I realize I’m a little late in posting this. Quite an excellent article overall. I especially enjoyed this bit (also, I agree with and support it, as should you!):
Biblical studies is, at present, still a cultural and social project, one that exists principally as an alternative to traditional and confessional modes of biblical interpretation. John Collins of Yale, the eminent historical critic, has made precisely this point. In a presidential address to the Society of Biblical Literature, he suggested that biblical critics can help stem religious violence by “noting the diversity of viewpoints in the Bible” in order to “relativize the more problematic ones.”4 In doing so, scholars prevent readers from adopting any settled convictions about what the Bible actually says. In this way, the critic can demonstrate to any true believers ready to take up the sword that “certitude” about the meaning of the Bible is merely an “illusion.”
via The Bible and Interpretation. Read on here: http://www.bibleinterp.com/articles/legaspi357930.shtml
Filed under: Ancient Literature, Ancient Near East, Belief, Classical History, Early Christianity, Genre, Hebrew Bible, Minimalism, New Testament, Philosophy, Scholarship, Society
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