Misreading Scripture with Individualist Eyes: Patronage, Honor, and Shame in the Biblical World

Unfortunately, this book is trash. If I could give this thing negative stars, I would. The author makes the assumption that western theology is based out of a Eurocentric failure to understand collectivist Mid-East culture which is nonsense. Much of the theology of the orthodox belief systems are rooted in African church fathers as well as church fathers out of the Mid East which both were collectivist. He neglects the fact that modern collectivist culture is far removed from ancient near east culture. After self-declaring expertise due to having lived in the Middle East he moves forward with baseless eisegesis twisting the story of Joseph into him being a cocky jerk that hated his brothers, full of himself with Potiphar’s wife, and finally became humbled off his arrogant pedestal when he became in charge of Egypt. This is the first of many disgenuine twists to scripture to try to promote critical theory nonsense. This book is a heretical mess. If you want to understand the Bible beyond what you can elicit fromScripture, I would point you to early exegesis of the church fathers and away from this new-fangled liberal-literary-license trash that seeks to discredit orthodox understanding of scripture. No one can love scripture and appreciate this book. If your pastor gave laudatory comments up above, run and find yourself a new church.

If you liked the first book in the series, "Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes," then you will like this one as it continues to explore the differences between Western versus Eastern thinking, this time focusing upon patronage. "We Westerners don’t talk all the time about being individualists or about the importance of efficiency or why we prefer youth over old age. Those values just go without being said. Yet to the discerning eye, they are in the undercurrents of billboards and commercials and even influence our everyday decisions" (2020:8 Preface).The book will be helpful, both in understanding the Scriptures, but also in reaching out to people in today's increasingly multi-cultural world, whether the context is the church, the place of employment, or on the street.The book sometimes works in the same way that a picture puzzle will play tricks with the senses; an observation that was previously hidden will become immediately once pointed out. This is not a criticism; it means that the authors are acting as a guide to have the reader note what should have been and would have been obvious apart from cultural blinders."The way people chose whom to marry was also very different from how I do it in my individualist world today. In the biblical world, marriages were most commonly arranged. This usually offends our Western sense of individualism. I alone should choose whom I marry. While a noble sentiment, it doesn’t work out as well as we might like" (2020:43-44). Though the authors did not make a connection with how such an understanding impacts the Song of Songs, there is enough here to remind the reader of the dangers of reading that book through 21st Century glasses.

For full disclosure one of the authors, Dr. Richards, is my wife’s boss. I have also taken a course from him at our church and we are more than just acquaintances.Dr. Richards introduced one of the threads in this book during the class I had with him over a year and a half ago and told me that he was finishing a book on the subject. I was eager to learn more and I believe the wait was well worth it.The first thing I noticed was how easy it was to read and that surprised me due to understanding the scholarship that these authors represent. Then next thing that struck me was that I could not discern which of them was writing. Obviously, I am impressed with the writing.The content was well worth the wait. While I have understood for decades that the Bible is an Eastern book and should not be read with a Western mindset, I did not fully understand the extent to which that is true. Several times in the book we are told that the authors did not include things that did not need to be said because they are so ingrained in the culture.I thought I understood shame before I read this book but now I understand it at a different level. Shame is just one of the topics and they need to be all integrated into a mindset that is very different from that of the average Western Individualist. I also understand not only the collectivist mindset better but the individualist mindset as well.I cannot do the book justice and highly recommend reading it. I will be reading it several times to glean all the insight that I believe God has for me so that I can better understand and serve my fellow man.