Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes

Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes PDF Author: E. Randolph Richards
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 0830843795
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
The Bible was written within collectivist cultures. When Westerners, immersed in individualism, read the Bible, it's easy to misinterpret important elements—or miss them altogether. In any culture, the most important things usually go without being said. So to read Scripture well we benefit when we uncover the unspoken social structures and values of its world. We need to recalibrate our vision. Combining the expertise of a biblical scholar and a missionary practitioner, Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes is an essential guidebook to the cultural background of the Bible and how it should inform our reading. E. Randolph Richards and Richard James explore deep social structures of the ancient Mediterranean—kinship, patronage, and brokerage—along with their key social tools—honor, shame, and boundaries—that the biblical authors lived in and lie below the surface of each text. From Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar to Peter's instructions to elders, the authors strip away individualist assumptions and bring the world of the biblical writers to life. Expanding on the popular Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes, this book makes clear how understanding collectivism will help us better understand the Bible, which in turn will help us live more faithfully in an increasingly globalized world.

Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes

Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes PDF Author: E. Randolph Richards
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 0830843795
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 308

Get Book

Book Description
The Bible was written within collectivist cultures. When Westerners, immersed in individualism, read the Bible, it's easy to misinterpret important elements—or miss them altogether. In any culture, the most important things usually go without being said. So to read Scripture well we benefit when we uncover the unspoken social structures and values of its world. We need to recalibrate our vision. Combining the expertise of a biblical scholar and a missionary practitioner, Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes is an essential guidebook to the cultural background of the Bible and how it should inform our reading. E. Randolph Richards and Richard James explore deep social structures of the ancient Mediterranean—kinship, patronage, and brokerage—along with their key social tools—honor, shame, and boundaries—that the biblical authors lived in and lie below the surface of each text. From Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar to Peter's instructions to elders, the authors strip away individualist assumptions and bring the world of the biblical writers to life. Expanding on the popular Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes, this book makes clear how understanding collectivism will help us better understand the Bible, which in turn will help us live more faithfully in an increasingly globalized world.

Scripture, Cultures, and Criticism

Scripture, Cultures, and Criticism PDF Author: K. K. Yeo
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1666797855
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 355

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Book Description
This collection of nineteen representative essays is a Festschrift written by former colleagues and students in honor of Prof. Dr. Robert Jewett (1933–2020) and his legacy. Our hope is that future generations of Bible readers will find this textbook on biblical interpretation helpful for navigating through the strong winds of exegetical, theological, and hermeneutical methods. Jewett’s expansive research interests have inspired each author in this tribute volume, each of whom has witnessed to the ways that helmsman Jewett has navigated through the often-choppy ocean waters of biblical interpretation—as well as the complex, changing world of religion, sacred texts, films and popular culture, psychology and sociology, politics and Pauline studies.

The Nature of Biblical Criticism

The Nature of Biblical Criticism PDF Author: John Barton
Publisher: Presbyterian Publishing Corp
ISBN: 066422587X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
Biblical criticism faces increasing hostility on two fronts: from biblical conservatives, who claim it is inherently positivistic and religiously skeptical, and from postmodernists, who see it as driven by the falsities of objectivity and neutrality. In this magisterial overview of the key factors and developments in biblical studies, John Barton demonstrates that these evaluations of biblical criticism fail to do justice to the work that has been done by critical scholars over many generations. Traditional biblical criticism has had as its central concern a semantic interest: a desire to establish the "plain sense" of the biblical text, which in itself requires sensitivity to many literary aspects of texts. Therefore, he argues, biblical criticism already includes many of the methodological approaches now being recommended as alternatives to it and, further, the agenda of biblical studies is far less fragmented than often thought.

'Behind' the Text: History and Biblical Interpretation

'Behind' the Text: History and Biblical Interpretation PDF Author: Zondervan,
Publisher: Zondervan Academic
ISBN: 0310860946
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 576

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Book Description
Christianity believes in a God who acts in history. The Bible tells us the story of God’s actions in Israel, culminating in the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth and the spreading of the gospel from Jerusalem to Rome. The issue of history is thus unavoidable when it comes to reading the Bible. Volume 4 of the Scripture and Hermeneutics Series looks at how history has dominated biblical studies under the guise of historical criticism. This book explores ways in which different views of history influence interpretation. It considers the implications of a theology of history for biblical exegesis, and in several case studies it relates these insights to particular texts. “Few topics are more central to the task of biblical interpretation than history, and few books open up the subject in so illuminating and thought-provoking a manner as this splendid collection of essays and responses.” Hugh Williamson, Regius Professor of Hebrew, University of Oxford, England “. . . breaks new ground in its interdisciplinary examination of the methodology, presuppositions, practices and purposes of biblical hermeneutics, with a special emphasis on the relation of faith and history.” Eleonore Stump, Robert J. Henle Professor of Philosophy, Saint Louis University, United States “This volume holds great promise for the full-fledged academic recovery of the Bible as Scripture. It embodies an unusual combination of world-class scholarship, historic Christian orthodoxy, bold challenges to conventional wisdom, and the launching of fresh new ideas.” Al Wolters, Professor of Religion and Theology, Redeemer University College, Ontario, Canada “The essays presented here respect the need and fruitfulness of a critical historiography while beginning the much-needed process of correcting the philosophical tenets underlying much modern and postmodern biblical research. The result is a book that mediates a faith understanding, both theoretical and practical, of how to read the Bible authentically as a Christian today.” Francis Martin, Chair, Catholic-Jewish Theological Studies, John Paul II Cultural Center, Washington, D.C. Not only is history central to the biblical story, but from a Christian perspective history revolves around Jesus Christ. All roads of human activity before Christ lead up to him, and all roads after Christ connect with him. A concern with history and God’s action in it is a central characteristic of the Bible. The Bible furnishes us with an account of God's interactions with people and with the nation of Israel that stretches down the timeline from creation to the early church. It tells us of real men, women, and children, real circumstances and events, real cultures, places, languages, and worldviews. And it shows us God at work in human affairs, revealing his character and heart through his activities. “Behind” the Text examines the correlation between history and the Bible. For the scholar, student, and informed reader of the Bible, this volume highlights the importance of history for biblical interpretation, and looks at how history has and should influence interpretation.

The Postmodern Bible

The Postmodern Bible PDF Author: George Aichele
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 9780300068184
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 418

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Book Description
The burgeoning use of modern literary theory and cultural criticism in recent biblical studies has led to stimulating--but often bewildering--new readings of the Bible. This book, argued from a perspective shaped by postmodernism, is at once an accessible guide to and an engagement with various methods, theories, and critical practices transforming biblical scholarship today. Written by a collective of cutting-edge scholars--with each page the work of multiple hands--The Postmodern Bible deliberately breaks with the individualist model of authorship that has traditionally dominated scholarship in the humanities and is itself an illustration of the postmodern transformation of biblical studies for which it argues. The book introduces, illustrates, and critiques seven prominent strategies of reading. Several of these interpretive strategies--rhetorical criticism, structuralism and narratology, reader-response criticism, and feminist criticism--have been instrumental in the transformation of biblical studies up to now. Many--feminist and womanist criticism, ideological criticism, poststructuralism, and psychoanalytic criticism--hold promise for the continued transformation of these studies in the future. Focusing on readings from both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, this volume illuminates the current multidisciplinary debates emerging from postmodernism by exposing the still highly contested epistemological, political, and ethical positions in the field of biblical studies.

Scripture, Culture, and Agriculture

Scripture, Culture, and Agriculture PDF Author: Ellen F. Davis
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139473611
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
This book examines the theology and ethics of land use, especially the practices of modern industrialized agriculture, in light of critical biblical exegesis. Nine interrelated essays explore the biblical writers' pervasive concern for the care of arable land against the background of the geography, social structures, and religious thought of ancient Israel. This approach consistently brings out neglected aspects of texts, both poetry and prose, that are central to Jewish and Christian traditions. Rather than seeking solutions from the past, Davis creates a conversation between ancient texts and contemporary agrarian writers; thus she provides a fresh perspective from which to view the destructive practices and assumptions that now dominate the global food economy. The biblical exegesis is wide-ranging and sophisticated; the language is literate and accessible to a broad audience.

Scripture, Cultures, and Criticism

Scripture, Cultures, and Criticism PDF Author: K. K. Yeo
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1666797839
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 359

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Book Description
This collection of nineteen representative essays is a Festschrift written by former colleagues and students in honor of Prof. Dr. Robert Jewett (1933-2020) and his legacy. Our hope is that future generations of Bible readers will find this textbook on biblical interpretation helpful for navigating through the strong winds of exegetical, theological, and hermeneutical methods. Jewett's expansive research interests have inspired each author in this tribute volume, each of whom has witnessed to the ways that helmsman Jewett has navigated through the often-choppy ocean waters of biblical interpretation--as well as the complex, changing world of religion, sacred texts, films and popular culture, psychology and sociology, politics and Pauline studies. Contributors Kathy Ehrensperger Brigitte Kahl Aliou C. Niang Aida Besancon Spencer Lallene Rector T. Christopher Hoklotubbe Najeeb T. Haddad Robert K. Johnston Frank Hughes Goh Menghun Hii Kong-hock Lim Kar Yong Keith Burton Sheila McGinn Douglas Campbell Ellen Jewett William S. Campbell Troy W. Martin Zakali Shohe Christopher Deacy A. Andrew Das Frederick Mawusi Amevenku

The Books of Nature and Scripture

The Books of Nature and Scripture PDF Author: J.E. Force
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9401732493
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 243

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Book Description
Dick Popkin and James Force have attended a number of recent conferences where it was apparent that much new and important research was being done in the fields of interpreting Newton's and Spinoza's contributions as biblical scholars and of the relationship between their biblical scholarship and other aspects of their particular philosophies. This collection represents the best current research in this area. It stands alone as the only work to bring together the best current work on these topics. Its primary audience is specialised scholars of the thought of Newton and Spinoza as well as historians of the philosophical ideas of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries.

Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes

Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes PDF Author: E. Randolph Richards
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 0830863478
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
Over 100,000 Copies Sold Worldwide! ECPA Bronze Sales Award Bookwi.se's Favorite Books of the Year What was clear to the original readers of Scripture is not always clear to us. Because of the cultural distance between the biblical world and our contemporary setting, we often bring modern Western biases to the text. For example: When Western readers hear Paul exhorting women to "dress modestly," we automatically think in terms of sexual modesty. But most women in that culture would never wear racy clothing. The context suggests that Paul is likely more concerned about economic modesty—that Christian women not flaunt their wealth through expensive clothes, braided hair and gold jewelry. Some readers might assume that Moses married "below himself" because his wife was a dark-skinned Cushite. Actually, Hebrews were the slave race, not the Cushites, who were highly respected. Aaron and Miriam probably thought Moses was being presumptuous by marrying "above himself." Western individualism leads us to assume that Mary and Joseph traveled alone to Bethlehem. What went without saying was that they were likely accompanied by a large entourage of extended family. Biblical scholars Brandon O'Brien and Randy Richards shed light on the ways that Western readers often misunderstand the cultural dynamics of the Bible. They identify nine key areas where modern Westerners have significantly different assumptions about what might be going on in a text. Drawing on their own crosscultural experience in global mission, O'Brien and Richards show how better self-awareness and understanding of cultural differences in language, time and social mores allow us to see the Bible in fresh and unexpected ways. Getting beyond our own cultural assumptions is increasingly important for being Christians in our interconnected and globalized world. Learn to read Scripture as a member of the global body of Christ.

Soundings in Cultural Criticism

Soundings in Cultural Criticism PDF Author: Francisco Lozada
Publisher: Fortress Press
ISBN: 1451426313
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 365

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Book Description
A number of disciplines aligned under "cultural criticism" have changed the shape of contemporary biblical studies not only by offering new methods but by questioning old goals and proposing new ones. Soundings in Cultural Criticism offers a collection of succinct essays in these fields by some of the foremost scholars in New Testament studies. Questions of historical reconstruction, textual interpretation, and present cultural deployment are addressed in an ideal second textbook for New Testament courses.