The God of Abraham and exceptional states, or the early modern rise of the Whig/Liberal Bible

Sherwood, Y. (2008) The God of Abraham and exceptional states, or the early modern rise of the Whig/Liberal Bible. Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 76(2), pp. 312-343. (doi: 10.1093/jaarel/lfn008)

Abstract

This book charts the mutations of a particularly buoyant sliver of Bible text - the book of Jonah - as it latches onto Christian and Jewish motifs and anxieties, passes through highbrow and lowbrow culture, and finally becomes something of a scavenger among the ruins, as, in its most resourceful move to date, it begins to live off the demise of faith. Written at a point between Cultural Studies, Jewish Studies, Literature and Art, this book is concerned with those versions of the biblical that escape proper disciplinary boundaries: it shifts the focus from 'Mainstream' to 'Backwater' interpretation. It is less a navigation of interpretative history and more an interrogation of larger political/cultural issues: anti-Judaism in Biblical Studies, the secularisation of the Bible, and the projection of the Bible as credulous ingenu, naive Other to our savvy post-Enlightenment selves.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Sherwood, Prof Yvonne
• Authors: Sherwood, Y.
• Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BS The Bible
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Critical Studies > Theology and Religious Studies
• Journal Name: Journal of the American Academy of Religion
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• ISSN: 0002-7189
• ISSN (Online): 1477-4585
• Published Online: 18 April 2008