by: Caryn A. Reeder

• Format

  E-Book

  ISBN

  9781441236197

  Pub. Date

  Feb 2012

  SRP

  $29.00

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About

Endorsements

"Ancient and modern interpreters have struggled to understand and apply the passages in Deuteronomy that legislate violence against family members as judgment for covenant unfaithfulness. Reeder sorts through the Old Testament texts as well as the pertinent literatures of Hellenistic Judaism, Roman-period Jewish writers, the Tannaitic Rabbis, and the New Testament, offering meticulous analysis that helps modern readers understand the theological and cultural issues as well as the interpretive dilemmas. It is the rare scholar who can interact with these literatures so adeptly, but Reeder shows sophisticated insight at every turn. The Bible's call for constructive family violence is of great interest both in academia and the church, and Reeder's balanced treatment provides much-needed perspective to the discussion."

John H. Walton, professor of Old Testament, Wheaton College

"Caryn A. Reeder offers us an in-depth study of the laws of 'constructive family violence' in the book of Deuteronomy. She contributes to our interpretive lens by means of an ethnographically sensitive exegesis of these laws in Deuteronomy as well as a thorough review of their conceptualization in subsequent believing communities. Of particular interest is her application of the deuteronomic norms of family discipline to the family of God in the early church. Here is a very helpful resource for those engaged in the study of family law, the marking of social boundaries in Israel, and even church discipline."

Sandra L. Richter, professor of Old Testament, Wesley Biblical Seminary

"Caryn Reeder is unafraid. She is unafraid of a subject on which many fear to speak. She is unafraid of parts of the Bible that others either ignore or expunge. And she is unafraid of controversy, whether among the ancient rabbis or within today's church."

Jo Bailey Wells, associate professor of the practice of ministry and Bible, Duke Divinity School

"This book is an excellent study on three verses in Deuteronomy, but it is about so much more. Through its focus on these three verses that suggest family violence, this volume demonstrates what careful research and well-applied theory can reveal about the text, Deuteronomy, family, and society, and the impact interpretation, both ancient and modern, has on meaning."

Tammi J. Schneider, professor and dean, School of Religion, Claremont Graduate University

"Caryn Reeder's carefully reasoned and insightful study will help readers consider brothers and sisters in the believing community more important than themselves. In short, it will help them keep the Bible's two greatest commands."

Paul House, professor of divinity, Beeson Divinity School of Samford University

Reviews

"This very critical study will be a resource for those interested in ancient family structure and values."

Dianne Bergant, CSA,

The Bible Today

"[A] thoughtful, nuanced study. . . . Reeder's concept of constructive family violence enters the ongoing debate concerning the markers of Jewish identity. Here in Deuteronomy, as well as in allied texts, the key to identity is covenant fidelity, with kinship taking second place. Its influence reaches across the Bible. This study is strongly recommended for anyone wishing to understand the phenomenon of religiously motivated violence in the Bible, or elsewhere, for that matter."

Robert R. Beck,

Journal of Hebrew Scriptures

"A beautifully written and carefully researched study. This volume neither suggests all possible solutions to the troublesome issue of family violence nor provides ethical discussions regarding various settings, but it does provide a valuable contribution to the history of interpretation on three passages about family violence in Deuteronomy as well as the fervent striving of ancient Israelites to protect and preserve their Jewish identity. It is highly recommended for both scholars as well as anyone who has interest in the ethical dilemma of family violence."

Sung Jin Park,

Review of Biblical Literature

"This volume is a helpful resource in the study of family law, identity formation, and familial relationships within a community of faith. It is a good example of how an in-depth exegesis of the biblical text speaks to the cultural issues of society. In a world that centers on an individual, Reeder offers a fresh look at the importance of family and community in one's walk with God."

Larisa Levicheva,

Bulletin for Biblical Research

"This is a brave book. . . . The nature of the subject matter makes for interesting analysis, and Reeder is to be commended for her approach; the book has value not just for seeking to address these controversial texts, but also for engaging them via a hermeneutic of trust. The bibliography on the topic is comprehensive, and is useful not just for [constructive family violence] concerns, but also for secondary literature on second temple Judaism more generally. However, the primary value of the text is as an exercise in reception history, the way in which it demonstrates how texts get appropriated, interpreted, and re-interpreted over the course of time. Not everyone will agree with Reeder's conclusions, but in a brave book, that will invariably be the case."

David Allen,

Expository Times

"[Reeder's] sympathetic reading of these texts avoids the problems of various hermeneutical approaches such as feminist criticisms that read against the text. She also demonstrates a reading that reads Deuteronomy in its own cultural context, whose understandings of family and the community are considerably different than a modern Western one, and that leads to challenging our own individualistic values. Her discussion of the concept of constructive violence also opens avenues for positive understandings of this and other violent texts. . . . She also provides a helpful survey of diverse texts in addition to Deuteronomy that is helpful to pastors who want to gain a basic understanding and suggestive to scholars who want to pursue these areas of Deuteronomy, intertestamental literature, and OT ethics."

Ryan M. Tietz,

Trinity Journal

"Reeder's book raises topics which would clearly be demanding for college students while providing a useful analysis in taking up these ongoing fundamental questions around the nature and preservation of identity within a minority, or at least distinct, faith community."

Marc Tumeinski,

Catholic Books Review