Responses in the Miracle Stories of the Gospels: Between Artistry and Inherited Tradition

Description

Jordash Kiffiak offers the first concentrated study of a motif ubiquitous in the miracle stories of the gospels, namely the descriptions of characters' speech, feelings, physical actions and the like in response to miracles. Conventional wisdom sees the response motif as a means of casting the miracle worker in a positive light. However, the author's narrative-critical analysis argues that within each gospel the motif is employed creatively in a variety of ways. Responses serve to characterize various individuals and groups, both positively and negatively, sometimes in a more complex manner. They also contribute to the development of the plot, both in the individual episode and in the larger narrative. At the same time, observing that a network of features in the responses is shared among the gospels, Kiffiak argues that there is a common oral tradition behind the miracle stories, originating among the early followers of Jesus in the Galilee and/or Judea. Cover Titel Preface Table of Contents List of abbreviations List of tables List of figures Chapter 1: Introduction A. History of Research on Responses I. Establishing the paradigm for a form-critical, also redactioncritical, approach to responses 1. From David Friedrich Strauss to Richard Reitzenstein 2. Martin Dibelius and Rudolf Bultmann 3. Kenzo Tagawa 4. Gerd Theissen 5. Summary II. The paradigm suffers severe criticism, while its vestiges continue in the approach to responses 1. Tradition-historical criticism 2. Narrative criticism 3. Source criticism 4. Genre B. Definitions I. “Miracle” II. “Story” III. “Miracle story” IV. “Responses” V. “Emotion” VI. “Amazement,” “fear” and “being troubled” C. Reference to Greek Verbs D. Methodology E. Procedure Chapter 2: Mark A. State of the Question B. Miracle Stories with Responses C. Number of Responses within a Miracle Story D. Elements within a Response, Vocabulary, Verbs and their Modifiers E. Combinations of Elements within Responses F. Relative Priority of Elements I. Foreground/background and mainline/offline II. Levels of prominence in foreground material G. Order of Appearance of Elements H. Characters Responding I. Functional Roles of Respondents J. Setting K. Focalisation L. Location within a Miracle Story M. Connectives Introducing Responses N. Sub-Unit Divisions O. Peak of Story and Relative Prominence of Responses P. Distribution of Responses in Miracle Stories Q. Responses in Miracles Stories within the Overall Narrative I. Prior to the first miracle story with a response II. Mark 1.27–28 III. Intervening material IV. Mark 1.45 V. Mark 2.12c VI. Mark 3.6 VII. Intervening material VIII. Mark 4.41 IX. Mark 5.14–17 and 5.20 X. Mark 5.33 and 5.42d XI. Intervening material XII. Mark 6.49–50b and 6.51c–52 XIII. Intervening material XIV. Mark 7.36b–37 XV. Intervening material XVI. Mark 9.5–6 and 9.8 XVII. Intervening material XVIII. Mark 10.52c XIX. Intervening material XX. Mark 11.20b–21 XXI. Intervening material XXII. Mark 16.5b–c and 16.8 R. Conclusion Chapter 3: Matthew A. State of the Question B. Miracle Stories with Responses C. Number of Responses within a Miracle Story D. Elements within a Response, Vocabulary, Verbs and their Modifiers E. Combinations of Elements within Responses F. Relative Priority of Elements G. Order of Appearance of Elements H. Characters Responding I. Functional Roles of Respondents J. Setting K. Focalisation L. Location within a Miracle Story M. Connectives Introducing Responses N. Sub-Unit Divisions O. Peak of Story and Relative Prominence of Responses P. Distribution of Responses in Miracle Stories Q. Responses in Miracles Stories within the Overall Narrative I. Matthew 1.24–25 II. Intervening material III. Matthew 2.14–15 IV. Matthew 2.21 V. Intervening material VI. Matthew 8.27 VII. Matthew 8.33–34 VIII. Matthew 9.8 IX. Intervening material X. Matthew 9.26 XI. Matthew 9.31 XII. Matthew 9.33b–34 XIII. Intervening material XIV. Matthew 12.14 XV. Matthew 12.23–24 XVI. Intervening material XVII. Matthew 14.26 and 14.33 XVIII. Intervening material XIX. Matthew 15.31 XX. Intervening material XXI. Matthew 17.4, 17.6 and 17.8 XXII. Intervening material XXIII. Matthew 20.34c XXIV. Intervening material XXV. Matthew 21.20 XXVI. Intervening material XXVII. Matthew 28.4 and 28.8 XXVIII. Matthew 28.9b–c XXIX. Intervening material XXX. Matthew 28.17 R. Synoptic Problem: Comparison of Matthew and Mark S. Conclusion Chapter 4: Luke A. State of the Question B. Miracle Stories with Responses C. Number of Responses within a Miracle Story D. Elements within a Response, Vocabulary, Verbs and their Modifiers E. Combinations of Elements within Responses F. Relative Priority of Elements G. Order of Appearance of Elements H. Characters Responding I. Functional Roles of Respondents J. Setting K. Focalisation L. Location within a Miracle Story M. Connectives Introducing Responses N. Sub-Unit Divisions O. Peak of Story and Relative Prominence of Responses P. Distribution of Responses in Miracle Stories Q. Responses in Miracles Stories within the Overall Narrative I. Luke 1.12 and 1.21b–22 II. Luke 1.29 III. Intervening material IV. Luke 1.64b–66 V. Luke 2.9c and 2.15b–20 VI. Intervening material VII. Luke 4.36–37 VIII. Intervening material IX. Luke 5.8–10a and 5.11 X. Luke 5.15 XI. Luke 5.25b–26 XII. Luke 6.11 XIII. Intervening material XIV. Luke 7.16–17 XV. Intervening material XVI. Luke 8.25b XVII. Luke 8.34–37a and 8.39b XVIII. Luke 8.47 and 8.56a XIX. Intervening material XX. Luke 9.32c–33, 9.34c and 9.36b–c XXI. Luke 9.43a XXII. Intervening material XXIII. Luke 11.14c–16 XXIV. Intervening material XXV. Luke 13.13c and 13.17b–c XXVI. Intervening material XXVII. Luke 14.6 XXVIII. Intervening material XXIX. Luke 17.15–16a XXX. Intervening material XXXI. Luke 18.43b–c XXXII. Intervening material XXXIII. Luke 24.5a and 24.8–12 XXXIV. Luke 24.31a–b and 24.32–35 XXXV. Luke 24.37, 24.41a and 24.52–53 R. Synoptic Problem: Luke’s Dependence on Matthew or Q S. Conclusion Chapter 5: John A. State of the Question B. Miracle Stories with Responses C. Number of Responses within a Miracle Story D. Elements within a Response, Vocabulary, Verbs and their Modifiers E. Combinations of Elements within Responses F. Relative Priority of Elements G. Order of Appearance of Elements H. Characters Responding Excursus: Use of the Term Ioudaioi I. Functional Roles of Respondents J. Setting K. Focalisation L. Location within a Miracle Story M. Connectives Introducing Responses N. Sub-Unit Divisions O. Peak of Story and Relative Prominence of Responses P. Belief and Unbelief in Miracle Stories and Other Episodes Q. Responses in Miracle Stories within the Overall Narrative I. Prior to the first miracle story II. John 2.11c III. Intervening material IV. John 4.53 V. John 5.15–16, 18 VI. John 6.14 VII. John 6.19b–c VIII. Intervening material IX. John 9.34, 38 X. Intervening material XI. John 11.45–46, 53 XII. Intervening material XIII. John 20.16b, 18 XIV. John 20.20b and 20.25a XV. John 20.28–29 XVI. John 21.7 R. Conclusion Chapter 6: The Interrelations of the Gospels A. State of the Question I. The Synoptic Problem 1. Two Document Hypothesis: Minor Agreements 2. Two Document Hypothesis: contents of Q 3. Alternative hypotheses II. The interrelations of all four gospels III. Oral tradition IV. Issues of language V. Implications from historical Jesus research VI. Procedure of the analysis B. Miracle Stories with Responses C. Number of Responses within a Miracle Story D. Elements within a Response, Vocabulary, Verbs and their Modifiers I. General II. The emotions E. Combinations of Elements within Responses F. Relative Priority of Elements G. Order of Appearance of Elements H. Characters Responding I. Characters responding in multiple stories II. Types of characters responding and types of stories I. Functional Roles of Respondents J. Setting K. Focalisation L. Location within a Miracle Story M. Connectives Introducing Responses N. Sub-Unit Divisions O. Peak of Story and Relative Prominence of Responses P. Distribution of Responses in Miracle Stories I. Role of responses in an unfolding narrative for distinction between epiphanic and other miracle stories II. Distribution of epiphany stories and other miracle stories within the narratives of the Gospels III. Quality of responses and the larger narrative of a gospel Q. Statistical Analysis and the Case for Oral Tradition: Summary I. All four gospels II. Synoptic Gospels R. Minor Agreements in the Triple Tradition I. Introduction II. Healing of the paralytic III. Stilling of the storm (Mk 4.35–41 || Mt 8.23–27 || Lk 8.22–25) S. Material Common to Matthew, Mark and John I. Introduction II. Walking on water T. Social Context of Responses in the Gospel Miracle Stories – Jesus my Focus on Q U. Conclusion Chapter 7: Tradition History A. State of the Question B. On the Terms “Jewish and Hellenistic” C. Non-Jewish Miracle Stories as Context I. Stories of miracles as deeds II. Stories of epiphanies D. Jewish Miracle Stories as Context I. Stories of epiphanies II. Other stories III. Jewish versus non-Jewish context E. Jewish Parallels to Gospel Miracle Stories F. Jewish Parallels to Gospel Miracle Stories – Specific Stories I. Stilling of the storm 1. Keying to Jonah and the storm 2. Keying to the crossing of the Reed Sea G. Conclusion Chapter 8: Conclusion A. Results I. “Miracle” and “miracle story” II. “Response” III. Use of responses in each gospel IV. Discourse analysis V. Focalisation VI. Literary revolution of the Gospels VII. Synoptic Problem: alternatives to the Two Document Hypothesis VIII. Oral tradition IX. Three stories with Minor Agreements / “minor agreements” X. Contents of Q XI. Jewish versus non-Jewish context XII. “Minor” and “major” miracles in the Jewish sacred past XIII. The stilling of the storm in light of parallel stories B. Prospective Bibliography Index of Sources Index of Modern Authors Subject Index