Articles varia
- MUKAMINEGA Jeanine - Les études bibliques pourraient-elles bénéficier des nouveaux concepts des sciences naturelles ? Le cas des théologies de la conservation-restauration
- LAGOUANERE Jérôme - La Cité de Dieu d’Augustin : philosophie, théologie ou archéologie de l’histoire ?
- RANDRIAMANANTENA Mino - La psychologie religieuse et la Faculté de théologie protestante de Montpellier. D’Henri Bois à Jean Ansaldi : quelle continuité ?
Could biblical studies benefit from the new concepts of natural sciences? The case of conservation-restoration theologies
At the dawn of the 21st century, theories and debates on the possible evolution of man and society under the influence of virtual and digital worlds are flourishing. We even hear of post-humanity projects. Meanwhile, critical studies (historical and literary) of the Bible are petering out and ensnared in a dry intellectualism, whereas the common Christian – when not taken hostage by gurus – is incessantly disoriented by the gap between daily experience and inherited representations of the spiritual universe. Representations that are mostly rooted in a certain transmission of biblical writings. In this article, the author proceeds from an inspired intuition of two great innovators of their time: Baruch de Spinoza (1632-1677) who tried to render this matrix of representations, the Scripture, to the freedom of thought and Roger Penrose (1931-) whose new theory unifies the world of natural sciences and the universe of the human mind. By reviving conservation-restoration theologies as carried by the mythical assertions on divine reign and the king of divine filiation, the author introduces the old philosophical concepts of consciousness, memory and structure – redefined by natural sciences – into the hermeneutic questioning of the biblical scholar. In three stages, she tends to puncture the myth of the “divine reign” in the light of these concepts reviewed by physics, neurology and molecular biology. The main question focuses on the material, structural or procedural realities evoked by myths: can the material universe of myths be subjected to investigations which call for new concepts that redefine our perception of the Universe?
Keywords: natural sciences, myth, royal ideology, computable, consciousness, memory, epigenetic, order, structure, system, epistemological break
Augustine’s City of God: philosophy, theology or archaeology of history?
Contrary to the critical tradition which reads The City of God in the light of categories such as theology of history or philosophy of history, in this paper we propose a reading of the Augustinian great work as an archaeology of evil in history. We show in particular that this archaeology unfolds from a protohistory (the split in angelic society) to tend towards an eschatology of hope in a hereafter of time.
Keywords: Augustine, The City of God, history, evil, eschatology, hope, hermeneutics
Religious psychology and the Faculty of Protestant Theology in Montpellier. From Henri Bois to Jean Ansaldi: what continuity?
This article analyses the possible links between the religious psychology of Henri Bois and the religious psycho-anthropology of Jean Ansaldi, both teachers at the Faculty of Protestant Theology in Montpellier from the end of the 19th century to the end of the 20th. This comparison leads the author to address some important themes for this academic discipline: the role of language, the notion of history and time, the question of the believer’s union with Christ and the theme of the identity of the subject. A filiation between Henri Bois, founding father, and Jean Ansaldi, one of his successors, is assumed by the latter.
Keywords: religious psycho-anthropology, language, history, time, union with Christ, identity
Notules et Péricopes
- RASTOIN Marc - Romains 16,25-27 : le mystère d’une péricope qui parle de mystère
Romans 16,25-27: the mystery of a pericope that speaks of mystery
The authenticity of the doxology of Romans 16:25-27, has long been debated. It contains a rereading of the letter to the Romans, as well as an anticipation of the later letters (Ephesians and Colossians). The addition of this doxology is a key witness in the canonical process at the end of the first century. This addition shows how the Christians of the third generation wanted to create bridges between the different letters and unify the Pauline corpus.
Keywords: Romans 16, doxology, canon, Paul, deuteropaulines
Position de thèse
- STRACK Frédéric - Intégralisme religieux et société libérale. Le cas des juifs orthodoxes en France, des années 1980 à nos jours
Religious integralism and liberal society. The case of Orthodox Jews in France, from the 1980s to the present day
This thesis analyses the tensions between a conception of religion as something that belongs in the public sphere versus the privatised and plural conception of religion found in secularised societies. In particular, it investigates this tension and its consequences in regard to Orthodox Jews in France, a country that praises itself for being secular since the 1980s. This thesis explores a two-fold phenomenon. On the one hand, it enquires how Orthodox Jews manage to find the leeway they deem necessary to practice their religion in the private and public spheres. Accordingly, it considers their needs and their claims, and the strategies they use to achieve them. On the other hand, this thesis focuses on the public governance of religion. This requires us to study the way that the French state manages a religious minority which seems to go against secularisation. This thesis is based on interviews with Orthodox Jews and political and administrative actors. It also analyses two Orthodox newspapers, and it draws on electoral sociology, sociology of collective action, public policy, and uses tools from the sociology of religion to test the consistency of Orthodox Jews integralism within French society. It thus helps us understand the governance of a religion other than Islam and distinguish between what is related to a particular religion and what is related to orthodoxy in general. In brief, this thesis shows the breakdown of intransigent integralism due to negative reactions from public institutions and to the secularisation it fails to halt.
Keywords: religious integralism, orthodox Judaism, religion, public sphere, secularisation
religious integralism, orthodox Judaism, religion, public sphere, secularisation