Belonging in Genesis

Amanda Beckenstein Mbuvi is Assistant Professor of Religion at High Point University.

A Note on Terminology and Translation Acknowledgements 1. Playing by Different Rules: Reading Genesis through its Deferrals 2. (Un)conventional Genesis: Two Ways of Reading Identity and the Divine Word 3. Family Storytelling: The Relationship between Genesis and its Readers 4. The Theology of Genealogy: A Boundary Breaking Foundation for Identity 5. The Social Ladder and the Family Tree: Competing Approaches to Structuring Identity 6. Fruitfulness: The Emergence of a New Identity Beyond Insider/Outsider Dichotomies Postscript Works Cited Index

Academically rigorous and coherent -- Ryan T. O'Leary -- The Christian Century Mbuvi has produced an engaging and challenging exploration of Genesis, one that focuses on often neglected aspects of Genesis (such as genealogies), while also challenging deeply embedded assumptions of Western readers. Though relatively brief, the study covers much ground, probing notions of identity in light of race, gender, ethnicity, and colonialism. -- Bradford Anderson -- Reading Religion This book is a fascinating literary reading of Genesis that is informed by scholarship on identity formation, oral cultures, and social anthropology and is recommended for scholars, preachers, teachers, and students of Genesis. -- Benjamin D. Giffone -- Review of Biblical Literature A quality study based on a clearly articulated approach of applying family narratives to Genesis. -- Danny Mathews -- Catholic Biblical Quarterly A very welcome addition to recent scholarship about Genesis and about the politics of text and identity more generally. -- Megan Warner -- Journal of Theological Studies ...this book asks important and timely questions about Genesis and contemporary concepts of difference. -- David M. Carr -- Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology