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leswag97's reviews
233 reviews
The Art of Biblical Narrative by Robert Alter
4.0
A classic work on biblical narrative, which is still a relevant and important study today. Robert Alter examines the Bible’s stories from a literary perspective, paying attention to characterization, keywords, type-scenes, dialogue, and narration—in order to better understand biblical narrative in all of its beauty and uniqueness. Some readers may feel uncomfortable with Alter comparing biblical stories with prose fiction (and treating biblical narrative as though it were fiction), and yet, Alter’s work is still a helpful resource. Alter closes his book by reminding us, once again, of the importance of paying attention to the literary qualities of biblical narrative: “[B]y learning to enjoy the biblical stories more fully as stories, we shall also come to see more clearly what they mean to tell us about God, man, and the perilously momentous realm of history” (189).
Run With the Horses: The Quest for Life at Its Best by Eugene H. Peterson, Eugene H. Peterson
4.0
In this book, Eugene Peterson uses the prophet Jeremiah as an example of what living life to the fullest looks like. Jeremiah is an interesting choice for this undertaking, precisely because his life was filled with much difficulty and grief, and of all the Hebrew Prophets, Jeremiah was probably the most unsuccessful in his ministry. He also experienced firsthand ancient Israel’s greatest tragedy: the Babylonian exile. Still, Peterson sees within Jeremiah someone who was committed to the commission of God and to his own role as “prophet to the nations” (Jer 1:5). Even though his task was a difficult one, he persisted in it. While this is not my favorite Peterson work, and I do wish that the chapters were a bit longer (it felt as though Peterson could not develop his thoughts enough on a given topic before the chapter would abruptly come to an end), I still enjoyed it.
Kingdom Come by Mark Waid
4.0
I don’t normally read graphic novels, but this one was recommended to me, because it creatively uses quotations and themes from the Book of Revelation to tell an exciting story about superheroes, so I decided to give it a shot. I enjoyed all the biblical allusions, and the artwork is incredible.
The Lost World of the Flood: Mythology, Theology, and the Deluge Debate by John H. Walton, Tremper Longman III
3.0
In this book, John Walton and Tremper Longman III tackle the flood controversy. Both authors would describe themselves as evangelical Christians, who accept wholeheartedly the inspiration and inerrancy of the biblical text. Yet, they do not argue that there was a global flood, but rather, that in the “far distant past,” there was “a devastating flood [that] killed many people,” but that it is impossible “to date the event, locate the event, or reconstruct the event in our own terms” (85). For the authors, this “is not a problem because the event itself … is not what is inspired. What is inspired and thus the vehicle of God’s revelation is the literary-theological explanation that is given by the biblical author” (85). Thus, according to Walton and Longman, the “local flood”—which is a real historical event that happened at some point in the distant past—is “described rhetorically as a worldwide flood [in Genesis 6–9] to make a theological point”; by maintaining this stance, the authors hope to honor “both the biblical text when read in its literary and cultural context as well as the geological evidence (or lack thereof)” (93).
I appreciate the goal and spirit of this book, and Walton and Longman have done as good a job as anyone trying to carve out a “middle” way in this controversy. And I agree that the main purpose of the biblical account of the flood is theological in nature (scientific accuracy and historical precision seem to be less important). The book’s chapters could have been longer at some points, as it would have been helpful to flesh out or explain more thoroughly some of the points the authors make. The chapter contributed by geologist Stephen O. Moshier was interesting, but was not nearly as reader-friendly (in my opinion) as the other chapters (but that’s likely because I am more familiar with the field of biblical studies than I am with geology). Undoubtedly, this book will probably create more controversy than actually end it, but I’m sure it will be helpful for many readers who do not want to put Christianity and science against each other.
I appreciate the goal and spirit of this book, and Walton and Longman have done as good a job as anyone trying to carve out a “middle” way in this controversy. And I agree that the main purpose of the biblical account of the flood is theological in nature (scientific accuracy and historical precision seem to be less important). The book’s chapters could have been longer at some points, as it would have been helpful to flesh out or explain more thoroughly some of the points the authors make. The chapter contributed by geologist Stephen O. Moshier was interesting, but was not nearly as reader-friendly (in my opinion) as the other chapters (but that’s likely because I am more familiar with the field of biblical studies than I am with geology). Undoubtedly, this book will probably create more controversy than actually end it, but I’m sure it will be helpful for many readers who do not want to put Christianity and science against each other.
Learning from Henri Nouwen and Vincent Van Gogh: A Portrait of the Compassionate Life by Carol A. Berry
3.0
This short book brings together the work and teaching of Henri Nouwen and the art and spirituality of Vincent van Gogh. Carol A. Berry—an artist, art historian, and educator—took a course with Nouwen at Yale Divinity School on compassion and van Gogh, and this book is a distillation of what she learned from that course. She intertwines Nouwen’s work with the art and writing of van Gogh, as well as her own story. There’s a number of images of van Gogh’s paintings interspersed throughout, and I enjoyed learning more about his life, his journey as an artist, and his spirituality. The book is simple and easy to read, and anyone with a love for van Gogh or Nouwen (or both!) would enjoy it.
Robin II: The Joker's Wild by Bob Smith, Tom Lyle, Chuck Dixon
4.0
A fun, 4-part story about the initial face off between The Joker and Robin (Tim Drake), while Batman is away from Gotham!
A Covenant with Death: Death in the Iron Age II and Its Rhetorical Uses in Proto-Isaiah by Christopher B. Hays
4.0
Completing my 2022 reading challenge with a spooky read for the Halloween season! Christopher B. Hays’s work on death and beliefs about death in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Ugarit, and Israel/Palestine, as well as the rhetorical use of death and life imagery in Isaiah 1–39 (Proto-Isaiah or First Isaiah), is excellent! Hays situates the prophecies of Isaiah ben Amoz, the eighth-century prophet, as well as Isaiah’s “tradents” (or disciples, of a sort) after him, within their historical and cultural contexts, with particular attention given to how Isaiah 1–39 picks up and uses common ancient Near Eastern imagery and beliefs about death, as well as subverts such beliefs. Especially, Proto-Isaiah condemns the use of necromancy in Judah, along with political alliances with Egypt that would involve some sort of necromantic activity.
One of the more interesting arguments made by Hays is that the prophecies about the “raising of the dead” and YHWH’s “swallowing of death” in Isaiah 24–27 should not be viewed as inherently late or post-exilic simply because they talk about the resurrection of the dead. Rather, Hays argues that these prophecies likely come from Isaiah’s tradents, during the time of King Josiah’s reign over Judah, when the Neo-Assyrian Empire’s power was waning, and Judah was in a time of flourishing. Hays interprets the “raising of the dead” in these texts primarily as a political resurrection for the Kingdom of Judah, in light of the end of the Neo-Assyrian Empire.
Hays also argues that Isaiah 28:1–22 is a condemnation of a covenant Judah made with Egypt (against Neo-Assyria), in which the Egyptian goddess Mut figured prominently. Hays believes that Isaiah played on the similarity in sound between the name of the goddess Mut and the Hebrew word for “death” (מות), thus describing the covenant with Egypt as a “covenant with death.” Not only does he bring Egyptian texts and language into conversation with Isaiah 28, but he also employs Egyptian iconography of the goddess Mut, in order to strengthen his argument. The end result is an argument that makes best sense of the text as it now stands.
Hays is a wonderful scholar and this is a wonderful read. It is technical, for sure, but it is also very readable. Happy Halloween!
One of the more interesting arguments made by Hays is that the prophecies about the “raising of the dead” and YHWH’s “swallowing of death” in Isaiah 24–27 should not be viewed as inherently late or post-exilic simply because they talk about the resurrection of the dead. Rather, Hays argues that these prophecies likely come from Isaiah’s tradents, during the time of King Josiah’s reign over Judah, when the Neo-Assyrian Empire’s power was waning, and Judah was in a time of flourishing. Hays interprets the “raising of the dead” in these texts primarily as a political resurrection for the Kingdom of Judah, in light of the end of the Neo-Assyrian Empire.
Hays also argues that Isaiah 28:1–22 is a condemnation of a covenant Judah made with Egypt (against Neo-Assyria), in which the Egyptian goddess Mut figured prominently. Hays believes that Isaiah played on the similarity in sound between the name of the goddess Mut and the Hebrew word for “death” (מות), thus describing the covenant with Egypt as a “covenant with death.” Not only does he bring Egyptian texts and language into conversation with Isaiah 28, but he also employs Egyptian iconography of the goddess Mut, in order to strengthen his argument. The end result is an argument that makes best sense of the text as it now stands.
Hays is a wonderful scholar and this is a wonderful read. It is technical, for sure, but it is also very readable. Happy Halloween!
The Composition of the Pentateuch: Renewing the Documentary Hypothesis by Joel S. Baden
4.0
A wonderful introduction to the Documentary Hypothesis. Joel Baden writes in a concise, clear, and convincing way, showing in both theory and practice the logic of the Documentary Hypothesis. Baden argues that the Documentary Hypothesis—“the central assertion” of which is that “four originally independent documents [termed J, E, P, and D] … have been subsequently combined and interwoven” to produce the canonical Pentateuch (20)—makes the most sense in light of what he perceives to be inconsistencies and contradictions in the Pentateuch. These narrative contradictions, for Baden (and many others) indicate that the Pentateuch is a composite work, rather than the work one single author. Baden posits that these four sources were combined by one compiler, who did not seek to smooth out any narrative inconsistencies (likely out of respect and reverence for what was passed down to him), but simply presented a unified (yet complex) narrative of Israel’s beginnings.
What I found most helpful about this book were a number of case studies, in which Baden demonstrates the logic of the Documentary Hypothesis. While it is still a “hypothesis,” Baden argues that it provides the best answer to the questions posed by the canonical text of the Pentateuch. While not everyone will agree with Baden and his conclusions (indeed, many have rejected the Documentary Hypothesis for various reasons), I found this book to be very helpful and, at times, very convincing.
What I found most helpful about this book were a number of case studies, in which Baden demonstrates the logic of the Documentary Hypothesis. While it is still a “hypothesis,” Baden argues that it provides the best answer to the questions posed by the canonical text of the Pentateuch. While not everyone will agree with Baden and his conclusions (indeed, many have rejected the Documentary Hypothesis for various reasons), I found this book to be very helpful and, at times, very convincing.
Jesus and the Forces of Death: The Gospels' Portrayal of Ritual Impurity Within First-Century Judaism by Matthew Thiessen
5.0
I had heard many good things about this book before picking it up to read it for myself, but even with very high expectations, I can say that it exceeded them. Matthew Thiessen convincingly argues, contrary to much New Testament scholarship and contemporary Christian thinking, that the Gospels (primarily the Synoptic Gospels) do not portray Jesus "abolish[ing] the ritual purity system; rather, [Jesus] abolishes the force that creates the ritual impurity in the person he meets" (6). Thiessen's reading of the Gospels helpfully takes into account not only the Jewishness of the Gospel writers (Thiessen even recognizes "the possibility that Luke was himself a Jew" [41]), but also of Jesus the Messiah.
Thiessen looks at a number of stories in the Gospels (usually taking the story as it is found in Mark's Gospel as his starting point) that deal with those considered ritually impure—that is, those with "lepra" (Thiessen argues "lepra" [λέπρα] should not be confused with "leprosy" [ἐλεφαντίασις]: see pages 43-52), those with genital discharges, and corpses. For Thiessen, these stories do not show Jesus's antipathy or disregard for Jewish ritual purity concerns, but instead, they depict Jesus's desire to remove ritual impurity from individuals. Much like Elijah and Elisha—one of whom cured a "lepros," and both of whom raised the dead—Jesus dealt with ritual impurity in a way that the ritual purity system did not (and could not), by not simply removing the "effects of sources of impurity," but the "sources of impurity themselves" (180). In the person of Jesus, the God of Israel inserted "a new, mobile, and powerfully contagious force of holiness into the world," and the purifying ministry of Jesus "signaled the very coming of the kingdom—a kingdom of holiness and life that ... overwhelms the forces and sources of impurity and death" (179).
Even though the ministry of Jesus (like the ministry of Elijah and Elisha) did what the temple/tabernacle apparatus could not, this should not lead one to assume that Jesus did not believe in ritual impurity or did not view it as significant. The Gospel writers even seem to make the opposite point at times. For instance, in the story of the healing of the "lepros" in Mark 1, Jesus tells the (former) "lepros" to "show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them" (Mark 1:44). As Thiessen rightly notes, "The Gospel writers depict Jesus acting in a way that fits perfectly with the laws of Leviticus 13-14. After cleansing people of their lepra (cf. Lev. 14:2), Jesus commands them to go to the temple to undergo the rituals necessary to remove the ritual impurity that continues to exist after the lepra leaves (Lev. 14:8, 9, 20)" (68). This one example, among many others that Thiessen points to, indicates that our assumptions about Jesus being unconcerned with the Torah or with the ritual purity system may be wrongheaded and incorrect. Each chapter is a treasure trove of new and fresh insights about the ministry of Jesus and the world of the Gospel writers. I would recommend this book to anyone, as I think it counters some faulty thinking within contemporary Christian circles about Judaism, Jesus, and the Old Testament (specifically, the legal literature found in the Torah).
Thiessen looks at a number of stories in the Gospels (usually taking the story as it is found in Mark's Gospel as his starting point) that deal with those considered ritually impure—that is, those with "lepra" (Thiessen argues "lepra" [λέπρα] should not be confused with "leprosy" [ἐλεφαντίασις]: see pages 43-52), those with genital discharges, and corpses. For Thiessen, these stories do not show Jesus's antipathy or disregard for Jewish ritual purity concerns, but instead, they depict Jesus's desire to remove ritual impurity from individuals. Much like Elijah and Elisha—one of whom cured a "lepros," and both of whom raised the dead—Jesus dealt with ritual impurity in a way that the ritual purity system did not (and could not), by not simply removing the "effects of sources of impurity," but the "sources of impurity themselves" (180). In the person of Jesus, the God of Israel inserted "a new, mobile, and powerfully contagious force of holiness into the world," and the purifying ministry of Jesus "signaled the very coming of the kingdom—a kingdom of holiness and life that ... overwhelms the forces and sources of impurity and death" (179).
Even though the ministry of Jesus (like the ministry of Elijah and Elisha) did what the temple/tabernacle apparatus could not, this should not lead one to assume that Jesus did not believe in ritual impurity or did not view it as significant. The Gospel writers even seem to make the opposite point at times. For instance, in the story of the healing of the "lepros" in Mark 1, Jesus tells the (former) "lepros" to "show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them" (Mark 1:44). As Thiessen rightly notes, "The Gospel writers depict Jesus acting in a way that fits perfectly with the laws of Leviticus 13-14. After cleansing people of their lepra (cf. Lev. 14:2), Jesus commands them to go to the temple to undergo the rituals necessary to remove the ritual impurity that continues to exist after the lepra leaves (Lev. 14:8, 9, 20)" (68). This one example, among many others that Thiessen points to, indicates that our assumptions about Jesus being unconcerned with the Torah or with the ritual purity system may be wrongheaded and incorrect. Each chapter is a treasure trove of new and fresh insights about the ministry of Jesus and the world of the Gospel writers. I would recommend this book to anyone, as I think it counters some faulty thinking within contemporary Christian circles about Judaism, Jesus, and the Old Testament (specifically, the legal literature found in the Torah).