Opening Some Doors

I like to think of this Substack, discussing as it does recent books, as opening some doors, inviting others in to join us at the table, providing opportunities to hear what others have to say, and listening to our own responses as we encounter voices we may not have known.

Photo by TienDat Nguyen on Unsplash

Monday: Trauma, being traumatized. What is trauma? Laura Anderson’s new book, When Religion Hurts You, invites us to hear a trained expert on what trauma is and how practitioners of religion can harm us.

Tuesday: Good works. This time what Paul means when some think he’s saying good works are bad news for the Christian faith.

Wednesday: What was life like for women in the 1st Century? For Jewish women, Greek women, Roman women. Holly Carey gives what has to be one of the most up-to-date, succinct summaries of the latest understandings of women.

Thursday: hang on. In a new academic monograph by Alexiana Fry, called Trauma Talks in the Hebrew Bible, the author introduces us to trauma theory and speech act theory, and how their combination yields thick understandings of reading the Bible’s texts of trauma. Not for the beginning Bible student; but insights for all of us.

Friday: as always, we expect to hear again from our friend, Mike Glenn.