![]() When I wasdone I marvelled anew at the huge volume of material Friedman packs intothis relatively small volume.įriedman's scholarship is truly top notch. In order to do Who Wrote the Bible? justice,I re-read most of it and took notes before writing this review. I was tempted to rush throughthe book, only to realize later that I had read too fast to absorb all thematerial properly. Friedman's prose is soeffortless and accessible that I found myself forgetting just how difficultand technical the subject matter really is. Friedman has a real gift for writing.His treatment of difficult topics is simple without ever being simplistic.Is it possible for a book to be too readable? I doubtit, but if so, this book falls into that category. In Who Wrote the Bible? Friedman attempts to explainfor the lay reader what current scholarship says about the authorship ofthe Torah or Pentateuch (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy).In my opinion, he succeeds admirably. In the opinion ofrenowned Old Testament scholar Richard Elliott Friedman, research can actuallyenhance a reader's appreciation of the Bible as history, as literature, andyes, even as sacred scripture. In some cases, this perception may becorrect-the odder pronouncements of the famous and infamous Jesus Seminarcome to mind-but research need not be the foe of faith. Becausetheir work sometimes overturns preconceived or traditional notions aboutthe Bible, scholars investigating the scriptures are perceived as heretical,radical, or even anti-religion. ![]() BIBLICAL RESEARCH IS OFTEN SEEN AS A THREAT TO BIBLICAL FAITH. ![]()
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