Abstract
Demonstrating a firm grasp of the literature of the New Testament and rhetorical criticism, Gary Selby provides an integrative paradigm for interpreting the New Testament. Maintaining that both traditional scholarship in the NT and rhetoric focus only on rational persuasion as they argue for the truth of their claims, interpreters miss a vital aspect of persuasion. Selby employs what both ancient and contemporary communication theorists call “transport,” the power of language to take listeners “out of the place where [they are] standing” in order to see how the NT writers sought to create a “transportive” experience for their audience. Selby’s task is to demonstrate the holistic nature of persuasion, observing that it involved not only the presentation of ideas, but also the experience of God’s presence. He illustrates the argument with a focus on poetic texts.
The thesis of the book is that the poetic texts of the New Testament “represent the attempts of early Christian writers to create these numinous experiences for their audiences.” Selby introduces the study (ch. 1) with a theoretical framework, observing the distinctions in the classical rhetorical tradition between rhetoric and poetic. He emphasizes the role of what Aristotle calls “mimesis,” or representation, in the poetic tradition to create psychological experiences in the audience, arguing for a “rhetoric-poetic” alternative to the rational persuasion employed in the analysis of texts by both rhetorical critics and New Testament interpreters. He observes that ancient speakers sought to place auditors “in” the subjective experience of God’s power, activating the imagination. Selby maintains that the “rhetoric-poetic” alternative adds a dimension to interpretation that does not appear in traditional exegesis and rhetorical criticism. This alternative is especially useful for analyzing early Christian texts, inasmuch as faith involves both argumentative and experiential elements.
In chapters 2–5, Selby illustrates this rhetorical-poetic approach to interpretation with an analysis of four poetic texts that are embedded in the New Testament’s most argumentative genre, the epistle. He examines an apocalyptic vision (ch. 2, 1 Thess. 4:13–18), a “dramatic performance” (ch. 3, speech-in-character, Rom. 7:14–25), a “poem proper” (ch. 4, 1 Cor. 13), and a liturgy (ch. 5, Eph. 1:3–14). In 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18, Paul responds to a grieving community, not only with details about the end, but with a response that was neither argumentative nor weighted with doctrinal instruction. Using the graphic imagery of apocalyptic, he wants to bring this earth-shattering event before the eyes of the listeners and experience a strong expectation of the second coming, shaping a reality that will sustain his audience.
In chapter 3, Selby presents Romans 7:14–25 as “a prime example of the kind of mimetic performance embedded within an otherwise logical train of reasoning.” Paul dramatically performs the helplessness and despair of the one who attempts to keep the law before taking them into the experience of grace (Rom. 8). He hopes that this experience will provide the readers with empowerment and motivation for ethical living.
Chapters 4 and 5 present poetic passages that are aimed at stimulating the imagination and creating an experience that will shape the worldview and content of the readers. Selby places 1 Corinthians 13 within its rhetorical context (ch. 4), demonstrating that it is an integral part of Paul’s response to the divisiveness within the Corinthian church. This poetic rhapsody of love was aimed not so much at convincing the hearers intellectually as to providing an imaginative experience of the sublimity of love. The introductory blessing in Ephesians (1:3–14) is a liturgy expressing in poetic form many of the doctrinal arguments of the letter (ch. 5). The author’s aim is to inculcate the values that he will later commend. With the poetic heaping up of clauses, he especially wants them to grasp a sense of awe at the unity that God has created in the church. The poetry invites the readers’ assent to participate in worship and prepares them for the argument that follows.
In chapters 6–7, Selby explores the larger implications of the use of poetic form for three central relationships in the rhetorical encounter: the relationships of audience to content, rhetor to audience, and audience members to one another. The shared vision that Paul offers creates a shared imagination among the listeners, creating a community. By bringing these elements together, Paul adds dimensions that distinguish his persuasion from the Aristotelian paradigm.
This interdisciplinary study is an important contribution to New Testament interpretation. By moving beyond the common methodologies of rhetorical and historical criticism, Selby has opened the way for future conversation in New Testament interpretation. His impressive understanding of biblical and rhetorical criticism should contribute to fruitful dialogue in future study.