Biblical Interpretation from the Church Fathers to the Reformation

Karlfried Froehlich

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2024
• Topic: History
• eBook ISBN:
  9781040244647
• Subtopic: World History
• Index: History

The history of biblical interpretation has attracted considerable attention in recent decades. This is particularly true in the field of medieval exegesis where much effort has been spent on making primary materials available and advancing their interpretation. One area of research in which even the most basic questions are still under debate is the phenomenon of the biblical Glossa Ordinaria, the standard Bible commentary used by Christian theologians from the twelfth century to the Reformation. Part I of the present collection unites the author's major contributions to Glossa studies - its origin, its false ascription to Walahfrid Strabo, its use among the preachers of the thirteenth and fourteenth century and the Reformers, both Catholic and Protestant, of the sixteenth. A central concern here is the fascinating history of the printed Gloss which began with the Strasbourg edition of 1480/81. Part II concentrates on the image of two central New Testament figures, the Apostles Peter and Paul, in biblical exegesis. The studies illuminate the pivotal role in the history of the church played by certain shifts in the understanding of Petrine texts, and trace conflicting tendencies in the interpretation of Paul down to the Reformation of the sixteenth century. Three of the thirteen essays have not been published before.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Series
• Half Title
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• Abbreviations
• I Christian interpretation of the Old Testament in the High Middle Ages
• II Walafrid Strabo and the Glossa ordinaria: the making of a myth
• III Makers and takers: the shaping of the Biblical Glossa ordinaria
• IV The Glossa ordinaria and medieval preaching
• V An extraordinary achievement: the Glossa ordinaria in print
• VI The printed gloss
• VII The fate of the Glossa ordinariain the sixteenth century
• VIII Martin Luther and the Glossa ordinaria
• IX Fallibility instead of infallibility? A brief history of the interpretation of Galatians 2:11–14
• X Saint Peter, papal primacy, and the exegetical tradition, 1150–1300
• XI The chair of Peter: thoughts on an ancient Christian concept and its history
• XII Romans 8:1–11: Pauline theology in medieval interpretation
• XIII Paul and the Late Middle Ages
• Appendix
• Index of Bible Quotations
• Index of Names and Places
• Index of Subjects and Terms