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Sanctified Vision: An Introduction to Early Christian Interpretation of the Bible

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Others have commented on the basic thrust of this fine book: as its title indicates, an introduction to how Bible interpretation was done for three hundred years. I'd like to add a few points not yet noted in commendation of this excellent work.

First, the authors are wonderful teachers. They note at the beginning how the book was motivated by the happenstance of their being academic next-door neighbors at Creighton University in the theology department, although of differing specializations. This led to many discussions about how best to understand and thus to teach students how to read ancient authors such as Irenaeus, Origen, and Augustine, among others. They approach this book, therefore, both as scholars and as teachers, which are two separate vocations not always joined together in print.

They provide wonderfully helpful analogies and examples to guide readers to put aside modern presuppositions and enter into the world of the patristic writers. From that of finding patterns in numerical sequences ("2, 4..." could lead either to "6, 8, 10" or "8, 16, 32") to how science works in a similar way to ancient exegesis to the use of the classic rock ballad "American Pie" as an example of allegory (!), the authors keep the reader involved in the inquiry every step of the way. These examples are not simply entertaining: they are truly insightful teaching tools to help understand a very different worldview.

Second, the authors take a particular stance that is likely to be seen as "conservative" among some, in that they defend the "rule of faith" used by the patristic writers as a criterion of coherence of the entire Bible defensible, and implicitly at least, superior to, many others offered in the modern and postmodern world (where coherence has been abandoned altogether). Whether one agrees or not is not the point; their stance requires one to think clearly through one's own position on reading in general and of the Bible in particular. I found myself often stopping just to ponder rather than just racing through their brief volume.

Finally, the authors clearly and succinctly present themes and means that hold together a wide variety of authors and historical contexts, from the Alexandrians (such as Origen, Athanasius and Didymus the Blind) to the Cappadoccians (such as Gregory of Nyssa) to Augustine. They keep their eyes on the specific prize that they are after, which is not to show the historical development of patristic exegesis, but how it was done over the long haul and why that is a different, yet still valid, way into the biblical story.

Few books pack so much learning and teaching into such a short space (139 pages plus notes). Highly recommended to anyone interested in what holds the Bible together, then and now.

This is a great book. It is a wonderfully well written, relatively brief introduction to patristic exegesis and a persuasive argument for the continuing significance of such exegesis for the Church now. The obsession of biblical studies with methodology (historical critical, social scientific, rhetorical, feminist, liberational, post colonial and so forth) has made the exegesis of Scripture in the early church look capriciously arbitrary. Thus such exegesis may be the subject of modern anthropological, rhetorical, historical analyses (etc.) - see the wonderful books of Elizabeth Clark among others - but it is often just ignored or even villified when looked at as exegesis of Holy Scripture for the Church. This book convincingly argues not just for the historical significance of patristic style exegesis but makes a provocative case that exactly such exegesis is keenly needed now in order to let the church listen attentively to Holy Scripture. I found it so thought provoking that parts of it I read and reread. It also inspired to further reading in the same area. I thoroughly recommend it.

The collaborative work of John J. O'Keefe and R. R. Reno (both of whom are Associate Professors of Theology at Creighton University), Sanctified Vision: An Introduction To Early Christian Interpretation Of The Bible provides the reader with an informed explanation of the structure and logic of the early Christian interpretations of scripture in late antiquity. These interpretations are considered foundational to the development of Christianity as a religion, and offer insight into how these early leaders and theologians thought about doctrine and practice by analyzing selected portions of patristic exegesis to illustrate specific reading techniques used by them to expound the meaning they believed intrinsic to biblical texts. The approach utilized in Sanctified Vision is organized around three basis analytical strategies: literal, typological, and allegorical. Within this framework, Professors O'Keefe and Reno cogently argue for the importance of this analytic framework and structure in understanding the emergence of what was to become Christian theological orthodoxy. A work of impeccable scholarship and also available in a hardcover edition (0801880874, $45.00), Sanctified Vision will be of immense interest and value to students of Christian Theology, Christian History, and Biblical Studies.

This work grew out of the authors' experience with the early apologists' and theologians' use of scripture in ways that confound the modern critical reader who looks for a more logical and discerning structure in the commentaries, but who find arguments built from blocks of citations joined by common words or oblique associations. The early writers believed the texts held an intrinsic meaning that was revealed by a literal reading and through allegory and typology. A basic belief was that the scriptures pointed implicitly, and allegorically, to Christ as "the end of the law and prophets."

That pre-critical reading of the Bible, while strange to us, was fundamental to the formation of early argumentation and development of doctrine. It is important to understand how they used scripture, but it is important, as well, to know that a critical reading of the Bible does not support that approach and taking a view that ignores valid critical methods does not serve, although some reviewers find support in the book for a sort of post-critical analysis. The premise of the book can lend support to canonical criticism, but that is not the authors' aim.

The style of writing is easy and accessible, and the argument is almost too-fully supported. The book would have made an excellent extended journal article.

A competent introductory book, but occasionally a little smug and reactionary. Appropriate for anyone interested in a quick overview of the early church, but perhaps less substantial than other texts. For a more nuanced work on patristic exegesis, see E. Clark's Reading Renunciation.