The Bible in Politics

The Bible in Politics
Author: Richard Bauckham
Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press
Total Pages: 184
Release: 1989-01-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9780664250881

This enlightening book on how to read the Bible politically serves as a prerequisite to Christian political action. Richard Bauckham offers his interpretations of several Bible passage that are politically relevant, and discusses how reading the Bible in a political context can lead to fresh insights.

The Bible in Politics

The Bible in Politics
Author: Richard Bauckham
Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press
Total Pages: 194
Release: 2011-01-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0664237088

This second edition of Bauckham's wonderful work is essential reading for understanding the relationship between the Bible and politics. The enduring value of The Bible in Politics is that it teaches the reader how to read the Bible politically and to gain an understanding of the social relevance of the Bible that is more disciplined, more informed, more imaginative, and more politically fruitful than many interpreters--past and present--have achieved.

The Biblical Politics of John Locke

The Biblical Politics of John Locke
Author: Kim Ian Parker
Publisher: Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press
Total Pages: 217
Release: 2006-01-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1554581192

John Locke is often thought of as one of the founders of the Enlightenment, a movement that sought to do away with the Bible and religion and replace them with scientific realism. But Locke was extremely interested in the Bible, and he was engaged by biblical theology and religion throughout his life. In this new book, K.I. Parker considers Locke’s interest in Scripture and how that interest is articulated in the development of his political philosophy. Parker shows that Locke’s liberalism is inspired by his religious vision and, particularly, his distinctive understanding of the early chapters of the book of Genesis. Unlike Sir Robert Filmer, who understood the Bible to justify social hierarchies (i.e., the divine right of the king, the first-born son’s rights over other siblings, and the “natural” subservience of women to men), Locke understood from the Bible that humans are in a natural state of freedom and equality to each other. The biblical debate between Filmer and Locke furnishes scholars with a better understanding of Lockes political views as presented in his Two Treatises. The Biblical Politics of John Locke demonstrates the impact of the Bible on one of the most influential thinkers of the seventeenth century, and provides an original context in which to situate the debate concerning the origins of early modern political thought.

The Bible in Political Debate

The Bible in Political Debate
Author: Frances Flannery
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 217
Release: 2016-09-22
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0567666573

Politicians and pundits regularly invoke the Bible in social and political debates on a host of controversial social and political issues, including: abortion, stem-cell research, gay marriage, the death penalty, separation of church and state, family values, climate change, income distribution, teaching evolution in schools, taxation, school prayer, aid for the poor, and immigration. But is the Bible often used out of context in these major debates? This book includes essays by fourteen biblical scholars who examine the use of the Bible in political debates, uncovering the original historical contexts and meanings of the biblical verses that are commonly cited. The contributors take a non-confessional approach, rooted in non-partisan scholarship, to show how specific texts have at times been distorted in order to support particular views. At the same time, they show how the Bible can sometimes make for unsettling reading in the modern day. The key questions remain: What does the Bible really say? Should the Bible be used to form public policy?

The Multiple Meaning of Scripture

The Multiple Meaning of Scripture
Author: Ineke Van 't Spijker
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 349
Release: 2009-02-28
Genre: History
ISBN: 9047425162

From the beginning of the Christian era and throughout the Middle Ages, biblical interpretation was the field where theological, philosophical and political matters were discussed. At the same time Scripture’s interpretation required the exploration of hermeneutical positions about how a literal and a hidden meaning could be established and how they related to each other. Ranging from early-Christian concerns about the text of the Bible itself, via Carolingian biblical commentaries, and the ever more diverse interpretations from the twelfth century and onwards, to the literary implications of (Jewish) commentary, the articles in this volume examine biblical exegesis both as a discourse on theology, philosophy and politics, and as the context for discussions on its underlying interpretative principles. Contributors are J. K. Kitchen, Katja Vehlow, Caroline Chevalier-Royet, Sumi Shimahara, Ian Christopher Levy, Pierre Boucaud, Elisabeth Mégier, Cédric Giraud, Wanda Zemler-Cizewski, Ineke van ’t Spijker, Eva De Visscher, Alexander Fidora, Frans van Liere, and Robert A. Harris.

The Bible and the Ballot

The Bible and the Ballot
Author: Tremper Longman
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
Total Pages: 349
Release: 2020-01-14
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1467458589

How to read the Bible on matters of public policy Christians affirm the Bible as our standard of faith and practice. We turn to it to hear God’s voice. But what relevance does the Bible have for the contentious public policy issues we face today? Although the Bible does not always speak explicitly to modern issues, it does give us guiding principles as we think about how we might vote or act as political figures ourselves. The Bible and the Ballot demonstrates the proper use of Scripture in contemporary political discussions. Christians regularly invoke the Bible to support their positions on many controversial political topics—gay marriage, poverty, war, religious liberty, immigration, the environment, taxes, etc.—and this book will help facilitate those conversations. Tremper Longman provides a hermeneutical approach to using the Bible in this manner, then proceeds topic by topic, citing important Scriptures to be taken into consideration in each case and offering an evangelical interpretation. Longman is careful to suggest levels of confidence in interpretation and acknowledges that often there are a range of possible applications. Each chapter includes questions to provoke further thought in individuals’ minds or for group discussion. The Bible and the Ballot is a ready guide to understanding the Bible on issues that American Christians face today as we live within a pluralistic society.

Scripture and Its Interpretation

Scripture and Its Interpretation
Author: Michael J. Gorman
Publisher: Baker Academic
Total Pages: 466
Release: 2017-06-06
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1493406175

Top-notch biblical scholars from around the world and from various Christian traditions offer a fulsome yet readable introduction to the Bible and its interpretation. The book concisely introduces the Old and New Testaments and related topics and examines a wide variety of historical and contemporary interpretive approaches, including African, African-American, Asian, and Latino streams. Contributors include N. T. Wright, M. Daniel Carroll R., Stephen Fowl, Joel Green, Michael Holmes, Edith Humphrey, Christopher Rowland, and K. K. Yeo, among others. Questions for reflection and discussion, an annotated bibliography, and a glossary are included.

Scripture

Scripture
Author: Michael J. Gorman
Publisher: Baker Academic
Total Pages: 264
Release: 2005-09-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1441241655

Most Bible introductions are the product of a single person or present only one perspective. Written by and for people from a variety of faith traditions, this distinctive introduction represents the work of fifteen Protestant and Catholic scholars--all members of the same theological faculty, but representing a diversity of backgrounds and approaches. Part I introduces the Bible itself: its library-like character; its geography, history, and archaeology; the books of each Testament; important noncanonical books; the Bible's various Jewish and Christian forms; and its transmission and translation. Part II covers the interpretation of the Bible at various times, in various traditions, and for various reasons: in the premodern period and in the modern and postmodern eras, including recent critical, theological, and ideological approaches; in Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox, and African-American churches; and for spiritual growth, social justice, and Christian unity. Offering helpful insight into how Christians (and others) have agreed and disagreed in their approaches to the Bible, it provides students with a clear, succinct introduction to Scripture as divine and human word.

The Bible and Politics in Africa

The Bible and Politics in Africa
Author: Joachim Kügler
Publisher: University of Bamberg Press
Total Pages: 400
Release: 2012
Genre:
ISBN: 3863090918

Section 1: The Bible and broad political discourses in Africa. "Rewriting" the Bible or de-biblifying the public sphere? Proposals and propositions on the usage of the Bible by public figures in Zimbabwe/ by Masiiwa Ragies Gunda. The Bible and the quest for democracy and democratization in Africa: the Zimbabwe experience / by Eliot Tofa. The Bible and the quest for developmental justice: the case of orphans in Namibia / by Jannie Hunter. The Bible in the service of pan-africanism: the case of Dr Tafataona Mahoso's pan-african biblical exegesis / by Obvious Vengeyi. The ANC's deployment of religion in nation building: from Thabo Mbeki, to "the RDP of the soul", to Jacob Zuma / by Gerald West. The Bible and democracy in Africa: how biblical science can contribute towards the establishment of plurality and democracy, the Bible as a relevant tool in the quest for engendering plurality / by Jephthah Kiara Gathaka. Section 2: Some readings of the Bible in/for political discourses in Africa. Contextual theological reading of the Bible with indigenous communities: the case of the Basarwa/San in Botswana / by Moji Ruele. A theological reflection on Romans 13:1-7 in the 21st century Zimbabwean politics / by Phillemon M. Chamburuka. The Judas Iscariot episode In the zimbabwean religio-political debate of "selling out" / by Francis Machingura. Inspiring for liberation - legitimizing for occupation : interpretations of the Exodus from southern Africa / by Stephanie Feder. Politics of feeding: reading John 6 (and 1 Cor 11) as documents of socio-political conflicts / by Joachim Kügler. "If my people ..." a critical analysis of the deployment of 2 Chronicles 7:14 during the Zimbabwean crisis / by Ezra Chitando. Towards a new reading of the bible in africa - spy exegesis / by Canisius Mwandayi. Empowering the poor: the Bible and the poor in informal settlements in Africa with reference to Mangaung, South Africa / Pieter Verster. Section 3: The bible, gender and politics in Africa. The politics of "biblical manhood": a critical study of masculinity politics and biblical hermeneutics in a Zambian pentecostal church / Adriaan S. Van Klinken. The bible as a source of strength among Zimbabwean women during socio-economic and political crises / by Elizabeth Vengeyi. An analysis of the application of 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 and 1 Timothy 2:11-14: the politics of pentecostalism and women's ministries in Zimbabwe / by Tapiwa Praise Mapuranga.