Japanese Biblical Studies

The full text of Takeshi Nose’s Japanese article (PDF) “Diversity and Possibility of Intertextuality in the Hebrew Bible” is available online in the Kwansei Gakuin University Repository. It was published earlier this year in Shingaku Kenkyū 59.

The School of Theology at Nishinomiya Uegahara Campus, Kwansei Gakuin University

Overview

In the article, Nose:

• Explains intertextual interpretation while distinguishing between author-oriented intertextuality and reader-oriented intertextuality

• Explains the classification of these orientations in terms of “internal intertextuality” and “external intertextuality”

• Presents a brief analysis of the Garden of Eden narrative (Genesis 2:4a–3:24) from the perspective of reader-oriented and internal intertextuality

• Concludes by calling for more research that recognizes the significance of reader-oriented intertextuality

Continue Reading…

There is an interesting word pair in Genesis 1:2 that has been the focus of a great deal of debate among biblical scholars. In English, the terms tohu wa-bohu are famously translated as “without form, and void” (KJV), “a formless void” (NRSV), “without form and void” ESV), and the like.

The Creation, c. 1896-1902, by James Jacques Joseph Tissot

A recent issue of the journal Shūkyō Kenkyū (Religious Studies) includes a “research report” by Makoto Noguchi (Japanese PDF) on the meaning of the word pair. The report is a summary of Noguchi’s paper at the 70th Annual Convention of the Japanese Association for Religious Studies.

Though the report is only a few pages—or because it is only a few pages—perhaps it can serve to introduce students to some of the key points in the debate about the meaning of tohu wa-bohu. And for the initiated, perhaps it can help to spark further debate. Continue Reading…

Hisao Miyamoto’s Japanese essay “Man-and-Woman as a Person: A Quest for Person Based on Genesis 1–3” was published this month in Catholic Studies, a journal published by Sophia University’s Faculty of Theology.

Michelangelo’s Creation of Eve, Sistine Chapel

You can read Miyamoto’s essay in PDF form at Sophia-R, the Sophia University Repository for Academic Resources. You can also view contents (English and Japanese) and download articles in Volume 81 of Catholic Studies.

If you’ve read Miyamoto’s article, how would you sum up his main point(s)? Or what point(s) interested you the most? Feel free to leave a comment below in English or Japanese.

English and Japanese Citations & Author Information

Hisao Miyamoto, “Perusona toshite no ‘otoko / onna’: ‘Sōseiki’ (1~3 shō) wo tegakari ni” [Man-and-Woman as a Person: A Quest for Person Based on Genesis 1–3], Katorikku Kenkyū 81 [Catholic Studies 81] (2012): 57–77.

宮本 久雄「ペルソナとしての『男・女』 : 『創世記』（一～三章）を手がかりに」『カトリック研究』第81号，2012年，57–77。

*Hisao Miyamoto is a Professor at Sophia University (Faculty of Theology), and Professor Emeritus of Tokyo University.