Saturday 29 September 2007

Childrens do learn

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Offering a grammar lesson guaranteed to make any English teacher cringe, President George W. Bush told a group of New York school kids on Wednesday: "Childrens do learn."

Bush made his latest grammatical slip-up at a made-for-TV event where he urged Congress to reauthorize the No Child Left Behind Act, the centerpiece of his education policy, as he touted a new national report card on improved test scores.

The event drew New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Education Secretary Margaret Spellings plus teachers and about 20 fourth and fifth graders from P.S. 76.

During his first presidential campaign, Bush -- who promised to be the "education president" -- once asked: "Is our children learning?"

On Wednesday, Bush seemed to answer his own question with the same kind of grammatical twist.

"As yesterday's positive report card shows, childrens do learn when standards are high and results are measured," he said.

Thursday 27 September 2007

百變張韶涵 DVD


上個星期訂o個隻張韶涵演唱會 dvd 到o左啦. 隻碟音色一流, 有 5.1, 張韶涵表現亦一流, 唱 live 把尖聲好有 feel, 非常出色. 但係畫面上o既處理就遜色得多.

首先, 畫面唔係 wide-screen, 所以o係部 HDTV 上面睇, 張韶涵塊面會向橫拉長o左, 怪怪地. 仲有, 亦係一個好奇怪o既缺點, 呢隻 dvd 成日o係演唱會唱緊歌當中 cut d MV o既畫面入去, 搞到似睇 MV 多過睇緊一場演唱會. 其實佢係 cut 得幾好, 係幾靚, 不過問題係咁做法會打斷演唱會o既現場氣氛, 可謂非常多餘o既做法, 令到呢張 concert dvd 大幅跌 volt, 扣好多分. 呢個情況o係 dvd 前半比較嚴重, 去到 annoying o既地步, 後半可能個導演開始懶, 反而令演唱會後半變得比較好睇.

Shibajun



尋日o係日本 amazon 見到原來柴姊柴田淳出o左張 2007 tour o既 dvd, 已經被我列為必買o既羅致物. 不過 yesasia 仲未有, o係 amazon 買又好似好麻煩, 考/肥埋聽日個希伯來文試先睇下點. 嘩, 不過正呀, 因為好少睇柴姊唱 live o既片段, 一定好正.

Wednesday 26 September 2007

OK, this is the best!

痞子蔡論簡體字:

「幹」、「乾」簡化後都是「干」,如果有天我當了書店員工,
看到一本小說叫《我干妹妹的故事》,干是動詞?還是形容詞?
我怎麼知道要把它擺進情色文學區?還是青春小說區?

暖暖 (5)

Hahaha

陳金扁、陳木扁、陳水扁、陳火扁、陳土扁。

達文東、達文南、達文西、達文北。

Waahahahaha, that's a good one, way to go 痞子!!!

痞子回歸

今個星期五會考 mishnaic hebrew, 朝早九點考到下午一點, 驚到死, 因為呢幾日不斷練習, 覺得真係好難, 變成舊約聖經 d 希伯來文好似兒童故事書咁平易近人. 唉, 都冇乜做到啦, 唯有頂硬上啦.

呢個學期真係好慘, 冇o野係順o既, 再係咁落去真係割脈算鬼數...

不過頭先終於見到有令我覺得開心, 死o左就冇得 enjoy o既o野: 痞子蔡開始o係網上 post 新書啦! 今次佢o係佢自己個 blog 度 post, 所以唔使好似以前咁周圍搵. 辣鬼媽媽, 而家痞子蔡出書, 仲邊得閒理得考試咁多? 話知佢啦, 睇晒先算!!!

Woohoo, 又可以好似以前咁日日返屋企就 check 下有冇出新文o個種頂癮感覺 lu. 呢個係買書睇感覺唔到o既珍貴經驗.

Tuesday 25 September 2007

柴田淳: Colorful




柴田淳 d 歌一向都有 d 柴記特色: 1) 好多歌都比較長, 閒閒地五、六分鐘長, 2) tempo 超慢, 好聽得o黎有 d 催眠作用. 呢隻 single 都有呢 d 特色, 不過 track 1 首 colorful 個 tempo 比較快 d. 柴田淳 d 歌好少有會令人覺得唔好聽, 因為佢個 style 就係把聲取勝, 唱乜歌都係把聲大晒, 所以呢隻碟都一樣, 感覺唔錯.

YUI: Love & Truth



第一次見到張 single 封面就打個突, 嘩, 今次張碟 d 相影得咁靚, 好似變o左第二個人咁o既? 可惜隻碟兩首新歌都麻麻地, 同佢之前o個 d 經典差一截. 佢把聲當然係好, 不過係 d 歌寫得唔好, melody 唔吸引, 又冇乜特色. 希望下張碟可以相靚兼歌正.

兩隻老虎, 兩隻老虎...

尋日同 Schuller 見面, 講下邊個會係我o既論文 advisor. 之前阿 Reed 同我講, 佢而家唔o係老麥, 不如咁啦, Schuller 同 Reed 都做我 advisor. 尋日我就係去同 Schuller 講呢樣o野. 嘩, 唔好講笑, 真係緊張到我... 上次碩士論文個 oral defense, o個朝早我仲o係度睇漫畫; 去 CSBS present 亦好冷靜; 考 comps. 亦冇乜緊張; 但係要同 Schuller 單對單講正經o野真係非常驚嚇, 好恐怖. 過程真係冇乜特別, 佢又唔惡, 但係佢成個人就好似 d 咩 holy presence 咁, 真係令人覺得緊張.

不過都好, 佢都同意我o既提議, 人人都有一個論文 advisor, 而我就有兩個: 一個就世界重量級o既名人, 一個就而家o係 U Penn 教書o既明日之星, 正呀!

Saturday 22 September 2007

超任 DS

上個星期發現, 原來可以o係 NDS 上面打超任 d game! 只要將 emulator 直接放入 R4, 再加上自己o係網上搵返o黎o既超任遊戲 rom, 就可以將 NDS 變成 portable 超任. 雖然個 emulator 仲未完善, 有 d game 都仲未玩到, 但係大部份都冇問題.

而家我部 NDS 上面有 R-Type 3, Breath of Fire 1, 2, Chrono Trigger, Demon's Crest, 勇者鬥惡龍 5, Final Fight 1, 2, 3, Indian Jones' Greatest Adventures, Secret of Mana, 勇者龍劍傳 1, 2, 3, 新女神傳生 2, 超惡魔城, 魂斗羅 3. 經典呀, 有 d 仲係我以前細個都未玩過o既. 最可惜係 Star Ocean 同勇者鬥惡龍 6 唔 work. 我o係 ibook 度都玩到, 但係冇 NDS 咁方便, 同埋咁好控制嘛.

玩返呢 d 舊 game, 先發覺以前 d game 真係幾好玩, 簡簡單單咁, 好過而家 NDS 本身 d game. NDS 都唔係有好 game, 好似Phoenix Wright 系列, 同埋 d 用腦 puzzle game 就唔錯, 用o黎過下日晨唔會覺悶. 但係除此之外, RPG, 射擊, 動作 game 都冇乜真正好o野, 連超任都不如.

奇人 Neil Altman

有位奇人名叫 Neil Altman. 香港教會早陣子高呼"耶穌在中國," 這位仁兄則多年以來不斷在大眾報紙中刊出 article, 說"死海古卷在中國." Altman 表示, 他可以在死海古卷中看見有中文字 (!!!), 所以死海古卷的年期絕不可能在中世紀之前. 網上依然可以找到他寫的幾篇文章:

這裡, 這裡, 還有這裡. 須要留意, Altman 常在文中引述一些知名學者跟佢"證實"有的沒的, 但其實他時常曲解別人原意, 很多被他引述過的學者後來要在公開 email 或他們的個人 blog 中解釋自己的立場與觀點都被 Altman 曲解了.

Thursday 20 September 2007

一四零八



我唔理, 我考試表現失準, 我一定要賴落呢齣戲度. 簡單講, 如果今次我考試肥o左, 一定係因為尋晚睇o左呢齣戲, 唔係講笑, 真係睇完人都癲, IQ 至少下跌三百點, 美國減息半厘都升唔返.

齣戲開始o個時幾有趣, 講個鬼書作家四圍去 d 猛鬼酒店過夜, 睇下係咪真係鬧鬼. 去到 John Cusack 同 Samuel Jackson o係度講間 1408 號房o既猛鬼歷史o個時, 我真係覺得好想睇落去, 到底間房搞乜鬼.

點知到 Cusack o係間房度正式開始見到怪事發生齣戲就開始好似戲中男主角一樣"直插水底". 呢間房發生o個 d o野實在太怪, 去到一個地步只令人覺得"有冇搞 x 錯", 而全無驚嚇緊張o既感覺, 非常失敗. 佢又有少少野心, 想拍到好似有 d 意思咁款, 但係一樣冇乜特別, 冇 feel, 同齣戲個怪雞格局根本就唔夾.

Roooooound 2: KO'd

今日考第二輪, 又係考三題:

1) Form criticism 對研究對觀福音o既好同壞處.

2) 討論歷史耶穌研究入面用到o既 criteria of historicity

3) 講讀新約 as canon 同 not as canon o既分別, 兩者有乜好處

頭兩題我好熟, 但係第三題真係唔識, 一味老作o左兩粒鐘咁滯先作到四頁紙 double spaced. 考完走去圖書館睇睇, 仲發覺一路都有o野講錯... 一句講晒, 就係俾佢 KO'd 囉, 真係諗唔到佢會出題問 canon, 冇辦法, 衰o左. 希望其他地方拉到分, 唔會搞到 fail 啦.

唉, 冇晒 mood, 唔講 lar.

Wednesday 19 September 2007

Half Time

今日係中場休息, 尋日考o左 Hellenistic Judaism 同埋約翰福音. 一打開張卷就驚訝一o野, 因為原來只有三題, 即是只係考 3-4 個鐘, 短過我本來以為要考四題, 係好事, 上次考四題, 次次都打字打到手腕痛.

第一題: 透過 Letter of Aristeas 同埋 Philo 討論猶太人 scripture o既地位.

第二題: o係 Against Apion 入面, Josephus 點樣 defend 猶太人, 佢講過 d 乜. 同其他同類型o既猶太人著述有乜相同/分別?

第三題: 講解約翰福音入面有邊 d 地方突顯出佢背後複雜o既 compositional history. 討論學者有邊幾類學說去解釋約翰福音呢 d 奇怪o既地方.

其實第一、二條問題寫到水蛇春咁長, 非常複雜, 我都已經唔係好記得. 我最唔熟悉係第二題, 因為讀 Against Apion 讀得唔夠熟. 都冇辦法啦, Josephus o個部份我讀得最唔熟o個樣佢就出o個樣, 不過應該唔會 fail o卦?

Monday 17 September 2007

Roooooound One!!!

聽日開始考 comps lu. 聽日會先考 Hellenistic Judaism (主要應該係 Philo 同 Josephus) 同埋約翰福音. 我一向捉題目都有一手, 上次考舊約 comps 我就捉中兩題, 而且係兩題中兩題, 可謂百發百中. 不過今次真係捉唔到路. 不過應該都冇問題o既. 本來今日o個科佛教 intro 有個 tutorial 要去, 不過都 skip o左, 都係留o係屋企輕輕鬆鬆比較好.

心情如何? 冇乜特別. 同一般考試測驗前o個種少少緊張冇乜分別. 我唔會臨尾走去狂背書, 唔會冇胃口食o野, 相信亦唔會失眠. Just another day. 反而係今朝等o左成個禮拜o個個黃毓民節目講台灣, 冇上個星期講香港o野咁激, 有 d 失望. 慘.

Sunday 16 September 2007

郭靜: 我不想忘記你



尋日聽到有個之前冇聽過o既台灣妹最近出o既一張專輯, 令人意外地好聽, 對考試前o既心情都有幫助. 本來連試聽o既興趣都冇, 因為台灣年年出咁多碟, 邊聽得晒? 不過早幾日佢上"康熙來了", 唱過幾句, 把聲好特別, 聽落好舒服.

隻碟有十首歌, 其中有一首同 d 阿姐 (張韶涵 + 范瑋琪) 合唱, 我最唔鍾意就係呢首. 其他隻隻都唔錯, 我就最鍾意"我不想忘記你", "想個不停", "離開", "有生之年". 其實最近好多人都出新碟, 有潘瑋珀, 楊丞琳, Soler, 但係我最鍾意郭靜呢隻. 所以o係度為佢宣傳下. Howtindog 推薦.

Friday 14 September 2007

Hultgren, The Rise of Normative Christianity



A. J. Hultgren, The Rise of Normative Christianity (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1994).

有個 term, 叫做 catholic christianity, 指成形後o既教會, 邊個同呢個大教會唔同o既, 就會被叫為異端. 呢本書討論o係有 catholic christianity 之前, 有冇一個未完全成形, 但係唔同o既基督教圈子之間又有共識o既 christianity 呢? 作者話有, 佢叫呢個做 normative christianity.

本書有兩個最重要o既 chapters. 一個講 70 年前o既基督教圈子, 一個就講 70 年後. 70 年前, 作者講到巴勒斯坦o既耶教圈, Q community, 同埋保羅 d 教會. 值得一提o既係, 唔係個個學者都認為o係巴勒斯坦有耶教圈子o既存在, 因為有 d 重要o既學者, 如 Gerd Theiseen, 認為早期o既耶穌 movement 係一個 charismatic movement, 以耶穌自己為首, 由一班四處流浪o既 charismatic wanderers 組成. 既然係無處為居, 咁就唔算係有"圈子"o既存在. 不過 Hultgren 唔同意, 佢話o係使徒行傳同保羅書信中睇到o既畫面唔係咁樣. 例如, o係使徒行傳中, d 早期o既信徒都有地方聚會, 一齊飲飲食食之類; 保羅雖然有四處去, 但係佢亦o係以弗所同安提阿停留過一段長時間.

70 年後, Hultgren 就講 Syria o既圈子 (以馬太福音為例), Asia-Minor (以 pastoral 書信為例), 同埋約翰福音背後o既圈子. 睇過晒咁多個佢認為存在o既耶教圈子之後, 佢得出一個結論: 雖然佢地之間有好多唔同o既地方, 但係o係信仰上, 有幾點係好 constant o既. 1) theology: 佢地都信上帝係造物主, 係佢地o既父神. 2) christology: 耶穌係神派o黎世上o既. 3) soteriology: 上帝有救贖人類o既計劃, 透過耶穌搞掂. 4) ethics: 信徒要去愛其他人. 5) ecclesiology: 信徒會聚埋一齊.

而o係第一/二世紀, 抱持呢幾個信仰要點o既, 就算係 normative christianity, 而o個 d 唔接受當中作何一條o既就會被邊緣化. 例如 Marcion, 佢認為舊約o既造物主同新約充滿慈愛o既天父係唔同o既神, 同 Hultgren 列出o既第一個要點有出入, 所以 Marcion o係其他教會圈子眼中就係問題人物.

彼得福音 + 十架福音

o係 1887 年, 一份第八/九世紀o既抄本o係埃及一個 monastery o既一個棺材入面被發現出o黎, 後來被學者稱為彼得福音. John Dominic Crossan 認為, 由彼得福音可以得到重要, 早期有關耶穌o既資料. 彼得福音本身唔算早期資料, 因為應該唔會早於第二世紀寫成o既, 比新約聖經入面任何一本福音書都要遲. 但係 Crossan 話, 雖然彼得福音本身係遲, 但係佢用o既資料卻係超早, 比四本新約福音書都更早. Crossan 叫呢份埋o係彼得福音背後o既 source 做十架福音, 因為呢個十架福音講o既係耶穌受苦同復活. 而呢本福音書最突出就係講到當耶穌被兩個天使由墓穴帶走o個時, 無厘頭有個十字架o係後面跟住, 跳下跳下仲開"口"講o野, 所以叫佢做"十架"福音乃係再合適不過.

Crossan 認為, 十架福音成書超早, 新約四本福音書寫關於耶穌o既受苦同復活都有參考十架福音o既資料. 係唔係真呢? Joel Green 話唔係, 反而係十架福音抄新約o既福音書先係. 例如, 解釋到點解會有守衛看守住耶穌個墓穴, 十架福音同馬太福音有一句 parallel o既說話: "lest his disciples coming and steal him..." "門徒"o係馬太福音出現次數超多, 超過 70 次, 係新約福音書中之冠; 相反, 十架福音冇用過"門徒"呢個詞彙. 仲有, "偷" (lestai) 呢個字o係馬太福音亦出現過 5 次, 但係冇出現過o係十架福音裡面. "以免" (mepote) o係馬太福音中用過七次, 只出現過一次o係十架福音度, 不過o係文法上係一個好唔同o既用法.

如上呢個例子就係指出, 呢句十架福音同馬太福音之間o既 parallel, 差唔多每一隻字都係馬太常用而十架福音唔常用o既 term. 所以應該係出自馬太手筆, 而十架福音搬字過紙.

Thursday 13 September 2007

Die Hard, 死硬

頭先收到 Jennifer 個 email, 話佢聽日星期五會考 mishnaic Hebrew. 我就會遲少少, 考完 comps 之後先到我考. 嘩, 好似好鬼難咁喎. 阿 Reed 同佢講, 個考試分兩部份. 第一部份有大概十行 unpointed 希伯來文, 要翻譯晒, parse 晒所有動詞, 同埋解釋 d 分詞o既用法. 第二部份有大約二十行, 要翻譯一小部份, 不過之後要答問題, 講呢段o野關於乜o野. 好似話至少三個鐘頭咁長. 辣塊媽媽, 星期二考四個鐘, 星期四又考四個鐘, 跟住又要考三個鐘希伯來文, 大佬, 頭都暈啦. 都冇人性o既.

Wednesday 12 September 2007

McMaster U's job posting

McMaster now has an ad out for hiring someone to fill the previous position of my beloved Annette Reed sensei.

==============================
The Department of Religious Studies at McMaster University invites applications for a full-time tenure-track position in Early Judaism, beginning July 1, 2008. The position is at the rank of Assistant Professor.

We are seeking candidates who specialize in Second Temple Judaism, with competence in the literature of classical Rabbinic Judaism. Possible areas for research and teaching (at the graduate level) include Philo, Josephus, Septuagint, Dead Sea Scrolls, Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, and early rabbinic literature. The appropriate primary and research languages, both ancient and modern, are required; candidates will be expected to teach graduate courses working with texts in the original languages. At the undergraduate level, teaching may be in a variety of courses, especially in Hebrew Bible.

Early Judaism is a component of the Biblical field in our department, in which Judaism and Christianity in the Greco-Roman era are studied in conjunction with one another at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. A range of methodologies and approaches is employed (philological, literary, social historical, archaeological, philosophical, theological). Candidates should have an active interest in the broader field of Jewish Studies.

The successful candidate must have completed the PhD and will be expected to carry out an independent program of scholarly research yielding significant peer-reviewed publications. Responsibilities include effective undergraduate and graduate teaching and supervision of MA and PhD students.

Applications, including a curriculum vitae, a statement of research and teaching interests, a sample of scholarly writing and three confidential letters of reference should be sent to Dr. Eileen Schuller, Acting Chair, Department of Religious Studies, McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, L8S 4K1.

All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will be considered first for this position. McMaster University is strongly committed to employment equity within its community, and to recruiting a diverse faculty and staff. The University encourages applications from all qualified candidates, including women, members of visible minorities, aboriginal persons, members of sexual minorities and persons with disabilities.

The deadline for applications is November 26, 2007. Candidates whose applications are received by November 5 will be considered for pre-interviews at AAR/SBL in San Diego (Nov. 17–20). Pre-interviews at AJS in Toronto (Dec 16–18) are also a possibility.
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I can only say that my future is dim as hell. I will not be qualitifed for a job like this. Geez, competence in Second Temple Judaism AND classical Rabbinic literature? And need to teach graduate classes in Philo, Josephus, Septuagint, Dead Sea Scrolls, Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, and early rabbinic literature, PLUS undergrad courses in Hebrew Bible? I can handle Second Temple material, but definitely not Rabbinics and HB stuff.

Well... I prophesy that I'll be unemployed. Let's see if I have a prophetic charisma.

Tuesday 11 September 2007

Species IV: The Awakening



今朝收到老豆寄o黎兩包 dvd 電影, 其中有一隻o係呢齣戲. 呢個系列我睇過頭兩集, 都係爛片, 呢集都唔例外. 呢集講個女主角係人造人之類, 係異形同人類o既結合. 個女仔之前咁多年都正常人咁生活, 不過無厘頭開始會變怪獸, 會好似青蛙咁引長條利拮死人. 雖然有異形殺人o既場面, 但係齣o野好鬼悶, 未睇到尾就o係床睏著o左. 雖然呢個系列好雞, 但係又難得佢長拍長有, 仲要集集個 style 都幾統一, 次次隻異形都係金髮女, 一定會除衫益觀眾, 周街搵男人同佢生仔, 而一有得生就會殺鬼o左個男o既. 其實呢 d 戲要有 d 自知之明, 反正個故事都唔得 gar lar, 我唔明點解佢唔直頭由頭到尾俾隻怪獸出多 d 場, 由頭殺到落尾反而仲好啦. 又要夾硬講故事, 但係 d 對白又雞, d 演員又交唔貨, 氣, 咪搞咁多o野啦好心.

Monday 10 September 2007

ZONE - Astro Tour


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Exam next week!!!

I'm writing from my office now, so this post has to be in English.

Next week Tues and Thurs, from 10am-2pm, I will be writing my second set of comprehensive exams. On Tues, I will spend 2 hours on writing essays about Hellenistic Judaism, then another 2 on the Gospel of John. On Thurs, it will be a 4-hour spree of essay-writing on various NT topics. It is hard to guess what will be up, but I'm anticipating some questions on the synoptic Gospels, may be historical Jesus. And since my first reader S. Westerholm is a Pauline maniac, I should be prepared for questions on Pauline thinking or writings too.

Really, the one topic I hate most in the course of my studying is sociology and the New Testament. I hope that it won't show up. But if disaster strikes and it does appear, then I will need to mention stuff like the Church-Sect model associated with Weber, Troelsch, and Scroggs, the Millenarian model associated with Gager, Meeks, and Jewett, and also the charismatic model associated with originally Weber, then big guns like Hengel and Gerd Theissen. I can say something on this topic like the above, but I still hope it won't show up. Don't, don't, don't, don't, don't...

Friday 7 September 2007

老麥搵老襯

尋日係第一日開學. 今個學期我主要有幾樣o野做: 1) 九月中考 comps., 2) 考完 comps. 就考 mishnaic Hebrew, 3) 要讀一科 undergrad o既科, 叫做 Intro to Buddhism, 4) 完成兩個 research (其中一個已經做好, 不過想重寫), 準備下年去o個 d conference, 5) 做 TA.

我第一年o黎到 McMaster 要 TA o個科叫做 "death and dying", 係一科同聖經研究完全無關, 一科我一 d 都唔明o既科目, 但係我就仲要去教人, 仲要改人地 d essay 同 final... 老麥真係不知所謂. d 學生俾咁多錢讀一科, 但係佢地就派個乜都唔識, 亦唔願意教呢一科o既人去做 TA, 而呢 d 學生o係呢科o既成績就落o係呢個有可能知道得比 d 學生更少o既人手中. o係咪玩先?

今個學期比較好運, TA 一科叫做 "Death and Afterlife in Christianity and Judaism," 係聖經科, 好開心. 同埋個老師會有兩堂缺席, 所以我會代課, present 兩個題目, "Eschatology in Dead Sea Scrolls," 同埋 "4 Ezra". 兩樣都係我最鍾意o既題目, 超正! 不過下個學期就要 TA 科無厘頭o野, 乜乜道德科, 百分百肯定唔係聖經o野. 唉...

Tuesday 4 September 2007

經典重現: Krister Stendahl

有人將 Krister Stendahl o既出名文章: The Apostle Paul and the Introspective Conscience of the West, 合法地放上網俾人睇. 呢篇o係保羅研究o既歷史中真係經典呀. 雖然, 我地都話 E.P. Sanders 好重要, 係保羅神學新觀點o既鼻祖. 不過其實都要有好似 Stendahl 又或者 Montefiore 呢類咁新鮮想法o既人幫佢開路, Sanders 後來先會提出到一個成熟o既新學說.

o係呢篇文章, Stendahl 話, 傳統學者都話o係保羅書信入面見到一個時常自我反省, o係信主之前o係罪海中浮沉o既保羅. Stendahl 答話: 錯了! 自我反省係後來o係西方社會先變成發達o既傳統, 最早可能見於奧古斯丁, 馬丁路德o係罪中o既掙扎就更加係經典啦. 而我地成日睇保羅書信o個時, 就將保羅好似奧古斯丁或者馬丁路德咁, 將路德o既角色代入去保羅度, 將佢睇成為一個內心痛苦掙扎o既人. 但係, Stendahl 話, 其實保羅有一個 "robust conscience."

McKnight on New Perspective on Paul

頭先無意中見 Scot McKnight 個 blog 度有一連串講關於 new perspective on Paul o既 posts. 一向都鍾意 Scot McKnight, 呢幾篇文亦寫得夠淺白, 值得一讀. 最令我覺得驚訝o既係o係第一篇個開頭, 佢話:

"The opposition to certain elements of the NPP has become so fierce for some that denominations have gathered to see if pastors who represent that denomination adhere to the NPP or not — if they do, they’re out."

嘩, 大佬, 使唔使呀? 諗o黎諗去都諗唔到 new perspective 有乜o野辣著 d 教會領袖, 真係 r 晒頭. 我估, 可能會估錯, 教會當o左馬丁路德係神o卦? 所以路德o既教導係神所默示的, 反路德就等於反基督... 不過估下 je, 可能有其他我等凡夫俗子所不能理會o既苦衷o既. 好在老早就已經打定主意唔會做教會工, 唔係就仲慘過住北韓.

Monday 3 September 2007

Documentary Hypothesis 關信仰乜事?

頭先o係人地 d blog 見到有人寫關於 documentary hypothesis o既o野 (呢度, 同呢度). 開始係講 documentary hypothesis, 去到最後得出個結論: "鐵證如山! 這就是真實聖經的編寫. 各位信徒們, 請問聖經的神聖究竟在何方?? 你們被愚弄了, 被基督教那些傳教仕騙了(其實很多的傳教仕都不知道). 不知者不罪, 希望各位知道真相之後. 好好再重思自己的對此宗教的信仰."

其實佢講o既 documentary hypothesis 唔知邊度抄出o黎, 但係望落好怪, 話 E 早過 J, 又話知道 E 係由一個名叫亞希雅o既人寫o既, 又話 torah 係由以斯拉集成o既, 又話波斯王想靠用 torah 去控制猶太人... 其實佢講呢 d 咁o野, 同 d 迷信基督徒話五經全部係由摩西寫成一樣咁反智, 係唔識o野o既表現. 不過我唔係要講佢有乜講錯, 而係想討論下 documentary hypothesis 關信仰乜事.

簡單講, documentary hypothesis 就係話, 摩西五經唔係由一人寫成. 而家我地手中o既五經背後其實係由好多唔同o既 sources 集結而成. 我唔係舊約人, 但係就我所認識o既 dh, 我覺得幾信得過, 對我o黎講好 make sense. 的確, 五經入面有唔同o既世界觀, 同埋時有上文唔接下文o既地方 (e.g., 創世記 6.19; 7.2). 以我所知, 有 d 思想傳統, 自居為信仰正宗o既基督徒視相信 documentary hypothesis o既人為敵基督, 叫o個 d 教導 dh o既專家為"新派", 好似共產黨叫 d 地主做黑五類一樣. 其實唔只 dh, 如果教主日學同人講以賽亞書分一二三書, 由唔同人寫成, 一定會俾牧師媽到上天花板.

我覺得信徒對呢 d source critical 學說o既恐懼難以理解, 不過我知道佢地點解咁樣. 有 d 人以為, 如果摩西五經唔係摩西寫o既, 又或者以賽亞書唔係以賽亞寫o既, 咁聖經就變成唔可信, 佢地o既信仰就要潰散... 我覺得咁o既想法係完全不可接受. 就理性上講, 根本就係反智, 唔肯面對現實, 扭曲証據; 就信仰上講, 根本就係睇低聖經, 以為聖經對信徒有意義係在於作者係邊一個人, 所以摩西五經唔可以唔係摩西寫成. 呢 d 人自以為係信仰先鋒, 其實就抱持住一個對聖經o既超級 low view. 其實聖經邊個人寫成有乜所謂? 根本同信仰無關. 對猶太人又好, 對基督教徒又好, 摩西五經係摩西寫o既又好, 係街頭無名氏乞兒寫成又好, 摩西五經都係佢地信仰o既基石.

其實上面提到o個個 blog 友, 佢o既 logic 同 d 反智信徒一樣咁無理, 以為聖經o既意義係基於邊個人寫成. 所以冇腦o既信徒唔會理佢, 繼續相信摩西五經係摩西寫o既; 而有腦o既信徒一樣唔會理佢, 因為佢會明白摩西五經係邊個寫o既根本冇關係. 同埋佢話好多傳教士都唔知道 documentary hypothesis, 我相信唔係事實. 佢可能以為自己知道 d 乜乜勁o野, 但係其實一般舊約聖經 101 都會教 dh, 讀過少少書o既人都應該知道 dh, 冇佢諗得咁神奇.

Bioshock



今日係"喱爸 day", 傳說係記念做姑喱 (aka 苦力) o既爸爸o既節日, 全個 hamilton 都陷入癱瘓, 所以尋日o係 d 舖頭收檔之前走去買個新 game 玩. 本來想去買 blue dragon, 但係見 d review 一致話呢個 game 雖然畫面靚, 但係個故事白痴, 角色唔吸引, 我最睇唔起呢 d 本末倒置o既 RPG, 所以唔買, 等佢跌到廿皮o個時可能會買個二手 copy 玩下.

所以買o左隻個個都話好o既 bioshock. 尋晚開始玩o左幾粒鐘, 覺得真係做得好靚, 唔單止係畫面靚, 個 style 都好吸引. 本來我一向都唔鍾意玩 d 第一身射擊遊戲, 因為玩冇幾耐就會覺得頭暈. 但係呢個 game 唔會, 因為個鏡頭轉得唔快, 同埋唔會不齗有人出o黎打你, 更多時間係周圍 explore. 好多時係突然之間走一班人出o黎打你, 佢地仲好醒, 有時會熄o左間房 d 燈先過o黎丙你, 而冇燈個畫面真係會黑晒, 真係會俾班死o野嚇一跳. d 光暗做得好靚, 搞到好有氣氛, d 聲又正, 會聽到轉角有 d 痴線佬/婆o係度自言自語講粗口, 但係又未睇到佢地, 個氣氛好緊張. 同埋對我o黎講, 最重要o既係呢個 game 易玩, 唔單止有 easy/normal/hard 選, 仲唔會 gameover! 因為當你冇晒能源之後, 你就會o係最近o既一個 save point 復活, 唔會少o左錢, 亦唔會少o左子彈, 所以唔會因為太難而令到我呢類新手冇癮. 我覺得個 style 有 d 似 gamecube o個個 metroid prime, 因為雖然係 fps, 但係主要都係 exploration, 不過我鍾意 bioshock 多 d, 因為個氣氛更加 creepy, 同埋 d 敵人真係好樣衰, 成班痴線喪屍. 其實我覺得 bioshock 仲恐怖過賣 survival horror o既 resident evil 4.

Sunday 2 September 2007

對觀福音: 四條路線

聖經學者叫馬可、馬太、路加福音做對觀福音 (synoptic gospels), 因為佢地內容有好多相似o既地方, 可以於o係一齊o黎睇. 根據 Robert Stein o既數字, 馬可福音o既字入面, 有超過 95% o係馬太福音入面有 parallel, 超過 85% o係路加福音入面搵到有 parallel. 所以學者都認為, 三者之間有明顯o既關連. 頭先o係網上面周圍八卦下, 點知見到有 d 令人驚訝o既意見, 例如話馬可用 Q 做藍本. 當係考試前溫習, o係呢度 summarize 一下學界裡面o既四大路線.

Augustine hypothesis
奧古斯丁話, 最先寫成o既係馬太, 之後馬可參照馬太, 最後路加參照馬可寫成佢本福音書. 呢個次序同新約聖經入面三本福音書o既次序一樣. 奧古斯丁應該係受到新約正典個 shape 影響先出個咁o既學說. 用圖畫表達就係咁:


Griesbach hypothesis (two-gospel hypothesis)

呢個係好多年前最受歡迎o既學說, 以 J. J. Griesbach 為首, 近年 William Farmer 亦支持呢個學說. 根據呢條路線, 最早成書o既係馬太福音, 之後路加用馬太福音寫成路加福音, 最後馬可用馬太福音同埋路加福音寫成馬可福音. 如下圖:

如果我冇記錯, 好多年之前我睇o個本馬有藻o既新約概論 (亦有可能係陳終道o個本馬太福音 commentary, 真係唔記得) 話馬太福音o係最早寫成. 就係走呢條過晒時o既路線.

2-source hypothesis
呢個係現今大部分學者接受o既學說. 呢個學說o既原型首先o係由 H. J. Holzmann 提出, 佢話最先o既係馬可, 之後馬太同路加分別參照馬可寫成佢地o既福音書. 馬太同路加之間係冇關連o既. 但係其實馬太同路加之間有好多相同o既內容, 而呢 d 內容又冇出現o係馬可入面o既. 所以後來 B. H. Streeter 就話, 最先o既係馬可, 後來馬太同路加分別用馬可寫成佢地o既福音書, 另外, 馬太同路加亦分別用一個已經失傳o既 source 做藍本o黎寫佢地福音書, 學者叫呢個 hypothetical source 做 Q. 如下圖:
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Mark without Q hypothesis
最近 Mark Goodacre 提出 (佢唔係第一個提出, 不過最近係多得佢呢個學說先多人注意), 最先寫成o既係馬可, 後來馬太抄馬可, 路加抄馬可同埋馬太. Goodacre 認為, 呢個學說可行, 而又唔需要假設 Q o既存在, 所以 Mark without Q hypothesis o既可能性更高. 如下圖:
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Saturday 1 September 2007

Claude G. Montefiore on 保羅

準備考 comps. o既一個好處就係會逼自己去深入睇同埋學一 d 自己本來唔識o既o野. 而呢 d o野其中有 d 係好精采o既, 連o係溫書中都有樂趣. 最近睇到 Montefiore 對保羅o既了解, 好有趣. 比 E.P. Sanders 早好多年, 佢就已經警告 d 新約學者唔好一味以為律法對猶太人係一個 burden, 呢個係一個扭曲事實o既誤解. 雖然佢o既對第一世紀猶太人信仰o既 reconstruction 係基於 d 年期較後o既拉比文學, 所以其實係好有問題, 但係佢個 general warning 係合理, 同埋都有 d 高瞻遠足o既味道.

C. G. Montefiore, Judaism and St. Paul (London: Max Goschen, 1914).

- Montefiore 同好多其他保羅學者唔同, 因為佢係猶太學者, 對猶太教, 亦即是保羅o既背景有唔更敏銳o既感覺. o係佢o個個年代, 一般學者都假設保羅所知o既猶太教就係拉比猶太教 (Rabbinic Judaism). Montefiore 認為呢個係一個錯o既假設, 變成誤解o左保羅, 亦誤解o左拉比猶太教.

- 首先, o係拉比猶太教入面, 律法係好得無比, 為以色列帶來快樂平安. 猶太教入面有句名言, "感謝神我唔係女人, 因為男人要守o既律法比女人多." 律法越多就越係好事. 可能有人會話, 死在當你守唔到律法o個時你就大鑊, 所以律法為人帶來恐懼. Montefiore 話唔係, 因為律法本身就預o左 d 人會守唔到, 律法o既目的係改進人o既生活品格, 就算守唔到 perfect, 神都有慈愛. 保羅對律法o既了解完全相反. 佢唔係單單話律法以前有用, 但係而家有o左基督就唔需要律法, 佢直頭話律法係冇好過有, 直頭話律法帶詛咒俾人. 如果保羅o既背景係拉比猶太教, 佢冇理由對律法會變到有咁o既睇法.

- 其次, o係拉比猶太教入面, 神o既慈愛大過晒所有o野, 包括人o既罪. 只有最惡最過分o既少數猶太人先會驚自己唔會得救, 因為一個平常人, 不論佢有幾多次守唔住律法都好, 神都會原諒佢. 保羅對猶太人宗教o既描述就好唔同, 佢話少少過失都會帶來律法o既詛咒, 而要解決呢個問題o既唯一方法係基督為人類代死. 兩個觀點超唔同.

- Montefiore 相信有兩個可能性可以去解釋點解保羅同拉比路線o既思想咁唔同. 1) 第一世紀o既拉比猶太教同我地所知o既拉比猶太教好唔同; 2) 保羅o既背景唔係拉比猶太教. Montefiore 相信係後者. 咁保羅o既猶太背景係乜o野呢? Montefiore 話, 保羅o既背景係 Hellenistic Judaism, 所以佢個神會比較神秘, 同人類冇咁接近, 對律法o既價值會有所保留.