Open AccessJesus' kingdom parables as metaphorical stories: A challenge to a conventional worldview
Author(s) -
Dieter H. Reinstorf,
Andries G. van Aarde
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
hts teologiese studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.282
H-Index - 15
eISSN - 2072-8050
pISSN - 0259-9422
DOI - 10.4102/hts.v54i3/4.1436
Subject(s) - kingdom , metaphor , perspective (graphical) , symbol (formal) , order (exchange) , literature , philosophy , citizen journalism , aesthetics , sociology , theology , art , linguistics , visual arts , law , political science , paleontology , finance , economics , biology
Jesus' parables are to be read as metaphorical stories. Parable as metaphor demands that the parable remains open-ended and polyvalent, with the reader always involved in a participatory role. This article aims at showing that Jesus' kingdom parables are of a diaphoric, nature challenging the conventional worldview. It focuses on the parable 'A Man Had Two Sons' (Lk 15:11-22). This parable is interpreted from the Lucan perspective. It shows how the mytheme of the 'two-sons stories' is used as a tensive symbol in order to establish the Lucan notion of the all-inclusiveness of God's kingdom