Testing a hypothesis involves deducing the consequences that should be observable if the hypothesis is correct. He was born at marburg, where he studied philosophy and theology from 18 to 1817. I would read part of the bible and then read the corresponding chapter here. The documentary hypothesis dh is one of the models historically used by biblical scholars to explain the origins and composition of the torah or pentateuch, the first five books of the bible. More recent models include the supplementary hypothesis and the fragmentary hypothesis. Probably the contribution of hermann hupfeld 17961866 was the most. This is a brief look at the documentary hypothesis. Details of documentary hypothesis literary analysis shows that one person did not write the pentateuch. Hermann gunkel, born may 23, 1862, springe, hannover ger. Tags book of genesis, documentary hypothesis, gary rendsburg, hermann gunkel, julius wellhausen comments 3 in my cave 20190503 23. Hermann gunkel 18621932 hermann gunkel photo belonged to the history of religions school photo. Gunkels thesis, inspired by materials supplied to him by the assyriologist heinrich zimmern, was to take the chaoskampf motif of revelation as an event that would not only occur at the end of the world but had already happened at the beginning, before creation. In other words, in this theory, one imagines god in genesis 1 as first having. So, if we are to believe people like julius wellhausen 18441918, hermann gunkel 18621932, and others of their school of thought in fairness, gunkel, who was more interested in the psalms, thought wellhausen had gone too far in his literary claims about the pentateuch, the old testament writers were utterly deceitful people with a.
Marz 1932 in halle war ein deutscher protestantischer theologe alttestamentler. His conviction that historical criticism, which seeks an ideal history of israel based. According to the documentary hypothesis, this source accounts for the bulk of the narrative and legal instruction of the pentateuch p, or priestly holds that the interpretation of a work is best served by situating it within its historical context and determining the intent of its author. This documentary hypothesis identifies the literary characteristics of each source, and attempts to reconstruct their different theological and political contexts. Take first the classical form of the documentary hypothesisthe theory that a redactor compiled a text from preexistin10 its g documents. Some said joshua, mosess righthand man and successor wrote it after moses died. Reflections on the documentary hypothesis the dialogue journal. Herbert livingston, phd, professor of old testament at asbury theological seminary. Jacob at the jabbok, israel at peniel gordon college. Simply stated, the documentary hypothesis is the term given to the school of thought that claims that the torah in its present form is a composite document, repre senting materials originally compiled from separate sources. Readers of the journal of creation are intimately familiar with the defense of creation against biological evolution. No one dares open the doorgreat streams of water could surge inor take off the roofthe rain could begin again. The documentary hypothesis dh is a model used by biblical scholars to explain the origins and composition of the torah, the first five books of the bible genesis, exodus, leviticus, numbers, and deuteronomy. The acrostics in the bible are poems in which the first letters of successive lines or stanzas are the letters of the hebrew alphabet in order.
It contradicts what jesus said, and it is an unreliable way to analyze a document that is thousands of years old. The first real documentary hypothesis scholar to suggest the existence of a j or yahwist and e or elohist source for the pentateuch was the french physician jean astruc in 1753. The documentary hypothesis suggests that the first five books of the old testament were originally independent accounts that were later edited or redacted by a later editor or editors. Biblical criticism encyclopedia of the bible bible gateway. Hermann gunkel was the key figure in the development of this approach to the analysis of the literature of the old testament. In essence, gunkel took wellhausens assumptions about sources one step further. A history and critique of the documentary hypothesis and a. The pioneering scholar of form criticism, who established the basic tenets of the approach around the turn of the century. Albright, who remained within the documentary camp, called the minute analysis of the pentateuch after wellhausen absurd and irrational. Introduction to composition of the pentateuch biblical.
Albright to confirm the historical accuracy of the bible through archaeology. A reconsideration of hermann gunkels chaoskampf hypothesis eisenbrauns, winona lake. One of the most influential of those making a constructive refutation of the documentary hypothesis was hermann gunkel. A reconsideration of hermann gunkels chaoskampf hypothesis. Hermann hupfeld 31 march 1796 24 april 1866 was a protestant german orientalist and biblical commentator. Religionsgeschichtliche schule biblical criticism britannica. James orr attacked the wellhausen hypothesis on the theological and philosophical grounds. In my opinion, it is a fabrication based on false presuppositions and inaccurate analysis. Chapter 4 discusses challenges to the documentary hypothesis. Hermann gunkels pioneering formcritical work on the psalms sought to provide a new and meaningful context in which to interpret individual psalms not by looking at their literary context within the psalter which he didnt see as significant, but by bringing together psalms of the same genre gattung from throughout the psalter. But the overwhelming consensus of modern scholars is that the pentateuch is indeed a composite of multiple traditions, coming from a wide variety of times and places and reflecting a considerable variety of theological. Genesis, exodus, leviticus, numbers, and deuteronomy. Hermann gunkel, what remains of the old testament and other essays, trans. Hermann gunkel 23 may 1862 11 march 1932, a german old testament scholar, founded form criticism.
Critical methods of bible interpretation flashcards quizlet. Founder of the documentary hypothesis, one of the bestknown attacks on the authority of the bible. The number of these narratives is usually set at four, but the precise. The study of the composition of the pentateuch part 2. The characteristics the j source can be identified by the use of yahweh in gen 2 and the e source can be identified by the use of elohim in gen 1. May 06, 2011 the first real documentary hypothesis scholar to suggest the existence of a j or yahwist and e or elohist source for the pentateuch was the french physician jean astruc in 1753. But the overwhelming consensus of modern scholars is that the pentateuch is indeed a composite of multiple traditions, coming from a wide variety of times and places and reflecting a considerable variety of theological viewpoints and group interests. Those who support the documentary hypothesis theory generally suggest four specific sources represented by the letters jedp. Improve yourself, find your inspiration, share with friends.
Linsley the documentary hypothesis was the topic of heated discussion recently at stand firm. No one in the ark knows where they are and how things look outside. The documentary hypothesis dh, sometimes called the wellhausen hypothesis, proposes that the pentateuch the first five books of the bible was derived from originally independent, parallel and complete narratives, which were subsequently combined into the current form by a series of redactors editors. Now compare that to wellhausen, 1844 to 1918, they overlapped a lot but you might say gunkel is a younger contemporary. Hermann gunkel, now known as the father of form criticism. Documentary hypothesis project gutenberg selfpublishing. Some of the critics of the bible have come up with some sophisticated arguments in their attempts to disprove its authenticity and reliability. He has served the international mission board by teaching in southern baptist seminaries in both korea and canada. Julius wellhausen effectively called the old testament torah a big lie.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, hermann gunkel played a ma. When jacob became attached to the story, he argues, the canaanite deity so named was deliberately obscured,14 being replaced by a mysterious being who may or may not be taken as yahweh. Old testament criticism exposed as being purely ideological, materialistic and antisupernaturalist. Development of the documentary hypothesis c arls td. The greatest advance in biblical scholarship in the generation after wellhausen took place within the paradigm of the documen tary hypothesis. It remains influential primarily among american scholars, especially those of the albrightcrossharvard school. The grafwellhausen documentary hypothesis was the consensus view at the beginning of the 20th century and continued to dominate biblical studies until being seriously challenged in the 1970s. Hermann gunkel spearheaded an attempt to get at what he considered the oral roots of the pentateuchal passages and to locate their original social function in the daily cultic and royal life of ancient israel. Phelan twoedged sword publications, waterlooville, uk, 2005 by james patrick holding. Old testament history, by robert vannoy, lecture 1, wellhausen. The documentary model provides a straightforward solution to such data as. Hermann gunkel, who introduced a new type of criticism called form criticism, came to the conclusion that we really know nothing for certain about these hypothetical documents of the graf. This society aimed to investigate religion as a human phenomenon using the tools of sociology, anthropology, history, philology, and of course the study of actual religions. He is known for his historicalcritical studies of the old testament.
Why the documentary hypothesis is the frankenstein of biblical studies duane garrett duane garrett a is a professor of old testament at gordon conwell theological seminary. A leading member of the history of religions school, he. View documentary hypothesis research papers on academia. He was the most important protagonist who formulated the documentary hypothesis. The severe suffering of his final months of life forced him to hand over his incomplete manuscript, at christmastime 19311932, to his pupil joachim begrich. The view that is persuasive to most of the critical scholars of the pentateuch is called the documentary hypothesis, or. First suspicions even the ancient rabbis debated whether or not moses could have possibly written the last chapter of deuteronomy, which details mosess death. Selecting the research methods that will permit the observation, experimentation, or. The work of gunkel has been a learned stimulant in biblical scholarship. Hermann gunkel pioneers form criticism, which examines the literary genre of shorter biblical passages and their sitz im leben social location. The documentary hypothesis, along with the jedp theory, denies that moses wrote the pentateuch and instead ascribes its authorship to four or more different authorsredactors spread out over several hundreds of years. The death of the documentary hypothesis january 26, 2014 david bokovoy.
He modified the documentary hypothesis only slightly, and established the theory as a standard approach for englishspeaking scholars. Educated at the university of gottingen, gunkel taught there and at halle, berlin, and giessen. The following, lovingly presented scene 6b 12, b has the goal of portraying the exceedingly great wisdom of noah. Gunkel taught at the universities of halle from 1888 to 1894 and 1920 to 1927, berlin from 1894 to 1907, and giessen from 1907 to 1920. Has european scholarship abandoned the documentary hypothesis. Literary criticism involves the search for and examination of the objective data pertaining to a written document in order to ascertain, insofar as possible, the identity of the writer or writers, the time of composition, the contemporary political and cultural situation confronting the author, and the attitudes and purposes he cherished in composing his work. He also became a leading representative of the history of religions school.
Kugel 2007, 777 pages paperback brick read nov 28, 2011 nov 17, 2015, read along with the ot rating. But he was unable to complete his final work on the psalms. Multiple strands of tradition were woven together to produce the torah. Discovery of canaanite texts at ugarit 1929 and the efforts of w. Coogan glossary of terms acrostic a text in which the opening letters of successive lines form a word, phrase, or pattern. Originator of form criticism, the modern attack on preservation of the bible. Hermann gunkel, german old testament scholar who was one of the first to develop the method of biblical criticism known as form criticism. Hypothesis testing is a statistical technique that is used in a variety of situations. Patheos explore the worlds faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality. Hermann gunkel 23 may 1862 11 march 1932, a german old testament scholar, founded. A reconsideration of hermann gunkel s chaoskampf hypothesis eisenbrauns, winona lake.
There are no literary references, no extant manuscripts of any kind, which mention the j, e, e or p documents, either singly or as a group. Hermann gunkel, who was in fact much more of a pioneering, original thinker. A reconsideration of hermann gunkels chaos kampf hypothesis. Gunkel explained that some elements and histories of the pentateuch. Pdf on mar 1, 2017, michael orellana and others published unsolved. Jacob at the jabbok, israel at peniel 341 old canaanite myth in which the man was at one time identified. Hermann gunkel s interests lie in the preliterary culture of israelite religion, in other words, the oral traditions and cultural contexts that stood behind the literary sources proposed by the documentary hypothesis. How the bible was discovered to be a collection of. Rofe begins with form criticism, pioneered by the german scholar hermann gunkel, which classifies different biblical passages according to form, as e. His major works cover genesis and the psalms, and his major interests centered on the oral tradition behind written sources and in folklore. Richard stoneman, kyle erickson, and richard netton barkhuis groningen. The challenges brought to bear on the documentary hypothesis by hermann gunkel 18521932 are perhaps the most significant. Hupfields work drew a great deal of attention from the tanach oldibility of scriptures.
The documentary hypothesis is liberal theologys attempt to call the veracity of the pentateuch into question. An article outlining the flaws of the grafwellhausen documentary source hypothesis, or the jedp system. One of these attempts is known as the documentary hypothesis, or the jepd theory. Hermann gunkel between establishing the history of religions school, acknowledging assyriology and defending the faith, in.
1113 1272 1054 237 378 1490 64 342 1152 1312 985 1046 73 1232 847 499 1486 1316 1000 1217 1115 1276 265 1362 535 1195 1323 598 1132 1171