The Dangerous Business of Biblical Interpretation

A personal account of a coming to feminist consciousness as a biblical scholar and the impact of the work of Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza. In dialogue with Jesus and the Politics of Interpretation , the article deals with questions such as the contextual nature of biblical interpretation, the inadequacy of ‘Jesus-and-women’ approaches, the dangers of anti-Judaism, and the political and ethical consequences of seeking to recreate Jesus as a unique charismatic individual rather than investigate the historical people who were part of his emancipatory basileia movement.