Tag: fictive family
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Living Simply in Abundance (20)
We have reviewed the concept of subsidiarity and the importance of the family. But what about single folks? What about nuclear families who are isolated from family support systems? There are needs for relationships beyond the family. Voluntary associations are one way we connect. Educational associations, youth sports leagues, hobby groups, service groups, and political…
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Volf and Fictive Family
I've been working my way through Miroslav Volf's Exclusion and Embrace. In light of my recent Household of God series, I found the passage below interesting. Here Volf is describing how Paul dealt with reconciling God's universality as Lord of all with his culturally particular revelation to the Jews. As he worked it out in…
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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: 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…
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Household: Excursus on 1 Timothy (Part 1)
In the middle of the 1 Timothy, we find the following verses in Chapter 3: 14 I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these instructions to you so that, 15 if I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church…
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Household: New Testament Household Codes
The use of fictive family in the New Testament relates to five themes: identity, unity, mission, inheritance, and affection. If fully embraced by the community, these themes would have grounded the community identity in God and unified them in mission as they demonstrated new creation values toward each other, anticipating the consummation of the new…
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Household: Paul’s Use of Family in Romans
Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians contains more fictive family metaphors per word than any of his other letters. Paul used the metaphor to unite a diverse community of people who had become conflicted about many issues. Paul emphasized the sibling metaphors to symbolize how they should all relate to each other. Paul’s letter to…