The Ancient Witnesses

138 • The Ancient Witnesses: A Journey to Discover Our Sacred Roots

Cyril excused himself and left the Crux, so there was no chance to ask him a question. I understood now why he had applied Isaiah to the Exodus, but I wondered if this was a case of proof-texting, so I asked Father Greg. 37 “The Church Fathers often dialogue one passage of Scripture with another,” he explained. “Scholars call this intertextuality . 38 “Is that sort of interpretation legit?” asked Cesar. “I admit the historical contexts differ in the two passages,” said Father Greg. “One is the Exodus, of course, and Isaiah prophesied to the nation of Israel near the time of the exile. The theme of judgment runs through both passages, however, and in this case the later passage sheds light on the earlier one.” “The Prophet Isaiah knows the Story of God from beginning to end,” added Mentor. “But what exactly was Cyril teaching?” asked Joseph. “I got this,” said Preacher before Mentor could reply, “the water, the frogs, even the hail—they got God’s back! If the Almighty’s angry with you, they’ll be on you too, cause they all do His will!” Preacher had nailed it, we all agreed. In my journal I wrote that Cyril applied Isaiah’s oracle to the Exodus to show how the pride and arrogance of the wicked bring on God’s judgment as expressed through nature. 37 Proof-texting is quoting a Scripture out of context (i.e. without explanation of its historical context) in order to prove a point that is not supported by the passage. 38 Intertextuality is the use of one passage to explain another. For a concise survey of various forms of intertextuality see Dr. Steve Moyise, “Intertextuality and Biblical Studies: A Review” in Verbum et Ecclesia JRG 23 (2), 2002 (418-431). Posted online at the following link: http://www. ve.org.za/index.php/VE/article/viewFile/1211/1653