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Holy Resilience: The Bible's Traumatic Origins

Online ISBN:
9780300210248
Print ISBN:
9780300204568
Publisher:
Yale University Press
Book

Holy Resilience: The Bible's Traumatic Origins

David M. Carr
David M. Carr
Union Theological Seminary
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Published online:
21 May 2015
Published in print:
25 November 2014
Online ISBN:
9780300210248
Print ISBN:
9780300204568
Publisher:
Yale University Press

Abstract

This book suggests that human trauma gave birth to the Bible. The Bible's ability to speak to suffering is a major reason why the sacred texts of Judaism and Christianity have retained their relevance for thousands of years. In a reinterpretation of the Bible's origins, the book tells the story of how the Jewish people and Christian community had to adapt to survive multiple catastrophes and how their holy scriptures both reflected and reinforced each religion's resilient nature. The book's analysis demonstrates how many of the central tenets of biblical religion, including monotheism and the idea of suffering as God's retribution, are factors that provided Judaism and Christianity with the strength and flexibility to endure in the face of disaster. In addition, the book explains how the Jewish Bible was deeply shaped by the Jewish exile in Babylon, an event that it rarely describes, and how the Christian Bible was likewise shaped by the unspeakable shame of having a crucified savior.

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