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Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Christian theology
The language of 'christophanies' is used technically by scholars to
refer to appearances of the incarnate Son of God after his
resurrection, as narrated in the New Testament Gospels and Acts. At
a more popular level, though, the term is increasingly applied to
alleged appearances of the pre-incarnate Son in the Old Testament.
That Jesus appeared to - and was even recognized by - the likes of
Abraham and Moses is usually argued from several scriptural
trajectories. The New Testament suggests that God the Father is
invisible, inviting us to ask who conducted the Old Testament
appearances; the mysterious Angel of the Lord has often been
interpreted as a manifestation of the divine Son; and several New
Testament passages imply Old Testament appearances of and
encounters with Jesus. It seems obvious, indeed orthodox, to affirm
that Jesus has always been at work in communicating with and saving
his world. However, Andrew Malone argues that, while Christ-centred
readings of the Old Testament abound, christophanies prove to be a
flimsy foundation on which to build. Despite apparent success, any
scholarship commending the idea does not withstand close scrutiny.
Malone carefully sifts the evidence to show that the popular
arguments should be abandoned, and that the pursuit of Old
Testament christophanies ultimately threatens to undermine the very
values it promotes. He concludes that it better honours the Trinity
and the text of Scripture to allow that the Father and the Spirit,
as well as the Son, were themselves involved in Old Testament
appearances.
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