Criticism and exegesis of sacred texts

For many readers of the Bible, there are two major obstacles to the enjoyment of scripture: comprehension and relevancy.

How do children read the Bible?

Some folks are surprised to find humor in the Bible; they don't think it has any.

PART 1: EXAMINING TEXTS1.

CONTENTSPART 1: THE ORIGINS OF ANCIENT ISRAELEarly Israel as an Anti-Imperial CommunityThe Origins of Israel as a TextualModels for Envisioning Early IsraelTriumphalist versus Anti-Triumphalist Versions of Early Israel: A Response to Articles by Lemche and DeverHistorical Description versus Historical Representation and SymbolThe Interplay of Religion and Ethnicity in Ancient IsraelProto-Globalization and Proto-Secularization in Ancient IsraelRevisiting the Tribes of Yahweh after Twenty-five YearsPART 2: THE POLITICS OF ANCIENT ISRAELReligion and Politics: Early Israel and JudaismThe Puzzling Politics of Ancient IsraelThe Role of Biblical Politics in Contextual TheologiesPART 3: REVIEW AND REFLECTIONSForward to Jeremy Young, The Violence of God and the War on TerrorReflections on R.

There is little doubt that we are quick in Western culture to follow after idols.

As the first century came to a close, the church struggled with its identity due to its memories of a disconnected past.

Virtually every scholar on both sides of the same-sex discussion eventually addresses the account of Sodom found in Genesis 19.

In a public education world of vast, multiple, rapid, and often colliding educational reforms, Movements of Educational Reform provides the novice as well as the veteran educator and administrator a sort of map of educational changes and processes.

Early Genesis is like a table of contents for the rest of the book, a seed from which the rest of Scripture and history unfolds: so many ideas, images, and events can be traced back to it.

This brief volume brings together three of Norman Gottwald's classic essays that address issues of social class and ideology as they pertain to the interpretation of the biblical documents.

CONTENTSPART 1: METHODS, MODELS, AND COMPARATIVE STUDIESWhat Does Sociology Have to Do with The Bible?

To open the Book of Psalms is to enter the world of God.

This book seeks to fill a gap on the important topic of God's judgment.

Pursuit of Perfection explores the significance of the perfection motif in the Epistle to the Hebrews.

The resurrection of Jesus is arguably the most significant component of the Christian narrative and is critical for Paul's presentation of the Gospel.

Possessions and how believers handle them are key topics in the NT.

Although much has been written about P-12 teaching from a biblical perspective, this study focuses on Christ's relationships with a diverse group of individuals: wealthy and poor, women and men, unschooled and well-educated, loud and quiet, influential and powerless, those whom Jesus knew well and those who were strangers to him, those of his own faith and culture as well as those outside of it.

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Values are culturally specific.

How is it possible to hold a New Testament ethic to love one's enemies and pray for their physical infliction, shame, death, and suffering of family members?

Whether people realize it or not, the ideas in 1 Corinthians 11:2-16 have had a huge impact on the role of Christian women in the church through the centuries.

The book of Revelation is confusing to read.

The world needs leaders who are prepared to dismantle injustice.

The book of Exodus is sometimes viewed with skepticism--but it need not be.

Womanist Sass and Talk Back is a contextual resistance text for readers interested in social (in)justice.

The thesis shows that the Song of Songs can be read as a circular sequence of sub-poems, that follow logically from one another if they are understood as contributing to two main points, made in a woman's voice.

Is there a gap between the academic study of the Bible and the work of theologians?

This study explores the premise that the experience of being "e;born from above"e; in John's Gospel can be seen as mirroring the development of human subjectivity, particularly as understood through the psychoanalytic work of Julia Kristeva.

Without turning naively to the past, scholars and preachers of the Old Testament are once again making use of figuration--something the church had always done until the modern period.

Faithfulness and the Purpose of Hebrews offers fresh answers to several unresolved questions by employing that branch of social psychology known as social identity theory.

The study of the End Times has been a popular topic for many years, and there are many different positions that are proposed on how to understand the unfolding of God's program.

Among books, the Bible is unique.

"e;Vicchio believes that by understanding how much Muslim tradition overlaps with the biblical traditions of Judaism and Christianity, we might begin to expose a wedge of common ground on which understanding and respect might begin to be built.

As numerous scholars have noted, The Revelation was first received orally.

Probing the Frontiers of Biblical Studies is a seventeen-chapter anthology on biblical studies.

This is a volume of practical, scriptural, and contemporary essays exploring the idea of strength in weakness in the context of Christian life and ministry.

Journal of Biblical and Pneumatological ResearchVOLUME THREE FALL 2011The Journal of Biblical and Pneumatological Research (JBPR) is a new international peer-reviewed academic serial dedicated to narratively and rhetorically minded exegesis of biblical and related texts.

Scan any Old Testament Theology for its entry concerning the Song of Songs and you are likely to put the book down and walk away disappointed.

"e;In these meditations upon Scripture, the author quickly, lightly opens up the sacred text to us in a way that--to my knowledge--has never been attempted in the entire history of the Christian faith.

Struggles for Shalom is a collection of essays by biblical scholars about peace, justice, and violence in ancient Jewish and Christian texts, written to honor the life work of Mennonite scholars Perry B.

To serve God and Christ faithfully in the midst of a pagan society that exalts power, wealth, and pleasure is the tenor of the prophetic summons to the church in the book of Revelation.

Human activity, both good and bad, cannot be explained merely by DNA and brain chemistry.

A Time To Be Deborah is a study of the Biblical Book of Judges focusing on the account of the prophetess Deborah and the Israelite military general, Barak.

For centuries the New Testament book of Hebrews has been interpreted as though it had been written for Jewish Christians in danger of lapsing back into legalism and religious ceremony.

Alfred Edersheim (1825-1889) was born and reared in a Jewish home in Vienna.

For many years I have had an interest in the equality of women and men, particularly in the church, where it has been woefully lacking for the most part.

The question of the relationship between the Gospel of Mark and letters of Paul has been ever-present in New Testament scholarship but has never been fully explored.

This book on Jeremiah seeks to place before a broad audience of students and lay readers one of the truly great Hebrew prophets and extraordinary individuals of the ancient world.

Is it possible to discern women prophets' utterances embedded within lyrics of prophetic books?