial committee
Douglas Maclachlan Publisher
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Christianity and the Feminine Dangerous Fiction |
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“...to be part of the gospel imperative to transform minds and put faith in God into practice.” |
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STIMULUS THE NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF CHRISTIAN THOUGHT AND PRACTICE |