Privilege, Marginality, Voice, and Representation in Contextual Bible Studies and Contextual Biblical Interpretation

Abstract

In this chapter, discussions about Contextual Bible Study and contextual biblical interpretation as ‘marginal’ to the assumed more ‘central’ methods and pursuits of biblical studies are critically explored, both in relation to the methods, media, and representations used within the discipline, and the ways in which certain epistemologies are privileged over others. The chapter argues that Southern Theory—which has close connections to feminist and postcolonial theory—is instructive in challenging the hegemony of Global North epistemologies and their links to histories of colonialism. Divisions between so-called marginal and central methods and pursuits in Biblical studies need to be overcome if a more equitable and inclusive vision of the discipline is ever to be achieved.