The King James Bible Across Borders and Centuries (Duquesne University Press) (Hardcover)
Description
Building on the recent spate of scholarly activity that has accompanied the 400th anniversary of the publication of the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible, this multifaceted volume delves into areas that have yet to be much explored in the realm of biblical studies. The 12 essays in The King James Bible across Borders and Centuries - authored by scholars from a wide variety of academic disciplines - examine the KJV both as world literature and as an important force in social, geographical, and linguistic cultures, demonstrating its tremendous influence from the Protestant Reformation to the present day. And as the volume's title suggests, The King James Bible across Borders and Centuries differs significantly from other recent discussions of the KJV by focusing attention on the ways in which this Bible operated and continues to operate to define communities across borders and across centuries. The essays are organized into three parts, each mooring its innovative claims and topics on well-grounded scholarship. The first section, Transforming, focuses on how, from its inception, the KJV has reflected and engendered transformations of religious and scholarly communities within England and throughout the Western world. In part 2, Extending, essays explore the KJV in its travels outside the geographical borders of the European archipelago of England: to its neighbor to the south, where the Spanish Inquisition sought to keep it out of the hands of Spaniards; the Americas, where it was diligently translated so that God's Word could be brought to the Native Americans; and in the expansion of England into Australia and India. Finally, essays in the Appropriating section integrate newer fields of study, touching on areas as disparate as African American issues, Mormonism, gender, and juvenile literature. The King James Bible across Borders and Centuries captures and extends some of the most promising pathways for future consideration as the KJV enters its fifth century.
