Books by Jacob P.B. Mortensen
by Eve-Marie Becker, Morten Hørning Jensen & Jacob Mortensen, 2016
Articles by Jacob P.B. Mortensen
"What is Human? - Theological Encounters with Anthropology, 2017
SJOT 23 (2009), 2009
This article explores the relation between aesthetics and theology in the Book of Job. The overal... more This article explores the relation between aesthetics and theology in the Book of Job. The overall aim of the article is to explain the relationship between centre and periphery (poetry and prose) and its significance for the theology of the book. The article claims that Job's problem is not the attainment of wisdom but how to reconcile wisdom with suffering-how to relate to suffering. And this theological theme is propagated through aesthetics-including stylistic, narrative, compositional and structural features. It is impossible to point out a preferential reading in the Book of Job because of the fundamental and structural dissonance of the text. This destabilized, ambiguous, paradoxical, ironical and dissonance-producing text is the hermeneutical starting point. Qua dissonance-producing text this feature is used as foundation for the interpretative task. And to get a comprehensive grip on the book two instruments are used: the literary and compositional means are analyzed, and the structural elements are evaluated in their relation between frame and centre. Following this line of interpretation reveals that the stylistic differences of the work manifest crucial theological distinctions. In the book of Job, shape and aesthetics are meaning and theology. Introduction Job's struggle is not with the fear of loosing his life or to find the cause of his sufferings; his struggle is with the fear of fear, the fear of betraying himself and his integrity. He must work through the fear of fear for his own and for God's sake. In the book of Job aesthetics is tightly tangled with theology. With the most important rhetorical devices being opposing differences and irony, the co-constituent role of the reader in a successful communication enters centre-stage. The reader is continually led back in a cyclical movement to the text to ensure a successful understanding. Thereby reading becomes the trial of the reader.
Filipperbrevet 3:2-11 og det #radikalt" nye Paulusperspektiv (eller "Paul Within Judaism"), 2018
In this article, I explain the main concepts and positions within the so-called radical new persp... more In this article, I explain the main concepts and positions within the so-called radical new perspective on Paul. I also turn to Philippians 3:2-11 in order to apply "radical" insights to Philippians. Even though radical scholars have not yet produced a complete interpretation of Philippians, several among them have turned to Philippians 3-passage in order to cope with Paul's apparent vilification of Jews as dogs and his description of his "former" life in Judaism. The radical insights, which flow from these approaches, may not provide a completely new understanding of the letter to the Philippians, but they do compel us to rethink certain traditional perceptions of the Philippian situation and Paul's self-understanding.
Dansk Teologisk Tidsskrift 79. årg, 2016
In recent years, the Italian philosopher Giorgio Agamben has received more and more attention. Po... more In recent years, the Italian philosopher Giorgio Agamben has received more and more attention. Political philosophers increasingly discuss his political philosophy, and theologians and biblical scholars discuss his book on Paul and Paul's letter to the Romans. This article situates the work of Agamben (especially on Paul) within a broader philosophical and theoretical context. Furthermore, it provides an interpretation of Agamben's Paul in relation to his concept of "messianism" and in relation to a broad movement within continental philosophy called "the return of religion". Finally, this article discusses some of the hermeneutical implications of a "philosophical Paul" or a "Paul of the philosophers".
Dansk Teologisk Tidsskrift 75. årg, 2012
The article is a reading of Book One in Kant's "Religion within the Limits of Reason Alone." The ... more The article is a reading of Book One in Kant's "Religion within the Limits of Reason Alone." The main focus is the concept of radical evil.
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Books by Jacob P.B. Mortensen
Articles by Jacob P.B. Mortensen