On August 6, 2018, post from Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus, I talk about author Lois Tverberg's concept of WEIRD filters. Tverberg claims that being Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic (in countries with voting systems) affects our interpretation of the Bible.
She then goes on to use an example concerning money and the accumulation of wealth, and shows how it could be read differently to Middle Eastern readers.
Authors E. Randolph Richards and Brandon J. O'Brien continue this idea in Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes by talking about social "mores" (or social conventions that dictate which behaviors are considered appropriate or inappropriate) and how those from the West influence Western readers.
The authors specifically focus on the "mores" of sex, food, and money. On page 41, they highlight an interesting dichotomy:
"Westerners instinctively consider wealth an unlimited resource. There's more than enough to go around, we believe. Everyone could be wealthy, if only they tried hard enough. So if you don't have all the money you want, it's because you lack the virtues required for success—industry, frugality, and determination.....
"This understanding of wealth is the very opposite of how many non-Western cultures view it. Outside the West, wealth is often viewed as a limited resource. There is only so much money to be had, so if one person has a lot of it, then everyone else has less to divide among themselves. If you make your slice of the pie larger, then my slice is smaller. In those cultures, folks are more likely to consider the accumulation of wealth to be immoral, since you can only become wealthy if other people become poor."
Having already discussed the "more" of sex, the authors references mentions of modesty in the Bible and point out that to an Eastern reader, they could also be reading "financial modesty" into the text, as well as physical modesty.
How does this affect how we read references to the wealth, the wealthy, and modesty in Scripture?
This book has made me think beyond my WEIRD filters in a new way, and I'm so thankful to have read it. I highly recommend it! Check it out on Amazon if you haven't already!
She then goes on to use an example concerning money and the accumulation of wealth, and shows how it could be read differently to Middle Eastern readers.
Authors E. Randolph Richards and Brandon J. O'Brien continue this idea in Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes by talking about social "mores" (or social conventions that dictate which behaviors are considered appropriate or inappropriate) and how those from the West influence Western readers.
The authors specifically focus on the "mores" of sex, food, and money. On page 41, they highlight an interesting dichotomy:
"Westerners instinctively consider wealth an unlimited resource. There's more than enough to go around, we believe. Everyone could be wealthy, if only they tried hard enough. So if you don't have all the money you want, it's because you lack the virtues required for success—industry, frugality, and determination.....
"This understanding of wealth is the very opposite of how many non-Western cultures view it. Outside the West, wealth is often viewed as a limited resource. There is only so much money to be had, so if one person has a lot of it, then everyone else has less to divide among themselves. If you make your slice of the pie larger, then my slice is smaller. In those cultures, folks are more likely to consider the accumulation of wealth to be immoral, since you can only become wealthy if other people become poor."
Having already discussed the "more" of sex, the authors references mentions of modesty in the Bible and point out that to an Eastern reader, they could also be reading "financial modesty" into the text, as well as physical modesty.
How does this affect how we read references to the wealth, the wealthy, and modesty in Scripture?
This book has made me think beyond my WEIRD filters in a new way, and I'm so thankful to have read it. I highly recommend it! Check it out on Amazon if you haven't already!
