Maurice Casey on Anti-Judaism and Anti-Semitism in Kittel's Theological Dictionary of the New Testament
The ability of New Testament scholars to repeat major works of reference knows no bounds. Nowhere is this more regrettable than in the case of the earlier volumes of the Theologisches Wörterbuch zum Neuen Testament (TWNT), later translated into English as the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (TDNT). These volumes were produced in Germany when anti-semitism was at its height in the run-up to the Holocaust. Scholars nonetheless continue to repeat their contents without proper critical assessment.
This material is still being repeated because of the regrettably high regard in which this work of reference is held, and because of the widespread and unfortunate habit of repeating the words of dead professors, regardless of truth or falsehood.
And again, after exposing numerous personal connections to National Socialism of several key contributors to the TWNT/TDNT, along with other anti-Semitic/anti-Jewish publications and presentations by these contributors, and—most importantly of all—clear anti-Semitic undertones within the articles themselves:It is ironical that this Nazi and SS supporter should have written also the New Testament part of the article on sin (ἁμαρτάνω), and even more so that this does not show such specific signs of bias. This should remind us all that the frame of reference which separated Jesus from Judaism was inherited from centuries of Christian history. It is this frame of reference which remains a menace to us all, because it is so easy to take over. It fits any kind of Christian perspective quite beautifully. What is even more menacing is that it is almost invisible to sharp honest scholars of any perspective: the separation of Jesus' prayer habits from those of contemporary Judaism looks for all the world like a purely historical argument, based on fact.
His conclusion is equally outstanding:When prejudices are so pervasive, it is exceptionally difficult even for brave, honest and independent people to resist them. This indicates how theological anti-Judaism may be found among contributors who did not share the extreme ideological commitments and anti-semitism of Kuhn, Grundmann and their ilk. This however makes it more important to uncover these ideological commitments, not less. This is because these commitments are so extreme. When the editor and important contributors to TWNT turn out to be Nazis, and an editorial assistant an SS supporter, it should be a standing warning to us all that even those with more theological commitments lived in a society so controlled by an anti-Jewish outlook that we should be constantly on our guard against believing anything written in TWNT, and we should use it only in the most critical spirit.
The Theological Dictionary of the New Testament is a very dangerous book, especially in its opening volumes. What is dangerous about it is the frames of reference from which its contributors came in: they were learned men who did not make factual errors which we can all spot. The mildest contributors to the early volumes had German Christian prejudices: the most menacing were Nazis. The more extreme life commitments are generally unknown to the moder reader, and are being made known on a very slow and random basis by people who work in other fields of study. The frames of reference never lie on the surface of the articles: they are buried in apparently historical statements. It follows that this dictionary should be used only with the utmost care. Students should be warned of this hidden menace, and all readers should consult it only with their critical wits sharpened to the highest degree.
Casey's article is both a terrific read and an important contribution; I'll definitely be using this piece to beef up my own section on the anti-Semitic undertones of the TDNT on Ἰουδαῖος and Ἰσραήλ, and I recommend it to any NT folks or scholarly types who want an enjoyable read.
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