A cutting-edge introduction to how the Bible functions as a scripture, and how it came to be ritualized in this way. Understanding the Bible as A Scripture in History, Culture, and Religion is a unique introduction to the Bible, describing how Jews and Christians ritualize scripture by interpreting it, by expressing it in recitations, music, and art, and by venerating the physical scroll and book. Biblical studies tend to focus on questions of how and when the books of the Bible were composed, edited, and canonized as scripture. James W. Watts writes this introduction to the Bible from the perspectives of comparative scriptures and religious studies that include but go beyond such historical and literary issues. He organizes Parts 1 and 2 of the book around the Torah and Gospels, which have been the focus of Jewish and Christian ritualization of scriptures until modern times. Then one-volume printed bibles became common, which are the focus of the Part 3. He describes how the books of the Bible have been used in the centuries since they began to function as a scripture, and the origins of their ritualization in ancient Judaism and Christianity. The book: Analyzes the semantic contents of all of the Bible's books as persuasive rhetoric Gives equal space to the Bible's ritualization in the iconic and expressive dimensions as to its semantic interpretation Fully integrates the cultural history of the Bible with its influence on Jewish and Christian ritual, and in art, music, theatre, and film Concludes with the cultural influence of modern bibles and the controversies they have fueled about history, science, race, and gender Understanding the Bible as A Scripture in History, Culture, and Religion is a groundbreaking work that highlights new research data and organizes the material to focus attention on the Bible's function as a scripture.

Book Information
ISBN 9781119730378
Author James W. Watts
Format Paperback
Page Count 328
Imprint Wiley-Blackwell
Publisher John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Weight(grams) 170g