Reading the Bible from the edges

Maybe you can listen to the voice of someone at the edges and read the Bible with them, through their eyes.

When I visited Palestine in 1998 I visited a centre for Palestinian liberation theology. I bought a book on the Bible and colonialism. I discovered that for Palestinians the story of the Exodus doesn’t resonate in the same way that it does for other liberation theologies. It’s obvious now but it wasn’t to me then. They identify with those in the story who dwell in the land and get driven out, the Canaanites. 

When I landed at CMS a few years later, hungry to learn about global theologies and mission, one of the first books my then boss Paul Thaxter gave me was called Voices From The Margins, a collection of essays. The one I remember the most is by Robert Warrior, a First Nations member of the Osage tribe (which you will know about if you have seen Killers of the Flower Moon). The chapter was called Canaanites, Cowboys and Indians. In it he says this:

“The obvious characters in the story for Native Americans to identify with are the Canaanites, the people who already lived in the promised land. As a member of the Osage Nation of American Indians who stands in solidarity with other tribal people around the world, I read the Exodus stories with Canaanite eyes. And, it is the Canaanite side of the story that has been overlooked by those seeking to articulate theologies of liberation. Especially ignored are those parts of the story that describe Yahweh’s command to mercilessly annihilate the indigenous population.”

In CMS I found there was actually a gold mine of this sort of stuff if you were prepared to do some digging.

Rewinding a bit further back, while I was at university I joined a group called Men, Women and God. In that group we read passages of the Bible that seemed on the surface to present traditional views of the roles of women and men. We were helpfully steered through them by those who had explored the texts, theologies, culture and so on. They were reading ‘with women’s eyes’ and that opened up a whole new vista of partnership, freedom and liberation for women (and men). That group was such a relief, so helpful!

Reading the Bible from the edges, through other people’s eyes, fit well with the so called shift to postmodern times which we were discussing back in the 90s (and which has not gone away). It was a shift away from one dominating (Western) story of modernity with its objective rational truth to something more akin to a meal where there is a conversation and those round the table have a number of takes, stories. The best thing you can do is to share your take with humility and listen well to others and you’ll likely discover some things you had not seen before, which will give you a bigger picture. Sadly, I fear the post-modern table was not all it was cracked up to be – or at least issues of domination do not seem to have gone away. 

If you grew up in a Eurocentric worldview or church you may have to get over some fear or worry because you probably unwittingly have learned that your take on the Bible is the right one and other people’s is dodgy! Interestingly it applies whether you are liberal or evangelical. I have come to think they may just be two different kinds of superiority that belonged to the modern era. You may even have learned to call your view ‘biblical’ or more latterly ‘orthodox’! That is simply a ruse. We have learned some odd things and can feel very defended about our ways of understanding and knowing. What makes this a bit more complex now is that you can get very Western ‘reads’ of the text in all sorts of places round the world, in some cases dogmatically so, which is a confusing legacy of empire. But again, dig a bit and you’ll find those who are doing the edge work. 

If you like the sound of this sort of approach to reading the Bible it’s more readily available than ever, though you’ve still got to do some digging. Here’s a few of the books I have been enjoying and/or challenged by recently. I have picked some that are on the Bible, not just contextual or intercultural theology more generally.

Bible Blindspots edited by Jione Havea, and Monica Jyotsna Melanchthon has some great chapters looking at Bible texts. ‘Samaritans and Empire’ by Nestor Miguez is incredible – this sermon I preached last year was inspired by that. In a similar vein Jione’s chapter on ‘Egypt Reframed’ is also wonderful in the flip it gives you on Egypt in the narrative. It is so helpful to get a take from the perspective of those who are ‘enemies’ of the story teller. 

I have been very inspired by First Nations people and their worldview and spirituality and doing a lot of reading around that. On the Bible end, the First Nations Translation of the New Testament is amazing as way of reading the Bible. You get a flavour here of the gorgeous version of the beatitudes.

Unsettling the Word is a collection of Bible experiments in decolonisation written from Canada. It’s not all indigenous writers but nonetheless is also really good. The pieces are quite short so makes a good devotional book. ‘Destroy Everything’ by Derrick Jensen is a rewrite of Deuteronomy 7 and in the light of Gaza right now it could not be more pertinent. Another chapter by way of example is ‘Prayer of the Sent Away’, an extremely moving reflection by Ryan Dueck on Ezra and the ethnic cleansing that takes place.

Lastly the commentary Romans Disarmed by Sylvia Keesmaat and Brian Walsh is brilliant. I add it here because they definitely read Romans with the lens of Empire and First Nations people front and centre. It really is up there for me as one of the best and most creative commentaries I have ever read. And they have these wonderful targums, as theu did in Colossians Remixed, a sort of improvised rereading of particular passages. I hope to review all these over on my blog at some point. 

In Romans Disarmed, Keesmaat and Walsh discuss clobber texts. This is a way of saying that some people (for example women, LGBTQ+, black and brown people who have been enslaved, indigenous people whose land has been stolen) have had the Bible used over and against them. They have been clobbered by it. The example that springs to mind is a scene in the film 12 Years A Slave where the text ‘slaves obey your masters’ Is being read out by the slave master at a church service. 

Take Back The Word is a collection of essays that are a queer reading of the Bible. This is another edge to read the Bible from. It’s such an important edge right now to try and understand and feel the perspective of. They too discuss clobber texts. The thing that caught my attention the most in that book was the appeal in the introduction to those who have been clobbered by the Bible to find a way to make it their friend again. I thought that was a lovely exhortation, though how easy a journey that is I don’t know. My favourite chapter was ‘Reading The Bible From Low and Outside’ by Virginia Ramey Mollenkott.

If you prefer a podcast there is a series SheToo produced by Bible Society that looks at seven texts which include violence against women.

For pioneers the most important voice may well be to enable the Bible to be read from the edge where you are pioneering – maybe with spiritual seekers, young people, a working class estate. I wonder what that will look like. But actually I have found that reading the Bible from all manner of edges enriches it for me whatever context I am in and whatever context I am pioneering in.

In Deconstructing Whiteness, Empire and Mission, Anthony Reddie suggests that the tactics of reflexivity, decentring whiteness and finding new voices for the norm might be a start to decolonise the curriculum of theological education. I couldn’t agree more and I so appreciate his voice. Those three tactics are also good for reading the Bible. I have read the Bible most days of my life I think and still do. It never ceases to puzzle me, intrigue me, undo me. And I love it when someone opens up a new angle or possibility that deepens my appreciation or threatens my world. Maybe you can find the voice of someone at the edges and read the Bible from the edges with them, through their eyes. 

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