Papers by Shawna Dolansky
Epigraphy, Iconography, and the Bible, 2021
This paper applies insights from a variety of recent "turns" in the study of Levantine historiogr... more This paper applies insights from a variety of recent "turns" in the study of Levantine historiography to a discussion of the various ways in which we might understand the meanings and possible functions of the Judean Pillar Figurines that are ubiquitous in excavations of eighth- and seventh-century Judahite sites.
Scribes and Scribalism, 2020
Imposing the concept of "patriarchy" on the biblical texts applies a presentist lens to the text,... more Imposing the concept of "patriarchy" on the biblical texts applies a presentist lens to the text, obscuring and obstructing a historian's ability to understand the community under study and the choices the scribes made in presenting their narratives.
Hebrew Bible and Ancient Israel, 2019
Philology seeks to reconstruct the meanings of words within their temporal and social contexts. A... more Philology seeks to reconstruct the meanings of words within their temporal and social contexts. As such, it relies on a historical-critical approach to texts. Just as historical reconstructions of social complexity benefit from gender studies, applying insights from gender criticism expands the conceptual horizon of philology. With a focus on the meanings of (חל(ל and קדשׁ, this paper applies a gender lens to philology in two ways. First, as gender criticism often challenges the imposition of binaries, the deconstruction of assumptions about sacred/profane and their assumed meanings allows us to perceive more nuance in the ancient concepts of (חל(ל and קדשׁ. By expanding our understanding of קדשׁ along lines suggested by Mary Douglas and others to encompass a conception of wholeness, (חל(ל can be understood as connoting a breach in wholeness that operates on a continuum relative to status and circumstance, rather than as a simple opposite of קדשׁ. Second, as gender studies have posited a correlation between maleness and wholeness, the connection between (חל(ל and femaleness can explain peculiarities both of the Israelite cult, and of certain cultural customs such as levirate marriage, political coup by sexual conquest, and the requirement to kill enemy women who are not virgins.
Journal of Hebrew Scriptures, 2019
The Cambridge Companion to Ancient Mediterranean Religions, 2013
Books by Shawna Dolansky
Although 'Theologies of the Old Testament' continue to proliferate, most of these do not interact... more Although 'Theologies of the Old Testament' continue to proliferate, most of these do not interact with the many recent studies of Israelite religion that have appeared. Drawing on archaeology and other ancient Near Eastern material, these studies present a reconstruction of religious life in ancient Israel that ought to be of some importance for the theological interpretation of the biblical text. This collection of essays integrates reconstructions of ancient Israelite religious practice into theologically-oriented interpretation of the Old Testament. In essays ranging from discussion of Sumerian hymns to early Iron Age incense burners, respected biblical scholars and archaeologists provide new insights into the biblical theology of the Christian Bible.
Other by Shawna Dolansky
Biblical Views guest column in Biblical Archaeology Review, Jan/Feb 2016
Talks by Shawna Dolansky
Presented in Feminist Hermeneutics session at SBL 2014.
In her 2013 Presidential Address to the S... more Presented in Feminist Hermeneutics session at SBL 2014.
In her 2013 Presidential Address to the SBL, Carol Meyers asks why biblical studies lags behind classics and other disciplines in rejecting “patriarchy” as a category for biblical Israel. This paper discusses the differences between two historically feminist approaches to the Bible. One is historical-literary criticism, working to reconstruct the social and religious histories of ancient Israel; and the other is literary-theological-hermeneutical feminist criticism based (either implicitly or explicitly) in the need to inform the interaction of living (and frequently faith-based) communities with the biblical text. Those operating in the latter category often either attempt to redeem the biblical text in ways that affirm feminist faith commitments, or polemicize about the Bible as patriarchal and oppressive to women; this approach does not contribute to our understanding of the society that produced the Bible. These two categories of feminist criticism and their disparate objectives tend not to be differentiated in the literature, in congresses, and often by scholars themselves. The conflation of both types of “feminist biblical criticism” results in (and from) the uncritical labeling of ancient Israel as “patriarchal.” The application of this category of post-industrial capitalist societies to ancient Israel serves the interests of feminist theology (or anti-theology) in the guise of literary criticism, but obscures the biblical historian’s ability to properly reconstruct the social and religious realities of the ancient world. Perhaps, in rejecting the term "patriarchy" for ancient Israel, we also have to reconsider the use of the term "feminist biblical scholarship" to more clearly differentiate between the application of feminist historical criticism to the Bible as a method to better understanding ancient Israel, on the one hand, and the approaches of feminist literary criticism, feminist hermeneutics, and feminist theology on the other.
Uploads
Papers by Shawna Dolansky
Books by Shawna Dolansky
Other by Shawna Dolansky
Talks by Shawna Dolansky
In her 2013 Presidential Address to the SBL, Carol Meyers asks why biblical studies lags behind classics and other disciplines in rejecting “patriarchy” as a category for biblical Israel. This paper discusses the differences between two historically feminist approaches to the Bible. One is historical-literary criticism, working to reconstruct the social and religious histories of ancient Israel; and the other is literary-theological-hermeneutical feminist criticism based (either implicitly or explicitly) in the need to inform the interaction of living (and frequently faith-based) communities with the biblical text. Those operating in the latter category often either attempt to redeem the biblical text in ways that affirm feminist faith commitments, or polemicize about the Bible as patriarchal and oppressive to women; this approach does not contribute to our understanding of the society that produced the Bible. These two categories of feminist criticism and their disparate objectives tend not to be differentiated in the literature, in congresses, and often by scholars themselves. The conflation of both types of “feminist biblical criticism” results in (and from) the uncritical labeling of ancient Israel as “patriarchal.” The application of this category of post-industrial capitalist societies to ancient Israel serves the interests of feminist theology (or anti-theology) in the guise of literary criticism, but obscures the biblical historian’s ability to properly reconstruct the social and religious realities of the ancient world. Perhaps, in rejecting the term "patriarchy" for ancient Israel, we also have to reconsider the use of the term "feminist biblical scholarship" to more clearly differentiate between the application of feminist historical criticism to the Bible as a method to better understanding ancient Israel, on the one hand, and the approaches of feminist literary criticism, feminist hermeneutics, and feminist theology on the other.
In her 2013 Presidential Address to the SBL, Carol Meyers asks why biblical studies lags behind classics and other disciplines in rejecting “patriarchy” as a category for biblical Israel. This paper discusses the differences between two historically feminist approaches to the Bible. One is historical-literary criticism, working to reconstruct the social and religious histories of ancient Israel; and the other is literary-theological-hermeneutical feminist criticism based (either implicitly or explicitly) in the need to inform the interaction of living (and frequently faith-based) communities with the biblical text. Those operating in the latter category often either attempt to redeem the biblical text in ways that affirm feminist faith commitments, or polemicize about the Bible as patriarchal and oppressive to women; this approach does not contribute to our understanding of the society that produced the Bible. These two categories of feminist criticism and their disparate objectives tend not to be differentiated in the literature, in congresses, and often by scholars themselves. The conflation of both types of “feminist biblical criticism” results in (and from) the uncritical labeling of ancient Israel as “patriarchal.” The application of this category of post-industrial capitalist societies to ancient Israel serves the interests of feminist theology (or anti-theology) in the guise of literary criticism, but obscures the biblical historian’s ability to properly reconstruct the social and religious realities of the ancient world. Perhaps, in rejecting the term "patriarchy" for ancient Israel, we also have to reconsider the use of the term "feminist biblical scholarship" to more clearly differentiate between the application of feminist historical criticism to the Bible as a method to better understanding ancient Israel, on the one hand, and the approaches of feminist literary criticism, feminist hermeneutics, and feminist theology on the other.