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Ancient-Future Bible Study: Experience Scripture through Lectio Divina
Women of the Torah: Matriarchs and Heroes of Israel
Ancient-Future Bible Study incorporates contemporary study of the Bible with an experience of the church's most ancient way of reading Scripture, lectio divina. This time-honored practice consists of five basic biblical study (lectio), reflection (meditatio), prayer (oratio), discernment (contemplatio), and contemplative action (operatio). In six clearly written volumes, bestselling author Stephen Binz helps readers study the Bible in a way that leads to spiritual transformation and brings them closer to God.
Binz leads readers in a vivid study of key biblical characters, including Abraham, Paul, Peter, David, the women of the Torah, and the women of the Gospels. He shows all Christians who desire to have a transforming experience with the inspired Word of God how studying Scripture through lectio divina can enrich their discipleship. This ecumenical Bible study, designed for use by individuals or groups, includes questions for personal reflection and suggested action. Each volume includes leader's notes for guiding a study over the course of six sessions.
Binz leads readers in a vivid study of key biblical characters, including Abraham, Paul, Peter, David, the women of the Torah, and the women of the Gospels. He shows all Christians who desire to have a transforming experience with the inspired Word of God how studying Scripture through lectio divina can enrich their discipleship. This ecumenical Bible study, designed for use by individuals or groups, includes questions for personal reflection and suggested action. Each volume includes leader's notes for guiding a study over the course of six sessions.
- GenresSpirituality
192 pages, Paperback
First published July 14, 2006
29 people are currently reading
52 people want to read
About the author
Stephen J. Binz
107 books20 followersStephen J. Binz is a biblical scholar, writer, and speaker, with graduate studies from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome and Jerusalem. He has written over three dozen books in biblical theology and spirituality. His books have earned first and second place awards from the Catholic Press Association and three First Place awards from the Catholic Publishers Association’s Excellence in Publishing Awards.
As a popular speaker, Stephen Binz addresses audiences at national and regional conferences, offering keynotes, seminars, and workshops. His audiences include the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, the Mid-Atlantic Congress, the National Catholic Education Association, and Fashion Me People. He is also an active member of the Society of Biblical Literature and the Catholic Biblical Association.
He is the founder and author of Threshold Bible Study (Twenty-Third Publications), Ancient-Future Bible Study (Brazos Press), Lectio Divina Bible Study (OSV Publications), and the Conversing with God in Scripture series (Word Among Us Press). All of his books in print may be found at his website: www.Bridge-B.com
He lives in Baton Rouge, LA, where his wife Pamela is a member of the School of Music faculty at Louisiana State University.
As a popular speaker, Stephen Binz addresses audiences at national and regional conferences, offering keynotes, seminars, and workshops. His audiences include the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, the Mid-Atlantic Congress, the National Catholic Education Association, and Fashion Me People. He is also an active member of the Society of Biblical Literature and the Catholic Biblical Association.
He is the founder and author of Threshold Bible Study (Twenty-Third Publications), Ancient-Future Bible Study (Brazos Press), Lectio Divina Bible Study (OSV Publications), and the Conversing with God in Scripture series (Word Among Us Press). All of his books in print may be found at his website: www.Bridge-B.com
He lives in Baton Rouge, LA, where his wife Pamela is a member of the School of Music faculty at Louisiana State University.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
February 21, 2021
"When we place our own story in dialogue with the biblical narrative, we continually renew our understanding of life and its meaning. We realize that our life is much larger than the sum of its parts, and we continually reshape our own story within the context of the defining narrative of God’s saving history. Through reflective and prayerful listening to God’s inspired Word, we gain the ongoing ability to refresh the meaning of our life as it unfolds. Though the biblical text is fixed and unchanging, it is kept alive and fresh for us as we reflect on its stories in the context of our own personal narratives. God’s grand narrative is ongoing and includes the lives of each of us today. Our lives too fit into the story of this great God who does the unpredictable, sides with the lowly, ignores the obvious, turns our expectations upside down, and blesses the efforts of those who trust."
Binz does a great job of setting up the context for this book in saying, "The Torah demonstrates the interdependence of women and men. In each generation of Israel’s patriarchs, there is a parallel matriarchy of mothers, wives, and daughters who play indispensable roles in advancing the identity and destiny of God’s people." Based on this, the purpose of this book is to walk through the Torah by way of the women who help to form its story.
The author recognizes that "the stories of women often contrast the conventional norms of the culture with the respect and compassion God shows to women. They present a God who takes the side of women, rescuing them from abandonment, barrenness, and oppression, and assuring them of a noble destiny", and uses this understanding to bring out the shared ministry of all humanity and shared concern for all humanity. This begins of course in Genesis, recognizing that "the word for humankind (’ adam, in Hebrew) is a collective term representing all people (vv. 26– 27)", going on to say that "the idea of humanity made in the image and likeness of God is perhaps the most glorious and empowering assertion in the Bible. It is the foundation of all Judeo- Christian ethics about human dignity and value as well as teachings about human rights and responsibilities." This is perhaps no more apparent than in the Abraham story where our tendency to emphasize the Abrahamic covenant far often often overlooks the shared covenant made with Sarai:
"Based on the parallelism in Hebrew poetry, Abraham is the “rock” from which his descendants were carved and Sarah is the “quarry” from which her descendants were dug. The masculine image of rock suggests an indestructible foundation of solid faith from which later generations were shaped, while the feminine image of quarry implies a rich source from which offspring are mined. Sarah is the deep pit in which are buried valuable minerals and undiscovered treasure. She is the abundant source from which living stones in every generation can be excavated, stones filled with inspiration, courage, faithfulness, and hope."
Before moving from the Garden-Flood duel creation and recreation narratives and into the thurst of the action, Binz doubles down on how easy it is to walk through these narratives with a view of the woman as subordinant, subservient and at the root of the problem of sin. When we picture woman made from man, the woman seducing the man into eating the apple, and the woman's punishment as being enslaved to the man and so on and so on, it's easy to find ourselves stumbling head first into a narrative where women are relegated to the sidelines and kept to specific roles. As the author says though, "there is only one way in which God is mirrored in the world— the human creature, male and female, acting as God’s cocreators, agents, and viceroys in the world." And as we encounter characters like Rebekah, Leah, Deborah and Tamar among others, we can then begin to see how integral they are to this unfolding storyline, the raising up of God's people, and the bringing about God's plan for his creation.
A solid book, even if you are simply looking to reengage the Biblical narrative.
Binz does a great job of setting up the context for this book in saying, "The Torah demonstrates the interdependence of women and men. In each generation of Israel’s patriarchs, there is a parallel matriarchy of mothers, wives, and daughters who play indispensable roles in advancing the identity and destiny of God’s people." Based on this, the purpose of this book is to walk through the Torah by way of the women who help to form its story.
The author recognizes that "the stories of women often contrast the conventional norms of the culture with the respect and compassion God shows to women. They present a God who takes the side of women, rescuing them from abandonment, barrenness, and oppression, and assuring them of a noble destiny", and uses this understanding to bring out the shared ministry of all humanity and shared concern for all humanity. This begins of course in Genesis, recognizing that "the word for humankind (’ adam, in Hebrew) is a collective term representing all people (vv. 26– 27)", going on to say that "the idea of humanity made in the image and likeness of God is perhaps the most glorious and empowering assertion in the Bible. It is the foundation of all Judeo- Christian ethics about human dignity and value as well as teachings about human rights and responsibilities." This is perhaps no more apparent than in the Abraham story where our tendency to emphasize the Abrahamic covenant far often often overlooks the shared covenant made with Sarai:
"Based on the parallelism in Hebrew poetry, Abraham is the “rock” from which his descendants were carved and Sarah is the “quarry” from which her descendants were dug. The masculine image of rock suggests an indestructible foundation of solid faith from which later generations were shaped, while the feminine image of quarry implies a rich source from which offspring are mined. Sarah is the deep pit in which are buried valuable minerals and undiscovered treasure. She is the abundant source from which living stones in every generation can be excavated, stones filled with inspiration, courage, faithfulness, and hope."
Before moving from the Garden-Flood duel creation and recreation narratives and into the thurst of the action, Binz doubles down on how easy it is to walk through these narratives with a view of the woman as subordinant, subservient and at the root of the problem of sin. When we picture woman made from man, the woman seducing the man into eating the apple, and the woman's punishment as being enslaved to the man and so on and so on, it's easy to find ourselves stumbling head first into a narrative where women are relegated to the sidelines and kept to specific roles. As the author says though, "there is only one way in which God is mirrored in the world— the human creature, male and female, acting as God’s cocreators, agents, and viceroys in the world." And as we encounter characters like Rebekah, Leah, Deborah and Tamar among others, we can then begin to see how integral they are to this unfolding storyline, the raising up of God's people, and the bringing about God's plan for his creation.
A solid book, even if you are simply looking to reengage the Biblical narrative.
May 23, 2019
We used this book for a study group. I think the format would work best for an individual devotion. The questions are though-provoking and challenging in a good way.
Read
October 27, 2011for women's Bible study
July 29, 2016
The commentary is unique and insightful.
January 31, 2017
I enjoyed the Bible passages and commentary. Some of the questions were simply restating things in the commentary, so that was a little annoying at times.
January 29, 2023
Finally a book that shows the women of scripture. Some I didn't even know existed. Such a delight!
April 17, 2023
Very good book and study.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews