The Oxford Handbook of the Bible and American Popular Culture

Edited by Dan W. Clanton, Jr. and Terry R. Clark

Oxford Handbooks

Explores the current state of the study of the Bible and popular culture, offers examples of work in that field, and suggests future directions for further study
Examines biblical characters and themes in popular culture genres and lived cultural experiences
Assesses methodologies and the impact of the field on teaching and publishing

The Oxford Handbook of the Bible and American Popular Culture

Edited by Dan W. Clanton, Jr. and Terry R. Clark

Description

The study of the reciprocal relationship between the Bible and popular culture has blossomed in the past few decades, and the time seems ripe for a broadly-conceived work that assesses the current state of the field, offers examples of work in that field, and suggests future directions for further study. This Handbook includes a wide range of topics organized under several broad themes, including biblical characters (such as Adam, Eve, David and Jesus) and themes (like Creation, Hell, and Apocalyptic) in popular culture; the Bible in popular cultural genres (for example, film, comics, and Jazz); and "lived" examples (such as museums and theme parks). The Handbook concludes with a section taking stock of methodologies and the impact of the field on teaching and publishing. The Oxford Handbook of the Bible and American Popular Culture represents a major contribution to the field by some of its leading practitioners, and will be a key resource for the future development of the study of both the Bible and its role in American popular culture.

The Oxford Handbook of the Bible and American Popular Culture

Edited by Dan W. Clanton, Jr. and Terry R. Clark

Oxford Handbooks

I. Introduction: Dan W. Clanton, Jr. & Terry R. Clark

II. Biblical Characters in Popular Culture

A. Theresa M. Sanders, "The Impact of Adam & Eve on Popular Culture's Understandings of Women's Roles and Evolution"
B. Linda S. Schearing, "Moses and Popular Culture"
C. Caroline Blyth, "Nic Roeg's Retelling of Judges 16 in Samson and Delilah (1996)"
D. David M. Gunn, "David and Bathsheba in Children's Bibles and Adult Novels"
E. Katherine B. Low, "Queen Esther Imagined as a Disney Princess"
F. Eric Thurman, "Jesus and Post-Soul Satire on the Small Screen"
G. Carol A. Hebron, "Judas in Films"

III. Biblical Themes in Popular Culture

A. James McGrath, "Creation in American Popular Culture"
B. Terry R. Clark, "The Biblical Theme of Covenant and American Popular Culture from Colonial Times to Comic Books"
C. David G. Garber, Jr., "Biblical Prophecy and Popular Fantasy and Science Fiction"
D. Shayna Sheinfeld, "Scenes from the End of the World in American Popular Culture"
E. Deane Galbraith, "Heaven after the Loss of Heaven"
F. Kathryn Gin Lum, "Hell and the Devil"
G. Tina Pippin, "The Rapture in American Imagination"
H. Greg Garrett, "The Afterlife in the Bible and Popular Culture"

IV. Bible in Popular Cultural Genres

A. Gregory Allen Robbins, "Cinematic Transformations of Genesis 1-11"
B. Matthew A. Collins, "Television and the Bible in American Popular Culture"
C. Michael J. Gilmour, "The Bible in Pop and Rock Music"
D. Andrew Moss, "Improvising on the Canon through Jazz Music and Biblical Interpretation in American Popular Culture"
E. Elizabeth Rae Coody, "Non-Biblical Comics Engage the Bible"
F. Scott S. Elliott, "The Book of Jonah in Graphic Novel Adaptations of the Bible"
G. Leonard Greenspoon, "How American Newspaper Comic Strips Portray God, Angels, and Humans"
H. Katja Rakow, "The Material Dimension of the Bible from Print to Digital Text"
I. Rachel Wagner, "Apocalypse and Video Games"

V. "Lived"/Performative Examples of Bible and Popular Culture

A. James S. Bielo, "Theme Parks"
B. Valarie H. Ziegler, "Touring Creation Museums, featuring Dinosaurs in Eden, Philandering Aliens, and the Flood that Changed Molecular Reality!"
C. Dan W. Clanton, Jr., "Crucifixions, Cosplay, and Participatory Fan Cultures"

VI. The State of the Field

A. Scott Langston, "The Ten Commandments, Postcards, and Methodological Issues and Opportunities"
B. Jane Webster, "Teaching Bible and American Popular Culture"
C. Robert Paul Seesengood, "Publishing in Bible and American Popular Culture"

The Oxford Handbook of the Bible and American Popular Culture

Edited by Dan W. Clanton, Jr. and Terry R. Clark

Oxford Handbooks

Author Information

Dan W. Clanton, Jr. is Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Doane University in Crete, NE. A researcher of aesthetic interpretations of biblical literature and the intersection between religion and (popular) culture, he has written Daring, Disreputable, and Devout: Interpreting the Hebrew Bible's Women in the Arts and Music; edited or co-edited The End Will Be Graphic: Apocalyptic in Comic Books and Graphic Novels and Understanding Religion and Popular Culture. Since 2017, he is the Program Chair of the Society of Biblical Literature's National Bible and Popular Culture Section.

Terry R. Clark is a Professor of Religion at Georgetown College in Georgetown, KY. Teaching a broad range of religious topics, including Religion and Popular Culture, Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, World Religions, and other cultural/historical studies, his chief concern is interpreting texts both ancient and modern in light of their historical context. He has published in the fields of Biblical Interpretation and Religion and Popular Culture, including Understanding Religion and Popular Culture (2012) and "I Will Be King over You": The Rhetoric of Divine Kingship in the Book of Ezekiel (2014).

Contributors:

Editors
Dan W. Clanton, Jr., Doane University
Terry R. Clark, Georgetown College

Contributors
Theresa M. Sanders, Georgetown University
Linda S. Schearing, Gonzaga University
Caroline Blyth,University of Auckland
David M. Gunn, Texas Christian University
Katherine B. Low, Mary Baldwin College
Eric Thurman, Sewanee, The University of the South
Carol A. Hebron, Charles Sturt University,
James McGrath, Butler University
David G. Garber, Jr., McAfee School of Theology
Shayna Sheinfeld, Centre College
Deane Galbraith, University of Otago
Kathryn Gin Lum, Stanford University
Tina Pippin, Agnes Scott College
Greg Garrett, Baylor University
Gregory Allen Robbins, University of Denver
Matthew A. Collins, University of Chester
Michael J. Gilmour, Providence University College
Andrew Moss, Durham University
Elizabeth Rae Coody, Morningside College
Scott S. Elliott, Adrian College
Leonard Greenspoon, Creighton University
Katja Rakow, Utrecht University-Netherlands
Rachel Wagner, Ithaca College
James S. Bielo, Miami University of Ohio
Valarie H. Ziegler, DePauw University
Scott Langston, Texas Christian University
Jane Webster,Barton College
Robert Paul Seesengood, Eastern University/

The Oxford Handbook of the Bible and American Popular Culture

Edited by Dan W. Clanton, Jr. and Terry R. Clark

Oxford Handbooks

Reviews and Awards

"amazingly thorough and insightful" -- Jim West, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament

"This hefty volume promises to be enormously helpful for teaching the Bible in contemporary academic settings. Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty; professionals." -- R. A. Boisclair, Alaska Pacific University, CHOICE

"It is difficult, if not impossible, to dispute the claim that the Bible holds the place as the single most influential book in America's history. ... In forty-two essays, the work examines different aspects of the Bible and how it has been translated, designed, produced, and distributed over the course of American history." -- Rabbi Dr. Stu Halpern, The Zahava and Moshael Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought