Methodological Issues in Interpreting the Old Testament Passages (Socio-Anthropological, Hybridity & Subaltern Perspectives)

This book is an attempt to provide the theological scholars a bird's eye view on various methodologies. These methodologies would be beneficial to make the readers aware of the author, text and context based perspectives in a very succinct manner. This also deals with the various streams of thoughts concentrating on the Philosophical, Roman Catholic and Ecumenical strands; Asian, Indian, Vernacular and other strands. This book will help the readers to see, how these perspectives will be helpful in reading the biblical text, especially the Old Testament texts.

Rev. Dr. Joel Joseph is from Jabalpur (MP). He holds a Master's degree in Sociology (MA), registered for a doctoral program from IGNOU; a Doctorate in Old Testament from UTC, Bangalore (Serampore University). He is a faculty in the Department of Old Testament at New Theological College, Dehradun, since 2005. His area of research is the Rebuilding of the Temple during the Persian Period. His book, Politico- Economic and Socio-Religious Factors Behind the Rebuilding of the Second Temple During the Persian Period: A Sociological and Postcolonial Reading was published by Missions Academie, Hamburg, Germany. He is in the editorial board of an International Journal, called Sacrum Testamentum.

He has also made a remarkable contribution by writing on the Book of Joel, in the SABC Commentary. He has also written many articles in prestigious Journals. He was a pastor at various places like CEA Church, Dehradun; Bethany, Mathekare, Bangalore and Church of God, Koramangala, Bangalore. He is blessed with Ruby (wife), Jennifer (daughter), Joshua (son).

Praise God for the help and guidance given during the journey of writing this book. This book is an attempt to help the theologians to get a bird's eye view of the various methodologies. It provides, an acquaintance to the efforts that the great theologians have put in the past, to present their methods for giving perspectives to the reading of the Scripture.

We, who have received the baton of various interpretations and hermeneutics need to understand that no one methodology, is perfect. Hence, the cover page show a magnifying lens, therefore, an attempt to focus with the limitation of the radius it gives for the reader. In the end, the book attempts to do pedagogical attempt and focuses the lens with the hybridity, Social Anthropological and Subaltern perspective, to a passage from Numbers chapters 22-24.

Each magnifying lens is important in itself, it helps in determining the different facets of the reading. It restricts the reader to keep oneself limited with both its advantages and disadvantages. Each lens comes with its own power of interpretation. Most of our readings, interactions and dialogue with the text come with our prior saturation of perspectives and prejudices. This interaction with the text is done at the cost of being succumbed to the dominant thought pattern. This book with all its limited scope will help the theologian to grapple with proper selection of a reading lens, which will be a very significant stepping stone, to a perspectival study of the Biblical passages. Each new reading, provides a new spring board to leap to greater horizons on understanding of the Scripture.

A magnifying lens observation in any advance research work will indicate that methodology is a huge nerve breaking experience, without which the desired result will not be attained. In the words of Laato, "the whole point of learning methodology in the first place is that of enabling the scholar to make informed, critical and conditional judgment." What the biblical text means and what is the implication? These questions always linger in the mind of ardent biblical researcher. This endeavor of constantly engaging with the text is a thrilling and exciting adventure. A cursory understanding of various methods will help to understand how much ground work has been already put into the field of archeology, historical critical methods, critical and analytical studies of literary styles, the contextual approaches to the text and the social scientific methods and theories etc. by the scholars in the process of interpreting the texts. Therefore, hermeneutics of the Scripture is becoming more and more challenging as a constant and constrained effort is needed to do justice to the text and also to make it all the more relevant with the pertinent contextual realities of our time. Thus, in the end, the bird's eye view of the various methodologies will facilitate in a pedagogical dealing of the biblical text of Number chapters 22-24, from the Socio-anthropological and Postcolonial perspective. The Biblical Scripture was considered authentic and foundational by the church from the very beginning to this s present century, though, at times the Scripture was quoted and misquoted by great number of people in their struggle to understand and apply to their context. Thus, hermeneutical problem is constituted by the temporal and cultural distance of the interpreter from the text or the event to be interpreted.

**Contents and Sample Pages**