[B-Greek] PAROUSIA

Daniel Glick lists at danielglick.com
Thu Apr 10 21:12:05 EDT 2003


Ann Nyland wrote:

>>2. What other connotations did PAROUSIA have in the first century? Ann
>>Nyland has given evidence to show that it referred to a person's
>>arrival.
>>    
>>
>I also gave evidence as to where it meant "presence".
>
I beg your pardon for my ommission... I certainly didn't mean to imply 
otherwise.

>>3. What meaning did PAROUSIA have to the first-century congregation?
>>This can only be determined by a study of the word's usage in the NT;
>>    
>>
>No, this would be pretty scary lexical method. There was no special
>"Biblical Greek" - it needs to be looked at on a wider basis
>
Maybe I should clarify... I'm certainly not arguing that Biblical Greek 
is a separate dialect. But words and phrases acquire specific 
connotations in societal contexts. If I speak to an American audience 
about the Civil War, they will assume that I am referring to a specific 
war that happened 140 years ago. If I speak to a British audience, they 
will more likely think of a war that took place (if my memory serves) 
350 years ago. If I speak to a Spanish audience, they will think of 
events from 65 years ago. Not because the understood semantic content of 
the phrase is different... but because specific references have become 
attached to it in different cultures.

The only way to find these connotations is to examine the preserved 
texts of a community; and the criteria for choosing such texts, 
obviously, would be historicity rather than some traditional canon. But 
I don't understand why such a study would not be a valid part of 
lexicography.

I lack the scholarly background of most on ths list. So if I'm missing 
something, please enlighten me.

Thanks,
Dan Glick


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