John Oswalt
Author of The Book of Isaiah, Chapters 1-39 (New Intl Commentary on the Old Testament)
About the Author
Dr. John N. Oswalt (PhD, Brandies University) is research professor of Old Testament at Wesley Biblical Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi. He is the author of numerous articles and several books, including the two-volume commentary on Isaiah in the New International Commentary on the Old Testament show more series and Called to be Holy: A Biblical Perspective. show less
Works by John Oswalt
The Book of Isaiah, Chapters 40–66 (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament) (1998) 677 copies
Book of Isaiah 3 copies
The Bible Myths 2 copies
Isaiah, Vol. 1.--Chaps. 1-39 1 copy
Associated Works
The Face of Old Testament Studies: A Survey of Contemporary Approaches (1999) — Contributor — 221 copies
Presence, Power and Promise: The Role of the Spirit of God in the Old Testament (2011) — Contributor — 50 copies
Israel's Apostasy and Restoration: Essays in Honor of Roland K Harrison (1988) — Contributor — 25 copies
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- Oswalt, John Newell
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- Oswalt, John N.
Oswalt, John - Birthdate
- 1940-06-21
- Gender
- male
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But finishing it and reading it's final conclusion on this anniversary of the Capital Insurrection was striking.
Oswalt bases his discussion on a distinction between those systems of thought based around continuity and those around transcendence. That is, systems where the spiritual/divine exists as part of, or continuous with, the rest of the cosmos, and systems where it exists outside of, or transcends, the rest of the cosmos.
It is this distinction in Oswalt's view that is the basis for the infamous linear historicity of the biblical religions (versus the generally acknowledged circularity common to others), which in turn leads to the various generally acknowledge differences between the biblical and nonbiblical systems (in terms of practice, ethics, etc.).
What I found particularly poignant tonight was Oswalt's intimation that one can do as Joseph Campbell suggested -- and use the language and outer-rhetorical garb of the Bible, to think and approach the world in a manner fundamentally similar to the rest of the world (ie, as the particular set of symbols in a fundamentally continuous mindset). And that as our society shifted to do just this, and to in many respects keep the rhetorical garb of "western christendom," while abandoning the fundamental structure behind it, we should expect to see certain, fairly specific shifts in behavior and societal norms.
Shifts, that yes, we've seen on the far end of the spectrum which makes no bones about abandoning the biblical system -- but shifts that we've also clearly seen among those who are happily cladding a biblical veneer to a nonbiblical structure.
(2022 Book 1)… (more)