Jesus the Messiah in the Hebrew Bible

Paulist Pr, December 2005. Paper Back. New. By his own admission, Eugen Pentiuc has shifted 'away from conventional paradigms to develop a new way of understanding the presence of Christ in the Old Testament.' He calls his approach 'ontological,' basing it on the view that Jesus the Messiah appears throughout the Hebrew Bible prior to his human incarnation in the New Testament. An Orthodox priest and professor of religious studies at Hellenic College and Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, Massachusetts, Father Pentiuc offers an exegesis of the Messiah's presence in salvation history as well as a new translation of the Septuagint passages he discusses, grounding the reader in a deeper understanding of the imagery and intent of the original text while avoiding a clutter of technical analysis. Applying exegetical criteria used by early Christian writers-including proof texts (passages of Messianic prophesy), typology (figures, events and institutions that foreshadow Christ), and theophanies (Old Testament appearances of the pre-incarnate Son of God)-Pentiuc works outside normative strains of modern biblical interpretation, eschewing (as one reviewer put it) 'historical-critical understanding' in favor of a more imaginative approach. This is not to say he abandons scholarship. His end-of-chapter notes are thorough and extensive. Yet Father Pentiuc's most significant contribution may be his exposition of Christ's presence throughout history, 'showing us his mercy.and joining us in the flow and ebb of our experiences as humanity.' 188 pp.