Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry & Writings
edited by Tremper Longman III and Peter Enns
InterVarsity, Downers Grove, Ill., 2008. 1,000 pp. $60.00 (cloth). ISBN 978-0-8308-1783-2.
This third OT volume in a comprehensive series offers nearly 150 articles covering all the important aspects of Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Psalms, Song of Songs, Lamentations, Ruth, and Esther. Coverage of each book includes an introduction to the book as well as separate articles on its ancient Near Eastern background and the history of its interpretation. Additional articles explore the literary dimensions of Hebrew poetry and prose. The book canvasses a wide range of interpretive approaches.
Searching for Meaning: An Introduction to Interpreting the New Testament
by Paula Gooder
Westminster John Knox, Louisville, 2009. 230 pp. $24.95. ISBN 978-0-664-23194-1.
This is a remarkably thorough introduction to the dizzying array of methodological approaches to interpretation of the NT. The book considers twenty-three methods (traditional and contemporary). Discussion of each begins with a brief answer to the question, “What is this criticism?” A specialist in the field then responds with a brief overview to the question, “How did the theory develop and what are its main features?” Gooder provides an annotated bibliography of landmark publications in the area, a practical demonstration of what this method of interpretation might look like when applied to a biblical text, and a summary evaluation.
The Lord's Supper: Five Views
edited by Gordon T. Smith
InterVarsity, Downers Grove, Ill., 2008. 180 pp. $18.00. ISBN 978-0-8308-2884-5.
Representatives from five theological traditions speak about the meaning of the Lord’s Supper within that tradition and respond to each other, highlighting significant areas of agreement and disagreement. The traditions and contributors include Roman Catholic (Brother Jeffrey Gross), Lutheran (John R. Stephenson), Reformed (Leanne Van Dyk), Baptist (Roger E. Olson), and Pentecostal (Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen).
Anatomies of Narrative Criticism: The Past, Present, and Futures of the Fourth Gospel as Literature
edited by Tom Thatcher and Stephen D . Moore
Society of Biblical Literature, Atlanta, 2008. 304 pp. $35.95. ISBN 978-1-58983-370-8.
Reflecting on the twenty-fifth anniversary of Alan Culpepper’s milestone volume, Anatomy of the Fourth Gospel (1983), this collection explores current trends in the study of the Gospel of John as literature. The book includes an introduction to narrative-critical studies of John; essays on specific themes and passages that focus on interpretation of the text, history of research, hermeneutical approaches, and future trends in research; and a reflective response from Alan Culpepper.
Incarnation: The Person and Life of Christ
by Thomas F. Torrance; edited by Robert T. Walter
InterVarsity, Downers Grove, Ill., 2008. 372 pp. $35.00 (cloth). ISBN 978-0-8308-2891-3.
This book on the incarnation is the first of two volumes based on Thomas Torrance’s lectures on Christology delivered to students of Christian dogmatics at New College, Edinburgh, from 1952 to 1978. Torrance presents a full, deeply biblical account of the classical and Reformed doctrines of the person of Jesus Christ and contends that his whole life is of saving significance. The forthcoming second volume will address the atonement.
Creation's Diversity: Voices from Theology and Science
edited by Willem B. Drees, Hubert Meisinger, and Taede A. Smedes
T & T Clark, London, 2008. 193 pp. $60.00. ISBN 978-0-567-03329-1.
Sixteen European authors consider theological and scientific aspects of creation’s diversity. Essays in the first part of the book, “A Diversity of Visions of Creation,” address various views of creation. The second part, “Sustaining Creation’s Diversity,” critically analyzes the concept of sustainability, given the dynamic character of natural reality as unveiled by the sciences. This is followed by reflections on ethical and theological considerations regarding the idea that we ought to sustain diversity.
Resist! Christian Dissent for the 21st Century
edited by Michael G. Long
Orbis, Maryknoll, N.Y., 2008. 180 pp. $18.00. ISBN 978-1-57075-800-3.
This volume aims to help ordinary Christians in the United States reflect on the importance of developing and practicing an ethic of resistance for the twenty-first century. Twenty contributors (ethicists, theologians, university chaplains, peace activists, and environmentalists among them) provide theological and practical encouragement to leave behind a life of complicity and take up a Christianity that resists any politics, economics, or religion that serves the powerful rather than those on society’s margins or the welfare of the earth.
The Word Leaps the Gap: Essays on Scripture and Theology in Honor of Richard B. Hays
edited by J. Ross Wagner, C. Kavin Rowe, and A. Katherine Grieb
Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, 2008. 732 pp. $70.00 (cloth). ISBN 978-0-8028-6356-0.
Thirty-three distinguished colleagues and friends honor the generative scholarship of Richard B. Hays, Professor of New Testament at Duke Divinity School. Some essays deal with his work directly, challenging his views or expanding on his thought. Others take their cue from his wide-ranging interests in biblical studies, theology, and interpretation. Contributors include James D. G. Dunn, Beverly Roberts Gaventa, Stanley Hauerwas, Luke Timothy Johnson, Leander Keck, E. P. Sanders, Francis Watson, and N. T. Wright.
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