Dr. Judy Fentress-Williams Contributes to "The Africana Bible"

Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS) announces the publication of The Africana Bible: Reading Israel's Scriptures from Africa and the African Diaspora (Fortress Press), edited by Hugh R. Page Jr. and featuring VTS Associate Professor of Old Testament, Dr. Judy Fentress-Williams, who is responsible for the section on the book of Exodus.

This book, Dr. Fentress-Williams explains, is in the business of retelling the story of Israel “as a means of affirming, preserving, and, at times, redefining her identity.” (p.81)

“It is a substantial, pioneering, and deeply fascinating publication,” said the Very Rev. Ian S. Markham, dean and president of Virginia Theological Seminary. “Reading this chapter by Dr. Fentress-Williams gave me an entirely new way of understanding the book of Exodus.”

A landmark volume, The Africana Bible gathers multicultural and interdisciplinary perspectives on every book in the Hebrew Bible. It opens a critical window onto the world of interpretation on the African continent and in the multiple diasporas of African peoples, including the African-American experience, with attention to African history, literature, and culture, and Black diasporan backgrounds for understanding biblical literature.

Hugh R. Page Jr. is the Walter Associate Professor of Theology and Dean of First Year of Studies at the University of Notre Dame. He is the editor of Exploring New Paradigms in Biblical and Cognate Studies (1996), The Myth of Cosmic Rebellion: A Study of Its Reflexes in Ugaritic and Biblical Literature (1997), and Exodus (in the People's Bible Commentary Series, 2006).

Dr. Fentress-Williams’ published essays include, “The Bible in Dialogue” in September 11: Religious Perspectives on the Causes and Consequences; Location, Location, Location: Tamar in the Joseph Cycle in Bakhtin and Genre; and Exodus in Biblia Africana. She is currently working on a commentary on the book of Ruth for the Abingdon Old Testament Commentary Series.