No one can read far in the Old Testament without encountering numerous acts of violence that are sanctioned in the text and attributed to both God and humans. Over the years, these texts have been used to justify all sorts of violence: from colonizing people and justifying warfare, to sanctioning violence against women and children. For those who ......
Eschatological Interpretation of Psalm 80 in Early Judaism
Since the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, scholars have traced out the rich and complex traditions of biblical interpretation in Second Temple Judaism. Little attention has been given to Psalm 80, however. Andrew Streett demonstrates that the Psalm became a rich trove for eschatological hope
An Introduction to Israelite and Jewish Wisdom Literature
The notion of a distinct "wisdom tradition" in ancient Israel has a long history - but does it have a basis in the evidence? The author argues for a redefinition of the wisdom literature as a loosely cohering collection of books aimed at educating scribal apprentices in moral instruction and the art of living.
For many readers, Genesis 1-2 is simply the biblical account of creation. But ancient Israel could speak of creation in different ways, and the cultures of the ancient near east provided an even richer repertoire of creation myths. Mark S. Smith explores the nuances of what would become the premiere creation account in the Hebrew Bible and the ......
The Holiness of Doubt is a timely and essential contribution to the study of sacred Jewish texts. What does it mean for a book of faith for millions of people to be riddled with the uncertainties evoked by hundreds of questions? Rabbi Joshua Hoffman has chronicled the questions of the Torah and offers personal insights and the accumulated wisdom ......
Every faith community knows the challenges of inviting new members and the next generation into its shared life. Walter Brueggemann finds a framework for education in the structure of the Hebrew Bible canon, with its assertion of center and limit (in the Torah), of challenge (in the Prophets), and of inquiry (in the Writings).
"The purpose of this collection of Brueggemann's essays is to bring to the fore a much more extensive critical engagement on his part with the current discussion about the Old Testament, its character, its authority, its theology, and especially its God.... Readers of these essays who think they may have grasped what Brueggemann has to say about ......
Reading Israel's Scriptures from Africa and the African Diaspora
"The Africana Bible" is a one-volume collection of multicultural and interdisciplinary perspectives on every book in the Hebrew Bible. It opens a critical window onto the world of interpretation on the African continent and in the multiple diasporas of African peoples.
This third volume in the pioneering A People's History of Christianity series focuses on the religious lives of ordinary people and introduces the religion of the Byzantine Christian laity by asking the questions: What did ordinary Christians do in church, in their homes and their workshops? How were icons used? How did the people celebrate, ......
