Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-jkksz Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-26T00:27:48.291Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Monotheism, Biblical Traditions, and Race Relations

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 February 2022

Yung Suk Kim
Affiliation:
Virginia Union University

Summary

In the Hebrew Bible, various aspects of theism exist though monotheistic faith stands out, and the New Testament largely continues with Jewish monotheism. This Element examines diverse aspects of monotheism in the Hebrew Bible and their implications to others or race relations. Also, it investigates monotheistic faith in the New Testament writings and its impact on race relations, including the work of Jesus and Paul's apostolic mission. While inclusive monotheism fosters race relations, exclusive monotheism harms race relations. This Element also engages contemporary biblical interpretations about the Bible, monotheistic faith, and race/ethnicity.
Get access
Type
Element
Information
Online ISBN: 9781108985383
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication: 03 March 2022

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Bibliography

Anderson, James S. Monotheism and Yahweh’s Appropriation of Baal. New York, NY: T & T Clark, 2015.Google Scholar
Assmann, Jan. The Price of Monotheism. Trans. Robert Savage. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2010.Google Scholar
Bailey, Randall C., Liew, Tat-siong Benny, and Segovia, Fernando F., eds. They Were All Together in One Place? Toward Minority Biblical Criticism. Semeia Studies. Atlanta, GA: Society of Biblical Literature, 2009.Google Scholar
Barnes, Michael. In the Presence of Mystery: An Introduction to the Story of Human Religiousness. Mystic, CT: Twenty-Third, 2003.Google Scholar
Bauckham, Richard. God Crucified: Monotheism and Christology in the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1999.Google Scholar
Birch, Bruce et al. A Theological Introduction to the Old Testament. Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 2005.Google Scholar
Blount, Brian. Go Preach! Mark’s Kingdom Message and the Black Church Today. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1998.Google Scholar
Borg, Marcus and Crossan, John Dominic. The First Paul: Reclaiming the Radical Visionary Behind the Church’s Conservative Icon. New York: Harper Collins, 2009.Google Scholar
Brett, Mark, ed. Ethnicity and the Bible. Leiden: Brill, 1997.Google Scholar
Brueggemann, Walter. An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2003.Google Scholar
Buell, Denise Kimber. Why This New Race: Ethnic Reasoning in Early Christianity. New York: Columbia University Press, 2005.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Byron, Gay and Lovelace, Vanessa, eds. Womanist Interpretations of the Bible: Expanding the Discourse. Semeia Studies. Atlanta, GA: Society of Biblical Literature, 2016.Google Scholar
Charlesworth, James. The Historical Jesus: An Essential Guide. Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 2008.Google Scholar
Collins, John. A Short Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2007.Google Scholar
Coogan, Michael. A Brief Introduction to the Old Testament: The Hebrew Bible in Its Context. New York: Oxford University Press, 2012.Google Scholar
Crossan, Dominic. The Historical Jesus: The Life of a Mediterranean Jewish Peasant. San Francisco, CA: Harper Collins, 1991.Google Scholar
Crüsemann, Frank. The Torah: Theology and Social History of Old Testament Law. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 1996.Google Scholar
Culpepper, Alan. The Gospel and Letters of John. Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 1998.Google Scholar
Roland, De Vaux. Ancient Israel: Its Life and Social Institutions. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1965.Google Scholar
Dowd, Sharyn and Malbon, Elizabeth. “The Significance of Jesus’ Death in Mark: Narrative Context and Authorial Audience.” Journal of Biblical Literature 125.2 (2006), pp. 271297.Google Scholar
Dube, Musa W.Reading for Decolonization (John 4:1–42).” Semeia 75 (1996), pp. 3759.Google Scholar
Dube, Musa W.‘Go Therefore and Make Disciples of All Nations’ (Matt. 28:19a): A Postcolonial Perspective on Biblical Criticism and Pedagogy.” In Teaching the Bible, ed. Segovia, Fernando and Tolbert, Mary Ann. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1998, pp. 224245.Google Scholar
Dube, Musa W. and Staley, Jeffrey Lloyd, eds. John and Postcolonialism: Travel, Space, and Power. New York: Sheffield Academic Press, 2002.Google Scholar
Dunn, James. “Was Jesus a Monotheist?” In Early Jewish and Christian Monotheism, ed. Stuckenbruck, Loren and North, Wendy Sproston. New York: T & T Clark, 2004, pp. 104119.Google Scholar
Did the First Christians Worship Jesus? The New Testament Evidence. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010.Google Scholar
Evans, Paul. “Imagining Justice for the Marginalized: A Suspicious Reading of the Covenant Code (Exodus 21:1–23:33) in Ancient Near Eastern Context.” In The Bible and Social Justice: Old Testament and New Testament Foundations for the Church’s Urgent Call, ed. Westfall, Cynthia Long and Dyer, Bryan R.. Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2016, pp. 134.Google Scholar
Fletcher-Louis, Crispin. Jesus Monotheism: Christological Origins: The Emerging Consensus and Beyond. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2015.Google Scholar
Frankfort, Henri. Kingship and the Gods: A Study of Ancient Near Eastern Religion as the Integration of Society and Nature. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1948.Google Scholar
Gafney, Wil. “Hagar.” Bible Odyssey. Accessed: June 9, 2021. www.bibleodyssey.org/en/people/main-articles/hagar.Google Scholar
Gnuse, Robert Karl. No Other Gods: Emergent Monotheism in Israel. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1997.Google Scholar
Goldenberg, David M. Curse of Ham: Race and Slavery in Early Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2003.Google Scholar
González, Justo L. The Story Luke Tells: Luke’s Unique Witness to the Gospel. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2015.Google Scholar
Gottwald, Norman. The Politics of Ancient Israel. Library of Ancient Israel, ed. Knight, Douglas. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2001.Google Scholar
Guardiola-Sáenz, Leticia. “Borderless Women and Borderless Texts: A Cultural Reading of Matthew 15:21–28.” Semeia 78 (1997), pp. 6981.Google Scholar
Gullotta, Daniel N.Among Dogs and Disciples: An Examination of the Story of the Canaanite Woman (Matthew 15:21–28) and the Question of the Gentile Mission within the Matthean Community.” Neotestamentica 48.2 (2014), pp. 325340.Google Scholar
Hawk, L. Daniel.The Truth about Conquest: Joshua as History, Narrative, and Scripture.” Interpretation 66. 2 (2012), pp. 129140.Google Scholar
Haynes, Stephen R. Noah’s Curse: The Biblical Justification of American Slavery. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.Google Scholar
Hays, Richard B.PISTIS and Pauline Christology: What is at Stake?” In Pauline Theology, Vol. 4, ed. Johnson, E. Elizabeth and Hay, David M.. Atlanta, GA: Scholars Press, 1997, pp. 3560.Google Scholar
Hays, Richard B. The Faith of Jesus Christ: The Narrative Substructure of Galatians 3:1–4:11. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2002.Google Scholar
Hiebert, Theodore. “The Tower of Babel and the Origin of the World’s Cultures.Journal of Biblical Literature 126 (2007), pp. 2958.Google Scholar
Hillers, Delbert. Micah: A Commentary on the Book of the Prophet Micah. Philadelphia, PA: Fortress Press, 1984.Google Scholar
Hockey, Katherine M. and Horrell, David G., eds. Ethnicity, Race, Religion: Identities and Ideologies in Early Jewish and Christian Texts, and in Modern Biblical Interpretation. London: T&T Clark, 2019.Google Scholar
Horrell, David and Lieu, Judith, eds. Ethnicity and Inclusion: Religion, Race, and Whiteness in Constructions of Jewish and Christian Identities. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2020.Google Scholar
Hurtado, Larry. Honoring the Son: Jesus in Earliest Christian Devotional Practice. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2018.Google Scholar
Johnson, Luke Timothy. “Rom 3:21–26 and the Faith of Jesus.” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 44.1 (1982), pp. 7790.Google Scholar
Junior, Nyasha. Reimagining Hagar: Blackness and Bible. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2019.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk.Lex Talionis in Exod 21:22–25: Its Origin and Context.” Journal of Hebrew Scriptures 3(2006), Article 3.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk.Imitators (Mimetai) in 1 Cor 4:16 and 11:1: A New Reading of Threefold Embodiment.” Horizons in Biblical Theology 33.2 (2011), pp. 147–170.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk. A Theological Introduction to Paul’s Letters: Exploring a Threefold Theology of Paul. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2011.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk.Reclaiming Christ’s Body (soma christou): Embodiment of God’s Gospel in Paul’s Letters.” Interpretation 67.1 (2013), pp. 2029.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk. Truth, Testimony, and Transformation: A New Reading of the “I Am” Sayings of Jesus in the Fourth Gospel. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2014.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk. Resurrecting Jesus: The Renewal of New Testament Theology. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2015.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk. Preaching the New Testament Again: Faith, Freedom, and Transformation. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2019.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk. Rereading Galatians from the Perspective of Paul’s Gospel: A Literary and Theological Commentary. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2019.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk. Rereading Romans from the Perspective of Paul’s Gospel: A Literary and Theological Commentary. Eugene, OR: Resource, 2019.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk. How to Read Paul: A Brief Introduction to His Theology, Writings, and World. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2021.Google Scholar
Kim, Yung Suk.Race, Ethnicity and the Gospels.” In Oxford Bibliographies in Biblical Studies, ed. Matthews, Christopher. New York: Oxford University Press, 2021.Google Scholar
Klancher, Nancy. The Taming of the Canaanite Woman: Constructions of a Christian Identity in the Afterlife of Matthew 15:21–28. Boston, MA: De Gruyter, 2013.Google Scholar
Knight, Douglas. “The Ethics of Human Life in the Hebrew Bible.” In Justice and the Holy: Essays in Honor of Walter Harrelson, ed. Knight, Douglas A. and Paris, Peter J.. Atlanta, GA: Scholars Press, 1989, pp. 6588.Google Scholar
Koch, Klaus. The Prophets: The Assyrian Period. Philadelphia, PA: Fortress, 1983.Google Scholar
Kristeva, Julia. Strangers to Ourselves. Trans. Leon S. Roudiez. New York: Columbia University Press, 1991.Google Scholar
Lee, Michelle. Paul, the Stoics, and the Body of Christ. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006.Google Scholar
Levine, Amy-Jill. The Social and Ethnic Dimensions of Matthean Social History. New York: Edwin Mellen, 1988.Google Scholar
Martin, Dale. The Corinthian Body. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1995.Google Scholar
Martyn, J. Louis. History and Theology in the Fourth Gospel. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2003.Google Scholar
McNutt, Paula. Reconstructing the Society of Ancient Israel. Library of Ancient Israel, ed. Knight, Douglas. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1999.Google Scholar
Mitchell, Margaret. Paul’s Rhetoric of Reconciliation. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1987.Google Scholar
Muilenburg, James. “Abraham and the Nations: Blessing and World History.” Interpretation 19.4 (1965), pp. 387398.Google Scholar
Mukansengimana, Rose Nyirimana and Draper, Jonathan. “The Peacemaking Role of the Samaritan Woman in John 4:1–24: A Mirror and Challenge to Rwandan women.” Neotestamentica 46.2 (2012), pp. 299318.Google Scholar
Nadella, Raj. “The Motif of Hybridity in the Story of the Canaanite Woman and Its Relevance for Multi-faith Relations.” In Many Yet One? Multiple Religious Belonging, ed. Rajkumar, Peniel Jesudason Rufus and Dayam, Joseph Prabhakar. Geneva: World Council of Churches, 2015, pp. 111120.Google Scholar
Nasrallah, Laura and Fiorenza, Elisabeth Schüssler, eds. Prejudice and Christian Beginnings: Investigating Race, Gender, and Ethnicity in Early Christianity. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2009.Google Scholar
Neyrey, Jerome. Paul in Other Worlds: A Cultural Reading of His Letter. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1990.Google Scholar
Norton, Yolanda. “Silenced Struggles for Survival: Finding Life in Death in the Book of Ruth.” In I Found God in Me: A Womanist Biblical Hermeneutics Reader, ed. Smith, Mitzi J.. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2015, pp. 265279.Google Scholar
Okure, Teresa. “Jesus and the Samaritan Woman (Jn 4:1–42) in Africa.” Theological Studies 70.2 (2009), pp. 401418.Google Scholar
Patte, Daniel. “The Canaanite Woman and Jesus: Surprising Models of Discipleship (Matt. 15:21–28).” In Transformative Encounters, ed. Kitzberger, Ingrid Rosa. Atlanta, GA: Society of Biblical Literature, 2000, pp. 3353.Google Scholar
Patte, DanielReading Matthew 28:16–20 with Others: How Does It Deconstruct Our Western Concept of Mission?Hervormde Teologiese Studies 62.2 (2006), pp. 521557. www.researchgate.net/publication/45681165_Reading_Matthew_2816-20_with_Others_How_it_deconstructs_our_Western_concept_of_mission.Google Scholar
Paul, Shalom. Amos: A Commentary of the Book of Amos. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 1991.Google Scholar
Powell, Mark Alan. Fortress Introduction to the Gospels. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2019.Google Scholar
Price, James L.God’s Righteousness Shall Prevail.” Interpretation 28.3 (1974), pp. 259280.Google Scholar
Roetzel, Calvin. Paul: A Jew on the Margins. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2003.Google Scholar
Sanders, Ed Parish. Paul and Palestinian Judaism. Philadelphia, PA: Fortress, 1977.Google Scholar
Schipani, Daniel. “Transformation in the Borderlands.” Beginning of Life 4.1 (2003), pp. 1324.Google Scholar
Schwartz, Regina. The Curse of Cain: The Violent Legacy of Monotheism. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1997.Google Scholar
Smith, Mark A. The Origins of Biblical Monotheism: Israel’s Polytheistic Background and the Ugaritic Texts. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.Google Scholar
Smith, Mitzi J. and Choi, Jin Young, eds. Minoritized Women Reading Race and Ethnicity: Intersectional Approaches to Constructed Identity and Early Christian (Con)Texts. Lanham, MD: Lexington, 2020.Google Scholar
Smith, Mitzi J. and Jayachitra, Lalitha, eds. Teaching All Nations: Interrogating the Matthean Great Commission. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2014.Google Scholar
Smith, Mitzi J. and Kim, Yung Suk. Toward Decentering the New Testament: A Reintroduction. Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2018.Google Scholar
Soares-Prabhu, George. “Two Mission Commands: An Interpretation of Matthew 28:16–20 in the Light of a Buddhist Text.” Biblical Interpretation 2.4 (1994), pp. 264282.Google Scholar
Sommer, Benjamin. The Bodies of God and the World of Ancient Israel. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2009.Google Scholar
Sommer, Benjamin “Monotheism in the Hebrew Bible.” Bible Odyssey. Accessed: June 8, 2021. www.bibleodyssey.org/en/people/related-articles/monotheism-in-the-hebrew-bible.Google Scholar
Stanley, Christopher. The Hebrew Bible: A Comparative Approach. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress, 2010.Google Scholar
Stanton, Graham. The Gospels and Jesus. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.Google Scholar
Stendahl, Krister. “The Apostle Paul and the Introspective Conscience of the West.” Harvard Theological Review 56.3 (1963), pp. 199215.Google Scholar
Stendahl, KristerReligious Pluralism and the Claim to Uniqueness.” In Education as Transformation: Religious Pluralism, Spirituality, and a New Vision for Higher Education in America, ed. Jr, Victor Kazanjian and Laurence, Peter. New York: Peter Lang, 2000, pp. 181183.Google Scholar
Sussman, Robert. The Myth of Race: The Troubling Persistence of an Unscientific Idea. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2014.Google Scholar
Talmon, Shemaryahu. King, Cult and Calendar in Ancient Israel: Collected Studies. Jerusalem: Magnes, 1986.Google Scholar
Van Seters, John. “Comparison of Babylonian Codes with the Covenant Code and Its Implications for the Study of Hebrew Law.” Unpublished paper delvered at Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meetings 2001.Google Scholar
Gerhard, Von Rad. Genesis: A Commentary. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1973.Google Scholar
Wafawanaka, Robert. Am I Still My Brother’s Keeper? Biblical Perspectives on Poverty. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 2012.Google Scholar
Warrior, Robert. “Canaanites, Cowboys, and Indians: Deliverance, Conquest, and Liberation Theology Today.” Christianity and Crisis 49 (1989‒1990), pp. 261265. Reprinted in Native and Christian: Indigenous Voices on Religious Identity in the United States and Canada, ed. James Treat. New York: Routledge, 1996.Google Scholar
Whitelam, Keith. “Israelite Kingship: The Royal Ideology and Its Opponents.” In The World of Ancient Israel, ed. Clements, Ronald E.. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989, pp. 119139.Google Scholar
Yee, Gale. “‘She Stood in Tears amid the Alien Corn’: Ruth, the Perpetual Foreigner and Model Minority.” In They Were All Together in One Place? Toward Minority Biblical Criticism, ed. Bailey, Randall C., Liew, Tat-Siong Benny, and Segovia, Fernando F.. Atlanta, GA: Society of Biblical Literature, 2009, pp. 119140.Google Scholar

Save element to Kindle

To save this element to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Monotheism, Biblical Traditions, and Race Relations
  • Yung Suk Kim, Virginia Union University
  • Online ISBN: 9781108985383
Available formats
×

Save element to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Monotheism, Biblical Traditions, and Race Relations
  • Yung Suk Kim, Virginia Union University
  • Online ISBN: 9781108985383
Available formats
×

Save element to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Monotheism, Biblical Traditions, and Race Relations
  • Yung Suk Kim, Virginia Union University
  • Online ISBN: 9781108985383
Available formats
×