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Jaroslav Pelikan initiates this forty-volume commentary series with his work on Acts. This commentary, like each in the series, is designed to serve the church--through aid in preaching, teaching, study groups, and so forth--and demonstrate the continuing intellectual and practical viability of theological interpretation of the Bible.
Pastors and leaders of the classical church--such as Augustine, Calvin, Luther, and Wesley--interpreted the Bible theologically, believing Scripture as a whole witnessed to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Modern interpreters of the Bible questioned this premise. But in recent decades, a critical mass of theologians and biblical scholars has begun to reassert the priority of a theological reading of Scripture.
The Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible series enlists leading theologians to read and interpret Scripture for the twenty-first century, just as the church fathers, the Reformers, and other orthodox Christians did for their times and places.
Pastors and leaders of the classical church--such as Augustine, Calvin, Luther, and Wesley--interpreted the Bible theologically, believing Scripture as a whole witnessed to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Modern interpreters of the Bible questioned this premise. But in recent decades, a critical mass of theologians and biblical scholars has begun to reassert the priority of a theological reading of Scripture.
The Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible series enlists leading theologians to read and interpret Scripture for the twenty-first century, just as the church fathers, the Reformers, and other orthodox Christians did for their times and places.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2006
22 people are currently reading
94 people want to read
About the author
Jaroslav Pelikan
178 books134 followersJaroslav Jan Pelikan was born in Akron, Ohio, to a Slovak father and mother, Jaroslav Jan Pelikan Sr. and Anna Buzekova Pelikan. His father was pastor of Trinity Slovak Lutheran Church in Chicago, Illinois, and his paternal grandfather a bishop of the Synod of Evangelical Lutheran Churches then known as the Slovak Lutheran Church in America.
According to family members, Pelikan's mother taught him how to use a typewriter when he was three years old, as he could not yet hold a pen properly but wanted to write. A polyglot, Pelikan's facility with languages may be traced to his multilingual childhood and early training. That linguistic facility was to serve him in the career he ultimately chose (after contemplating becoming a concert pianist)--as a historian of Christian doctrine. He did not confine his studies to Roman Catholic and Protestant theological history, but also embraced that of the Christian East.
In 1946 when he was 22, he earned both a seminary degree from Concordia Seminary in Saint Louis, Missouri and a Ph.D. at the University of Chicago.
Pelikan wrote more than 30 books, including the five-volume The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine (1971–1989). Some of his later works attained crossover appeal, reaching beyond the scholarly sphere into the general reading public (notably, Mary Through the Centuries, Jesus Through the Centuries and Whose Bible Is It?).
His 1984 book The Vindication of Tradition gave rise to an often quoted one liner. In an interview in U.S. News & World Report (June 26, 1989), he said: "Tradition is the living faith of the dead; traditionalism is the dead faith of the living. Tradition lives in conversation with the past, while remembering where we are and when we are and that it is we who have to decide.
"Traditionalism supposes that nothing should ever be done for the first time, so all that is needed to solve any problem is to arrive at the supposedly unanimous testimony of this homogenized tradition."
According to family members, Pelikan's mother taught him how to use a typewriter when he was three years old, as he could not yet hold a pen properly but wanted to write. A polyglot, Pelikan's facility with languages may be traced to his multilingual childhood and early training. That linguistic facility was to serve him in the career he ultimately chose (after contemplating becoming a concert pianist)--as a historian of Christian doctrine. He did not confine his studies to Roman Catholic and Protestant theological history, but also embraced that of the Christian East.
In 1946 when he was 22, he earned both a seminary degree from Concordia Seminary in Saint Louis, Missouri and a Ph.D. at the University of Chicago.
Pelikan wrote more than 30 books, including the five-volume The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine (1971–1989). Some of his later works attained crossover appeal, reaching beyond the scholarly sphere into the general reading public (notably, Mary Through the Centuries, Jesus Through the Centuries and Whose Bible Is It?).
His 1984 book The Vindication of Tradition gave rise to an often quoted one liner. In an interview in U.S. News & World Report (June 26, 1989), he said: "Tradition is the living faith of the dead; traditionalism is the dead faith of the living. Tradition lives in conversation with the past, while remembering where we are and when we are and that it is we who have to decide.
"Traditionalism supposes that nothing should ever be done for the first time, so all that is needed to solve any problem is to arrive at the supposedly unanimous testimony of this homogenized tradition."
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 29, 2022
Pelikan writes at least one mini essay per biblical chapter, picking up on a theological theme and connecting it to historical theology. Thought provoking and helpful, although would fall flat without being paired with an exegetical work. Probably better for the student and academic than the pastor. It helped me prepare a teaching.
January 14, 2022
Read the first couple chapters, did not find it helpful, and abandoned it. Rating and reviewing it for my own recollection.
September 28, 2023
Not really helpful for understanding Acts as a book; more of series of essays on the history of Christian doctrine.
October 24, 2024
A commentary with depth!
January 13, 2014
A worthwhile commentary on the book of Acts. There is much to appreciate about the detail and approach. It essentially moves chapter by chapter by going verse by verse, narrowing in on a section of verses, or utilizing bold type to emphasize some of the main historical/theological/translation/interpretation concerns. Often the bold section tackles an issue that stands much broader than the verse(s) at hand, and this is an element that helps distinguish this commentary in its approach.
The book spends a good deal of time reflecting on the theological significance of baptism in the book of Acts by outlining its historical development. As well it has some great pieces on the dual themes of "the kingdom of God" and "angels", along with the weighty focus on the "spirit" of God. I spent a good deal of time reflecting on the questions regarding the place of "resurrection" in Paul's devotion to the Gospel, including the ongoing tension that existed between the Sadducees and the Pharisees. Does the credibility of the resurrection of Christ depend on there being a resurrection for all, or does the resurrection of all depend on the resurrection of Christ? This is one of the questions that tries to navigate some of the tensions that Paul could have been facing. I also appreciated the attention given to interpretations of the term "righteousness". Here he treads in to some of the thoughts that N.T. Wright has brought in to the foreground in recent years regarding "righteousness" as right standing (as opposed to a moral positioning). Pelikan gives some thought to how the interpretation as right standing can help us view the book of Acts.
One of the most impressive things about Acts is its place as a historical study and intentional apologetic. Near the final chapters Pelikan talks about how the tradition of studying scripture has always held a tension between objective commentary and personal investment. Acts offers us an example of how this tension can be held in good form. As well, within the pages of Acts we see its main characters demonstrating this practically as well as they move from and adapt their message to particular audience and settings. They move with conviction but also with an inherent sense of an inclusive Gospel. Paul is not shy to connect his Christian understanding directly in to the world of Jewish worship, while at the same time sees it entirely at home in a pagan/gentile audience in which the gods of worship remain unnamed. It is in fact the powerful trajectory of Acts as literature from the streets of Jerusalem to Rome that sees the movement of Christianity in a sort of sweeping scope. It is at once entertaining, impressive and challenging.
Pelikan sits decidedly on a Lukean authorship, which has been the common understanding. He does mention that there are some that bring question to this conclusion, but the majority appear to accept the Luke-Acts attribution, and reading Acts through that lens can offer some rich study we might otherwise lose.
The book spends a good deal of time reflecting on the theological significance of baptism in the book of Acts by outlining its historical development. As well it has some great pieces on the dual themes of "the kingdom of God" and "angels", along with the weighty focus on the "spirit" of God. I spent a good deal of time reflecting on the questions regarding the place of "resurrection" in Paul's devotion to the Gospel, including the ongoing tension that existed between the Sadducees and the Pharisees. Does the credibility of the resurrection of Christ depend on there being a resurrection for all, or does the resurrection of all depend on the resurrection of Christ? This is one of the questions that tries to navigate some of the tensions that Paul could have been facing. I also appreciated the attention given to interpretations of the term "righteousness". Here he treads in to some of the thoughts that N.T. Wright has brought in to the foreground in recent years regarding "righteousness" as right standing (as opposed to a moral positioning). Pelikan gives some thought to how the interpretation as right standing can help us view the book of Acts.
One of the most impressive things about Acts is its place as a historical study and intentional apologetic. Near the final chapters Pelikan talks about how the tradition of studying scripture has always held a tension between objective commentary and personal investment. Acts offers us an example of how this tension can be held in good form. As well, within the pages of Acts we see its main characters demonstrating this practically as well as they move from and adapt their message to particular audience and settings. They move with conviction but also with an inherent sense of an inclusive Gospel. Paul is not shy to connect his Christian understanding directly in to the world of Jewish worship, while at the same time sees it entirely at home in a pagan/gentile audience in which the gods of worship remain unnamed. It is in fact the powerful trajectory of Acts as literature from the streets of Jerusalem to Rome that sees the movement of Christianity in a sort of sweeping scope. It is at once entertaining, impressive and challenging.
Pelikan sits decidedly on a Lukean authorship, which has been the common understanding. He does mention that there are some that bring question to this conclusion, but the majority appear to accept the Luke-Acts attribution, and reading Acts through that lens can offer some rich study we might otherwise lose.
August 13, 2015
Frequently fascinating, rarely exegetically illuminating. Pelikan makes comments on various words and phrases, but the heart of the book is found in his topical excursus, usually two per chapter. These are helpful when dealing with specific themes, but this means that the book serves better as background reading for Acts than as a regular help to the preacher. Pelikan's Orthodoxy flavors the whole thing, often with an unwelcome touch of condescension.
May 26, 2014
A fine example of a theological commentary, Pelikan's Acts is strongest when it engages the theological loci and controversies that arose from engaging the particular text of Acts. However, it lacks the comprehensiveness to serve as a stand-alone commentary on Acts. It will serve better as a supplement to more classical verse-by-verse commentary, but a fantastic supplement nonetheless.
April 28, 2010
Very in-depth commentary on the book of "The Acts of the Apostles." The book goes verse by verse and provides commentary. Interesting, but very dense reading.
April 11, 2014
How do you make a commentary on Acts so boring? I recommend Wright or Willimon for a much more informative (not to mention interested) commentary.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews