Scripture: An Ecumenical Introduction to the Bible and Its Interpretation.

Scripture: An Ecumenical Introduction to the Bible and Its Interpretation. Edited by Michael J. Gorman. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2005. Pp. xv. + 288. Paper, $19.95.

This book is the work of members of the Ecumenical Institute of Theology at St Mary's University and Seminary (Baltimore), who according to the editor's introduction "bring to the task of producing an introduction to the Bible a unique sensitivity to various ways of being Christian and of reading the Bible" (pp. vii-viii). The book was developed chiefly for use as a textbook in introductory courses in biblical interpretation, and is intended as a companion volume to Michael Gorman, Elements of Biblical Exegesis: A Basic Guide for Students and Ministers (Hendrickson, 2001). Together the two volumes offer, for readers with little or no background knowledge of the biblical texts (including seminary students or other interested readers), a fairly complete introduction to the Bible and the history and methods of its interpretation.

Part One, "The Bible," contains essays covering topics such as geography, history, archaeology, canon, textual transmission, and translation, as well as survey essays on the writings of the Old and New Testaments and non-canonical biblical texts: "The Bible as Book and as Library" (Paul P. Zilonka); "The Geography, History, and Archaeology of the Bible" (Karen J. Wenell); "The Character and Composition of the Books of the Old Testament" (David A. Leiter); "The Character and Composition of the Books of the New Testament" (Michael J. Gorman); "Significant Noncanonical Books" (Edwin C. Hostetter); "The Formation of the Biblical Canon(s)" (Shira Lander); and "The Transmission and Translation of the Bible" (Michael L. Barre). On the whole these essays are written in a clear and accessible style, and are based on current scholarship (which is sometimes referenced in general terms); they also highlight the important issues without getting bogged down in details. For example, Gorman's chapter on the New Testament provides brief introductions to individual writings but also touches on topics such as the genre and composition of the Gospels, epistolary, rhetorical, and authorial issues of the letters, and Revelation as apocalyptic literature. Each chapter concludes with an up-to-date annotated bibliography for readers interested in further study. These essays anticipate the questions that beginning students of the Bible usually have, and define and explain significant terms and topics, which appear in bold-faced type to refer the reader to the glossary (pp. 265-79).

Part Two, "The Interpretation of the Bible," includes brief essays on the history of biblical interpretation, interpretation in different Christian traditions, and different aims in interpretation: "The Interpretation of the Bible before the Modern Period" (Carole C. Burnett); "Modern and Postmodern Critical Methods of Biblical Study" (John R. Donahue); "Theological and Ideological Strategies of Biblical Interpretation" (Stephen Fowl); "The Interpretation of the Bible in Protestant Churches" (Michael J. Gorman); "The Interpretation of the Bible in the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Churches" (Ronald D. Witherup); "The Interpretation of the Bible in African-American Churches" (C. Anthony Hunt); "The Bible and Spiritual Growth" (Patricia D. Fosarelli and Michael J. Gorman); "The Bible and Social Justice: 'Learn to Do Right! Seek Justice'" (John R. Donahue); "The Bible and Ecumenism: 'That They May All Be One'" (Janyce C. Jorgensen). The chapters by Burnett and Donahue on premodern, modern, and postmodern interpretation both provide surveys sufficient for the intended reader. Fowl stresses the importance of theologically-oriented interpretation; he offers possibilities for reading theologically but little concrete advice for integrating various (especially historical-critical) "ways of reading" with more theological approaches (p. 174). The three essays by Gorman, Witherup, and Hunt will help readers identify distinctive presuppositions and approaches of different traditions. The final three essays are somewhat uneven in approach. The essay by Fosarelli and Gorman considers ways that texts may be read devotionally, and Jorgensen's essay focuses on how ecumenical dialogues have approached differing values in interpretation, examining one bilateral dialogue as a case study. Donahue's essay on social justice, on the other hand, provides some basic biblical "resources for social justice" (p. 239) but does not consider how a justice-oriented "way of reading" would approach the biblical texts. One could also have hoped for these essays to offer more help as to how beginning interpreters of the Bible might attend to issues of their own contexts in aiming at integrated readings of biblical texts.

Overall, however, this book will be an excellent resource for introductory courses in biblical exegesis, especially because it assumes little by way of background knowledge and explains much in a straightforward and direct style. These features will also make it a fine introduction, for the interested layperson, to the biblical writings and their interpretation.

Daniel A. Smith

Huron University College

London, Ontario, Canada N6G 1 H3