Category: Series: Household of God
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“Household of God” Series Index
INDEX: Introduction Household of God Recovering the Biblical Image Background to the Greco-Roman Household and Culture Architecture (Part 1) Architecture (Part 2) What is a Family? Patronage and the Dance of Grace The Status Game Honor and Shame The Household of Caesar (Part 1) The Household of Caesar (Part 2) Voluntary Associations Isis, Christians, and…
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Household: Plausibility Structures
Peter Berger was one of my favorite sociologists from college and grad school days. I believe it was Berger who first coined the phrase "plausibility structure." What is a plausibility structure, and what does it have to do with the Household of God? Sociologists have long discussed the importance of the "looking glass self." As…
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Household: Deconstructing the Laity
The Household of God metaphor envisions God as the paterfamilias of the household, with each of us as brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. Some siblings are more mature than others in their faith. Some are newly adopted. But we are all siblings. I've had the opportunity to talk about the concept of the Household…
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Household: Recovering the Family Business
Among church board members, two complaints stand above all others. The first is that the Church is not running enough like a business. The second is that the Church is run too much like a business. Maybe this dichotomy has always been in the Church, but I believe it has become pronounced due to changes…
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Household: Excursus on 1 Corinthians 7
Before we conclude the discussion of household codes, I want to dig deeper into Chapter 7 of 1 Corinthians. There are some startling things taught in this passage. Kenneth Bailey sees 4:17-7:40 as the second of five discourses in 1 Corinthians. (See earlier post.) It is arranged in the following chiasmus. A Immorality…
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Household: Excursus on 1 Timothy (Part 4)
We have looked at the controversial 1 Timothy 2:8-15 passage, but we need to make a couple of more observations about this letter as it concerns fictive family. What I have to say here is frequently not well received by my Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican/Episcopalian friends, nor by some of my more theologically conservative…
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Household: Excursus on 1 Timothy (Part 3)
Previously, I took a first pass at interpreting 1 Timothy 2:8-15. I want to reflect on a few more aspects of verses 11-15 in this passage. A Woman Verses 9-10 talk about "women." Starting at verses 11-12, the passage talks about "a woman" in the singular. Verses 13-14 talk about a single woman, Eve. Verse…