The Joy of Text: Reading the Bible with Liberating Lenses
Don’t we just pick up the Bible and read it? What are various ways of interpreting the text and why do these methods matter? With attention to texts of the Hebrew Bible, this class offers an introductory sampling of different approaches in biblical studies to discover how they shape not only our understanding of the Bible, but also our own self-perceptions.
Each day introduces an interpretative lens, using select texts as our vehicle of exploration. The first class looks at the story of Eve and Adam (Gensis 3) through a feminist lens. Day two uses African interpretation to view the story of Hagar and Sarah (Genesis 16, 21). The third class reads the character of Joseph (Genesis 37) with a focus on disability. The fourth day uses a queer lens to look at the first creation story (Gensis 1) as well as the eunuch in Jeremiah (Jeremiah 38). The final day of class focuses on a child-centered (or childist) approach to examine stories of two slave girls (1 Kings 14; Acts 16). The professor will present the lens and the text, using PowerPoint and frequently including film, art, poetry, or drama. Small group breakout rooms and ensuing class discussion will then provide opportunities to connect with the text and each other. We will practice asking deconstructive questions. Whose interests are served in a given text or interpretation, and at whose expense?
Work outside of class is light. Participants should come to class having read the Bible passage and, ideally, the assigned chapter from the book Eve Isn’t Evil. Students can either purchase this book or read pdfs of chapters, which will be emailed prior to the course. No previous knowledge of the Bible or interpretative approaches is needed—just an open mind and curiosity to discover how Scripture vibrantly and vitally connects to our lives today.
Julie Faith Parker is an Old Testament scholar who passionately believes that the ways we read the Bible matter. She holds a Ph.D. in Old Testament/Hebrew Bible from Yale University, awarded with distinction, and also has degrees from Yale Divinity School (S.T.M), Union Theological Seminary in NYC (M.Div.), and Hamilton College (B.A., Phi Beta Kappa). She is ordained in the United Methodist Church and worked full-time in ministry prior to doctoral studies, first as a congregational pastor then as a university chaplain. Her research interests focus on feminist biblical interpretation, childist biblical interpretation, and ancient Near Eastern languages and cultures. She has authored or edited eight books and many articles.
Julie Faith Parker lives in New York City, where she is a Visiting Scholar at Union Theological Seminary and the Biblical Scholar in Residence at Marble Collegiate Church. She has been on the faculty at General Theological Seminary in Manhattan and Trinity Lutheran Seminary in Columbus, Ohio, where she founded the Trinity Prison Project. She has also taught at Yale Divinity School, Colby College, Fordham University, Andover Newton Theological School, and New York Theological Seminary, with a program teaching students incarcerated in Sing Sing Maximum Security Prison. At General, she founded the General Prison Project, a letter-writing program between people who are incarcerated and seminarians.
She is married to the Rev. Dr. Bill Crawford and they are the proud parents of two grown children, Graham and Mari. She enjoys going to museums, singing, and running, and has run the New York City Marathon twice.
