Life in ancient times was a struggle for survival, many times removed from the relaxed, comfortable existence most of us enjoy today. For women especially, simply living often meant enduring a harsh society that viewed women as voiceless entities more like property than persons. Still, faith blossomed and thrived. Explore the bold, yet inspirational lives of Old Testament women such as Hannah, Hagar, Abigail, and others.

This Leader's Guide is for the fourth 6-week video study in the Sisters Bible Study series.

Each study group member will need to purchase a participant s workbook separately.

The format of each study session is: -A session introduction by the series host with a 7-8 minute presentation of the session material to the group by the study presenter, a small group discussion (i.e., 4-6 women) facilitated by the study presenter after viewing the video, and the remaining 60-90 minutes spent discussing the session material.

For more information about Sisters, go to www.sisters.cokesbury.com."

Women have been thoughtful readers and interpreters of scripture throughout the ages, yet the standard history of biblical interpretation includes few women's voices. To introduce readers to this untapped source for the history of biblical interpretation, this volume analyzes forgotten works from the nineteenth century written by women-including Christina Rossetti, Florence Nightingale, and Harriet Beecher Stowe, among others-from various faith backgrounds, countries, and social classes engaging contemporary biblical scholarship. Due to their exclusion from the academy, women's interpretive writings addressed primarily a nonscholarly audience and were written in a variety of genres: novels and poetry, catechisms, manuals for Bible study, and commentaries on the books of the Bible. To recover these nineteenth-century women interpreters of the Bible, each essay in this volume locates a female author in her historical, ecclesiastical, and interpretive context, focusing on particular biblical passages to clarify an author's contributions as well as to explore how her reading of the text was shaped by her experience as a woman. The contributors are Amanda Benckhuysen, Elizabeth Davis, Christiana de Groot, Rebecca G. S. Idestrom, Donna Kerfoot, Bernon P. Lee, Marion Taylor, Heather Weir, and Lissa M. Wray Beal. Paperback edition is available from the Society of Biblical Literature (www.sbl-site.org)

Sharing many traditions and characteristics, the Gospel of Matthew, the letter of James, and the Didache invite comparative study. In this volume, internationally renowned scholars consider the three writings and the complex interrelationship between first-century Judaism and nascent Christianity. These texts likely reflect different aspects and emphases of a network of connected communities sharing basic theological assumptions and expressions.Of particular importance for the reconstruction of the religious and social milieu of these communities are issues such as the role of Jewish law, the development of community structures, the reception of the Jesus tradition, and conflict management. In addition to the Pauline and Johannine 'schools', "Matthew, James, and the Didache" may represent a third religious milieu within earliest Christianity that is especially characterized through its distinct connections to a particular ethical stream of contemporary Jewish tradition. Paperback edition of this title is available from the Society of Biblical Literature.

This volume offers a meeting between genre theory in biblical studies and the work of Mikhail Bakhtin, who continues to be immensely influential in literary criticism. Here Bakhtin comes face to face with a central area of biblical studies: the question of genre. The essays range from general discussions of genre through the reading of specific biblical texts to an engagement with Toni Morrison and the Bible. The contributors are John Anderson, Roland Boer, Martin J. Buss, Judy Fentress-Williams, Christopher Fuller, Barbara Green, Bula Maddison, Carleen Mandolfo, Christine Mitchell, Carol A. Newsom, David M. Valeta, and Michael Vines. Paperback edition is available from the Society of Biblical Literature (www.sbl-site.org)

Over the last two centuries, many scholars have considered the Gospel of John off-limits for all quests for the historical Jesus. That stance, however, creates a new set of problems that need to be addressed thoughtfully. The essays in this book, reflecting the ongoing deliberations of an international group of Johannine and Jesus scholars, critically assess two primary assumptions of the prevalent view: the dehistoricization of John and the de-Johannification of Jesus. The approaches taken here are diverse, including cognitive-critical developments of Johannine memory, distinctive characteristics of the Johannine witness, new historicism, Johannine-Synoptic relations, and fresh analyses of Johannine traditional development. In addition to offering state-of-the-art reviews of Johannine studies and Jesus studies, this volume draws together an emerging consensus that sees the Gospel of John as an autonomous tradition with its own perspective, in dialogue with other traditions. Through this challenging of critical and traditional assumptions alike, new approaches to John's age-old riddles emerge, and the ground is cleared for new and creative ways forward. The contributors are Paul Anderson; D. A. Carson; Colleen M. Conway; Paula Fredriksen; Felix Just, S.J.; Robert Kysar; Andrew Lincoln; John Painter; Sidney Palmer; Mark Allan Powell; D. Moody Smith; Tom Thatcher; Marianne Meye Thompson; Gilbert Van Belle; and Jack Verheyden. Paperback edition is available from the Society of Biblical Literature (www.sbl-site.org)

Pick up nearly any English Bible today, and you have already encountered Eugene A. Nida-his influence is that widespread. Nida's dynamic-equivalence approach to Bible translation helped to shape the Good News Bible, the Contemporary English Version, the New International Version, and the New Jerusalem Bible. In addition, Nida's longtime work with the American Bible Society and collaboration with the United Bible Societies spread his theories and methods around the world. Drawing on archival records and interviews with those who know Nida best, "Let the Words Be Written" examines and assesses the ongoing influence of this scholar of wide-ranging abilities and boundless energy. Bible translators, students and scholars of translation theory or cross-cultural studies, and general readers with an interest in the Bible will find this volume both accessible and enlightening. Paperback edition is available from the Society of Biblical Literature (www.sbl-site.org)

This volume offers a unique approach to the history of biblical interpretation, examining the historical, theological, and philosophical presuppositions of select interpreters in order to tease out the complexity of factors that shape one's engagement with biblical texts. Taking seriously the power of biblical texts to shape and address questions common to all humanity, these essays not only provide a window into how the biblical text was read at specific times and places and but also suggest fruitful ways to read it today. Contributions in both English and German focus on biblical interpretation in Hellenistic Judaism and early Christianity, nineteenth-century German philosophy, and contemporary biblical theology. The contributors are Harold Attridge, Wilhelm Grab, Stephan Gratzel, Garrett Green, Christine Helmer, Bernd Janowski, Maren Niehoff, Joachim Ringleben, Marvin Sweeney, and Karen Torjesen. Paperback edition is available from the Society of Biblical Literature (www.sbl-site.org)

The six biblical manuscripts that reside in the Freer Gallery of Art in Washington DC are historically significant artifacts for tracing the early history of the transmission of the writings that make up the New Testament and the Septuagint. The manuscripts, all purchased in Egypt at the beginning of the twentieth century by Charles Freer, date to the third through fifth centuries and include codices of the four Gospels, Deuteronomy and Joshua, the Psalms, and the Pauline Epistles, as well as a Coptic codex of the Psalms and a papyrus codex of the Minor Prophets, which, until the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, was the earliest Greek manuscript of the Minor Prophets known. The ten essays in this volume are a notable collection of fresh scholarship with long-term value for the study of what is a small but highly valuable treasure trove of biblical manuscripts. The contributors are Malcolm Choat, Kent D. Clarke, Kristin De Troyer, Timothy J. Finney, Dennis Haugh, Larry W. Hurtado, J. Bruce Prior, Jean-Francois Racine, James R. Royse, Ulrich Schmid, and Thomas A. Wayment. Paperback edition is available from the Society of Biblical Literature (www.sbl-site.org)

This leader's guide to Unfailing Love will assist you in your role as a Sisters small-group leader. It outlines the Sisters program, which is very simple: after an initial gathering meeting with a brief introductory video segment, the women in your group will read and reflect each day for the following six weeks. Once a week, you will come together for 60 90 minutes. You will view a video presentation by Rebecca Laird, followed by a Sisters group discussion that Rebecca leads. Then it is your turn to facilitate the discussion in your own Sisters group. Step-by-step instructions are here as well as questions and suggestions to help you and your group connect what you have seen, read, and reflected on during the previous week. You will be able to relax and participate fully as a member of your Sisters group.
For more information about Sisters, go to www.sisters.cokesbury.com."

This book overflows with ideas that will help teachers inspire kids in Kindergarten-fifth grade to learn and remember Bible stories. Sections 1 3 highlight stories from the Old Testament, Advent/Christmas, and Holy Week. Weekly programs include: . Storytelling ideas . Creative dramatics . Music suggestions . Action packed games . Innovative crafts . Puzzles . Worship tie-ins . Service projects . Bulletin Boards that the children help design . Key Scripture verse Each section closes with plans for a rousing, fun-filled "Sonsational" Sunday event for the whole church Weekly lessons are reinforced as children of all ages participate in activities and crafts related to the program themes. Section 4, All Year Long, includes a myriad of monthly activities that can be shared by small groups or the entire church family. . Movie nights . Treasure hunts . Seasonal and holiday events . Field trips These intergenerational activities are designed to bring people closer together and help them grow in their Christian faith. More Bible Time with Kids also includes a section of Bible Activities, Bible Story Art, and Bible Story Games that are designed to help the children remember the Bible stories and characters they have studied. More Bible Time with Kids can be used in Sunday school programs, Christian school settings, VBS programs, after school clubs, home schooling programs, and by anyone interested in helping children learn more about the Bible. "

Paperback edition is available from the Society of Biblical Literature (www.sbl-site.org)

Who are the mothers in the biblical text? What do they do? What kinds of power do they have? Issues of identity, authority, violence, gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, sexual exploitation and rape-marriage, murder, and relation to God have haunted the characters and representations of motherhood from Eve to Mary and beyond. For better or for worse, these images speak potent messages even today. To explore biblical mothers and their relationships with their daughters and sons, the contributors to this volume participate in a comparative analysis between biblical mothers and mothers in popular media, history, literature, and the arts. The diversity of methods they employ prompts a rich discussion on the deconstruction of motherhood, offering new ways of envisioning both biblical and contemporary motherhood.The contributors are Cheryl A. Kirk-Duggan and Tina Pippin, Madeline McClenney-Sadler, Wil Gafney, Brian Britt, Frank M. Yamada, Mignon R. Jacobs, Linda S. Schering, Mark Roncace and Deborah Whitehead, Andrew M. Mbuvi, Stephanie Buckhanon Crowder, Brenda Wallace, Margaret Aymer, Tat-siong Benny Liew, and Alison Jasper.

Volume 2 of "History of Biblical Interpretation" deals with the most extensive period under examination in this four-volume set. It begins in Asia Minor in the late fourth century with Bishop Theodore of Mopsuestia, the founder of a school of interpretation that sought to accentuate the literal meaning of the Bible and thereby stood out from the tradition of antiquity. It ends with another outsider, a thousand years later in England, who by the presuppositions of his thought stood at the end of an era: John Wyclif. In between these two interpreters, this volume presents the history of biblical interpretation from late antiquity until the end of the Middle Ages by examining the lives, works, and interpretive practices of Didymus the Blind, Jerome, Ambrose, Augustine, Gregory the Great, Isidore of Seville, the Venerable Bede, Alcuin, John Scotus Eriugena, Abelard, Rupert of Deutz, Hugo of St. Victor, Joachim of Fiore, Thomas Aquinas, Bonaventure, Rashi, Abraham ibn Ezra, and Nicolas of Lyra. Translation of: Reventlow, Henning Graf. Epochen der Bibelauslegung. Munchen, C. H. Beck.

This volume reexamines and reconstructs the relationship between the Deuteronomic History and the book of Chronicles, building on recent developments such as the Persian-period dating of the Deuteronomic History, the contribution of oral traditional studies to understanding the production of biblical texts, and the reassessment of the relationship of Standard Biblical Hebrew and Late Biblical Hebrew. These new perspectives challenge widely held understandings of the relationship between the two scribal works and strongly suggest that they were competing historiographies during the Persian period that nevertheless descended from a common source. This new reconstruction leads to new readings of the literature.

"Interpreting Exile" considers forced displacement and deportation in ancient Israel and comparable modern contexts in order to offer insight into the realities of war and exile in ancient Israel and their representations in the Hebrew Bible. Introductory essays describe the interdisciplinary and comparative approach and explain how it overcomes methodological dead ends and advances the study of war in ancient and modern contexts. Following essays, written by scholars from various disciplines, explore specific cases drawn from a wide variety of ancient and modern settings and consider archaeological, anthropological, physical, and psychological realities, as well as biblical, literary, artistic, and iconographic representations of displacement and exile. The volume as a whole places Israel s experiences and expressions of forced displacement into the broader context of similar war-related phenomena from multiple contexts. The contributors are Rainer Albertz, Frank Ritchel Ames, Samuel E. Balentine, Bob Becking, Aaron A. Burke, David M. Carr, Marian H. Feldman, David G. Garber Jr., M. Jan Holton, Michael M. Homan, Hugo Kamya, Brad E. Kelle, T. M. Lemos, Nghana Lewis, Oded Lipschits, Christl M. Maier, Amy Meverden, William Morrow, Shelly Rambo, Janet L. Rumfelt, Carolyn J. Sharp, Daniel L. Smith-Christopher, and Jacob L. Wright.

Priestly functionaries occupy a paramount position in the study of the Hebrew Bible. Despite more than a century of critical research, questions still abound regarding social location and definitions of the various priestly groups, the depictions of their origins, their ritual functions, the role of the laity and family religion, the relationship between prophecy and the priesthood, and the dating of texts. Making use of cross-disciplinary approaches, this volume provides a representative look at the state of current research into various aspects of priesthood in ancient Israel.