Jeff Fisher | Kuyper College (original) (raw)
Book by Jeff Fisher
This study recovers the voice of Johannes Oecolampadius (1482-1531) as a major contributor in the... more This study recovers the voice of Johannes Oecolampadius (1482-1531) as a major contributor in the history of biblical interpretation. Jeff Fisher focuses on Oecolampadius’s Hebrews commentary (1534) derived from his theology lectures at the University of Basel in 1529–1530, and compares it with the exegesis of more than twenty-five of the most relevant interpreters from the early church to the Reformation. He labels Oecolampadius’s reading of Scripture as Christoscopic, demonstrating how it adapted the Alexandrian interpretive notion of Christ as the goal (scopus) of all Scripture. Fisher shows that when describing the shifts in biblical interpretation at the time of the Reformation, it can no longer be overlooked that Oecolampadius’s approach served as an essential step in the development of the interpretative approaches used by John Calvin and others, and that Oecolampadius remains influential to the way the Bible is interpreted today.
Published Articles and Chapters by Jeff Fisher
In October 1529, the Reformation took a significant turn following the events of the Marburg Coll... more In October 1529, the Reformation took a significant turn following the events of the Marburg Colloquy. Although Oecolampadius and Melanchthon may best be known together for participating on opposite sides at the Marburg Colloquy, their relationship actually extended back far earlier and went far deeper than simply being on opposite sides of an important debate. This article focuses on the development and breakdown of the relationship between Oecolampadius and Melanchthon in connection with events at the time of the Reformation.
Aspects of Reforming, 150-163, May 2013
Since We are Justified by Faith, 2012
The recent debates about justification have compelled scholars to reassess the traditional unders... more The recent debates about justification have compelled scholars to reassess the traditional understanding of the doctrine, particularly considering whether the interpretation of the New Testament have been overly shaped by a sixteenth-century lens. These critiques indicate the need not only to revisit what the biblical texts say, but also to properly understand the history of Christian witness in the development of our theology. In important ways, it is accurate to say that the historiography of the Reformation is "no more and no less the historiography of the Renaissance." 1 Paul Oskar Kristeller paved the way for recognizing this reality in his groundbreaking study that overturned the prevailing view that Renaissance Humanism was an anti-Christian philosophical system distinct from the Reformation. 2 He demonstrated that Renaissance Humanism is better understood to have been a cultural and educational program which was influential on the emergence of the Reformation movement. 3 Two of the most important elements of humanism for the Reformation were the textual and philological return to 1 Bard Thompson, Humanists and Reformers: A
This study particularly focuses on the Christian Reformed Church of North America and her express... more This study particularly focuses on the Christian Reformed Church of North America and her expressed views on issues regarding the Holy Spirit and worship as stated in a synodical report from 1973 on Neo-Pentecostalism.
The purpose of this thesis is to challenge and encourage Reformed churches to renew an awareness of and desire for the work of the Spirit in order to cultivate his presence and power in worship. Building on the 1973 Report as the foundation, this study seeks to formulate a biblical and Reformed position on the role of the Holy Spirit in worship by more explicitly articulating the Spirit’s role in the theology and practice of worship, and more actively renewing an awareness of and desire for the Spirit’s work.
This study surveys the 1973 Report on Neo-Pentecostalism, the recent theological study on the work of the Holy Spirit, and three major worship movements since 1973. Each section demonstrates how a biblical and Reformed position on the role of the Holy Spirit in worship must connect theology and practice and cultivate the desire for the power and presence of the Spirit’s work in worship. The final section applies this understanding to demonstrate ways congregations could be more explicit in articulating the Spirit’s role in every aspect of worship and be more active in renewing an awareness of and desire for the Spirit’s work.
Papers by Jeff Fisher
Teaching Documents by Jeff Fisher
This study recovers the voice of Johannes Oecolampadius (1482-1531) as a major contributor in the... more This study recovers the voice of Johannes Oecolampadius (1482-1531) as a major contributor in the history of biblical interpretation. Jeff Fisher focuses on Oecolampadius’s Hebrews commentary (1534) derived from his theology lectures at the University of Basel in 1529–1530, and compares it with the exegesis of more than twenty-five of the most relevant interpreters from the early church to the Reformation. He labels Oecolampadius’s reading of Scripture as Christoscopic, demonstrating how it adapted the Alexandrian interpretive notion of Christ as the goal (scopus) of all Scripture. Fisher shows that when describing the shifts in biblical interpretation at the time of the Reformation, it can no longer be overlooked that Oecolampadius’s approach served as an essential step in the development of the interpretative approaches used by John Calvin and others, and that Oecolampadius remains influential to the way the Bible is interpreted today.
In October 1529, the Reformation took a significant turn following the events of the Marburg Coll... more In October 1529, the Reformation took a significant turn following the events of the Marburg Colloquy. Although Oecolampadius and Melanchthon may best be known together for participating on opposite sides at the Marburg Colloquy, their relationship actually extended back far earlier and went far deeper than simply being on opposite sides of an important debate. This article focuses on the development and breakdown of the relationship between Oecolampadius and Melanchthon in connection with events at the time of the Reformation.
Aspects of Reforming, 150-163, May 2013
Since We are Justified by Faith, 2012
The recent debates about justification have compelled scholars to reassess the traditional unders... more The recent debates about justification have compelled scholars to reassess the traditional understanding of the doctrine, particularly considering whether the interpretation of the New Testament have been overly shaped by a sixteenth-century lens. These critiques indicate the need not only to revisit what the biblical texts say, but also to properly understand the history of Christian witness in the development of our theology. In important ways, it is accurate to say that the historiography of the Reformation is "no more and no less the historiography of the Renaissance." 1 Paul Oskar Kristeller paved the way for recognizing this reality in his groundbreaking study that overturned the prevailing view that Renaissance Humanism was an anti-Christian philosophical system distinct from the Reformation. 2 He demonstrated that Renaissance Humanism is better understood to have been a cultural and educational program which was influential on the emergence of the Reformation movement. 3 Two of the most important elements of humanism for the Reformation were the textual and philological return to 1 Bard Thompson, Humanists and Reformers: A
This study particularly focuses on the Christian Reformed Church of North America and her express... more This study particularly focuses on the Christian Reformed Church of North America and her expressed views on issues regarding the Holy Spirit and worship as stated in a synodical report from 1973 on Neo-Pentecostalism.
The purpose of this thesis is to challenge and encourage Reformed churches to renew an awareness of and desire for the work of the Spirit in order to cultivate his presence and power in worship. Building on the 1973 Report as the foundation, this study seeks to formulate a biblical and Reformed position on the role of the Holy Spirit in worship by more explicitly articulating the Spirit’s role in the theology and practice of worship, and more actively renewing an awareness of and desire for the Spirit’s work.
This study surveys the 1973 Report on Neo-Pentecostalism, the recent theological study on the work of the Holy Spirit, and three major worship movements since 1973. Each section demonstrates how a biblical and Reformed position on the role of the Holy Spirit in worship must connect theology and practice and cultivate the desire for the power and presence of the Spirit’s work in worship. The final section applies this understanding to demonstrate ways congregations could be more explicit in articulating the Spirit’s role in every aspect of worship and be more active in renewing an awareness of and desire for the Spirit’s work.