Word: ancient
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1980-1989
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...search for the historical Jesus -- whether in the vivid imaginings of Hollywood scriptwriters or in the rarefied halls of academe -- rests on one fundamental issue: How reliable are the Gospels? Aside from a few brief references in other ancient documents, the New Testament is the only source of information concerning the most influential life that was ever lived. Scholars generally agree that the four Gospels were written within 40 to 70 years of Jesus' death on the Cross. In addition, existing copies of the New Testament are far older and more numerous than those of any other ancient body...
...notion of history and how to record it was, of course, rather different in the 1st century A.D. Like other ancient authors, the Gospel writers did not set out to produce records that meet modern standards of precision. Furthermore, they were clearly saturated with faith in Christ and were not necessarily objective transmitters of his story. Says Anthony Harvey, canon of Westminster Abbey and a New Testament scholar: "The writer of a Gospel is not just an editor but a creative theological intelligence, telling the story in a particular way to make a particular point...
...variation on the sage theme comes from Claremont Scholar Burton Mack, who sees Jesus as a "rather normal cynic-type figure," using the term not in the modern sense but referring to a particular school of ancient Greek philosophers, Diogenes among them, who advocated virtue and self-control. Like them, he made ample use of a biting sense of humor ("Let the dead bury their dead"). "Jesus wasn't reforming Judaism," Mack insists. "He was just taking up a Hellenistic kind of social criticism...
...Lyric Stage's Presentation of Beauty goes up this weekend at 54 Charles St., in Boston. a twisted musical version of the traditional Beauty and the Beast legend, David Elliott and Barbara Phanuef's production is sure to draw large crowds for the modern version of the ancient fairy tale. Tickets are $12-$15. Telephone...
...supports? Of civil rights? Of programs to clean up the environment? Of friendly relations with the Soviets? It's precisely because George Bush has no quarrel with the essence of the liberal agenda that he's basing his campaign on obscure irrelevancies such as prison-furlough policy and an ancient controversy over the Pledge of Allegiance...