A pertinent exploration of the spectrum of human responses in a variety of different religions and cultures to the current SARS2-COVID-19 pandemic and similar crises in the past. Comprised of a team of international contributors, this volume is globally representative. Dynamic and multidisciplinary in its inquiry, this volume is an outstanding resource for scholars of Anthropology, Religion, Social Sciences, Ritual Theory, Sex and Gender Studies, and contemporary Medical Sciences.

This book examines an undertheorized topic in the study of religion and sacred texts: the figure of the neighbor. By analyzing and comparing this figure in Jewish, Christian and Islamic texts and receptions, the chapters explore a conceptual shift from "Children of Abraham" to "Ambiguous Neighbors." Through a variety of case studies using diverse methods and material, chapters explore the neighbor in these neighboring texts and traditions. The figure of the neighbor seems like an innocent topic at the surface. It is an everyday phenomenon, that everyone have knowledge about and experiences with. Still, analytically, it has a rich and innovative potential. Recent interdisciplinary research employs this figure to address issues of cultural diversity, gender, migration, ethnic relationships, war and peace, environmental challenges and urbanization. The neighbor represents the borderline between insider and outsider, friend and enemy, us and them. This ambiguous status makes the neighbor particularly interesting as an entry point into issues of cultural complexity, self-definition and identity. This volume brings all the intersections of religion, ethnicity, gender, and socio-cultural diversity into the same neighborhood, paying attention to sacred texts, receptions and contemporary communities. The Ambiguous Figure of the Neighbor in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Texts and Receptions offers a fascinating study of the intersections between Jewish, Christian and Islamic text, and will be of interest to anyone working on these traditions.

The Slave Metaphor and Gendered Enslavement in Early Christian Discourse adds new knowledge to the ongoing discussion of slavery in early Christian discourse. Kartzow argues that the complex tension between metaphor and social reality in early Christian discourse is undertheorized. A metaphor can be so much more than an innocent thought figure; it involves bodies, relationships, life stories, and memory in complex ways. The slavery metaphor is troubling since it makes theology of a social institution that is profoundly troubling. This study rethinks the potential meaning of the slavery metaphor in early Christian discourse by use of a variety of texts, read with a whole set of theoretical tools taken from metaphor theory and intersectional gender studies, in particular. It also takes seriously the contemporary context of modern slavery, where slavery has re-appeared as a term to name trafficking, gendered violence, and inhuman power systems.

This stimulating collection of essays by prominent scholars honours Turid Karlsen Seim. Bodies, Borders, Believers brings together biblical scholars, ecumenical theologians, archaeologists, classicists, art historians, and church historians, working side by side to probe the past and its receptions in the present. The contributions relate in one way or another to Seim's broad research interests, covering such themes as gender analysis, bodily practices, and ecumenical dialogue. The editors have brought together an international group of scholars, and among the contributors many scholarly traditions, theoretical orientations, and methodological approaches are represented, making this book an interdisciplinary and border-crossing endeavour. A comprehensive bibliography of Seim's work is included.

The Slave Metaphor and Gendered Enslavement in Early Christian Discourse adds new knowledge to the ongoing discussion of slavery in early Christian discourse. Kartzow argues that the complex tension between metaphor and social reality in early Christian discourse is undertheorized. A metaphor can be so much more than an innocent thought figure; it involves bodies, relationships, life stories, and memory in complex ways. The slavery metaphor is troubling since it makes theology of a social institution that is profoundly troubling. This study rethinks the potential meaning of the slavery metaphor in early Christian discourse by use of a variety of texts, read with a whole set of theoretical tools taken from metaphor theory and intersectional gender studies, in particular. It also takes seriously the contemporary context of modern slavery, where slavery has re-appeared as a term to name trafficking, gendered violence, and inhuman power systems.

The series Studies of the Bible and Its Reception (SBR) publishes monographs and collected volumes which explore the reception history of the Bible in a wide variety of academic and cultural contexts. Closely linked to the multi-volume project Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception (EBR), this book series is a publication platform for works which cover the broad field of reception history of the Bible in various religious traditions, historical periods, and cultural fields. Volumes in this series aim to present the material of reception processes or to develop methodological discussions in more detail, enabling authors and readers to more deeply engage and understand the dynamics of biblical reception in a wide variety of academic fields. Further information on "The Bible and Its Reception".

Synopsis: In this book Marianne Bjelland Kartzow suggests that ideas taken from recent discussions of multiple identities and intersectionality, combined with insights from memory theory, can renew our engagement with biblical texts. Some marginal early Christian passages, and what the scholarly community has reconstructed of their historical contexts, are encountered, looking for alternative ways these texts can produce meaning. A fresh look at some marginal biblical figures--such as male and female slaves who are beaten by a fellow slave, the queer figure of the Ethiopian eunuch, foreign Egyptian women, rebellious widows, or a possessed fortune-telling slave girl--can help biblical users to talk in more critical and creative ways about responsibility, identity, injustice, violence, inclusion/exclusion, and the intersections of gender, sexuality, race, and class. These perspectives may be relevant for those who see the New Testament as Christian canon or as cultural canon, or as both. Endorsements: "Kartzow has a rare gift for writing highly accessible but theoretically sophisticated prose. Drawing upon memory theory and concepts of intersectionality, Kartzow pays special attention to the marginalized figures in ancient texts, including the neglected female slave . . . This study greatly advances our understanding of the construction of early Christian identities and will be welcomed by scholars, students, and general readers alike." --Margaret Y. MacDonald, St. Francis Xavier University "Combining an intriguing, multifaceted methodological approach with an urge to make visible those outside our spheres of moral concern, Kartzow convincingly demonstrates her renown as a talented, innovative, and committed biblical scholar." --Christina Petterson, Australian National University "A deliberate attempt to remember the struggling survivors and hybrid personalities found in the early Christian archives, Destabilizing the Margins shows 'that ideas taken from recent discussions of multiple identities and intersectionality, combined with insights from memory theory, can renew our engagement' with Christian traditions, as well as challenge contemporary simplifications of life worlds, raising hope for the future." --Pieter Botha, University of South Africa Author Biography: Marianne Bjelland Kartzow is Senior Research Fellow within the project Jesus in Cultural Complexity at the University of Oslo, supported by the Research Council of Norway. She is the author of Gossip and Gender: Othering of Speech in the Pastoral Epistles (2009).

This book suggests that gossip can be used as an interpretive key to understand more of early Christian identity and theology. Insights from the multi disciplinary field of gossip studies help to interpret what role gossip plays, especially in relation to how power and authority are distributed and promoted. A presentation of various texts in Greek, Hebrew and Latin shows that the relation between gossip and gender is complex: to gossip was typical for all women and risky for elite men who constantly had to defend their masculinity. Frequently the Pastoral Epistles connect gossip to false teaching, as an expression of deviance. On several occasions it is argued that various categories of women have to avoid gossip to be entrusted duties or responsibilities. "Old wives' tales" are associated with heresy, contrasted to godliness in which one had to train one self. Other passages clearly suggest that the false teaching resembles feminine gossip by use of metaphorical language: profane words will spread fast and uncontrolled like cancer; what the false teachers say is tickling in the ear, and their mouth must be stopped or silenced. The Pastoral Epistles employ terms drawn from the stereotype of gossip as rhetorical devices in order to undermine the masculinity and hence the authority, of the opponents.

The less-discussed character in the Bible is the woman: two talking animals therein have sometimes received more page space. This volume shines the light of close scrutiny in the less-trodden direction and focuses on biblical and allied women, or on the feminine side of Creation. Biblical women are compared to mythical characters from the wider Middle East or from contemporary literature, and feminist/womanist perspectives are discussed alongside traditional and theological perspectives.