TA 3/2015 (120. vuosikerta)

The Luther Academy in Tartu as a German Outpost in the East — The private Baltic German Luther Academy established in Tartu in 1931 strained ethnic relations between Estonians and Baltic Germans in the 1930s. Its goal was to provide supplementary German theological education to Baltic Germans studying at the Faculty of Theology where lectures were held in Estonian. However, it also had certain nationalistic and ideological goals which irritated the Estonians. Very few Germans from Estonia studied at the Academy, the majority of the students coming from Germany instead. The Academy was discontinued after the start of the Second World War.

Vividness, Distance and Solidarity: Quotations as Rhetorical Devices in Paul’s Argumentation — The many scriptural quotations in Paul’s letter to the Romans have various argumentative functions. However, in scholarly discussion Paul’s diverse ways of using quotations beyond the category of proof have not gained the attention they deserve. The article examines how modern linguistic theories on quotations can shed light on Paul’s quotations. The theories are illustrated with textual examples from Rom 9–11. The Demonstration Theory of Herbert Clark and Richard Gerrig deals with the functions a quotation may perform, and Meir Sternberg inspects what happens to a quotation when it is removed from its original context and inserted into a new one. The final part of the article discusses the application and relevance of these approaches for New Testament studies.

Reflections of the Sacred in the Churches of Ruusuvuori and Leiviskä — The article discusses sacred architectural design by examining four churches by two architects, Aarno Ruusuvuori (1925–1992) and Juha Leiviskä (b. 1936). Both have won several design competitions for churches and made a significant contribution to modern ecclesiastical architecture in Finland. Ruusuvuori and Leiviskä have also been recognised internationally, but for the purposes of this article they were chosen as case studies because of their architectural style. The article discusses the architectural properties of Ruusuvuori’s and Leiviskä’s churches and their relationship to sacrality. In the churches analysed, the sacred nature of the building is subtly created in different ways through material choices, room divisions and lighting solutions.