The power of the word

the long version

What kind of power does scripture exercise? In The Power of the Word, Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza, a scholar of feminist biblical interpretation and early Christian history, explores this difficult hermeneutical question. Because Christian scriptures were formulated in the context of Roman imperial power, they have functioned-and still do so-in the service of empire, legitimating colonialist expansion, racist exploitation, and heterosexist discrimination. Schussler Fiorenza calls for a critical feminist decolonizing reading, capable of identifying both the destructive powers of empire and the radical democratic visions of justice and well being that are inscribed in the scriptural text. The Power of the Word makes a contribution not only to traditional fields such as Pauline and Apocalypse studies, but also to the developing intersection of feminist and postcolonial biblical studies and the study of empire.