{"id":462,"date":"2009-11-04T16:21:22","date_gmt":"2009-11-04T22:21:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/?p=462"},"modified":"2009-11-05T12:00:56","modified_gmt":"2009-11-05T18:00:56","slug":"what-is-a-parable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/2009\/11\/what-is-a-parable\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is a Parable?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Klyne<\/p>\n

Here is an instructive definition of what a parable is, from Snodgrass’ Stories with Intent<\/a><\/em>, the same book mentioned in the last post.<\/p>\n

The immediate aim of a parable is to be compellingly interesting<\/em>,<\/em> and in being interesting it diverts attention and disarms.\u00c2\u00a0 A parable\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ultimate aim is to awaken insight, stimulate the conscience, and<\/em> move to action.\u00c2\u00a0 The primary reason Jesus\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 parables are stories with intent is, as we will see, that they are prophetic instruments, the tool especially of those who have a message from God.\u00c2\u00a0 They do not occur in sections of the Bible focused on Torah or history or in the writings of the early church. They are used by those who are trying to get God\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s people to stop, reconsider their ways, and change their behavior.\u00c2\u00a0 Biblical parables reveal the kind of God that God is and how God acts, and they show what humanity is and what humanity should and may become.\u00c2\u00a0 Parables are not merely informative.\u00c2\u00a0 Like prophets before him, Jesus told parables to prompt thinking and stimulate response<\/em> in relation to God.\u00c2\u00a0 Parables usually engage listeners, create reflection, and promote action.\u00c2\u00a0 They are pointed and clinching arguments for a too often slow-minded or recalcitrant audience.\u00c2\u00a0 They seek to goad people into the action the gospel deserves and the kingdom demands.\u00c2\u00a0 One of the major problems of Christian churches, of Western Christianity in particular, is our stultifying passivity.\u00c2\u00a0 The parables compel us \u00e2\u20ac\u201c for Christ\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s sake literally \u00e2\u20ac\u201c to do something!\u00c2\u00a0 Parables do not seek the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153mild morality\u00e2\u20ac\u009d about which Kierkegaard lamented but radical cross-bearing, God-imitating response worthy of the name \u00e2\u20ac\u0153conversion.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In most cases then a parable is an expanded analogy used to convince and persuade.<\/em> As we will see, this is the way ancient Greeks also used the term, and it is sufficiently broad to cover the majority of the ways the Evangelists use the word.\u00c2\u00a0 The logic of Jesus\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 parables is proportional analogy.\u00c2\u00a0 Corresponding to the German terms Sache<\/em> and Bild<\/em>, the English terms tenor <\/em>and vehicle<\/em> are used to explain how analogy functions.\u00c2\u00a0 Tenor<\/em> refers to the theme being compared, the item for which insight is sought, and vehicle <\/em>refers to the pictorial image, the parable, the instrument by which insight is conveyed.\u00c2\u00a0 An analogy explicitly or implicitly draws one or more <\/em>points of resemblance.\u00c2\u00a0 For example, a disciple is to God (tenor<\/em>) as a slave is to a master (vehicle<\/em>) with respect to unsurpassable obligation (point of resemblance<\/em>).\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 According to John Sider every parable labeled as a parable in the Gospels involves more than one point of resemblance \u00e2\u20ac\u201c the exact opposite of J\u00c3\u00bclicher.\u00c2\u00a0 Analogy by its very nature can easily become \u00e2\u20ac\u0153allegorical.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d (emphasis original, pp. 8-9)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here is an instructive definition of what a parable is, from Snodgrass’ Stories with Intent, the same book… Continue Reading ›<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[43,36,41],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=462"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":475,"href":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462\/revisions\/475"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=462"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=462"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.desertspringschurch.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=462"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}