Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Biblical literacy revisited
I got a very nice letter what I blush to admit was several weeks ago (good news: my email pile is being whittled steadily down; bad news: it's still in the three digits, and not the lower three, either). The writer thanked me for the article on teaching the Bible for cultural literacy, and asked if I had any further suggestions on the subject.
I asked her for more specifics regarding what she was looking for, and am excited to continue this conversation. But it got me thinking. And examining my shelves, as well as those of the library.
There are books about the Bible that are religiously neutral in tone that are written by and for scholars.
There are books about the Bible that are most definitely religiously un-neutral in tone, written for civilian readers.
There are books about the Bible that are secular, but they tend to be either critical works in the mean sense of the word (here's what's wrong with this book), or they focus on the naughty bits.
None of these are much help to someone who wants to study the Bible for cultural literacy and is having a hard time getting started.
Asimov's Guide to the Bible is good, and most certainly neutral. But it's a study guide to the Bible, best used hand in hand with reading the Bible in its entirety.
The New Interpreter's Bible is also neutral in tone, but it runs to a dozen-plus volumes and the common reader runs into the same problem she does with Asimov: this is a feast for forty people, and all I want is a sandwich and a glass of milk.
There's no just plain secular guide to learning enough about the Bible to feel reasonably culturally conversant. A fairly short book that offers some basic information regarding what's known about the Bible's origins, and then addresses itself not to the whole tome but to some of the best-known and most important stories.
It might be time to change that particular status quo.
In the meantime, what would you think of a short regular column on the subject?
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7 comments:
I think it would be great! Your first article on the subject actually made me rethink the way we learn about the Bible. I'd be very interested to read more.
Of course, that means I need to subscribe. And now that I have a "real" job and just got my first paycheck, I can afford to... ;)
Going to the subscribe page now!
Have you looked at these titles? There's Brush up your Bible, by Michael Macrone, who wrote Brush up your Shakespeare, and Don't know much about the Bible, by Kenneth C. Davis, who started with Don't know much about history.
Both of those are pretty good at explaining stories and verses, without a big agenda in the background. Neither of them are theological experts---they aim at the general reader who wants to improve their cultural literacy.
And there's always the Bible for Dummies. ;)
I always like the books by the scholars. Even at my (religious) college, when we studied theology, those are what we read.
We're letting my kids biological dad continue to take them to church and church school through the year for this very reason. I grew up Presbyterian but it never took. I long ago realized I was born agnostic. But I'm glad I got the religious instruction. My dad's an engineer amazed, as we all should be, with the beauty of the universe and the power of science to reveal it, so he provided in essence what I'll be providing to my kids as the secular influence. I want them to know what the Bible says and what Christians believe, and the influence Christianity has had on Western civilization, but I'm always mindful to couch it in terms of "some people believe," and explain why I don't. So far so good, I think. Time will tell. I will have to look up some of these books, though. Help never hurts.
Here's what I would recommend: The New Jerome Biblical Handbook by Raymond Brown and Roland E. Murphy. It's old (1992) and written by priests, but it's all about the text (from an understandably Catholic perspective). The even more academic version is the New Jerome Biblical Commentary by the same authors. The late Fr. Murphy was my Theology 101 professor; he was excellent and definitely all about the text.
Have you looked at the works of Josephus?
D - I emailed you, but am not sure if I had a current email address. If you would like to email me, then I can share with you what I'm up to and I'd love to hear about you and m. Hope you and family are well!
Savannah Wheeler
wheelersavannah@gmail.com
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