The following is an essay in the origin and function of canon; it is, in effect, an invitation to formulate a sub-discipline of Bible study which [the author thinks] should be called canonical criticism. Canonical criticism cannot begin where most discussions of canon in the handbooks begin. The question of the "structure" of canon can only follow upon the question of the "function" of canon. The question of what is in (canon) and what is out (apocrypha) can only follow upon the question of the origins and function of canon. Tradition criticism, redaction criticism, canonical criticism, and comparative midrash must operate together in dialogue and must operate in that order of priority. What follows is not so much an exercise in canonical criticism, as it is a call for synagogue, church, and academy to recognize the discipline and engage in it. The starting point is Torah. [From the Author's Introduction]

Torah and Canon

Religion & Spirituality

Sanders, James A.

Judaism

Fortress Press

Canon and Community: A Guide to Canonical Criticism (GUIDES TO BIBLICAL SCHOLARSHIP OLD TESTAMENT SERIES)

Christian Books & Bibles

God has a story too: Sermons in context

In this book, John Sampson White, the curator of the Smithsonian's gem and mineral collection, describes how minerals are formed, discusses their physical properties, tells of the oddities of crystallization, and explains how minerals are classified and collected. The often confusing nomenclature is clarified and there is a description of the way artificial and synthetic gems are made.

Luke and Scripture: The Function of Sacred Tradition in Luke-Acts

Evans, Craig A.

From Sacred Story to Sacred Text

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam claim to be monotheistic, but none of them actually is; none of the three has yet arrived at the true monotheism the Bible and the Qur'an mandate: that is, belief in there being but One God of All. Each often claims its concept of God is the One God despite the fact that the Bible and the Qur'an insist that the true God is indefinable and incomprehensible. Many passages of the Bible are polytheistic, and yet the Judaism that emerged out of the exile claimed to believe in One God. Critically moving from the older passages through to the later, careful readers are able to trace a process that is best called monotheizing. In effect the first commandment of the Decalogue, the first of Jesus's two great commandments, and the Qur'an's clear mandate fashion an imperative to continue the monotheizing process that is not yet complete but that enjoins adherents of each to live life in the belief that there is but One God of All.  ""Sanders has zeroed in on the greatest contribution of Hebrew thought to the world, its insistent monotheizing, which overcomes every 'we-they' distinction through including the 'they' within the sphere of divine concern and grace. He fully appreciates the constant failure of the Hebrews themselves and the Christian and Islamic communities to actualize this fundamental principle of their faith, relapsing into exclusivism. The need to monotheize has never been greater or more deeply threatened than today. Hence the importance of this book."" --John Cobb, Claremont School of Theology, Claremont, CA  ""The Monotheizing Process is much more than a work of impeccable scholarship by a learned and mature scholar. In describing the evolution and significance of genuine monotheistic faith in the Jewish and Christian canon, the book addresses itself to modern-day Christians, Jews, and Muslims, and calls upon them to apply the universal and humanistic strictures of that faith to their lives and the lives of their peoples. It is a work worthy of serious discussion."" --David Ellenson, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Jerusalem  ""No one has thought as well and as long, as imaginatively and helpfully about canon as has Jim Sanders. His recognition that canon is a dynamic process permits him to continue to open new vistas of interpretive possibility, now even an opening toward the 'other' great religions of the book. This book is a significant advance on his previous study and will be taken with great seriousness by those who care about biblical authority and the normative claims of the tradition. This is a most welcome gift of wisdom among us!"" --Walter Brueggemann, Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur, GA   James A. Sanders is professor emeritus of biblical studies at the Claremont School of Theology and the Claremont Graduate University as well as president emeritus of the Ancient Biblical Manuscript Center. Among his many publications are Torah and Canon, 2nd ed. (Cascade, 2005), Canon and Community, and God Has a Story Too.

The Monotheizing Process

Religious Studies

Wipf and Stock

Description: In this thoroughly revised edition of his classic work, James A. Sanders introduces the reader to canonical criticism. Tracking the various developments of biblical literature and their acceptance by the communities of faith, Sanders tackles the tough questions. He discusses the differences between the parts of the canon, the editing of the texts by later generations, the diversity of canons used in different communities, how the Dead Sea Scrolls raise new questions for canonicity, and the differences between how Jews and Christians have interacted with their canons. In addition to all the updates and revisions, Sanders provides a new introduction and bibliography. Endorsements: Praise for the first edition: "Sanders does not give excessive or privileged stress to the final form of the canon. What interests him is the canonical process operative through all the stages of Israel's literary history. The canonical process was a trend toward repeating communal values and resignifying them in textual form. Furthermore, the various ways in which biblical writers repeated and resignified these values along the trajectory toward the final canon provides us appropriate canonical hermeneutics for our own reading of the Bible. Scripture is seen as 'adaptable for life' throughout its entire course from initial composition and collection down to its present appropriation." --Norman K. Gottwald author of The Hebrew Bible: A Socio-Literary Introduction "Professor Sanders has written a highly important and penetrating inquiry into the formation, structure, and use of the Old Testament as canon. . . . The author is to be commended for injecting a new element into the growing dialogue between Judaism and Christianity." --Review and Expositor About the Contributor(s): James A. Sanders is President Emeritus of the Ancient Biblical Manuscript Center in Claremont, California. From 1977 to 1997, he served as Elizabeth Hay Bechtel Professor of Intertestamental and Biblical Studies at Claremont School of Theology and Professor of Religion at Claremont Graduate School. Among his many publications are Canon and Community and From Sacred Story to Sacred Text.

Lightly tracing his personal experiences growing up in the Bible Belt as a born-again Christian, James A. Sanders recounts his second rebirth experience and subsequent efforts to battle what can most broadly be called evangelicalism's denial of dignity and human worth to those different from the so-called norm. While Sanders cherishes his early experience of being "saved" or "born again" he has become deeply concerned at what has happened to the evangelical movement in America, especially in its being politicized and removed from any kind of valid interpretation of the Bible itself. Sanders critiques evangelicalism for restricting the Holy Spirit's work to the realm of personal experience and so for denying the Spirit's work in society to move believers beyond the ancient mores and metaphors that biblical authors and editors used to record God's work in antiquity. Sanders proposes that Christians read the Bible honestly in its ancient and moral contexts, and attempt with humility to register its prophetic condemnation of tribal views of God, in order to heed the Spirit's urgings to engage in the advancing monotheizing process that the Bible demands of its adherents.

The Re-birth of a Born-Again Christian: A Memoir

Cascade Books

Lightly tracing his personal experiences growing up in the Bible Belt as a born-again Christian, James A. Sanders recounts his second rebirth experience and subsequent efforts to battle what can most broadly be called evangelicalism's denial of dignity and human worth to those different from the so-called norm. While Sanders cherishes his early experience of being "saved" or "born again," he has become deeply concerned at what has happened to the evangelical movement in America, especially in its being politicized and removed from any kind of valid interpretation of the Bible itself. Sanders critiques evangelicalism for restricting the Holy Spirit's work to the realm of personal experience and so for denying the Spirit's work in society to move believers beyond the ancient mores and metaphors that biblical authors and editors used to record God's work in antiquity. Sanders proposes that Christians read the Bible honestly in its ancient and moral contexts, and attempt with humility to register its prophetic condemnation of tribal views of God, in order to heed the Spirit's urgings to engage in the advancing monotheizing process that the Bible demands of its adherents.

The Re-birth of a Born-Again Christian

About the Author\nJames A. Sanders is professor emeritus of biblical studies at the Claremont School of Theology and the Claremont Graduate University as well as president emeritus of the Ancient Biblical Manuscript Center. Among his many publications are Torah and Canon, 2nd ed. (Cascade, 2005), Canon and Community, and God Has a Story Too.\nProduct description\nCanon and Community: A Guide to Canonical Criticism [Paperback] [Jun 02, 2000...

Canon and Community: A Guide to Canonical Criticism

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Sanders, James A.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Sanders, James A.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Sanders, James A.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Torah and Canon

Canon and Community: A Guide to Canonical Criticism (GUIDES TO BIBLICAL SCHOLARSHIP OLD TESTAMENT SERIES)

God has a story too: Sermons in context

Luke and Scripture: The Function of Sacred Tradition in Luke-Acts

From Sacred Story to Sacred Text

The Monotheizing Process

Torah and Canon

The Re-birth of a Born-Again Christian: A Memoir

The Re-birth of a Born-Again Christian

Canon and Community: A Guide to Canonical Criticism