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Recent Scriptural Studies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 August 2024

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The word recent is hardly applicable to the first of the works here under review, La Voix Vivante de l'Evangile au Debut die l'Eglise (Casterman, Tournail & Paris), by M. Le Chanoine Cerfaux of Louvain. It is three years since the Collection Lovanium published this excellent little study of the origin and character of the Gospels. In that collection it finds itself in somewhat strange company with works on genetics, archaeology, law, the atom bomb, and even on the tendencies of modern English democracy. But the series claims to be a collection of studies on general culture, and no one can claim to be cultured who is ignorant of the Gospels. It may be said without hesitation that this book provides a useful course of introduction for the student of the New Testament, showing him his way about in the maze of difficulties he will meet. Readers of the book already familiar with the teaching of the venerable Père Lagrange will not fail to recognise how copiously the author has drawn from that admirable source.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © 1950 Provincial Council of the English Province of the Order of Preachers

References

1 No one has put this more strongly than Tertullian in his advice about the futility of arguing with the heretics by the exchange of scripture texts: ‘quoniam nihil proficiat confressio Scripturarum, nisi plane ut stomachi quis ineat aversionem aut cerebri…. Et tu quidem bihil perdes nisi vocem in contentione: provacandum est; nec in his constitnendum certanen in quibus ant nulla aut incerta victoria est, aut par incertae…, Ordo rerum desiderabat illud prius proponi quod nunc solum disputandum est: quibus compelat fides ipsa? cuius sint fiunt christiani: Ubi enim apparuerit esse veritatem et disciplinae et fidei christianae, illic erit veritas Scripturarum, et expositionum, et ominum traditionum christianarum’ (De Prescriptionibus adversus Haereses 17 & 19).

2 In addition the actual text of the book presents so many incoherences and much lack of logical order that some have held it to be made up of two or three different documents, mainly of Jewish origin, badly put together by some Christian editor. Père Boismard offers a solution of his own to account for the anomolies mentioned above, a solution which he has already explained at length in the Revue Biblique of October 1949.