OINOS

B. Ward Powers bwpowers at eagles.com.au
Wed Jun 14 13:10:20 EDT 2000


At 04:39 PM 000612 -0400, Jim West wrote:

>the whole notion arises because some think it wrong to put a slathering of
>wine on the tea-totalling lips of jesus.  so, in an efort to remove the vile
>vine from the blessed saviour's sacred lips, the wine is turned into water
>(in a sense).


I am indeed one of those who is of the opinion that there is no evidence 
that Jesus ever drank alcoholic wine. Perhaps he did so: I am not in a 
position to affirm that he did not. (One cannot prove such a negative.) But 
I affirm that there is no evidence that he did. So I am one of those to 
whom Jim West, in his usual vigorous language, is referring.


>to support this really incredible and impossible supposition,


I accept that my position on OINOS is considered by Jim to be incredible 
and impossible.


>exegesis has to make oinos into grapejuice whilst oinou remains wine.  i.e.,
>if i recall the argument correctly, in the nominative the word means juice
>and in the genitive it means wine (or vice versa).
>such gymnastics


I do not hold such a view. Indeed, I know nothing of "such gymnastics" - 
this is the first I have heard of it.


>betray a woeful and unlearned attitude towards first century
>palestinian life.


I have sought to research this issue in an objective, academic and (dare I 
even say it) learned manner. I am well aware that others who have looked 
into the evidence have reached conclusions from that evidence which differ 
from mine. When I have looked at their positions, and the evidence with 
which they support them, I have not been persuaded by such evidence to 
abandon my own conclusions.

In my answers to the questions which other list members have raised, I have 
sought to present something of a summary of what has lead me to my 
understanding of the area of meaning of OINOS.

I must leave it to others to judge whether the position to which I have 
been led about this matter (I would say, by the evidence) is to be 
categorized as "a woeful and unlearned attitude towards first century 
palestinian life".

Regards,

Ward

                                 http://www.eagles.bbs.net.au/~bwpowers
Rev Dr B. Ward Powers             Phone (International): 61-2-9799-7501
10 Grosvenor Crescent             Phone (Australia): (02) 9799-7501
SUMMER HILL  NSW  2130            email: bwpowers at eagles.bbs.net.au
AUSTRALIA.                      Director, Tyndale College




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