The Bibles of the Far Right
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Oxford University Press Inc
Published:18th Dec '24
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
This study explores the role that Bibles have come to play in the worldview of the contemporary European far right. Taking the case of far-right terrorism in Norway on 22 July 2011 as a starting point, Hannah M. Strømmen argues that particular perceptions of “the Bible” and particular uses of biblical texts have been significant in staking claims to European identity in opposition to Islam. Such perceptions and uses are not only to be found in the case of far-right extremism. The Bible-use that this study maps operates more broadly in counter-jihadist writings, transnational right-wing movements, and conservative philosophy. Crucially, connections and continuities with past Bible-use are brought to light. Strømmen charts new directions for research in biblical studies, presenting a proposal for mapping how Bibles operate in the world as assemblages. Mapping biblical assemblages allows scholars of biblical reception to analyse diverse forms of Bible-use. Such mapping goes beyond the notion of the Bible as text to be read in order to address questions of agency, affect, and materiality. Ultimately, Strømmen proposes new ways to understand political Bible-use today in order to respond to violence inspired by biblical texts.
Strømmen's innovative and compelling work draws on Deleuze and Guattari's theory of assemblages to construct a fresh mode of biblical scholarship that points a way forward for the field. Theoretically sophisticated yet accessibly articulated, this work challenges biblical scholars to confront the real world effects of biblical assemblages and experiment collaboratively with possibilities for change. Creative, exciting, and ultimately transformative, Strømmen's study paves the way for a new field of biblical studies that is both ethically engaged and politically relevant. * Brennan Breed, Associate Professor of Old Testament, Columbia Theological Seminary *
Strømmen is an important voice not only in the study of contemporary political uses of the Bible but of reception history of the Bible more generally. The Bibles of the Far Right will, of course, be an indisputably crucial resource in both respects. But its sharp, authoritative analyses of wide-ranging uses of the Bible in some of the most controversial areas of contemporary political discourses is an exemplary model for how biblical studies can influence research in the humanities and social sciences. For biblical studies, The Bibles of the Far Right is a landmark publication of its generation. * James Crossley, Professor in Bible, Society and Politics at MF Oslo, Academic Director of the Centre for the Critical Study of Apocalyptic and Millenarian Movements, and Visiting Senior Research Fellow at King's College London *
Who gets to lay claim to Christianity and its scripture in Europe? Drawing on sources across disciplines, Strømmen scrambles the secular-religious divide to show how bibles as 'lived scripture' are used with other objects to produce social and political effects and affects. She develops the concept of a 'biblical assemblage' to argue that there is nothing inevitable about the European far right's efforts to justify violence and exclude Muslims and others in the name of Christianity. An ambitious, important book that tackles head-on the most daunting contemporary challenges involving the interplay of religion and politics. * Elizabeth Shakman Hurd, Northwestern University *
ISBN: 9780197789896
Dimensions: 226mm x 152mm x 33mm
Weight: 612g
344 pages