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Jun 16
2009
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The Bible Goes to the Book ClubPosted by: Julia in novels , Bible studies , Bible as literature  |
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Even as booksellers and English teachers lament that Americans don't read, the phenomenon of the book club just keeps getting bigger. Every month, book clubs gather in small town libraries, in independent book shops, and at almost every Barnes and Noble in the nation. Oprah makes and breaks careers by picking her book club insiders. The websites of major publishers pitch their wares to the book club crowd, sometimes targeting African American readers or evangelical Christians. A simple internet query for "book clubs" returns page after page of discussion questions (general and tailored to particular books) and guidelines for how to start a live or virtual book club of one's own. Apparently there are a lot of people for whom reading and talking about reading matter.
Fiction with religious and biblical themes has fared well in book club circles. Dan Brown's The DaVinci Code and Bruce Feiler's Abraham: A Journey into Three Faiths are good examples. Anita Diamont's The Red Tent sold over 200,000 copies, and two study guides (Inside the Red Tent by Sandra Hack Polaski and Anita Diamant's The Red Tent: A Reader's Guide by Ann Finding) have made the book even more accessible to discussion groups. Wm. Paul Young's The Shack is the current darling of the book club.
But few secular book clubs would never consider reading the Bible itself. It's too ... well.... religious. Too simple. Too boring. I've heard the same complaints from members of adult religious groups: they'd rather read The DaVinci Code than the gospels, The Red Tent rather than the patriarchal narratives. What they don't say directly but clearly imply is that the Bible isn't sophisticated enough for grown-ups.
My project, The Bible for Book Clubs, helps the Bible itself appeal to the book club crowd--people who like to read and talk about reading, whether or not they consider themselves religious.
While it does not demean or even challenge "churchy" readings of Scripture, it allows people who are disaffected with traditional religion and its institutions a way to enter the world of this classic and complex text. It treats the Bible as nuanced reading that cannot be reduced to instructions or even to religion as traditionally understood. My hope is to reach a market that I believe is largely unserved: people who would be interested in or at least willing to learn something about the Bible if they were invited to question and discuss what they read, to bring in their own experiences rather than defer to experts, and to adopt a posture toward the Bible other than simple assent or dissent.
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written by Julia M. O'Brien, June 18, 2009
This is good food for thought, especially the challenges of reading ancient literature. I am interested in the influence of these books on western culture, biblical literacy, etc., but I also resist it somewhat. So the Bible is only good reading because it's been read in the past and continues to influence us--a legacy? I want to ask, What about it is worth reading on its own? How is it valuable apart from its role as the background? Can we shift it from background to foreground?
Julia
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written by dan, June 18, 2009
With a crowd like that, there's probably a need for a book that adjusts the NRSV language and fills in the cultural gaps . . . like Walt Wangerin's stuff or what Lloyd C. Douglas used to do . These works might be a portal (like the Shack has been) for people to go to the Source itself.
I guess what I'm thinking is that the Bible won't make the Pop Literature jump as is. BUT people will probably form relationships in a Book Club studying popularized Bible stories that could lead to Adult Biblical Conversation Groups . . . with intention.
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written by Julia M. O'Brien, June 19, 2009
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written by dan, June 20, 2009
I think that for people to read the Bible as (ancient) literature they must be ready and willing to be 'translators.' They have to take seriously the categories, mindsets and thought-forms of the various ancient peoples that wrote it. Let's face it, scholars can't agree on those things. This can be more than the average Book Club person is willing to carry. And like it or not, will require 'religious education.'
That is why I believe that for the populace to enjoy the Bible they need it 'translated' or 'contextualized' for them by people who understand the various ancient categories, but also take seriously the thought-forms, mindsets and categories of contemporary culture. That's heavy work.
This doesn't mean that the Bible has no place for the 'uninformed,' contemporary person. There are reading methods like 'lectio divina,' general devotional reading or even bible study (with all the study tools available to modern folks). None of these treat the Bible as literature, though.
You're definitely on to something here. Beth Moore somehow got church people (predominantly the Book Club audience) reading and discussing the Bible. There must be a way to get Mainline church and secular folks doing the same.
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One problem - how to deal with the differing reading tastes that are at the foundation of experiencing a text? Books like The Shack and Davinci Code have one big thing going for them - they are written for popular taste. Though The Shack isn't written terribly well (my opinion)...it does seem to use devices that appeal to mainstream readers. Very different than some of the ancient literature (or most of it). It requires the book club to be interested in doing more difficult "mental enjoyment" than simply slipping into the familiar styles of people like Stephen King.
Perhaps one energizing angle is the opportunity to see the foundation for so much of our language and idioms. Not just "the writing on the wall" but the things that are imperceptibly woven into our communication and stories. That was one of my favorite experiences in OT classes.