Tamar’s Tears: Intro

By Tamie
25 January 2012 //
2

Arthur happened to be sitting next to me as I read the introduction to Tamar’s Tears. He was regularly interrupted from his own reading by my excited exclamations. Here are two notable quotables. Long-time readers of our blog will recognise my own sentiments here, though the authors are much more eloquent than I!

Sometimes [evangelicals] do find ourselves embattled, defending the truth… But not all the time; at times, a more irenic, a more conversational approach is appropriate. … Of course, many evangelicals and many feminist biblical scholars would see this interface [between evangelical and feminist approaches] as a skirmish zone in a key conflict over the nature and use of the Bible. We beg to differ, seeking a more excellent way, a friendlier path through this territory that might prove fruitful for both evangelical and feminist scholars.

What then are the key issues that feminist OT hermeneutics raises for evangelical interpreters? Here are some: is the text as a whole, or are particular texts, inherently oppressive? … How do we wrestle with the historical and cultural particularity of the text/s while maintaining that it is the word of a God of freedom and fidelity, a God of love and justice? What do we do with texts that seem to deny women the dignity we believe is rightly theirs – and which have been used in such ways?

Categories Bible, Book, Woman, Written by Tamie

This will be the toughest training yet

By Arthur
22 January 2012 //
2

Our six months of cross-cultural preparation with CMS Australia starts in February! The design is based on the UK poster of the original Rocky movie.

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Categories Design, Ministry & mission, Mission, Written by Arthur

Lindsay Brown on Global Evangelicalism: 3 aspects of growth

By Arthur
22 January 2012 //
0

We’ve just got back from Summer Encounter 2012, the CMS South Australia conference, at which Lindsay Brown was a keynote speaker. His roles have included the International General Secretary of IFES and International Director at the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization (Cape Town 2010).

Lindsay shared a series of snapshots of the state of world Christianity, including 3 aspects of growth: Read the rest of this entry »

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Categories Church, Mission, Written by Arthur

Tamar’s Tears

By Tamie
17 January 2012 //
3

This summer my reading list has been full of prepping for St Andrew’s Hall – books on cross-cultural servanthood, incarnational ministry, cultural intelligence, etc. They’ve been helpful but I must admit I’m thrilled to be almost through the list, because my copy of Tamar’s Tears: Evangelical Engagements with Feminist Old Testament Hermeneutics arrived today and I can’t wait to get stuck into it.

It’s difficult to describe my level of excitement about this book. It’s edited by an Australian for a start, and it features a number of “down under” voices alongside British and American authors. But just think about the title: Feminist Old Testament hermeneutics? Yes please!; From a generous evangelical perspective? Absolutely!

There’s nothing on Jephthah’s daughter in it (do I sense an opening? ;) ) but just about every chapter piques my interest. The final chapter asks, “Can our Hermeneutics be both Evangelical and Feminist? Insights from the Theory and Practice of Theological Interpretation.” Stay tuned folks! I feel a blog series coming on!

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Categories Book, Woman, Written by Tamie

30 movies in 30 days

By Arthur
15 January 2012 //
5

Here’s a bunch of movies I’ve seen during the 2011-12 Adelaide summer. I enjoy stories that fiddle with my horizons, whether or not they entirely succeed! That includes “war-horror” films… Read the rest of this entry »

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Categories Film, Written by Arthur

When your hero is not John Piper

By Tamie
7 January 2012 //
7

OK, so it’s a provocative heading. It’s based on the title of this article. I’ve got nothing against John Piper. I’d be hesitant to describe his preaching as a ‘monumental event’ but if Facebook promotion is anything to go by, he’s been helpful to stacks of people in our day and age. It’s a good call to encourage the average pew-sitter to respect, love, sit under and encourage their own pastor, which I think is Burchett’s main aim in the article.

From George Whitefield to Billy Graham, evangelicals have long adored a homeboy. Piper is the latest in that tradition. So any discussion about John Piper as a hero isn’t just about John Piper: it’s a broader question for all of us who identify as evangelicals. Read the rest of this entry »

Categories Church, Written by Tamie

Feminist Hermeneutics and Hebrews 11

By Tamie
4 January 2012 //
3

There’s been an interesting discussion about the story of Jephthah’s daughter over at Feminism and Religion. I enjoy the opportunity there for people from different places on the feminist spectrum to exchange ideas. I’ve found it particularly fruitful for helping me to understand different hermeneutics i.e. different ways of reading the Bible.

The discussion I was involved in centred around the question of what to do with Hebrews 11. Verse 32 briefly mentions Jephthah in this ‘roll call of faith’. How are we to read this in conjunction with his despicable actions in Judges 11? Read the rest of this entry »

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Categories Bible, Woman, Written by Tamie

Cross-cultural servanthood prayers

By Tamie
31 December 2011 //
0

As preparation for St Andrew’s Hall, where we will spend five months preparing with CMS for our move to Tanzania, I’m reading Duane Elmer’s Cross Cultural Servanthood: Serving the World in Christlike Humility. It’s a challenging read, not because it’s stuff I don’t know but because there are so many layers to mine in my own life. Read the rest of this entry »

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Categories Book, Tanzania, Written by Tamie
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