St Andrews Encyclopaedia of Theology (Jan 2024)
Feminist Biblical Interpretation
Abstract
This article offers a critical reflection on feminist biblical interpretation that, over the past forty plus years, has contributed greatly to changing the face of Christian biblical scholarship. After offering a definition, as well as an overview of the field of feminist biblical interpretation focusing particularly on the compendiums that seek to map the field, this essay identifies four topics as offering a creative means to reflect on the goals of feminist biblical interpretation that seeks to deconstruct and challenge harmful interpretations of scripture while also reconstructing and reimagining life-giving interpretations from those same texts: (1) voice, (2) gender-based violence, (3) agency/resistance, and (4) identity. Within the framework of these four topics, this entry will share some examples of the rich contributions of feminist biblical interpreters to the field, highlighting the development in thought and emphasis over the years. This article will also showcase the diversity of the exegetical approaches that may be found under the overarching umbrella of feminist biblical interpretation, in addition to reflecting on the common goals, challenges, and unresolved questions associated with this approach that had such an impact on the field of biblical studies.
