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1. Occasion and Contents Colossians was written to a church that Paul did not found. It was designed to strengthen the position of its founder, Epaphras (1:7–8; 4:12–13…

1. Contents Ephesians is a theological treatise in epistolary form. Its main theme is the church. There are no references ¶ to the congregation addressed, nor are there any actual polemics. The first part (chaps. …

[English Version] I. Definition und zeitliche Abgrenzung 1. Der Begriff U., offenbar erstmals 1779 bei J.B. Basedow belegt (Alkier 161–169), bez. zunächst das »urspr., wahre« Christentum, das von der späteren Kirche (: III.) unterschieden wird. In der krit. Forschung des 19.Jh. ist umstritten, ob »das U.« eine (ideale) Einheit bildete oder ob es eine spannungsvolle »Gesch. des U.« (F. Ch. Baur) gab. Im 20.Jh. wird mit dem Begriff die Anfangszeit des Christentums bez., ohne daß damit eine bes. theol. …

[German Version] (Joseph Barnabas) was an early Christian missionary of Jewish descent, mentioned four times by Paul: once in Col, but frequently in the first part of Acts. Since Paul always mentions him without any further introduction, he was obviously known to the congregations. According to Gal 2:1, 9, Barnabas was involved, together with Paul, in the process that led to the mission agreement of the “Apostolic Council” (cf. …

[German Version] I. Definition 1. Initially the term Urchristentum, “primitive Christianity,” first used by J.B. Basedow in 1779 (Alkier, 161–169), meant “original, authentic” Christianity, as distinct from the later church (III). Critical scholarship in the 19th century debated whether “primitive Christianity” constituted an (…

[German Version] Traditionally attributed to the Apostolic Fathers, this anonymous writing does in fact contain some epistolary elements (1:1–5; 6:5; 21:9). On the whole, however, it is intended as a fundamental instruction in the Christian way of life and in the correct understanding of the Old Testament. First attributed to the “Apostle Barnabas” by Clement of Alexandria, who quotes Barnabas several times, the Epistle of Barnab…

[German Version] The term “Apostolic Fathers” goes back to J.-B. Cotelier, who in 1672 published the works of “the holy fathers who flourished in the apostolic age.” His edition contained the Epistle of Barnabas (Barnabas, Epistle of) and the two letters of Clement (Clement, Letters of), the letters of Ignatius (Ignatian epistles) and the letters of Polycarp of Smyrna along with the account of his martyrdom, and also the Shepherd of Hermas . The term “Apostolic Fathers” – now including the Didache, Diognetus , and the fragments of Papias and …

[German Version] (Aug 20, 1884, Wiefelstede, Oldenburg – Jul 30, 1976, Marburg). I.…

[German Version] I. First Letter of Clement – II. Second Letter of Clement I. First Letter of Clement Coun…

[German Version] I. Meaning – II. Old Testament – III. Early Judaism – IV. New Testament – V. Ethics I. Meaning Love of one's neighbor is the love of creaturely persons, for other concrete creaturely persons (“neighbors”) as being in the image of God; it includes love of enemies (Matt 5:44 = Luke 6:27; Enemy,). The Reformers believed that the twofold law of love (Mark 12:29–31 parr.), expressive of a we…

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[English Version] I. Zum BegriffN. ist die Haltung der Liebe von geschöpflichen Personen zu konkreten nächsten geschöpflichen Personen als Ebenbildern Gottes (Gottebenbildlichkeit) und schließt die Feindesliebe (Mt 5,44=…

[English Version] I. Zum Begriff und juristisch Eine allg. akzeptierte Definition des R. existiert nicht. Einigkeit besteht allenfalls darüber, daß das R. im Kern die staatl. institutionalisierte Ordnung menschlicher Beziehungen ist, wobei die Einhaltung der aus ihr fließenden (generellen) Regeln – Befolgung oder aber Sanktionierung von Verstößen – durch legitime physische Gewalt (Staat), jedenfalls aber durch einen durch Zuständigkeits- und Verfahrensnormen organisierten Sanktionsapparat garantiert ist. Abgegrenzt w…

[German Version] I. Concept and Legal Definition – II. History of Religion – III. Ancient Near East and Old Testament – IV. Greco-Roman Antiquity – V. New Testament – VI. Dogmatics – VII. Ethics of Law – VIII. Sociology of Law I. Concept and Legal Definition There is no generally accepted definition of law. At most, there is a consensus that law is basically to be understood as the politically institutionalized order of human relations. The observance of the (general) rules (i.e. …

[German Version] I. Religious Studies – II. Old Testament – III. New Testament – IV. History of Dogma – V. Dogmatics – VI. Ethics – VII. Philosophy of Religion – VIII. Judaism – IX. Islam (cf. Present and Future Eschatology, Consistent Eschatology)…

[German Version] I. Religious Studies – II. Old Testament – III. New Testament – IV. Philosophy of Religion – V. Dogmatics – VI. Practical Theology – VII. Missiology – VIII. Art – IX. Judaism – X. Islam I. Religious Studies 1. It is fundamentally true that God is not an object of religious studies, since God – as theology teac…