Philip Jenkins, The New Faces of

Christianity
(Chapter 2: The Power in the Book)
David Reis
History of Christianity III
Spring 2014
Preface: The Status of the Bible
South and West
interpreters from the South and the West differ in their
interpretation of the Bible
differences stem in part from the Souths recent
acquaintance with the Bible (it is still fresh for readers in
the South, who have only recently been introduced to
biblically-based Christian denominations)

the Bible as authority in the South
the Souths assumptions about the written word and
reading have contributed to the authority of the Bible

Missionary Memories
evangelical missionaries
first wave: conservative evangelicals are
primarily responsible for the introduction of
Christianity in the South; missionaries were
more likely to be conservative Christians
whose apocalyptic beliefs spurred their
vocation (in the fundamentalist-modernist
debates, they underscored the reliability of
the Bible)
second wave: contemporary evangelical
missions have benefitted from wealthy
patrons who advance a conservative
American form of Christianity

the reception of evangelical teachings
the early missionaries were not solely
responsible for imposing a conservative
brand of Christianity in the South; their
teachings had to have a sympathetic
audience and they could not necessarily
control the message once they delivered it
later missionaries have benefited from
wealthy supporters, but these forms of
Christianity must compete with other forms
of the faith and cannot simply assume
impose their views on local populations

Reading the Word
the arrival of the Bible in the South
missionaries introduced the Bible into societies that revered sacred
writings for their power and mystery

literacy
indigenous cultures were primarily oral and literacy was restricted to
the elite; the arrival of the Bible hastened literacy and the movement
toward a written culture

divine power
indigenous societies imagined that books were connected with divine
power, and that reading itself was a sign of the miraculous

religious communities
indigenous Christianities were built on a foundation that reverenced
the written text

Speak in Our Tongues
translated scriptures
the translated scriptures
elevated the power of native
languages to disclose divine
communication
the Bible has been translated
into hundreds of African
languages
millions of Bibles have been
disseminated worldwide

the reception of the
vernacular Bible
when audiences receive the
Bible in their own languages,
they exercise control over its
interpretation
new interpretations can lead to
social revolution (the Bible
provides a direct link between
heaven and earth)

Reading Together
Western and Southern reading
the West emphasizes private, individual
reading
the South approaches reading as a
public, aural, and communal activity in
which audiences produce shared
responses to the sacred texts in a
sacred setting

communal reception
groups that receive the scriptures in a
communal fashion tend to believe the
text is spoken directly to them (they are
the vehicle of the divine message)

demographics
young people dominate the churches of
the South
Southern demographics contribute to
the sense that these communities are
the direct recipients of the Bibles
immutable message (the youth are
idealistic, passionate, seekers of truth,
and resistant to hierarchies, which only
fosters their belief in the Bible as a
divine authority; cf. Islam)

Telling Stories
oral transmission
those who are illiterate adopt
memorization techniques of oral
cultures to memorize key passages
of the Bible

biblical performances
dramatizing biblical stories (e.g.,
music, theater) is another way to
facilitate and reinforce biblical
literacy among the illiterate
oral transmission was the earliest
way Christian stories circulated, and
the biblical stories that reflect an
oral culture are the best texts for
this type of education

story and identity
when oral cultures adopt the stories
of the Bible, they become the
narratives through which they
understand their identities

Sacred Music
music and instruction
music is a common technique
for introducing biblical values
and principles, and hymnbooks
can be regarded as a quasi-
sacred text

music and indigenous societies
indigenous societies ground the
biblical stories in their own
historical context, gravitate
toward narratives that highlight
values they find meaningful
(suffering), and integrate biblical
stories with indigenous musical
forms

modern technology
radio and video (e.g., Jesus;
Living in Bondage; Captives) are
contemporary technologies to
disseminate biblical stories

My Bible and I
the authority of scripture
Southern communities tend to regard the
entire Bible as true and think that each part
contains the divine wisdom of the whole (the
Bible is equated with the authority of the
ancestors wisdom)

divergent reading strategies
the authority of the Bible can lead to readings
that either confirm or resist mainstream ideas

the power of the physical book
the authority of the Bible can lead to the
belief that the physical book has magical
properties (e.g., to combat evil and promote
sickness) and can be used for divinization

the scriptures and colonialism
the colonial experience has led some
indigenous peoples to suspect that the West
has suppressed some scriptures to maintain
authority over colonized communities

Reading Outside
the aesthetic appeal of the Bible
the power of the Bible means that even non-Christians will
appropriate its literary features

the political appeal of the Bible
other passages have practical implications, such as the
belief that societies should put their faith in God rather
than in human systems of thought

conversion
these two features of the Bible can lead to conversion
experiences, especially among peoples not familiar with
the biblical narrative

Confirming the Word
interpretations in the South and the North
the South: the Souths Biblicism is often in continuity
with early Christian communities
the North: the Christianities of the North appear more
dated and removed from the early church

reading the scriptures
specific modes of interpretation affect the Christianities of
both the North and South
the North: the North is influenced by historical criticism
and a selective approach to the authority of the scriptures
the South: the South tends to emphasize reader-response
approaches that highlight the practical implications and
imperatives of the scriptures