In this talk I present the rationale for a biblical critical theory, drawing heavily on Augustine’s City of God and Paul’s engagement with Greek and Jewish values in 1 Corinthians 1. After discussing six principles of cultural critique drawn from The City of God, I define what a critical theory is, show in what sense the Bible presents a critical theory, and explore how the Bible’s distinctive “figures” provide fresh and nuanced approaches to political, social and cultural issues.
The session was recorded with a microphone placed some distance from the speaker, and the sound quality is poor. I’ve done my best to improve it, but the resulting sow’s ear is still far from a silk purse.
