Wisdom's Feast: An Invitation to Feminist Interpretation of the Scriptures

by Barbara E. Reid

Publisher:

Eerdmans

, 2016

Overview

Woman Wisdom in Proverbs 9 invites any who want to learn her ways to come and eat at her table—an image for the rich and satisfying teaching that she offers. In this book Barbara Reid invites readers to this feast, drawing on women’s wisdom to offer fresh new interpretations of biblical texts in a way that promotes equal dignity and value for women and men alike.

Reid begins by presenting feminist methods of biblical interpretation and explaining why they are important, giving attention not only to gender perspectives but also to race, class, and culture as determinative factors in how one understands the biblical text. She then presents fresh, readable feminist interpretations of selected Old and New Testament texts. Each chapter concludes with discussion questions for group or personal use.

Making feminist interpretation of Scripture understandable, compelling, and usable, Wisdom’s Feast will be valuable to any readers hungry to learn from the rich insights of feminist biblical scholars.

In the Logos edition, this volume is enhanced by amazing functionality. Important terms link to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and a wealth of other resources in your digital library. Perform powerful searches to find exactly what you’re looking for. Take the discussion with you using tablet and mobile apps. With Logos Bible Software, the most efficient and comprehensive research tools are in one place, so you get the most out of your study.

Key Features

• Provides interpretations of the text that promote equal dignity and value for women and men
• Outlines how to interpret the Bible from a feminist liberationist perspective
• Includes questions at the end of each chapter for personal or group use

Contents

• Acknowledgments
• Abbreviations
• Introduction
• Creation of the World and of Humankind
• The Entry of Sin into the World and Its Aftermath
• Parables of Female Godliness
• Mary: Prophet of a New Creation
• Women Healed and Healing
• Deacon Phoebe and Other Women Ministers
• Mary Magdalene, Junia, and Other Apostles
• Pitting Mary Against Martha: Conflicts over Women’s Roles
• From Death to New Life
• Conclusion
• Bibliography

Praise for the Print Edition

Attentive to issues of gender, race, ability, and class, aware of the earth and all who inhabit it, historically informed and pastorally relevant, Barbara Reid’s volume provides readers—especially those who have been hurt by uninformed interpretations that seek to limit the divine word and that offer cold judgment rather than warm compassion—with essential sustenance.

—Amy-Jill Levine, Vanderbilt University

This is the best available user-friendly guide for reading the Bible from a feminist perspective—helpful for study groups, individuals, or anyone seriously interested in reading the Bible inclusively. From creation stories to Gospel women to images of new life, there is clear and reliable interpretation here.

—Carolyn Osiek, RSCJ, Brite Divinity School

A feast indeed! A sumptuous sampling of feminist exegetical insights served up with simple elegance by a consummate scholar. I know of no wiser guide through the challenges and delights of feminist biblical criticism than Barbara Reid. This book is as fine an introduction to the topic as anyone could hope to find. Wherever you might be on the feminist journey, but especially if you’re just starting out (come on, men, let’s go!), you need to read, savor, and digest this stimulating work.

—F. Scott Spencer, author of Salty Wives, Spirited Mothers, and Savvy Widows: Capable Women of Purpose and Persistence in Luke’s Gospel

Product Details

• Title: Wisdom’s Feast: An Invitation to Feminist Interpretation of the Scriptures
• Author: Barbara E. Reid
• Publisher: Eerdmans
• Print Publication Date: 2016
• Logos Release Date: 2019
• Pages: 164
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Bible › Feminist criticism; Bible and feminism
• ISBNs: 9780802873514, 0802873510
• Resource ID: LLS:WSDMSFSTSCRPTRS
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-30T04:29:18Z

About Barbara E. Reid

Barbara E. Reid, O.P. is a Dominican Sister of Grand Rapids, Michigan. She holds a Masters from Aquinas College in Religious Studies and a Ph.D. in Biblical Studies from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. She is the author of Taking Up the Cross: New Testament Interpretations Through Latina and Feminist Eyes (Fortress Press, 2007), The Gospel According to Matthew. New Collegeville Bible Commentary Series (Liturgical Press, 2005), Parables for Preachers (3 volumes; Liturgical Press, 1999, 2000, 2001), Las Parábolas: Predicándolas y Viviéndolas (Liturgical Press, 2008, 2009), Choosing the Better Part, Women in the Gospel of Luke (Liturgical Press, 1996), A Retreat With St. Luke (St. Anthony Messenger Press, 2000), and many journal articles. Currently she is writing Sophia’s Table: An Introduction to Feminist Interpretation of the Scriptures (forthcoming from Eerdman’s Press) and is General Editor for a new 60-volume feminist commentary on the Bible (forthcoming from Liturgical Press). She writes the weekly column on The Word for America magazine.