The Bible was written within collectivist cultures. When
Westerners, immersed in individualism, read the Bible, it's easy to
misinterpret important elements-or miss them altogether. In any
culture, the most important things usually go without being said.
So to read Scripture well we benefit when we uncover the unspoken
social structures and values of its world. We need to recalibrate
our vision. Combining the expertise of a biblical scholar and a
missionary practitioner, Misreading Scripture with Individualist
Eyes is an essential guidebook to the cultural background of the
Bible and how it should inform our reading. E. Randolph Richards
and Richard James explore deep social structures of the ancient
Mediterranean-kinship, patronage, and brokerage-along with their
key social tools-honor, shame, and boundaries-that the biblical
authors lived in and lie below the surface of each text. From
Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar to Peter's instructions to elders, the
authors strip away individualist assumptions and bring the world of
the biblical writers to life. Expanding on the popular Misreading
Scripture with Western Eyes, this book makes clear how
understanding collectivism will help us better understand the
Bible, which in turn will help us live more faithfully in an
increasingly globalized world.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
Always good to get better understanding of culture
Sat, 31 Oct 2020 | Review
by: Kelly H.
Rarely, when reviewing books, does where I live play a role. In reading “Misreading scripture with individualistic eyes” though, it feels important to note that South Africa has deep roots in collectivist culture. Authors E. Randolph Richards and Richard James set out to explain to readers from individualistic cultures the differences between the two and how that impacts the way we read the Bible, they comment:
“…to understand ancient Mediterranean (and most modern Eastern) collectivist cultures, you need to understand six basic ingredients: kinship, patronage, brokerage, honor, shame, and boundaries.”
However, I felt like neither fish nor fowl! I was raised as a first generation South African by British parents but in living over 30 years in South Africa, these six basic ingredients felt familiar and my interpretation of the examples given lined up on the collectivist side of things. I am a mix of the two, I can see both sides, but felt more comfortable with the collectivist than the individualist. Whichever side you find yourself on, better understanding how culture and context impact how we interpret stories is a good thing and as such, I enjoyed the book. My experience of collectivist culture meant I found having a concept explained three or four times over in different ways repetitive but, perhaps, for those less familiar with it, it will be helpful.
In Africa, there is a saying about the meaning “being in the air”, unstated and yet understood. It would be seem to be similar in Eastern culture as a large part of the book explains what ISN’T said in the Bible as it “…examines some unspoken foundational social structures and tools used in the biblical world.” The authors do this through expounding on Biblical stories, sharing modern examples and writing fictional stories to highlight their points. In doing so, they achieve their objective of highlighting how different the Biblical world view was in comparison to today’s Western culture.
If you haven’t experienced a collectivist culture, this book will open your eyes to a very different way of perceiving the world and change the way you see many of the familiar stories from the Bible. If you have, this may not be the one for you, it doesn’t dig deeply into particulars of the Biblical culture and admits to using generalisations to make the point. It’s a three out of five on the enJOYment scale.
Did you find this review helpful?
Yes (0) |
No (0)
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
