Mako Nagasawa | Hellenic College/Holy Cross (original) (raw)

Papers by Mako Nagasawa

Orthodox Christians lost centuries of opportunity in evangelizing Muslims because they largely st... more Orthodox Christians lost centuries of opportunity in evangelizing Muslims because they largely stereotyped Muslims as Arians. As a result, they tried to persuade Muslims by using words held in common between the Bible and the Quran. They did not critique the tawhid, the Islamic idea of the absolute unitary transcendence of God, which would logically make God unknowable because there was no point of immanence. I argue that Orthodox Christians' distance from the Judaic heritage of understanding of God's transcendence-immanence, and immersion in the creedal debates of Hellenistic ontology, led to this misperception.

I build on the efforts of those who have shown that Gregory of Nyssa (335 – 395 AD) critically en... more I build on the efforts of those who have shown that Gregory of Nyssa (335 – 395 AD) critically engaged the Platonic inheritance as represented by Origen and Plotinus, among others. I explore Gregory’s Life of Moses as a corrective to Origen within the Church, and as an evangelist of sorts to educated Neoplatonists outside the Church. I do this by comparing Plotinus’ chapter on Beauty in the Enneads with Gregory’s treatment of pagan philosophy and the three theophanies in Life of Moses.

This paper examines the intertextual aspects of the theme of children in the Gospel of Matthew, e... more This paper examines the intertextual aspects of the theme of children in the Gospel of Matthew, especially as a literary echo of the second generation of the Israelites from the Exodus. Special attention is given to the children who greet Jesus in Jerusalem and the Temple (Mt.21:15 - 17) and the dense chain reference to the Song of the Sea (Ex.15), Psalm 118, and Psalm 8. Various patristic commentators observed Matthew's focus on children here. I suggest that this literary exegesis affects how we might understand Matthew's Gospel afresh when defending against the charge of anti-semitism.

This paper argues that the two books Contra Apollinarium are anchored in the "fallen" view of Jes... more This paper argues that the two books Contra Apollinarium are anchored in the "fallen" view of Jesus' incarnate humanity. The author is using key terms like ‘perfect,’ ‘without sin,’ ‘flesh,’ and ‘in the likeness of sinful flesh’ in a subtly different way than Athanasius did before, which raises its own questions and problems, but the conceptual architecture of the ‘fallenness’ position is still present. Therefore, my conclusion differs from Van Kuiken in that I do not think Contra Apollinarium simply ‘complements’ the earlier writings of Athanasius. Perhaps it was not a 'development' of the bishop’s thought, but a particular deployment of it to reel Apollinarists back into the larger structure of Athanasius’ theological thought. However, I also argue that the weakness of the orthodox response to Apollinaris reveals a problem associated with turning away from Irenaeus' theological anthropology towards that of Origen. This paper suggests that later theological and pastoral challenges occurred because of that shift.

Neuroscience, trauma studies, and the mind-brain-body connection prompts us to revisit theologica... more Neuroscience, trauma studies, and the mind-brain-body connection prompts us to revisit theological anthropology, especially those of Irenaeus and Origen because of their precision and also contrasting views of the relationship between body and soul. In assessing the respective legacies of Irenaeus and Origen, John Behr remarks, ‘Irenaeus’s emphasis on the flesh and his teaching that the body was in the image of God were soon marginalized by the pervasive influence of Origen’s theology, and were never retrieved thereafter.’ I demonstrate how Origen's theological anthropology was faulty on logical and biblical grounds. Irenaeus, I argue, was coherent, and presents an opportunity to reengage modern neuroscience, etc.

In his discussion with Nicodemus, Jesus compares his coming crucifixion to the incident of the br... more In his discussion with Nicodemus, Jesus compares his coming crucifixion to the incident of the bronze serpent (Jn.3:14 – 15). The incident has deep literary-theological resonance that illuminates both the entirety of the Pentateuch and the Gospel of John, along with a very significant contribution by Isaiah. Jesus' citation of the bronze serpent story from Numbers 21 reflects an intertextual, literary understanding of prior biblical texts, and becomes an organizing theme in John's Gospel.

I explore Paul's understanding of the atonement and Jesus' relationship to the Law in the Sinai c... more I explore Paul's understanding of the atonement and Jesus' relationship to the Law in the Sinai covenant. I argue that intertextuality and a canonical-literary approach to biblical exegesis (a la Brevard Childs) support Paul's claims in Romans 8:3 - 4 about the Sinai covenant and the sacrificial system. The paper supports Leander Keck's earlier work on Romans 8:3 - 4, and explains medical substitutionary atonement.

This paper introduces Irenaeus of Lyons and his significance to Christian theology. It approaches... more This paper introduces Irenaeus of Lyons and his significance to Christian theology. It approaches his theology in a systematic order. It argues against the view that Irenaeus believed in penal substitutionary atonement, a view Osborn attributes to Irenaeus. Also, it argues that Irenaeus held to the "fallen" view of Jesus' incarnation, against the assessment by Van Kuiken and Hatzidakis that Irenaeus held the "unfallen" view.

This paper examines Athanasius' Life of Antony from literary, theological, and pastoral perspecti... more This paper examines Athanasius' Life of Antony from literary, theological, and pastoral perspectives. I gesture towards a comparison between Athanasius' view of sanctification with that of T.F. Torrance. Written for Father George Dion. Dragas at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Seminary.

Explores how C.S. Lewis drew from early Christian theologians Irenaeus (130 - 200 AD) and Athanas... more Explores how C.S. Lewis drew from early Christian theologians Irenaeus (130 - 200 AD) and Athanasius (297 - 373 AD), especially on the doctrine of the atonement. Also explores how Lewis drew together theological statements to fit like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.