Customer Reviews

Scripture in Tradition: The Bible and Its Interpretation in the Orthodox Church

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Aside from the product description, which is accurate, I would like to add a few points.

First, it's refreshing to see some solid material addressing the bible in Orthodoxy, as it is sad but true to say that most Orthodox are not too familiar with the scriptures. It's true that experientially Orthodox, through their worship which is almost entirely scripture (and totally scriptural), have a strong experience of the actual meaning of the Bible. But it would be equally useful to be engaged in the text of God's Word on a personal and devotional sense, especially when the true sense is already given in the Church. There would be no reinventing the wheel. Chapters 1 and 4 address these issues.

Chapters 2 and 3 are excellent introductions to reading the scriptures within the patristic tradition. Very good material looking at what is meant by the literal, allegorical and typological meanings, and how this related to worship of the God who has revealed Himself to us in His Son and Spirit. This is important, because for the Orthodox there is no real understanding of God apart from the Spirit's indwelling in the believer.

I found chapters 6 and 7 to be appropriate for the book's theme, but too technical for general readership, especially when large sections in Greek are not even transliterated. My guess is that these two chapters came form journals and were just reprinted.

Chapter 8 is a detailed overview of Mary, the Mother of God, in the New Testament. More could have been made of this theme, however, if Breck had shown how the Old Testament was exegeted regarding her and her Son, Jesus, in the patristic and NT sources.

Chapters 9-12 are concerned with Christ and the Spirit in Scripture and Tradition. Break covers Nicene Christology and Pneumatology, Chalcedonian Christology and the humanity of Christ, Jesus as the `Face' of the Spirit, and how the Jesus Prayer is a sacrament of the presence of God.

This is an excellent, if not at times disjointed, resource and I have found it deserves more than just a cursory reading. Parts are more technical than others, but certainly there is much to chew on devotionally as well.

These may also be of interest: Bible, Church, Tradition: An Eastern Orthodox View (Collected Works of Georges Florovsky, Volume 1), The Mystery of Christ: Life in Death, The God of the Gospel of John, The Gospel Image of Christ, Responses to 101 Questions on the Bible, The New Testament and the People of God (Christian Origins and the Question of God)