Interpreting the Bible

Reviewed by Neil Richardson, Orleton, Herefordshire in Modern Believing Apr 2012.

Reviewed by Michael J. Lakey, Ripon College Cuddesdon, Oxford in Modern Believing Apr 2012.

Reviewed by Dorothy A. Lee, Trinity College, University of Melbourne, Australia in Modern Believing Apr 2012.

Reviewed by David Catchpole, Sarum College, Salisbury in Modern Believing Apr 2012.

Reviewed by Lisa Isherwood, University of Winchester in Modern Believing Apr 2012.

Reviewed by Ann Christie, York St John University in Modern Believing Apr 2012.

Reviewed by Paul Ballard, Peterborough in Modern Believing Jan 2012.

Reviewed by Ben Edsall, University of Oxford in Modern Believing Jan 2012.

Reviewed by Andrew Angel, St John's College, Nottingham in Modern Believing Jan 2012.

Reviewed by Steve Moyise, University of Chichester in Modern Believing Jan 2012.

Reviewed by Christopher Hays, University of Oxford in Modern Believing Jan 2012.

Reviewed by Stephen W. Need, Essex in Modern Believing Jan 2012.

Reviewed by Jonathan Clatworthy, Modern Church, Liverpool in Modern Believing Jan 2012.

Reviewed by David Parker (short review), University of Birmingham in Modern Believing Jan 2012.

Reviewed by Geoffrey Stevenson, University of Edinburgh in Modern Believing Oct 2011.

Reviewed by Geoffrey Stevenson, University of Edinburgh in Modern Believing Oct 2011.

Reviewed by Angie Pears, Nottingham Trent University in Modern Believing Oct 2011.

Reviewed by Susan Gillingham, University of Oxford in Modern Believing Jul 2011.

Reviewed by Robert Titley, Richmond in Modern Believing Jul 2011.

Reviewed by Adrian Thatcher, University of Exeter in Modern Believing Apr 2011.

Reviewed by Warren Carter, Brite Divinity School, Fort Worth, Texas in Modern Believing Apr 2011.

Reviewed by Steve Moyise, University of Chichester in Modern Believing Jan 2011.

Reviewed by Matthew L. Skinner, Luther Seminary, Saint Paul, MN in Modern Believing Jan 2011.

Reviewed by Helen-Ann Hartley, Ripon College Cuddesdon in Modern Believing Oct 2010.

Reviewed by Paul Badham, University of Wales, Lampeter in Modern Believing Apr 2009.

Publisher's description: Misuse of the Bible has made hatred holy. In this provocative book, Adrian Thatcher argues that debates on sexuality currently raging through the churches are the latest outbreak in a long line of savage interpretations of the Bible. Fascinating reading for anyone concerned about the future of Christianity.

• A provocative book claiming that debates on sexuality currently raging through the churches are the latest outbreak in a long line of savage interpretations of the Bible
• Argues that the Bible has been abused to convert the 'good news' which it brings to the world, into one which has been used to discriminate against many groups, including children, women, Jews, people of color, slaves, heretics, and homosexuals
• Asks how Christians have been able to conduct, in public and on a global scale, an argument that has exposed so much prejudice, fear and hatred
• Offers an alternative, faithful and peaceable reading of the Bible, drawing on numerous examples throughout
• Breaks new ground in debates about sexual ethics and biblical interpretation

Signs of the Times article.

Reviewed by Thomas O'Loughlin, University of Wales, Lampeter in Modern Believing Jul 2008.

Again and again, we hear that such-and-such an opinion is not 'biblical', implying that the Bible speaks with a unified voice on any matter. With humour and examples drawn from art and life, Helen-Ann Hartley argues that to appreciate fully the Bible's richness and diversity, we have to wrestle critically and creatively with themes that attract us and repel us.

All those beguiled by the work of William Blake recognise the importance of the Bible for his poetic genius, whether as an object of criticism, or an inspiration. This book, the first substantial study for sixty years, attempts to locate Blake within the broad spectrum of Christian biblical interpretation, orthodox, heterodox and radical. It explores the particular ways in which Blake engaged with the Bible and the distinctive interpretations that emerged, not least through the medium of images. Rowland considers Blake's series of engravings on the 'Book of Job', and his only commentary on a biblical book, to illuminate the distinctive features of the poet's exegesis. These include the priority given to the Spirit over the Letter; the critique of a theology which places supreme value on what is found in a book rather than attending to what Blake calls 'the Word of God Universal'; the advocacy of a religion of divine immediacy rather than transcendence; and, experience of suffering as the motor of theological and ethical change. This powerful and richly-illustrated work brings forty years of study to bear on one of the great interpreters of the Bible.

The book argues that ancestor veneration plays important - and hitherto overlooked - socio-religious and ideological roles in various and competing territorial claims as presented in the Hebrew Bible. In this book, the biblical motif of a land divinely-promised and given to Abraham and his descendants is argued to be an ideological reflex of post-monarchic, territorial disputes between competing socio-religious groups. The important biblical motif of a Promised Land is founded upon the ancient Near Eastern concept of ancestral land: hereditary space upon which families lived, worked, died and were buried. An essential element of concept of ancestral land was the belief in the post-mortem existence of the ancestors, who were venerated with grave offerings, mortuary feasts, bone rituals and standing stones. The Hebrew Bible is littered with stories concerning these practices and beliefs, yet the specific correlation of ancestor veneration and certain biblical land claims has gone unrecognized. The book remedies this in presenting evidence, both biblical and non-biblical, for the vital and persistent impact of ancestor veneration upon land claims.

In this book, two experts in biblical and literary studies offer a wide-ranging discussion of what is going on in different types of Christian interpretation. They consider examples from history, from literature, and from a range of contentious present-day situations. Rather than providing answers, the authors open out the fundamental interpretative questions raised by same-sex relationships, justice in society, religious heresy, and marriage and divorce.

The Bible, The Basics is a compelling introduction to the Bible as both a sacred text, central to the faith of millions, and a classic work of Western literature, containing a tapestry of genres, voices, perspectives and images. This masterly guide skilfully addresses both aspects of the Bible's character by exploring:

• the rich variety of literary forms, from poetry to prophecy and epistles to apocalypses
• the historical, geographic and social context of the Bible
• contemporary attitudes to the Bible held by believers and non-believers
• the status of biblical interpretation today

Including maps, a chronology and detailed suggestions for further reading, this is an ideal starting point for people of any faith or none who are studying the Bible in any setting or simply want to know more about the best-selling book of all time.

In an increasingly secularised society, the average person is unlikely to have a working knowledge of the Bible. Yet a great deal of our culture is built on stories or ideas that come from the Bible. Literature, art, music, language and even the fabric of our society - such as our justice system - are built on Christian concepts and biblical references. The Writing on the Wall provides a fascinating introduction to the Bible's best-known, and most influential, stories. Each chapter gives the full text of a story from the Bible and explains its original significance, then shows how this story has become enmeshed in Western culture. Adam and Eve, the ten plagues of Egypt, The Prodigal Son and Mary Magdalene all feature - along with how the Bible has influenced everyone from Shakespeare to Ian McEwan, and The Beatles to Monty Python.

The trouble with reading the Bible is that it claims to be God's autobiography, so the first thing readers must do is decide what they understand by God and how they are going to interpret his role in the rambling library of books that claim his authorship.

Richard Holloway's usefully dialectical approach to this central question will allow non-believers as well as believers to profit from a study of the most influential book in human history.

Examines the assumptions underlying the common fundamentalist assumptions about how to read the Bible, and offers more constructive alternatives in line with biblical scholarship.

The Queer Bible Commentary brings together the work of several scholars and pastors known for their interest in the areas of gender, sexuality and Biblical studies. Contributors draw on feminist, queer, deconstructionist, utopian theories, the social sciences and historical-critical discourses. The commentary includes an extensive bibliography that directs the reader to a full range of literature relating to queer interpretation of scripture.

An impassioned contribution to the debate about the authority of scripture - how we read the Bible, and how, the author believes, a fundamentalist reading is unsustainable. The book works through a series of Bible passages often cited as 'proof texts', and explores how they can be read, and how they are used.