Svigel’s Critique of Orthodoxy from the View of Walter Bauer

Subject Areas : Christianity

aydin ziyaee ¹ , behrooz haddadi ² , Ahmad Reza Meftah ³

1 -
2 - Assistant Professor, Department of Ebrahimi Religions, University of Religions and Religions, Qom, Iran
3 - Associate Professor, Department of Abrahamic Religions, Faculty of Religions, University of Religions and Denominations, Qom, Iran

Received: 2025-05-07 Accepted : 2025-08-06 Published : 2025-09-27

Keywords: Walter Bauer, Michael Svigel, Orthodoxy, Heresy, Early Christianity,

Abstract :

According to Walter Bauer,orthodoxy is understood as a realm of interpretive politics,soft hegemony,and the gradual construction of legitimacy.“Orthodoxy”is not a theological truth but a historical, interpretive, and discursive construct shaped through the interaction and confrontation of narratives,powers,and institutions.According to Svigel, such a view is the result of Bauer’s engagement in the historian’s game. Svigel seeks to demonstrate how the doctrine of the “bodily resurrection” functions as an epistemological and narrative hinge that often unconsciously permeates historical accounts.By re-centering the bodily resurrection in the analysis of orthodoxy, Svigel not only reclaims the foundation of orthodoxy but also provides a meaningful criterion for evaluating diverse Christian traditions. He argues that historical studies of early Christianity,when devoid of theological standards, succumb to relativism in the face of conflicting interpretations.However,if a revealed truth such as the bodily resurrection is placed at the core of investigation, it becomes possible to reconstruct orthodoxy as a transcendent and supra-historical truth.Therefore,Svigel’s theory may serve as a committed,rational,and reliable alternative to Bauer’s thesis—an alternative that, grounded in faith,yields a deeper understanding of history.

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