Abstract
The book is a picture gallery study of seven Old Testament interpreters within the last four centuries. These include B. Spinoza, W. M. L. de Wette, J. Wellhausen, H. Gunkel, G. von Rad, W. F. Albright, and B. S. Childs, examined throughout seven discrete chapters. The figures are, however, never studied as isolated phenomena. Rather, they are carefully placed within their location in the history of scholarship (Descartes, Herder, Ewald, Ritschl, to name but a few). In a short postscript, Gignilliat addresses important concerns such as in what manner faith shapes, if not determines, how Christians read the Old Testament as Holy Scripture.
A chapter typically consists of a minor biography of the figure in focus, including his childhood and stages in his academic career (interestingly, de Wette, Wellhausen, and Gunkel were all sons of Lutheran pastors). Then, the chapter presents the major thesis or contribution of the figure (e.g., Wellhausen's documentary hypothesis of the Pentateuch or Albright's archaeological school). Finally, each chapter provides a detailed analysis of a central work of the figure (e.g., Spinoza's Tractatus Theologico-Politicus, Gunkel's Introduction to the Psalms, and von Rad's The Form-Critical Problem of the Hexateuch). A useful list of books “for further reading” completes each chapter.
Although mostly relying on existing biographies and accounts, Gignilliat has a sharp eye for the entertaining detail. His informative text is spiced with amusing anecdotes and moving stories (e.g., the possibly apocryphal story of Wellhausen swimming on the river Leine on Sunday morning to provoke the pious churchgoers, or Childs in 1942 surrounded by craps tables and gambling on the RMS Queen Mary teaching himself Greek on the way to war, or von Rad in 1945, a prisoner in an American prison camp, lecturing to his fellow prisoners on the book of Genesis, preaching, and administering the sacraments). In Gignilliat's portraits, these old interpreters really come to life!
As was indicated, Gignilliat not only accounts for the figures and their major work, but also uses them as initiators or representatives of larger tendencies within modern biblical studies. For instance, Spinoza represents (secular) Rationalism and its distinction between philosophy and religion, truth and morality; de Wette represents Romanticism and Historicism centered on religious feelings and “myths”; Wellhausen represents literary criticism, Gunkel form criticism, Albright biblical archaeology, and so on.
Significantly, Spinoza and Childs constitute two poles of the overall “narrative” of Gignilliat's presentation. In the 17th Century, a naturalistic understanding marks a shift in the academic approach to the Bible. The Bible is now seen as a human product, and as a result one must understand and interpret it detached from its theological and ecclesial context; as a natural document, the meaning of the text is determined by the original author's intention and by its historical setting. The Bible thereby becomes a “classic” text rather than religious and an object of religio-historical investigations. In other words, the canonical context is replaced with historical-critical reconstructions, focusing on the ancient world, the events, and the religious environments behind the texts. Consequently, in the search of the most pristine (that is, “true”) form of the texts, the canonical form, has been smashed into atoms.
Here, Gignilliat's “confessional and critical” hero enters the stage. To him, Childs's emphasis on the final form of the text and his concern for reading the Bible within its theological and ecclesial context marks a new paradigm shift within the discipline. To be sure, the Old Testament should be read as Christian Scripture rather than merely as sources to some people's long-gone religion. Not that we should ignore historical questions; the “depth dimension” is still of importance. Nevertheless, we should approach the Bible as a witness to God's ongoing revelation.
Supporters of the canonical approach often draw this picture: that Childs's program broke into a theologically sterile era of historical criticism. This is not entirely true. On the one hand, even historical critical scholars may be pious Christians. On the other hand, Childs's work itself is strongly influenced by the “golden age” of Old Testament theology (1920–1960), including figures such as W. Eichrodt, G. von Rad, and W. Zimmerli. Unfortunately, Gignilliat's portrait of von Rad lacks depth. For instance, he does not discuss Manfred Oeming's comparison of von Rad's concept of tradition to that of H.-G. Gadamer. More crucially, Gignilliat devotes only two pages to von Rad's seminal two-volume Theology of the Old Testament! Although Gignilliat recognizes that this is a “limited reading” of von Rad, he still neglects one of the most important theologies of the 20th Century.
It is, however, important not to demand more of Gignilliat than he intends to offer. His aim is to provide a small and accessible student guide to the history of Old Testament criticism in the modern period. Indeed, he does that successfully. The book is easy to read and despite its complex subject not very technical. It offers a useful overview of Old Testament criticism as well as Western intellectual history. As such, it is perfect for students and pastors who wish to learn more about these “giants” of the past.