Since its origins in the women's liberation movement, feminist exegesis has been subject not only to the demand to identify the oppressive functions of biblical texts, but also to contribute to the liberation of women. What biblical texts can serve this process of liberation - for which women, under what conditions and in what manner? What roles do categories such as woman, gender, liberation, freedom, holy scripture, church and theology play? This work originated from a symposium with feminist biblical experts from over 20 countries from the world's five continents. It provides a striking and imaginative depiction of the questions central to feminist exegesis and the hermeneutics of liberation. It also provides a lively example of the kind of global discussion of the Bible and liberation that can take place among women from around the world. Typical of this discussion is the confrontation with questions such as contextuality or the diversity of feminist biblical interpretation (whether of theological or non-theological nature), and clear positions are taken with regard to issues such as the termination of anti-Judaism in feminist biblical interpretation or the dangers of neo-colonial domination in feminist-theological studies. This is a scholarly, a feminist and a very political book.
Author(s): Silvia Schroer, Sophia Bietenhard
Series: Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement Series 374
Publisher: T & T Clark International
Year: 2004
Language: English
Pages: 198
Feminist Interpretation of the Bible and the Hermeneutics of Liberation......Page 4
Contents......Page 8
Foreword......Page 12
List of contributors......Page 18
Silvia Schroer: 'We Will Know Each Other by Our Fruits': Feminist Exegesis and the Hermeneutics of Liberation......Page 22
Listening to Each Other—Obeying Each Other......Page 24
Not Without Enlightenment?......Page 26
The Value of Historical Research......Page 28
Sacred or Not Sacred?......Page 29
Sola scriptura or Perhaps also Through Story and Visual Images?......Page 30
De-Constructiveness and Constructiveness......Page 34
The Rulers of the House......Page 35
Bibliography......Page 36
Proverbs 31 in a New Interpretation (A Story Told by Renita Weems, USA)......Page 39
Renita J. Weems: Re-Reading for Liberation: African American Women and the Bible......Page 40
Reflecting and Rethinking a Womanist Identity......Page 41
Reflections on Womanist Biblical Hermeneutics......Page 44
Readers' Love Affair for Stories......Page 47
From Reading to Liberation......Page 52
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 53
Helping Each Other to Think (A Series of Propositions in Retrospect by Viola Raheb, Palestine)......Page 54
Biographical Backgrounds......Page 55
General Reflections......Page 56
Basic Problems within a Feminist Hermeneutics of Liberation......Page 62
Missing Issues......Page 66
The Story of Dona Añada......Page 69
The Fabric of Latin American Texts......Page 70
The Bible's Scars in Latin America......Page 71
The Religions of the Poor......Page 72
Feminist Reading......Page 74
Reading Judith in Latin America......Page 75
Conclusion......Page 77
APPENDIX......Page 78
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 79
Joshua 2: Spies Sent to Jericho......Page 80
Killing a Beautiful Princess......Page 81
Circling Around a Patriarchal Orbit......Page 83
Tricking or Treating Patriarchy?......Page 86
Should Feminists Trick or Treat Imperialism?......Page 87
Patriarchy and Imperialism: Are They Always Twins?......Page 90
Postcolonial Feminist Hermeneutics of Liberation......Page 91
Some Proposals......Page 93
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 95
Introduction......Page 98
The Question of Method and Authority......Page 99
Conclusion......Page 104
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 105
The Book of Ruth and a Group of Prostitutes in Costa Rica (A Story Told by Irene Foulkes, Costa Rica)......Page 107
Women in a Peasant Society......Page 109
Widows......Page 111
Inter-Religious Marriages......Page 112
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 114
Social Location......Page 115
The Bible as a Cultural Document......Page 116
Role Reversals......Page 117
The Story of Michal......Page 119
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 123
Critical Feminist Biblical Scholarship and Gender......Page 124
Word— Text—Image......Page 126
The Authority and Sacredness of the Text......Page 127
Taking Action; Change and Struggle......Page 129
Dialogue......Page 130
Center and Periphery......Page 131
Political Aspects of Colonialism and Colonization......Page 132
Post-Colonial Biblical Interpretation......Page 133
Interdependence......Page 134
Interpretation and Secularization......Page 135
Construction—Deconstruction—Reconstruction......Page 136
Elżbieta Adamiak: The Stolen Bible......Page 138
Is There a Central and Eastern European Theology?......Page 139
Is There a Common Ground Worldwide for Feminist Theology?......Page 143
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 145
Feminist Hermeneutics and Contextual Diversity......Page 147
The Relationship between Liberation and Freedom......Page 149
Freedom: The Fundamental Condition for Human Existence......Page 151
The Understanding of Freedom in a Western European Context......Page 153
Liberation as Hermeneutical Learning from Others......Page 154
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 156
Heike Walz: The Beautiful Princess and the Village Girls: The Power of Difference in the Intercultural Relations of Feminist Theologians......Page 158
The Term 'Difference' in Feminist Theological Thought......Page 159
Princesses and Village Girls in Ascona— 'Tangible Others'?......Page 163
The Hermeneutics of Change and the Hermeneutics of Opacity—Models for Feminist Theologians......Page 167
Differences and the Construct of a We 'and 'the Others': Highlights of Feminist and Postcolonial Theories......Page 169
Differences and Solidarity in the Intercultural Exchange between Feminist Theologians......Page 170
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 171
Women and War in India (A Historical Event from the Ninth Century Recounted by Stella Baltazar, India)......Page 174
The Sun, the Woman and the Peacock (A Story Told by Stella Baltazar, India)......Page 175
Introduction......Page 176
Women as the Bearers of Revelation and Liberation......Page 178
Claiming Our Quest for Oneness in the Midst of Division......Page 180
Being Evangelized by Indigenous Wisdom......Page 182
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 184
The Christian Church in Korea......Page 185
Suggestions for Change in the Korean Church......Page 188
Conclusion......Page 190
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 191
Yak-Hwee Tan: The Question of Social Location and Postcolonial Feminist Hermeneutics of Liberation......Page 192
My Social Location......Page 193
Social Location: Postcolonial Feminist Hermeneutics......Page 194
Feminist Biblical Interpretation: An Asian Woman's Perspective......Page 197
BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 198
Back Matter......Page 200
