American Philosophers Read Scripture

This collection introduces readers to the philosophical interpretation of Scripture, specifically within American Philosophy. The purpose of the collection concerns starting a conversation about the practice and task of the philosophical interpretation of Scripture. Reflections on the philosophical interpretation of Scripture have been treated more as a “conversation-stopper” than a conversation-starter within the American academy. To start such a conversation, this collection offers substantive accounts of the role of Scripture in the philosophical thought of fifteen American philosophers: Jane Addams, Henry Bugbee, Stanley Cavell, John Dewey, Jonathan Edwards, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller, William James, Martin Luther King, Jr., Charles Sanders Peirce, Josiah Royce, Richard Rorty, George Santayana, Henry David Thoreau, and Cornel West.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments Introduction Section 1. Reading Genesis and Job with American Philosophers 1. Ann W. Duncan & Jacob L. Goodson, “Immortal Eve”? Genesis 1-3 in Margaret Fuller's Woman in the Nineteenth Century 2. Edward F. Mooney, “In Demonstration of the Spirit”: Henry Bugbee's Meditations on the Book of Job Section 2. Reading the Prophets with American Philosophers 3. William J. Danaher Jr., “Fire Enfolding Itself”: Jonathan Edwards and the Merkabah 4. Willie Young, Gathering the Wild Fruits of Scripture: Henry David Thoreau's Philosophical Interpretations of Scripture 5. Lawrence Ware, The Black Prophetic Tradition: Cornel West, Abraham Heschel, and the Biblical Prophets Section 3. Philosophical Interpretations of the Synoptic Gospels 6. Jacob L. Goodson, “Ye Shall Know Them By Their Fruits”: Ralph Waldo Emerson's Interpretation of Jesus' Logical Rule 7. John R. Shook, Let the Philosophers Bury Their Own Dead: Matthew 8 and Luke 9 in John Dewey's Philosophy Section 4.

About the Author :
Jacob L. Goodson is assistant professor of philosophy at Southwestern College.

Review :
This collection of explorations into the manner and purpose of American philosophers’ reading of Scripture pushes back against trends in academic philosophy that seek to block this path of inquiry. The authors investigate the question with acuity, inventiveness, and care, such that the reader wants to learn more about the philosophers, previously known or unknown, whose use of Scripture has gone unnoticed or ignored. The book is a welcome invitation to a rich and longer conversation. American Philosophers Read Scripture breaks down the old reason versus revelation debate surrounding scriptural interpretation by showing how American philosophers—regardless of theological tradition or religious orientation—used scripture as evidence for arguments or as inspirational starting-points of musement and action. It also highlights the critical role that reading plays in the life of those who write, be it Biblical texts or not. It also works at a meta-level, as astute philosophy and religion scholars read scripture along with those classic American scholars who read scripture. The book reminds us that the philosophical life extends into whatever text we read. Surprising—I am delighted but surprised by the subject of this book. I had agreed to blurb the book because I think so highly of its editor, but I confess I thought the topic to be "one off." But these are wonderful essays that not only through light on largely ignored American philosophers (Bugbee) but just as important we learn how scripture can be read in constructive manner. I cannot recommend this book highly enough because it turns out the subject is not only interesting but significant for how to go on philosophically.