Browsing by Author "Mzebetshana, Mzayifani"
Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
- Results Per Page
- Sort Options
Item A narrative-rhetorical analysis of John the Baptist’s contribution to the Christology the gospel according to John.(South African Theological Seminary Johannesburg) Mzebetshana, Mzayifani; Asumang, AnnangRecent Gospel studies in general, and especially on John’s Gospel have neglected the extent and nature of the contribution of the Baptist’s Christology to John’s Christology. Some studies have predominately accentuated the polemical purposes of the Baptist’s accounts against the Baptist’s followers. However, considering that the accounts of the Baptist’s ministry and witness are strategically and prominently positioned in John’s literary structure, this suggests a very heightened role in John’s narrative. This study, therefore, investigated the nature, influence and contribution of the Baptist’s Christology to the overall Christological programme of the Gospel of John. Also, it examined the narrative-rhetorical contribution of the Baptist’s Christological witness to John’s rhetorical strategy. It was determined based on narrative-theological and comparative analyses that the Baptist’s Christology is a major resource for the Evangelist’s formulation of his own Christological beliefs and articulation thereof. This conclusion counters the competing suggestion that the Baptist is employed for polemical rhetorical purposes by the Evangelist. Also, based on the theory of eyewitness memory and comparative analysis, it was resolved that the Baptist’s Christology in John’s Gospel is historically plausible. And, based on a narrative-rhetorical analysis, it was determined that the Baptist’s Christological witness was employed to enhance the credibility of John’s rhetorical strategy. Specifically, the author relied on the Baptist’s authority and social prestige to convince his readers to believe that Jesus is the Messiah and Son of God. However, these readers were dissuaded from ensuing the patterns of the Jewish religious authorities because of their unbelief, conflict, and hatred of Jesus. Ultimately, all John’s readers were to aim to be at the level of Baptist’s belief, characterised by precise Christological confessions, a full grasp of the significance and implication of their Christological confessions and unwavering conviction about Jesus’ identity and mission. overall, the study makes four fundamental contributions to scholarship, namely, (a) that in theological terms, the Christology of the Baptist substantially influences the overall content and presentation of the Christology of the Fourth Gospel, (b) that the nature and extent of this influence derive from the historical relationship that existed between the Baptist and the fourth Evangelist as a former disciple of the Baptist, thus formatively shaping the latter’s Christological beliefs and formulations,(c) that therefore the Evangelist marshalling of the Baptist’s Christology for rhetorically advancing his pastoral and evangelistic purposes in writing the Gospel derives from these historical and theological influences, and (d) that these findings severely undermine the hitherto common scholarly construct that the references to the Baptist in the Gospel served polemical purposes.Item 'Let us Hold Fast to our Confession’: The Role of the Theme of Faithfulness in the Rhetorical Strategy Employed by the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews to Address the Pastoral Problems of the First Hearers(South African Theological Seminary Johannesburg, South Africa) Mzebetshana, Mzayifani; Asumang, Annang; Asumang, AnnangThe epistle to the Hebrews is a paranaetic homily written with the specific purpose of addressing the socio-historical situation of the first hearers. These first hearers started their Christian faith with zeal, determination and a strong commitment to the new-found faith. However, this resulted in their persecution by an unbelieving society to the extent that they even lost their property. Consequently,after an extended period of hardships and sufferings, some succumbed to the social pressures. Hence,they were demoralised, lacked zeal and suffered spiritual malaise. Therefore, the author of Hebrews’goal was to counteract this situation by refocusing the believers’ attention to their eternal destiny and the associated rewards. He exhorted them to renewed commitment to the faith with a hope of better future.They had to endure sufferings and focus on what the eternal future held for them.The objective of this study is,therefore,to establish the role of the theme of faith in the author’s rhetorical strategy to address the believers’ socio-historical situation. To achieve this objective,insights from classical rhetoric combined with traditional historical-grammatical are adopted as method to investigate relevant passages. The first task is to establish the theology of faith in Hebrews. This is achieved in two steps. The first step is a grammatical and linguistic analysis of the faith-related words throughout Hebrews. The second step is the detailed exegesis of Hebrews 2:1-4, with specific focus on the theology of faith. The overall impression is that the believers’were called to faith and endurance even in the midst of sufferings. They were given two choices coupled with consequences. Either they hold fast to the confession of faith or neglect and/or reject the faith. The first choice would guarantee the m inheritance of salvation. The second would result in eternal judgement and possible eschatological death. Through the interplay of the categories of classical rhetorical handbooks, the author of Hebrews effectively and persuasively argued that it was better for these listeners to recommit to their faith. The author’s specific focus on the eternal destiny had rhetorical force to convince the listeners to remain faithful and obedient till the end. Faith and endurance was only their hope for a better eternal future, in the city of God.