www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Scripture and Patristic Writings Father Tarazi

Has anyone ever read Father Tarazi's introductory Bible series? He has 3 volumes for the Old Testament and currently 3 for the New. These books are very insightful and the theory he presents regarding authorship of the New Testament is really earth shaking. He proposes that the Gospel of John was actually written by John Mark and that pretty much everything Jesus ever said or did that is recorded in the Gospels is just a "pericope" of Paul's life and teaching. He claims that Stephen in Acts was actually just a representation of Paul's student Timothy. I know he is a respected scholar at an Orthodox seminary and that his books are implemented in the St. Stephen's program, but I cannot figure out why when his teaching would render many changes in the church such as the icons of St. Stephen would be bogus and many other pandora's box type of things.

I HAD to read Fr. Tarazi's books and I did not care for them. I cannot understand why he is allowed to teach at an Orthodox seminary. A friend of mine is a student at St. Tikhon's Seminary and said that Fr. Tarazi's books are not used there.

Reader Gregory

I have been a student of Father Tarazi's.

No, I don't agree with his general theory of the New Testament, although I find his interpretation of certain passages to be interesting.

I have to say that he was one of my favorite professors at SVS. Again, this is not because I completely buy his Pauline theory "hook, line and sinker," but because he is a compelling and challenging professor.

There are a couple of things to keep in mind:

(1) It seems to me that a lot of what he says is meant to be hyperbolic. He often goes to extremes in order to galvanize his students into reading the Scriptures for themselves. "Disagree? Show me where I'm wrong in the Scriptures." The problem, as he sees it, is that seminarians too often do things "bassackwards" - start with the Fathers, the Liturgy, systematic theology, the iconographic tradition, etc. and never go on to a real engagement with the Scriptures themselves.

(2) He never presents his views as representing "the Orthodox position." He is quite frank that these are his readings as an individual scholar. He thinks that he has a consistent and convincing reading of the entirety of the Old and New Testaments. But he will be the first to admit that his books are not the place to look for "the Orthodox position." He says that anyone is free to oppose him, only if they have truly studied the Scriptures (especially in the original languages). What he does not tolerate is opposition based solely on someone's reading of the Fathers only (as if, since we have the Fathers, there is no need to wrestle with the Scriptural texts on their own terms).

(3) He is not a reformer or a crusader looking to change the Church. He would just be happy if more Orthodox people studied the Scriptures.

If at all possible (i.e., if your time and budget will allow) it would be very interesting to obtain books written by Fr. Eugen Pentiuc on the same topics as Fr. Tarazi (Fr Pentiuc is Holy Cross'in Brookline, MA Old Testament professor, and author of the GOA's rebuttal to James Cameron's find of "Christ's ossuary").

Then, when examining an issue or writing a paper, read what both authors have to say...the compare and contrast section would be a 15 page paper easily!

If at all possible (i.e., if your time and budget will allow) it would be very interesting to obtain books written by Fr. Eugen Pentiuc on the same topics as Fr. Tarazi (Fr Pentiuc is Holy Cross'in Brookline, MA Old Testament professor, and author of the GOA's rebuttal to James Cameron's find of "Christ's ossuary").

Then, when examining an issue or writing a paper, read what both authors have to say...the compare and contrast section would be a 15 page paper easily!

I took all three of the Scripture courses taught by Fr. Tarazi through the St. Stephen's Course; not the same as face-to-face, I know. Our second priest had Fr. Tarazi for an instructor at St. Vladimir's. No, I am not a scholar and yes, too often we rely ONLY on the Fathers. The St. Stephen's courses did get me to re-engage with the scriptures, and for that I am thankful. I still think his conclusions are way off base and I would never recommend his books.

Yes, I would definitely recommend comparing and contrasting Father Tarazi's writings with those of other Orthodox biblical scholars, such as Father Pentiuc or Father Theodore Stylianopoulos, and of course the patristic tradition itself.

Thank-you all for showing me that I am not alone in thinking these books are disturbing. I agree that they did cause me to read Paul's epistles very slowly and deeply whereas before I glossed over them for preference of the Gospels. Being eastern Catholic I was interested in finding a good Orthodox Bible study and stumbled across Tarazi's books. This may not have been the best place to start I now see. It just seems that his arguments are great ammunition for an atheist position that believes that Christianity is just Paul's brainchild and Jesus' teachings were myth; this is what disturbs me deeply.

Some people would believe that Jesus' teachings were myth even if we had Him on videotape!

That said, many in our society tend to believe everything they read, especially if it's controversial or counter to what accepted authorities say. Hence The DaVinci Code and the new James Cameron documentary.

Many people today don't even bother with print publications; they get their information from the web and accept the first thing they read without checking on who wrote it or what their qualifications may be. Too many people simply don't employ critical thinking skills when they're reading.

I have been blessed to find a 1957 edition of the Catholic Confraternity Bible in terrific condition. It is refreshing reading a Catholic Bible with notes that support traditional attributions of authorship in the New Testament. Most of the Old Testament is the Douay, with a few books in the Confraternity version text that later evolves into the New American Bible. But without the higher critical notes. And the New Testament is a wonderful translation, an update of the Challoner-Rheims Version. Having this bible and the Orthodox Study Bible is a good combination.

I agree with you. The only problem is that this guy has all the right credentials and is currently a professor of biblical studies at an Orthodox seminary.

Since this appears to be something of an extension of the discussion in the St. Stephen's group, I will only say that in my own study of Scripture and general theology, I have found that I have learned much from those with whom I have not fully agreed. To my mind, the purpose of this program is to equip us to share the faith of the Church and to minister the truth to the faithful. In this light, I doubt seriously that any of us will vest total faith in any one author or scholar, but rather seek to transmit the faith of the Church through the mosaic of Tradition found in multiple sources (Scripture, Liturgy, Patristics, Iconography, etc etc) and expressed by multiple authors in multiple disciplines.

I personally look forward to diving into the works of Father Tarazi. I may not agree with everything he writes, but I look forward to learning what I can from his writings.

God bless,

Gordo

So far, Fr. Tarazi is very insightful and interesting. I have yet to see anything contrary to the faith, unless the idea that Amos and Isaiah had post-exilic editors is contrary to the faith.

I haven't gotten to the New Testament books yet, but I anticipate that they will be worthwhile to study.

Gordon,

Very well said. I haven't read Fr. Tarazi's books yet but I'm looking forward to it. It sounds like he is really interested in his students becoming thinkers and not merely parrots.

Joe

Dear Gordo,
My issue is not that Father Tarazi is required reading for the St. Stephen's but rather that he is the ONLY reading for their scripture classes. Several Orthodox have concurred that his teachings regarding the New Testament are not the official position of the Orthodox church. I agree that one should read several viewpoints regarding Scripture not just one and one that isn't even the official interpretation of the Orthodox church. In doing St. Stephen's Scripture courses, one would leave the program never studying any of the other more traditional Orthodox positions such as Stylianopolous or Pentiuc.