
The Unchained Bible
Cultural Appropriations of Biblical Texts
Hugh S. Pyper(Author)
T.& T.Clark Ltd (Publisher)
Published on 13. February 2014
Book
Paperback/Softback
176 pages
978-0-567-65254-6 (ISBN)
Description
This volume explores a number of instances of unexpected but influential readings of the Bible in popular culture, literature, film, music and politics. The argument in all of them is that the effects of the Bible continues to have an effect on contemporary culture in ways that may surprise and sometimes dismay both religious and secular groups. That the Bible was at one time chained in churches is true. The subversive misreading of this enchainment as a symbol of a book in captivity to the established church is hard to suppress, however. Yet, once released from these chains, the Bible proves to be a text that gets everywhere and which undergoes surprising and sometimes contradictory metamorphoses. The pious advocates of making the Bible accessible who sought to free it from the churches' chains are the very people who then decry some of the results when the Bible is free to roam.
Reviews / Votes
Summarized. * New Testament Abstracts * Pyper's work should hold the interest of biblical scholars, theologians, sociologists of Christianity, those interested the reception of religious texts, and finally educated and motivated general readers. The Unchained Bible, like the Bible itself, fruitfully invites its readers to wonder, curiosity, and offense before its many penetrating insights, strange vistas, and unexpected connections. For putting together such a work, Pyper and T&T Clark are to be commended. -- Joseph K. Gordon, Marquette University * Reviews in Religion and Theology * This collection of essays offers a wide range of unexpected readings of the Bible in popular culture, literature, film, music, and politics ... Hugh Pyper's point throughout the present volume is that the Bible's effects may surprise and sometimes dismay both religious and secular groups when it is 'free to roam', unchained from the constraints of the Church. Infused with his characteristic wry humour, Pyper's book seeks to provide a conscious engagement with these effects ... Through his varied examples of 'odd intersections between the Bible and popular culture' Pyper effectively demonstrates how attention to the cultural appropriation of the Bible can often aid understanding of the text. -- Christine E. Joynes, Trinity College, Oxford, UK * Journal of Theological Studies (Vol. 64.2) *More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Edinburgh
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
Thickness: 11 mm
Weight
313 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-567-65254-6 (9780567652546)
DOI
CBID183314
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
12/2012
1st Edition
T.& T.Clark Ltd
€32.99
Available for download
Person
Hugh S. Pyper is Professor of Biblical Studies at the University of Sheffield, UK.
Content
Introduction
Section 1. Making Sense
The Beginnings of the Bible
Biblical Nonsense
Section 2. Biblical Politics
Religion Despite the Bible
The Bible in the Metropolis
Section 3. The Bible as Guidebook
Biblical Tourism: Portuguese Novelists and the Life of Christ
The Book of Dave versus the Bible
Section 4. Music, Nationalism and the Bible
Jonah in Estonia, Joseph in Latvia: The Bible and National Identity in the New Baltic Republics
Musical Analysis and Biblical Interpretation: Brucknerian Transpositions
Section 5. The Sporting Bible
Wrestling the Bible
The NASCAR Bible
Section 6. The Evolution of the Bible
When Jesus was (nearly) Scottish: Judaism and its Alternatives in Biblical Interpretation
Dispelling Delusions: Dawkins, Dennett and Biblical Studies
Conclusion
Section 1. Making Sense
The Beginnings of the Bible
Biblical Nonsense
Section 2. Biblical Politics
Religion Despite the Bible
The Bible in the Metropolis
Section 3. The Bible as Guidebook
Biblical Tourism: Portuguese Novelists and the Life of Christ
The Book of Dave versus the Bible
Section 4. Music, Nationalism and the Bible
Jonah in Estonia, Joseph in Latvia: The Bible and National Identity in the New Baltic Republics
Musical Analysis and Biblical Interpretation: Brucknerian Transpositions
Section 5. The Sporting Bible
Wrestling the Bible
The NASCAR Bible
Section 6. The Evolution of the Bible
When Jesus was (nearly) Scottish: Judaism and its Alternatives in Biblical Interpretation
Dispelling Delusions: Dawkins, Dennett and Biblical Studies
Conclusion