About this ebook
For
far too long, Lauri Thurén argues, the parables of Jesus have been read either
as allegories encoding Christian theology—including the theological message of
one or another Gospel writer—or as tantalizing clues to the authentic voice of
Jesus. Thurén proposes instead to read the parables “unplugged” from any
assumptions beyond those given in the narrative situation in the text, on the
common-sense premise that the very form of the parable works to propose a
(sometimes startling) resolution to a particular problem. Thurén applies his
method to the parables in Luke with some surprising results involving the
Evangelist’s overall narrative purposes and the discrete purposes of individual
parables in supporting the authority of Jesus, proclaiming God’s love,
exhorting steadfastness, and so on. Eschatological and allegorical readings are
equally unlikely, according to Thurén’s results. This study is sure to spark
learned discussion among scholars, preachers, and students for years to come.
About the author
Lauri Thurén is professor of biblical studies in the School of Theology at the University of Eastern Finland in Joensuu. A rhetorical-critical scholar, he received his Master’s, licentiate, and Ph.D. in theology from Åbo Akademi University in Finland and has made advanced studies at GTU Berkeley and Uppsala University. He has written a number of articles and is the author of The Rhetorical Strategy of 1 Peter (1990), Argument and Theology in 1 Peter (1995), Derhetorizing Paul (2000), and in Finnish, a commentary on the Catholic epistles.
