Living Water: A Wisdom Approach to the Parables of Jesus

by Robert P. Vande Kappelle

Publisher:

Wipf and Stock

, 2022

Everyone loves a good story--one with interesting characters, an intriguing plot, lots of twists and turns, and a surprise ending. Jesus was a master storyteller, teaching primarily through a technique we call parables. In fact, over one third of the gospel material in the New Testament is parabolic in nature. Examining the parables of Jesus, Living Water views parables as a wisdom genre belonging to mashal, the Jewish tradition of sacred poetry, stories, proverbs, riddles, and dialogues through which wisdom is conveyed. In the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament), mashal is often associated with perplexing sayings, for its meaning is deliberately obscured in order to force the reader or listener to deeper thought and higher consciousness. While examining the parables of Jesus, Living Water focuses not so much on traditional explanations and interpretations but on their paradoxical and perplexing nature. In addition, this book encourages us to take a parabolic approach to all Scripture, viewing it as an aid to help us move from egoic existence to unitive existence. This Spirit-led way of living, thinking, and being requires a transformation from our False Self to our True Self, from dualist self-obsession to nondualist consciousness characterized by risk-taking, compassion, generosity, availability, and joy, a path charted by the parables of Jesus. Benefitting from recent scholarly research, Living Water is unique in content and conception and is useful for individual or group study. Each chapter concludes with questions suitable for discussion or reflection.

Product Details

• Title: Living Water: A Wisdom Approach to the Parables of Jesus
• Author: Robert P. Vande Kappelle
• Publisher: Wipf and Stock
• Print Publication Date: 2022
• Logos Release Date: 2022
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Ebook
• ISBNs: 9781666762433, 9781666762419, 9781666762426, 1666762431, 1666762415, 1666762423
• Resource ID: LLS:9781666762433
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2023-01-29T10:57:46Z

About Robert P. Vande Kappelle

Robert P. Vande Kappelle is college chaplain and professor of religious studies at Washington & Jefferson College in Washington, Pennsylvania. He is the author of numerous books, including his Adventures in Spirituality trilogy: Love Never Fails (2006), The Invisible Mountain (2010), and Into Thin Places (2011). His most recent titles are Beyond Belief (2012), a theological gestalt, and Iron Sharpens Iron (2013) as well as its discussion guide (2013). He is an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA).