Methodology, speech, society : the Hebrew Bible
Date
2011
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
SUN MeDIA
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: I became interested in rhetoric as the art of argumentation, first, because of my love for oratory and, second, because rhetoric is the essence of human activity, given its communicative skills, and the Biblical authors sought to communicate with their audience. Rhetoric, the art of argumentation and persuasion, is a method which is applied in almost every chapter in this volume. Indeed, I have adapted rhetoric, the art of persuasion and argumentation as a major instrument of introducing the Hebrew Bible because we are confronted with a lively Book that reflects disputes among people as well as ideologies that argue one against the other. Thus, the method that fits the study of the Hebrew Bible as a lively Book rather than a dry document is rhetoric, the art of argumentation and persuasion. Rhetoric enables us to penetrate the feelings of biblical characters and their ways of thinking. Rhetoric enables us to discover the debates and arguments that shape the culture of the Book and the conflicts that shaped ancient Israelite life through the writers and editors that formed this dynamic Book. The book of Job is instrumental to our understanding of the process of argumentation which ignores the human feelings on the account of the schematic paradigm on the one hand, and which longs for support for the misery of the suffering individual, on the other hand. The Hebrew Bible deals with the issue in matters that seem to question God’s justice when a human being feels that God acts against the principles of righteousness. The study addresses the problem by examining certain Biblical figures that question God such as Abraham and Job who present their integrity and belief in justice before God, believing that the matter of justice is absolute even for God. How should human beings behave under such circumstances? Should they follow the conventional wisdom of God’s justice or listen to their own heart? This Biblical attitude that regards justice as the absolute leading force of truth is the essence of human integrity as well as the core of true democracy – the right and justification to question even God’s authority, given the human self-conviction of their own integrity.
Description
CITATION: Gitay, Y. 2011. Methodology, speech, society : the Hebrew Bible. Stellenbosch: SUN MeDIA. doi:10.18820/9781920689384.
The original publication is available from AFRICAN SUNMeDIA - www.sun-e-shop.co.za
The original publication is available from AFRICAN SUNMeDIA - www.sun-e-shop.co.za
Keywords
Bible. Old Testament -- Criticism, interpretation, etc.
Citation
Gitay, Y. 2011. Methodology, speech, society : the Hebrew Bible. Stellenbosch: SUN MeDIA. doi:10.18820/9781920689384.