532  THE CATHOLIC BIBLICAL QUARTERLY | 84, 2022

Latin to the Reconstruction of the Old Greek of Judges and Kings: ‘Doublets’ and ‘Addi-
tions’ of the Antiochene Text Missing in the Old Latin”) focuses on the Book of Judges with
a specific question of how the Old Latin tradition aids the reconstruction of the Old Greek
behind Judges and Kings. Chapter 18 (“The Old Greek of Kings Preserved in Recent Wit-
nesses: Manuscripts 158 and 56–246, the Marginal Readings of the Syro-Hexaplaric Text
and the Syriac Text of Jacob of Edessa”) argues that the final phases of textual transmission
can be observed in the glosses or marginal readings in certain manuscript traditions. Finally,
chaps. 19 and 20 build on previous essays to determine what can be known about the edito-
rial processes of major textual traditions associated with Kings (“The Textual Growth of
the Books of Kings: I. From Greek Hexaplaric Additions to Hebrew Editorial Glosses”; and
“The Textual Growth of the Books of Kings: II. The Different Order of the Literary Units
in MT and LXX and the Composition Process”). Collectively, T.B.’s essays challenge
widely held assumptions about the place of the MT in historical-critical scholarship. To put
it simply, one can neither assume that the MT should be the starting point for historical-
critical discussions nor consider text-critical investigations to be subordinate to other, more
“exciting” endeavors.
As one would expect, these essays are technical investigations that assume a certain
base of knowledge about textual-critical conversations, particularly with respect to how
different textual traditions historically relate to one another. Therefore, a reader who lacks
a certain disciplinary foundation will struggle with the content of these essays. However,
the technical nature of the work is necessary, for it allows T.B. to offer the learned and
technical syntheses that have come to define his production. Robust text-critical discussions
fundamentally inform his commentary on the compositional history of Kings, and his work
is not for the faint of heart. Yet interestingly, this nexus simultaneously represents the great-
est appeal and greatest weakness of this volume.
Trebolle Barrera would have done better to explain more efficiently how his text-
critical discussions inform redaction-critical and compositional discussions in the context
of conversations about ultimate intentions and theological trajectories. For example, in
chaps. 19 and 20, his discussion of the textual situations is so vast that the reader quickly
jumps from one example to the next. Further, with only minimal organizational guidance
given in a series of summary comments throughout the body of the essays, T.B.’s conclud-
ing sections synthesize too much data as he tries to articulate a coherent whole. Neverthe-
less, because T.B. acknowledges room for further conversation in these comments, one
wonders if he is aware of the ground he has covered at the pace at which he moved.
These are valuable essays, and researchers on Kings will do well to consult T.B. on
the passages that they are investigating. It is quite possible that his ideas will encourage a
different starting point that may eventually find fruition in fresh insights about the content
and history of the Books of Kings.

David B. Schreiner, 1024 Woodland Drive, Richmond, KY 40475

rafael aguirre (ed.), De Jerusalén a Roma: La marginalidad del cristianismo de los

orígenes (Estella: EVD, 2021). Pp. 264. Paper €23.

The contributors to this collection belong to the Grupo de Investigación sobre los
Orígenes del Cristiano, which uses an interdisciplinary literary and theological approach to
 COLLECTED ESSAYS  533

the text, with support from the social sciences, history, cultural anthropology, sociology,
and social psychology. They contend that “marginality” proves insightful and corresponds
with the interdisciplinary nature of the study; the idea refers to a group that lives in a soci-
ety without becoming isolated within it. Such a group, however, does not share that society’s
chief and established values. Rather, it willingly embraces a marginal position in which
other values and social transformation can be promoted.
Carmen Bernabé Ubieta (“El reino de Dios y su propuesta desde la marginidad crea-
tive”), opening the volume with a presentation of the figure of Jesus, carefully addresses
the idea of “marginality” and strives to determine what is at the heart of Jesus’s experience
and thinking. The kingdom of God is not an empty discourse but a real and productive
activity and renovation that formed around Jesus, the marginal Jew.
Carlos Gil Arbiol (“La ciudadanía del cielo: Una propuesta marginal in Filipenses”)
contends that, for Paul, “the citizenship of heaven” was a kind of translation of the phrase
“the kingdom of God,” a marginal space that offered an alternative to the empire and an
invitation to proclaim and to be citizens of a new world.
Estela Aldave Medrano (“‘Mi Reino no es de este mundo’ (Jn 18,36): Marginalidad
en el cuarto evangelio”) concludes that the Fourth Gospel understands reality and human
behavior differently from the imperial status quo. The Gospel calls for peace, the rejection
of physical violence and military oppression (14:27; 18:11, 36), and views mistreatment
and public mockery as honorable and claims that the weak Jesus is the one who has con-
quered the world.
According to Rafael Aguirre Monasterio (“La piedra rechazada”), after the resurrec-
tion the marginality of Jesus and his followers was in a context that looked to a new and
surprising horizon; they dreamed that another world was possible, one that created social
alternatives for a better human existence. The rejected stone became the cornerstone of a
new building with totally transformed human relationships.
Sergio Rosell Nebreda (“El Apocalipsis: Visión de un mundo nuevo”) holds that the
prophecy of the Book of Revelation demands the active participation of those who hear it.
To rise above the false ideals that the world has embraced is never easy. John does not tell
us how to do it, but therein lies the force of his challenge. Each generation must discern its
time, patiently resist the threats that confront it, and turn to the true center who is, was, and
will be.
David Álvarez Cineira (“El cristianismo romano según 1 Clemente”) points out that
the community of 1 Clement did not present itself as a sect claiming to possess the truth and
separating itself from the rest of society. Rather this community showed a certain elitism
and a positive attitude toward the empire, justified by scriptural arguments. In the history
of Christianity, this pragmatic strategy of 1 Clement allowed Christianity to adapt and
transform the empire.
Fernando Rivas Rebaque (“Marginación en Ignacio de Antioquía”) shows how St.
Ignatius of Antioch opposed marginality within the Christian communities. Ignatius identi-
fied those groups that opposed the truth and the plan of God; he advocated unity; and he
defended Christian communities from every internal danger, which he saw as extremely
serious. He thereby established a new type of leadership in the churches, a protective lead-
ership incarnated in the bishop.
For Elisa Estévez López (“El trabajo y el dinero en las comunidades marginales de
los orígenes”), the evidence from 70 to 190 c.e. offers a general view of the location and
 534  THE CATHOLIC BIBLICAL QUARTERLY | 84, 2022

identity of the Christian communities in the various parts of the empire. During this time,
Christians worked on identity in dialogue with their faith, were theologically fruitful, and
contributed to the spread of Christianity. The Christian community did have its temptations
and ambiguities but deepened virtues like humility, mercy, and love and so influenced
Greco-Roman society.
In the final article, “Reflexiones sobre el cristianismo del presente a partir del studio
crítico de sus orígenes,” members of El Grupo reflect on several concerns and possibilities
for Christianity today: historical character; institutional reform; pluralism and unity; lay
character; experience in rites, ways of life, and doctrine; the social dimension; the untenable
situation of women in the church; the marginality of Christianity, and the situation of being
a minority and marginal in Europe.
The contributors have provided an informative and insightful volume; it will prove of
interest to any scholar and student of early church history and will be very helpful in their
research. Many others will find it profitable reading.
Catholics will generally agree with most of the proposals in the last chapter. There is
need for institutional reform, but presently we are not a unified church. Pope Francis himself
has spoken about the need for a more synodal approach in the church; however, we all need
first to pray and discern what needs to be done—and this in a unified manner. Laypersons
are playing more important roles in the community, but women could and should play a
larger role. The creeds and defined dogmas of the church cannot be set aside, for we believe
that God and his Spirit have been with the church from the beginning. Church leaders,
scholars, and the people of God must determine what reform is possible and then have the
courage and moral integrity to get it done.

Robert F. O’Toole, Bellarmine House of Studies, St. Louis, MO 63108

w. david beck and michael r. licona (eds.), Raised on the Third Day: Defending the
Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020).
Pp. xvi + 343. $26.99.

This book is collection of essays that concentrate on philosophical and theological

themes that celebrate and enhance the work of the evangelical scholar Gary R. Habermas.
Although the book is titled Raised on the Third Day: Defending the Historicity of the Res-
urrection of Jesus, there are several essays in the volume that have very little to do with the
subject. At any rate, the book does an excellent job highlighting some of the newer chal-
lenges related to the historical approach to the resurrection. More importantly, it brings the
reader up-to-date with some excellent responses in defense of the probability that Jesus was
raised bodily from the dead. Although most of the contributors are evangelical scholars, the
book should be consulted by biblical scholars and fundamental theologians who are dedi-
cated to the study of Christian origins, especially as it relates to the plausibility of early
Christian belief in the Resurrection.
Following the introduction by the editors, the collection offers eighteen contributions:
“On Habermas’s Minimal Facts Argument,” by Robert B. Stewart; “The Soul and Near-
Death Experiences: A Case for Substance Dualism,” by J. P. Moreland; “The Image on the
Shroud: A Best Explanations Approach,” by Mark W. Foreman; “The Uniqueness of Chris-
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