TA STOICEIA - Col 2:8ff

Mark Wilson emory2oo2 at hotmail.com
Sat Sep 16 18:25:56 EDT 2000



>Col. 2:8b
>KATA THN PARADOSIN TWN ANQRWPWN
>KATA TA STOICEIA TOU KOSMOU
>KAI OU KATA CRISTON.
>

I would make only the following observations:

>
>  . . . KATA -> term
>KATA -> term
>KAI KATA -> term.

Should actually read:

KATA -> term
KATA -> term
KAI
OU KATA -> term

This of course lends support away from his sytactical conclusion based on 
his reasoning, but it should not.

He says:

>
>Arnold does not over look the first KATA -> term but he argues that the KAI
>between the second and third KATA -> term links the second and third  into 
>a
>contrasting relationship.

To which I might inquire:

Does he demonstrate this to be the general syntactical rule? How many other 
Pauline contructs does he site? I think his pursuing the personal/impersonal 
question on the basis of syntax is the wrong way to go. Syntax does not at 
all address the personal/impersonal issue here.

>He sees this contrasting relationship as evidence
>that TA STOICEIA TOU KOSMOU has a personal referent.

Again, I think his historical, lexical approach is how this will be settled, 
not syntactically.


Finally:

>I am rather at a loss to see why this syntax would lend any support to the
>notion that TA STOICEIA TOU KOSMOU has a personal referent.

I think I rather like the idea of this having a personal referent (plural, 
of course). However, I do not see any reason to draw the syntactical 
conclusions he has drawn, nor is there any need to. (Despite the possibility 
he may be correct.)

I would say that your objections are no more valid in eliminating a personal 
referent than his are of supporting one. It seems to me that the syntactical 
construct here has NO BEARING on a personal or impersonal referent, either 
way.

Regards,

Mark Wilson

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