Invention and Arrangement Discovering what can be said And how to arrange it

Rhetoric  Finding the available means of persuasion in any situation

Five Parts of Rhetoric  Invention  Arrangement Proem, Thesis, Antithesis, History, Peroratio  Style  Delivery  Memory

Augustine: On Christian Doctrine  1) A way of discovering those things which are to be understood Literal or figurative  Takes literal things he doesn’t like figuratively—celibacy, p. 94  2) A way of teaching what we have learned  Teach, please, move

Invention—topos. commonplace  Way of discovering your material  Disciplined set of questions to ask  Unconsciously have patterns we follow Narrative patterns—story line Irony

Preaching  Epideictic Rhetoric Rhetoric of the occasion, the moment How do we discover our material  Questions Traditional  Four fold  Law/Gospel  Baroque Lutheran  Historical Criticism  Who, what, where, when, why

Four-fold Method  Literal—Historical The Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt  Moral—Tropological Leave your old life, for new  Spiritual—Allegorical Our redemption through Christ-Moses prefigures Christ, Red Sea baptism  Eternal—Anagogical Passing of the soul from death to life, from earth to heaven

Luther—one fold/Law and Gospel  How does the literal word itself work on you? Same word, two actions Letter of the text--Law  What in the text kills the old Adam Spirit of the text--Gospel  Brings Christ to life

Lutheran Baroque Sermon  1) some paraphrasing of the Scripture  2) an interpretation of it  3) the reason for Jesus’ work or suffering  4) the consequence of it to the hearers  5) an application (in rhetoric, the usus) in the form of guiding and directing the hearers, admonishing them, comforting and nurturing them

Modern--Demythologizing  1. What the Scripture lesson meant Historical information  2. What it means today Moral application  3. What they take out of old hymns

Narrative  Tell a modern story in which people identify with characters and have the same experience as the biblical story in our day Her name was Sue….. We learn by experiencing the story We imitate the story

Poetics  Plot—the king died and the queen died of grief  Character—hero, villian, antagonist We know character by choices  Setting Limits what can happen

Catharsis  We have the experience of the character in the story and learn from it  Pity and Fear  Moralizes us—Good Samaritans

Direct discourse  Paul says to the congregation of Corinth Issues of the day—behavior: sex, worship,  I say to you—this is for you Issues of the day—behavior: be careful, for these reasons, both law and gospel

Questions  Dull boring sermons—predictable because preacher’s invention is undiscerned, in the water, innocently imitate the invention we have observed —see it in students who imitate what they have heard ---see what questions they are asking  Preaching like they have been preached to

Big questions ---How can I speak to my people  Have to know their questions ---How can I be faithful to Scripture  Have to know scripture, tradition

Meta-Narrative  Christians believe that human beings are innately sinful but offered redemption and eternal peace in heaven - thus representing a belief in a universal rule and a telos for humankind.  What is your narrative?—or story  Your theological theme?--

Theology applied to text What is its theological theme?  Justification Jesus is in charge to save us  Sanctification  Holiness  Celebration

Thought about self  Who am I in relation to audience? Young/old/cultural difference  Aristotle—young need to prove, old can assert Tradition—  Do I share their tradition, geography or am I new to it? Political  Am I liberal and they are conservative?

Thought about audience  What they need to hear—apocalyptic issues today That Jesus is in control when they are not? Are they frightened, skeptical, indifferent to the gospel, uneasy about world People are “snapping” in record numbers  Suicide, depression, anxiety--pills  What they are drawing out of you?

Theological claim--choice  Choice of claim Reveals character—how clear is your choice?  What you see in passage is revealing of you Reveals mind—how you think about Scripture  Attitude toward Scripture Reveals audience--what you think of audience  You don’t have to say what you think, they will pick it up  Tone is attitude toward audience

Claim is in predicate— you risk something  The text today is interesting. (blah)  The text today is different.(blah)  The text today reveals the conflict between good and evil : We see it when Jesus walks out to meet the darkness (holding lights)

Rhetorical Syllogism-- enthymeme  All men must die. (Major premise)  Socrates is a man. (Minor premise)  Socrates must die. (Conclusion Rhetorical Syllogism  Enthymeme—Minor premise plus conclusion  Because Socrates is a man he must die.

Values are unstated assumed  Jesus is restoring creation when he walks into the darkness to face the powers of evil.  Lots of assumptions in those words, resonances back to Garden of Eden  You can assume them with most Christians, but not everyone

Theological claim  Jesus is restoring God’s creation (general) helps you into the text when he walks out of the garden to meet his betrayer. (specific)  Showing who you are, what you are thinking, scary and risky

Character is choice  When you make a choice you reveal yourself  Scary thing to do because people will know what your convictions are  So we nuance, hide because we don’t want to show ourselves and the quality of our minds, our faith, beliefs

Humility  It is only with humility that we can become simple and clear  Simplicity is not stupid  Doing it for the sake Of Jesus and the gospel Of your purpose, Of your audience