Slaves, Women, and Homosexuals: Exploring the Hermeneutics of Cultural Analysis

by William J. Webb, Darrell L. Bock (Foreword)

In Slaves, Women & Homosexuals William J. Webb tackles some of the most complex and controversial issues that have challenged the Christian church--and still do. He leads you through the maze of interpretation that has historically surrounded understanding of slaves, women and homosexuals, and he evaluates various approaches to these and other biblical-ethical teachings. Throughout, Webb attempts to "work out the hermeneutics involved in distinguishing that which is merely cultural in Scripture from that which is timeless" (Craig A. Evans). By the conclusion, Webb has introduced and developed a "redemptive hermeneutic" that can be applied to many issues that cause similar dilemmas. Darrel L. Bock writes in the foreword to Webb's work, "His goal is not only to discuss how these groups are to be seen in light of Scriptures but to make a case for a specific hermeneutical approach to reading these texts. . . . This book not only advances a discussion of the topics, but it also takes a markedly new direction toward establishing common ground where possible, potentially breaking down certain walls of hostility within the evangelical community."

Genres: Theology, Christian, Christianity, Religion, Biblical Studies, Nonfiction, Womens

301 pages, Paperback

First published April 30, 2001

About the author

Dr. Bill Webb (Ph.D. Dallas Theological Seminary), is Adjunct Professor of Biblical Studies at Tyndale Seminary. He has worked as a pastor, chaplain, and professor over a span of over twenty years. He is married (Marilyn) with three grown children (Jonathan, Christine, and Joel) and a dog (Muffin).

Reviews

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

William Webb proposes a redemptive-movement hermeneutic as the best way to interpret scripture, using it to investigate issues controversial in the contemporary church regarding women and homosexuals. He lays out 18 criteria, ranging from persuasive to inconclusive, on how to analyze scripture.

His argument is that all scripture comes to particular culture; the question is what principles transcend cultures. In regards women, he shows that though some of the passages of scripture seem archaic to us, in their context these passages lifted women up from where they were to a higher plane. He then argues that to be faithful to scripture is not to stop here, but to follow the pointers in scripture to their logical conclusion which is complementary egalitarianism: men and women are different (they complement one another), but are equal in their service to society and the church. Or, to get right to the point, women can serve in the church in any way men can.

In regards to homosexual we find that while the ancient cultures were very accepting of homosexual practice scripture moves counter-culturally to condemn these practices. There are no pointers to an ultimate acceptance of homosexuality, as there were with women's issues. His conclusion is that the church is correct in not condoning homosexual practice.

Some will say that Webb is on a slippery slope by arguing that the texts on women are cultural. But he persuasively shows that all interpreters of the Bible admit some things are cultural. For example, no Christians use scripture's acceptance of slavery to argue for slavery, no Christians give their firstborn double inheritance, and we do not greet with a holy kiss. The question to tackle is which parts of scripture are cultural and which transcend. Perhaps it is a slippery slope, but it is a slope that all who interpret scripture are forced to live on.

Overall I found this book liberating and challenging. Coming from a church that does not allow women to be pastors, this is something I have wrestled with. Webb's arguments give the reader a lot to chew on and cannot be ignored. I recommend this book to anyone who desires to understand the Bible's teachings on women and homosexuals.

*2022 Update - I’ve noticed this review has gotten a few likes recently. To be fair to anyone who stumbles across it, I should note that I read this 14 years ago. It was tremendously helpful at the time and I agreed with the conclusions, including Webb’s opposition to same-sex relationships. Since then I have continued to listen and learn, and have since moved to fully affirming same-sex relationships. If interested, the books I have read on this subject are all on this shelf:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

[Adam Omelianchuk · Rating 3 out of 5]

More like 3.5 stars...

Perhaps the most interesting and most controversial book on biblical interpretation published in the last ten years is William J. Webb’s Slaves, Women & Homosexuals. The austere title signals to the reader three subjects that have been the most debated in the last 200 years. And for good reason: all who make up those people groups have been marginalized and oppressed under those who supposedly hold the authority of scripture.

Webb takes seriously the intuitions of the modern reader who is rightly appalled after reading a text like Exodus 21:20-21:

“If a man beats his male or female slave with a rod and the slave dies as a direct result, he must be punished, but he is not to be punished if the slave gets up after a day or two, since the slave is his property.”

What to make of such a barbaric practice, which appears to be sanctioned by the Bible? Webb’s answer: read it from the slave’s point of view. At the time it was written, this was seen as having a softening effect on the institution of slavery; under the Mosaic Law, slaveholders could not go beyond certain limits, specifically causing the death of their slave. Unlike the surrounding culture, which put no limits on slaveholders, this text has a ‘redemptive component’ that moves the culture towards a better ethic, one that ultimately vindicates the abolition of slavery. Thus, to read the ‘words on the page’ in isolation from their redemptive spirit and ethical movement is to misunderstand the text.


This raises the question of cultural analysis: how to go about it? By what criteria do we discern the cultural components of a text from the transcultural ones? Webb proposes 18 different criteria meant to discriminate texts that address passing cultural conditions from those that are applicable in all times and places. As a result, he concludes that a “redemptive-movement” hermeneutic leads to the abolition of slavery and either egalitarian gender roles or what he calls “ultra-soft patriarchy” (symbolic male headship that is functionally egalitarian); but, he concludes, it does not lead to the blessing of covenantal same-sex relationships.

I leave it to the reader to explore the soundness of Webb’s criteria, but I am less sanguine about his project than I used to be. While there is much I agree with regarding how his hermeneutic determines what the text is saying, why it says it, and where it is taking those who apply it, I think the categories of “cultural” and “transcultural” are too vague to be helpful. For example, when discussing how scientific evidence determines whether a text is “cultural” or “transcultural” he brings up the texts that appear to presume a geocentric view of the cosmos, and says, “the geocentric component of biblical cosmology is cultural...” This is an odd way of putting it. Wouldn’t it be more accurate to say that the biblical cosmology is false?

I think so, and therein lies the problem. There are certain questions that are not best served by appeals to cultural relativity. Here a few that are relevant to the issues of slavery and female subordination:

[1] Is it ever morally permissible to own another human being?
[2] Is the following proposition coherent: ‘x is equal with y and x is designed to be subordinate to y?’
[3] Is a hierarchy that stipulates that person P is subordinate to person Q by virtue of P’s being P a morally acceptable form of hierarchy?

Each answer demands a 'yes' or 'no' answer. Making a judgment either way is not determined by whether a text is culturally relative; rather, our judgments about these questions determine whether the texts in question are morally flawed or accommodating a morally flawed situation. Texts that address the topic of divorce are a good example. Begin by asking whether the Bible allows for the permissibility of divorce. If we say 'yes,' then we have to decide whether the text is morally flawed or accommodating morally flawed situations. If it is morally flawed, then we are judging it by a prior 'no-divorce' ethic. If it is accommodating morally flawed situations, we have to determine what those situations are and apply the text accordingly. If we say 'no, it doesn't permit divorce', then we have to explain why certain texts seem to allow for divorce (and how do you do that?).

As for slavery, either the Bible says it is morally permissible (under certain circumstances), or that it is impermissible, but in circumstances when it is slavery is a fact of life, we should act in such-and-such way. Categories of truth or falsity, and moral permissibility or impermissibility are the relevant issues at stake--not whether things are "cultural" or "transcultural." (If it were, I would have expected a longer treatment of head coverings, but alas they went unaddressed.)

This is precisely what made the argument for abolition so difficult. The pro-slavery side could always say, "Look, if the circumstances are such that slavery is part of the economy, then these are the principles we have to abide by (submitting without complaint, not being harsh, ect)." This is the same problem that faces egalitarians: if women are uneducated or become utterly dependent on the physical labor of males, then the acceptability of female subordination in the home and church seems to follow. Yet Webb (rightly, I think) would advocate for abolition and egalitarian gender roles. But why? I assume it is because he thinks a more thoroughgoing biblical theology of the "ultimate ethic" he appeals to can be established. Unfortunately, he spends little time developing it. Of course, it isn't fair to expect this from a book devoted to developing criteria for cultural analysis, but his conclusions largely rest on some weighty background assumptions.

All this is not to say that Webb's hermeneutic and his 18 criteria are not useful and informative. There is a lot worth considering, and those who disagree with him have their work cut out for them in defending a "static" hermeneutic.

[Barry · Rating 5 out of 5]

How are we supposed to know which parts of the Bible are meant to be applied today? It’s a challenging question. Most Christians do not feel compelled to follow the dietary restrictions laid out in the Torah, nor to avoid wearing mixed-fabric clothing, but would still maintain that the Ten Commandments should be obeyed. Are we being inconsistent? Many will point out that laws regarding temple sacrifice and other rituals are no longer in force since Jesus was the perfect sacrificial lamb thereby superseding the temple cult. Additionally, Peter’s vision in Acts revokes the ban on unclean foods. But these specific New Testament updates still leave many areas unaddressed.

Webb proposes that the Bible be interpreted through a “Redemptive Movement Hermeneutic.” He regards God’s word in scripture as dynamic rather than static. He contends that God’s edicts are sometimes meant to push his people in a particular direction (often away from the surrounding culture) one step at a time toward a perfect ideal. In his wisdom, God knows that we can often only take baby steps in the right direction, being the fallen and finite creatures we are.

At root we need to know how to determine which biblical admonishments are purely cultural (only applicable to that particular culture at the time) and which are transcultural (meant to be applied to every culture at all times). Here Webb specifically evaluates what the Bible has to say about slavery, the role of women, and homosexuality.

Webb sets out 18 criteria—ordered from most to least persuasive—which can used to judge whether a particular command is meant to apply to all cultures for all time, or whether it should be regarded as God nudging his people in a particular direction in a step-wise fashion toward a future perfect ideal. He uses the three topics of the book’s title as his test cases for each criterion. The format may occasionally seem dry, but it’s refreshingly systematic and objective.

I’m concerned that if I reveal Webb’s conclusions, those who hold differing views will be dissuaded from reading the book. This would really be a shame, but I’ll proceed nevertheless. Based on the proposed heuristic, Webb shows that the most persuasive criteria would indicate that the Bible in its totality promotes the ideal of the complete abolition of slavery. This is the most straightforward of the three issues. Regarding the role of women in society and church, the criteria seem to push for either an egalitarian viewpoint or an “ultra-soft paternalism.” Regarding homosexual behavior the criteria demonstrate that the Bible pushes away from the sexual permissiveness of the surrounding cultures and toward restricting sexual intimacy to marriage of one man and one woman.


Here are the specific criteria Webb proposes:

PERSUASIVE CRITERIA:

Criterion 1: Preliminary Movement

“A component of a text may be culturally bound if Scripture modifies the original cultural norms in such a way that suggests further movement is possible and even advantageous in a subsequent culture. Two questions bring this criterion into focus: (1) Has Scripture modified the original cultural norms? (2) If so, is the movement an "absolute movement" or a "preliminary movement"?
* Absolute movement: the biblical author has pushed society so far and that is as far as it is supposed to go; further movement is not desired.
* Preliminary movement: the biblical author pushed society as far as it could go at that time without creating more damage than good; however, it can and should ultimately go further.”

Criterion 2: Seed Ideas

“A component of a text may be cultural if "seed ideas" are present within the rest of Scripture to suggest and encourage further movement on a particular subject. As the imagery implies, the seed is not fully grown…Texts with seed ideas would probably have moved the original audience only in a limited fashion. Nonetheless, within what they affirm these texts imply that the scrimmage marker could be pushed further.”
(Eg “neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free..”)

Criterion 3: Breakouts

“A component of a text may be culturally confined if the social norms reflected in that text are completely "broken out of" in other biblical texts…While a seedbed idea is subtle and quiet due to its unrealized form, a breakout is a much more pronounced deviation by Seripture from the cultural norms. Here the text completely overturns the expected norms. Also, the seedbed is theoretical/potential, whereas the breakout is real or actualized relative to the original audience...
Once again, it is important to note that the direction of the further movement in the breakout is the same direction as the preliminary movement in other texts relative to the broader culture.”

Criterion 4: Purpose/Intent Statements

“A component of a text may be culturally bound, if by practicing the text one no longer fulfills the text's original intent or purpose. The other side of this criterion is that a text is more likely to be transcultural to the degree that its original purpose is fulfilled when practiced in a subsequent culture and time.”

Criterion 5: Basis in Fall or Curse

“A component of a text may be transcultural if its basis is rooted in the fall of humanity or the curse. Since the curse has an ongoing effect (it is still painful to have babies, the ground still produces weeds and people still die), then it might appear that something rooted in the curse should be classified as transcultural.”

MODERATELY PERSUASIVE CRITERIA:

Criterion 6: Basis in Original Creation, Section 1: Patterns

“A component of a text may be transcultural if its basis is rooted in the original-creation material.”

Criterion 7: Basis in Original Creation, Section 2: Primogeniture

“A component of a text may be transcultural, if it is rooted in the original-creation material and, more specifically, its creative order. By ‘creation order’ what is being referred to is the chronological priority in which Adam and Eve were created: ‘Adam was formed first, then Eve’ (as noted by Paul in 1 Tim 2:13). This order seems to carry considerable weight for the apostle Paul as he applies it to the issue of teaching within the church.”

Criterion 8: Basis in New Creation

“A component of a text may be transcultural if it is rooted in new-creation material.“

Criterion 9: Competing Options

“A component of text is more likely to be transcultural, if presented in a time and setting when other competing options existed in the broader cultures. Conversely, the probability of a component of a text being cultural is greater if alternatives would not have been readily imagined or conceived of by the original writer.”

Criterion 10: Opposition to Original Culture

“A component of a text is more likely to be transcultural if it counters or stands in opposition to the original culture. When Scripture speaks directly against a particular practice within the ancient setting, the dissonance with the original context generally ensures its transcultural status…The same criterion has a natural flip-side expression.”

Criterion 11: Closely Related Issues

“A component of a text may be cultural if ‘closely related issues’ to that text/issue are also themselves culturally bound. When aspects related to a particular issue are culturally relative, then quite possibly the related issue itself is culturally relative. If we were to draw a comparison from the legal world, this criterion would be similar to what is known as circumstantial evidence.”

Criterion 12: Penal Code

“A prohibited or prescribed action within the text may be culturally bound (at least in its most concrete, nonabstracted form) if the penalty for violation is surprisingly light or not even mentioned. To put the dictum another way: the less severe the penalty for a particular action, the more likely it is of having culturally bound components. The converse should also hold true.”

Criterion 13: Specific Instructions Versus General Principles

“A component of a text may be culturally relative if its specific instructions appear to be at odds with the general principles of Scripture. With this criterion we are asking the question, does the text appear to clash with the general principles of Scripture? Was the application in some measure a concession to or a reflection of the culture at that time? Our assumption here is that specific statements within Scripture are more likely to be culturally confined in some aspect than general statements. Conversely, the more general a statement is, the more likely it is transcultural in nature.”

INCONCLUSIVE CRITERIA:

Criterion 14: Basis in Theological Analogy

“A component of a text may be transcultural if its basis is rooted in the character of God or Christ through theological analogy. This phenomenon within the biblical text may be referred to as ‘theologizing’ or creating ‘theological analogies.’”

Criterion 15: Contextual Comparisons

“A text or something within a text may be transcultural to the degree that other apects in a specialized context, such as a list or grouping, are transcultural.”

Criterion 16: Appeal to the Old Testament

“A practice within a New Testament text may or may not be transcultural if appeal is (or could be) made to the Old Testament in support of that practice. Continuity between Testaments offers no assurance of transcultural status. On the other hand, discontinuity between Testaments is a fairly reliable indicator that a practice/text has a significant cultural component within it.”

EXTRASCRIPTURAL CRITERIA:

Criterion 17: Pragmatic Basis Between Two Cultures

“A component of a biblical imperative may be culturally relative if the pragmatic basis for the instruction cannot be sustained from one culture to another. The converse is that a biblical command is more likely to be transcultural in its articulated form to the extent that the pragmatic factors are themselves sustainable across various cultures.”

Criterion 18: Scientific and Social-Scientific Evidence

“A component of a text may be culturally confined if it is contrary to present-day scientic evidence. Should scientific or social-scientific research produce evidence that conflicts with the text, then it may be that the particular affirmation in the biblical text reflects a cultural or time-locked perspective. This may signal possible cultural components within a text and prompt us to move up the ladder of abstraction in order to discover the underlying transcultural principle.”

[E.M. Welcher · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is long, and has a great deal of information. The appendices and footnotes are also there. Ultimately the premise presents a poor hermeneutic wherein many of the interpretive conclusions can be dismissed as opinion. There are some good points in the book, but the definition of what “redemptive” is could be defined in a “everyone did that which was right in their own eyes for there was no king in the land in those days” sort of way.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an amazing book on hermeneutics, as well as one of the two most compelling books I’ve read on the subject of women in ministry.

Webb’s approach to hermeneutics is one that most Christians unconsciously employ to an extent already, and that goes a long way in explaining troubling OT passages as well. Many of the passages pertaining to slavery, warfare, women, etc., look regressive to us from where were we stand, but to the original readers were incredibly redemptive. And Webb’s argument is that in many cases they point beyond even where Scripture leaves them, and toward an ultimate Kingdom ethic which the people of God continue to live into as we seek to be obedient to the words of Scripture.

Webb uses the example of slavery in the Bible to present what he refers to as a “redemptive movement hermeneutic.” Slavery is no where condemned in the Bible, and this lack of condemnation was too often been used by past proponents of slavery to argue for its justification. But we see in the Scriptures a progression of thought that eventually has pointed the people of God to the universal conclusion that slavery does not represent God’s ultimate intention, or the final expression of his will for people. The progression begins in the Old Testament with a dramatic shift in the way slaves were to be treated in Israel as compared to surrounding nations, laws that make slavery more humane (while preserving the merciful “welfare” function that slavery served for the poor in the ancient Near East), and in the New Testament the elevation of slaves to equality with free people, Paul’s urging of Philemon to set Onesimus free, etc. This trajectory, or redemptive movement, led the Church to the conclusion that though the ultimate abolition of slavery is not explicitly called for in the Scriptures, it is (now) universally accepted that such a conclusion is where the Scriptures compel us to go.

Webb makes a lengthy and compelling argument that a similar trajectory exists in Scripture as it pertains to the place of women in society and in the church. The Old Testament dramatically elevates the place of women in comparison with the rest of the ancient Near East, and this trajectory clearly develops and expands as the OT progresses, and as the NT dramatically expands upon both the worth of and roles of women. Webb acknowledges the legitimate questions that remain over whether women, though equal to men, are meant to function in certain church roles but not others, and suggests options that deal seriously with those passages. Webb’s conclusion is that the Bible’s redemptive movement points to one of two options: ultra-soft patriarchy, or complementary egalitarianism, as he calls them. Wherever one falls in their view of women in ministry, it would be hard to remain unmoved by the case Webb makes.

Along with this, Webb tackles the issue of homosexuality, and shows that contrary to what some of its advocates claim, it is nearly impossible to identify a similar trajectory on this issue. The Scriptures are consistent in denying that homosexual practice is a God-honoring expression of sexuality. While Christians are to be unreservedly loving of homosexuals, they cannot on biblical grounds affirm their lifestyle.

One potential blind spot for readers to be aware of: Webb gives weight to each of his arguments as the book progresses (from “highly persuasive” to “inconclusive”), and in this reader’s opinion is very fair as he does so. However, where one puts the weight in what constitutes persuasive criteria is somewhat subjective, and the reader should keep this in mind as they take in this study.

This book is must-reading for anyone wrestling through the issue of women in ministry. Highly recommended!

[Alex Strohschein · Rating 5 out of 5]

William J. Webb has written the definitive book for egalitarian-oriented evangelicals who remain biblical and orthodox in their understanding of homosexuality as sin. The book is exhaustive, covering the issues of slavery, women and homosexuality and how Christians should engage with passages touching on them. Webb sees a crucial distinction between cultural (dependent upon historical context) and transcultural values in Scripture. He proposes a "redemptive-movement" hermeneutic that would maintain the "spirit" of the text but adapt it to contemporary understandings. He points out that many who hold to a "static" hermeneutic do not actually consistently adhere to or practice the hermeneutic (while women may be barred from preaching/teaching in certain denominations, virtually no denomination, egalitarian or complementarian, would demand women cover their heads). Other admonitions in the Bible have been abandoned (e.g. washing one another's feet, though Adventists still practice this, along with Saturday worship - another alteration by non-Adventist Christians).

This is probably closer to a 4.5. My main criticism of Webb's book is that it is so exhaustive that it gets a little unwieldy and difficult to follow; while I appreciate Webb's engagement with the slavery texts and the relevance it has for hermeneutical discussion, it seems a little out-of-place compared to women and homosexuality (which at least have the commonality of being about gender and sexuality). Webb is winsomely gracious and irenic in his engagement with those on his "left" and those on his "right" - even going so far as to write a whole chapter entitled, "What If I Am Wrong?" and he celebrates the differences between the sexes rather than ignoring them (he refers to his preferred posture as a "complementary egalitarian). Webb engages with sociohistorical circumstances, theological considerations and scientific research in delivering his assessments. Highly recommended for Christians interested in and especially confused by hermeneutics and sexuality.

[Genni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even Christians who adopt a literal, “common sense” hermeneutical approach to the Bible grant that there are aspects of Scripture they don’t follow, such as animal sacrifice. Yet they haven’t worked out why, exactly, they follow certain commands and not others. This book is the perfect place to start in this situation. As with any hermeneutic, nothing here is iron-clad, but the author’s thorough examination of how to parse commands combined with trademark Jesus-like humility make this a worthy contribution to the discussion.

[Ethan Sink · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite the title, this book is really about “the women’s issue” (i.e., patriarchy vs. egalitarianism). Specifically, should the modern church still apply the apparent patriarchy of the biblical text? The question comes down to hermeneutics: how do we know what to apply and what to discard or modify? Webb proposes a “redemptive hermeneutic” that aims to determine not just what the Bible says about a given topic, but also to determine how the text attempts to move or modify the culture of the original audience. A redemptive hermeneutic looks at the direction in which the text moves its audience and leaves open the possibility that God wants his people to move further in that direction. In contrast, a “static hermeneutic” maintains that God’s people should just practice the stated words of the text (with maybe some minor modifications). To help define the redemptive hermeneutic, Webb offers 18 specific criteria for evaluating how to apply a text today.

This is where the slavery issue comes in. Webb’s (largely implied) point is that you can’t get to an abolitionist perspective without some sort of redemptive hermeneutic. So if we adopt a redemptive hermeneutic for slavery, why not when it comes to women’s roles, another area in which our society is drastically more equal than what we see in the Bible?

Of course, many are quick to object that such an argument leaves us open to cultural relativism: any area in which our culture promotes greater equality/freedom can thus be excused, and we can ignore the biblical witness. That’s why Webb includes homosexuality. While some aspects of the redemptive hermeneutic might seem to point towards homosexual inclusivity at first, Webb demonstrates that when the hermeneutic is applied, the biblical text consistently points away from homosexual acceptance. In other words, while with the women’s issue Webb finds the redemptive arrow pointing toward more freedom/equality, with the homosexual issue he finds the arrow pointing the other way.

Overall, I think Webb does a good job defining his criteria and I largely agree with his main concept of a redemptive hermeneutic. He also is to be commended for being very humble and gracious with other viewpoints; he even devotes an entire chapter to considering “what if I am wrong?” So, why only three stars? Well, I have two main problems with this book. First, Webb organizes his book around the 18 criteria. While I can understand how this might have been easier from an author’s perspective (he probably had to write less!) and it also allowed him to frame his argument as almost entirely about hermeneutics, I found it to be frankly confusing. This layout requires you to constantly switch back and forth from slavery to women to homosexuality. I think it would have been better to just deal with one topic at a time. Second, while I agree that we must have some sort of redemptive hermeneutic (because Scripture itself uses one!), Webb’s could have been more carefully refined. Specifically, I think Webb needed to focus more on the goal of a redemptive hermeneutic. What’s the end goal? What exactly is God trying to move his people to? Is it recapturing Eden, or maintaining the NT church, or looking forward to the eschaton? Or some combination of the above? Webb does discuss this some, but I was unsatisfied with his answers to those questions.

So, TLDR; this book has some really great criteria for determining how to apply the Bible, but needs a slightly more developed theory behind it.

[Kaity · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was helpful but so so boring. I would give it an extra star just for Appendix D: Women Created From Man and For Man (An Assessment of 1 Corinthians 11:8-9) because I enjoyed that appendix more than I enjoyed the entirety of the book.
PS I understand that a boring book is not a bad book, but this is my goodreads and I do what I want.

[Chad Gibbons · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. This book should be read alongside any hermeneutics text. Webb highlights a crucial element in hermeneutics that is usually on the periphery of hermeneutics textbooks: Cultural hermeneutics. We must not only study the text itself, but the relationship of the text to the culture it was originally written to. From that point, we also need to study our own cultural context so we can bring in those ideas to our own lives.
Webb is calling on us to seek out the “Redemptive Movement” of the text to determine how we might live out the spirit of the text in our culture.
Doing this is difficult, as it requires us determining which parts of scripture are culturally bound (and look different lived out from culture to culture), and which parts of scripture are “transcultural” (these are the things that are true, no matter what culture considers them.) Webb gives 18 criteria to determine the answer to that exact question. They are more or less in order of weight and importance, though some criteria will be more persuasive than others depending on the topic under consideration. Webb uses each criteria to look at three specific topics as examples: Slaves, Women, and Homosexuality.

(I’m summarizing each criterion Webb offers for my own sake.)

Criteria 1: Preliminary movement
What direction is the text pointing from the original culture. If we are to be faithful to the text, we need to follow the direction it is pointing the original culture and then follow that same direction from our own culture.

Criteria 2: Seed Ideas
Sometimes texts will contain “seed ideas”, that, if followed, would destroy original cultural practices. These ideas are helpful to see transcultural ideas that come from beyond the original culture. Paul telling Philemon that Onesimus is “no longer a slave, but a brother” is one of the seeds that eventually brought down the system of slavery and gives evidence to a transcultural ideal that Paul was working from.

Criteria 3: Breakouts
Sometimes The text will completely shatter cultural practices with totally different ways to live. These ideas are strong suggestions that God is calling from beyond a specific cultural practice.

Criteria 4: Purpose/Intent Statements
Texts that have underlying reasons or principles why certain things are to be done are helpful to break out of cultural molds. Sometimes following the words on the page would be to go AGAINST the spirit of the text in a different cultural context. We need to ultimately follow the purposes and intents of the authors if we are to be true to God’s calling.

Criteria 5: Basis in Fall or Curse
If a text is rooted in the fall or the curse, these things are more than likely to be transcultural, as they are based on a different culture than the original text already.

Criteria 6: Basis in Original Creation: Patterns
The flipside of Criteria 5, except we look to Edenic patterns.

Criteria 7: Basis in Original Creation: Primogeniture
This one seemed unique and ad-hoc to me. There are many places throughout scripture that are apparently coming from the idea of primogeniture (primacy of the firstborn). Is primogeniture a cultural ideal that we read into the text, or one that is built into creation? A difficult criteria to parse out, in my opinion. The author agrees, citing places that scripture itself argues AGAINST the idea of primogeniture.

Criteria 8: Basis in New Creation
If the author of a text is basing his reasoning on New Creation, rather than their own culture, this argues for their words being transcultural.

Criteria 9: Competing Options
Often, there are many different cultures swirling around at any given time. If there are multiple cultures, and scripture favors one over another, that speaks to the idea that other cultures are off base in one way or another. If there are no other competing options at the time, then we would have a hard time saying that the ideas they present are transcultural, as the authors would have nothing else to look to or even imagine.

Criteria 10: Opposition to Original Culture
Similar to criteria 1-3. “When practices are identified as integral parts of pagan culture and yet are forbidden in the OT and NT, they should be forbidden in our culture as well.”

Criteria 11: Closely Related Issues
“Circumstantial evidence”. Sometimes you can look at the related or surrounding material to see if they are also culturally bound, or transcultural.

Criteria 12: Penal Code
Items that show up as capital punishment in the OT penal code are almost universally understood as being transcultural (murder, cursing God, sacrificing children, etc.). The items with less serious punishments tend to be more culturally bound.
There is a helpful breakdown of OT punishments in the penal code (from most transcultural items to more culturally bound items)
1. Capital punishment (25 OT offenses fall in this category)
2. “Cut off” from the people (YHWH turns His face against...)
3. Secondary punishments (sickness, childlessness, imprisonment, etc.)
4. Ceremonial impurity (either permanent or temporary)
5. Restrictions within the camp (either separation from people and cult, or just temple cult)

Criteria 13: Specific Instruction vs. General Principles
Similar to criteria 4. Specific statements in scripture are more likely to be culturally bound than general statements.

Criteria 14: Basis in Theological Analogy
A statement that is rooted in the character of God or Christ through analogy may be transcultural. However, sometimes the reasoning the authors use IS culturally bound. This is a tough one.

Criteria 15: Contextual Comparisons
Items showing up in vice and virtue lists are more than likely transcultural (ie, fruits of the spirit, beatitudes, sin lists, etc). If our topic shows up in one of these lists, they are more than likely transcultural.

Criteria 16: Appeal to the Old Testament
When there is discontinuity between the Old and New Testaments, there is a strong possibility that might have been culturally contextual. Continuity between the testaments is inconclusive (for determining transcultural status).

(These last two are lower on the totem pole)
Criteria 17: Pragmatic Basis Between Two Cultures
Some things aren’t practical from culture to culture. These things may be culturally bound. “Leave the corners of your fields unharvested”, “Foot washing?”

Criteria 18: Scientific and Social Scientific Evidence
Some ideas might be based on a misunderstanding of the physical world, or something God accommodated to the original culture (ie. Geocentric ideas, human reproductive ideas, germ theory). Something based on these ideas may be culturally bound.


The conclusion of the three “test subjects” the book uses is:
Slavery and women texts: Almost universally culturally bound. The redemptive-movement from culture is toward liberation and equality.
Homosexual texts: Almost universal transcultural prohibitions. The movement from culture is in a restrictive direction.

[Benjamin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was assigned reading for my MA in hermeneutics. The whole book is essentially a list of principles on how to discern which parts of the biblical text are transcultural and which are culture-specific—a very interesting and important question. Webb writes clearly and goes through each of his 18 principles, applying them each in turn to the questions of slavery, the role of women and homosexuality. Spoiler alert: he defends a position he calls "complementary egalitarianism" (something that neither most egalitarians nor most complimentarians would agree with) and maintains that the Bible's ban on homosexuality is transcultural and remains in play. The book may be quite helpful for those looking to engage with and answer the pro-LGBTQ stance that recently some have sought to defend biblically. Webb shows why this doesn't work on the basis of the various principles. However, while his principles are generally solid, he applies them in ways that seem to skew things towards his chosen position of egalitarianism. At times he seems to give more weight to certain passages over others seemingly with no basis other than his personal preference. Beyond that, he seems to pay little attention to redemptive history, throwing OT and NT passages together indiscriminately as though "this is the Bible's position" doesn't account for development over time. The book spurred me on to a lot of thoughtful engagement with the egalitarian position (I made copious notes) and for that, I am thankful. It probably gave me more respect for the process of those who come to egalitarian conclusions. Nevertheless, I remain unconvinced by Webb's arguments towards egalitarianism.

[Makayla Payne · Rating 5 out of 5]

One time I was reading Jesus talking to the Pharisees about the Sabbath. I realized that my own way of reading Scripture would never lead me to Jesus’ conclusion. It would lead me to the Pharisees’ conclusion. This is clearly a problem, I thought, but I didn’t know how to fix it. Well, Webb helped me fix it! This book has significantly impacted the way I view Scripture and argues well for a reading of Scripture that focuses more on the spirit of the text than the isolated words.

Webb excellently shows how to determine whether something in Scriptural is transcultural or culturally-bound. He makes sense of why slavery is allowed throughout Scripture and why those same texts demand the abolition of slavery today. Similarly with issues pertaining to women, he shows why women were considered property back then and why those same texts strongly argue for an egalitarian perspective for today. It all depends on a redemptive movement hermeneutic rather than a static hermeneutic.

The slavery and women texts in the original context were redemptive in that culture, but it’s harmful to apply them the same way today. Instead, we should look for the “ultimate ethic” or the redemptive spirit of the text to see the goal that these texts were pointing towards. Then we apply the redemptive spirit to our modern context.

I love this book. Excellent research—one I will come back to many times. I highly recommend.

[Matthew Garringer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A helpful book that certainly shaped my thinking regarding biblical texts concerning the three titular groups. I’m walking away having a better sense of the “difficult” texts found in the Pentateuch on slaves and women.

I agreed with about 95% of what he said. At times it felt that the tail was wagging the dog concerning culture and scripture (if our culture was still deeply patriarchal, would Webb still arrive at these conclusions?), but he does address this critique in ch. 8.

Perhaps what I appreciated most were his intellectual honesty throughout as well as the space he attempts to make for both soft complementarians as well as egalitarians. He is quick to tell his own inclinations and biases when engaging texts and cultural assumptions. His effort to create a middle ground between the two aforementioned camps is rather refreshing and necessary.

[Claire Stamper · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up this book intrigued by its title and hoping to deep dive into studying especially the women’s issue. To my surprise Webb’s book was so much more than making a stance and defending a position on the homosexuality and womens issues. He proposes reading and interpreting the Bible through a redemptive movement hermeneutic… letting the spirit of the text be the driving force of its application. I was very compelled by how participatory, redemptive, and reasonable the hermeneutic he proposes is. Webb sparked an excitement in me to read scripture and a hopefulness to apply it and participate with God in bringing his kingdom on earth through this hermeneutic!

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book will help you think about what parts of scripture are transcultural (for all people throughout time) and what parts are cultural (for a specific people at a specific time). Webb specifically applies 18 principles to a wide variety of topics, but his main focus is on slavery, women’s role in the church and human sexuality. Overall, Webb argues for what he calls a “redemptive” movement hermeneutic”. That is to say he argues that we need to look for the spirit of the laws in scripture in order to apply them in today’s world.

[Jonathan Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a vital read for all of us affected by the ‘treachery of the bluebook’ (let the reader understand).

This is a well researched, thoroughly biblical, theologically rich, deep exploration of hermeneutics.

The first section of the book is stodgy and difficult… Dare I say, repetitive and boring.

However, when the author gets going, The arguments are superb.

This is a brilliant example of how theological discourse should take place.

Obviously, I don’t agree with everything, however, this is the most thought-provoking book I have read in years.

[Jonathan Ammon · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I disagree with Webb on several points, some important, this is a highly valuable hermeneutic project and process and the kind of interesting work scholars should be investing in. I do think easier answers are available, but establishing a criteria for evaluating a text as culturally bound or transcultural is a complex matter.

[Pristine]

my head is spinning and i'm forgetting what my actual thesis argues, but it's all in a day's work for a good antithesis source. whew - gonna have fun tackling this one!

[Shane Goodyear · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is fascinating and challanging at the same time, Authors thoughts:

1. the author wants us to get to the spirit of the text which is in line with church history and he gives a framework for this: The Redemptive movement hermeneutic

2. RMH is that God's speaks into cultures to redeem them and show his character of justice, love and mercy; so for instance: with the slavery texts in the OT and NT there are cultural components and transcultural components ( eternal truths). Basically even though slavery was sanctioned in the testaments it was give depth charges and restraints which are the seed bed for its final abolition

3. he also applies RMH to texts dealing with woman and homosexuals. because homosexuality was accepted by ancient cultures and even celebrated; for instance cultic male prostitutes God condemned homosexual practice as it disrupted the male and female sexual ethic. So this is transcultural, however some of the penalties for homosexual behaviour may be cultural. So the church should not accept homosexual lifestyle as biblical.

4. the controversary come with using the RHM with the female texts. The authors premise is that Patriarchy is apart of the fall so texts dealing with the subordination of woman and ownership of woman by father or husband. The author says that these texts are apart of the culture which God is redeeming and leaving his people a redemptive spirit of his word for full biblical egalitarianism.

5. God did not get rid of patriarchy or slavery straight away for pastoral reasons, welfare reasons, evangelistic reasons and salvific reasons.

Few thoughts from me.
1. I have been using RHM in preaching for years without given it this name, as you can see texts on slavery for instance where cultural and actual where redemptive for the time in the protection of slaves lives.
2. I am someone who advocates for male headship in the church and the household and i suppose the author would describe more as a ultra soft patriarchist. ( as I don't necessarily believe woman can't be leaders of companies or countries )
3. the author has a huge discussion on Genesis about patriarchy and admits he does see elements of male headship in the creation and oppressive patriarchy only came in after the fall ( which I agree with.)
4. Yet he does not deal with man being created to serve an protect- he does deal with woman being an helper though and it is convincing.

overall good book, a lot to pounder and challenges one to think more deeply about the woman issue and how to interpret scripture

[Nathan Marone]

Regardless of what you think of the Bible - whether you believe in its message or not - and whether or not you agree with Webb's conclusions on the primary issues he covers, this is a necessary book of hermeneutics. Centuries have been devoted to figuring out which aspects of the Biblical text should be understood as culturally bound and which aspects are transcultural. This task becomes more and more difficult as we move further away from the ancient world. But it is a task that needs to be done and done diligently. Webb offers 18 different criteria for assessing the cultural/transcultural nature of issues within the Bible. He applies those criteria specifically to issues of slavery, women, and homosexual behavior. Though Webb uses these criteria to stake out his own positions on those topics (slavery: abolitionist, women: complimentary egalitarian, homosexuality: prohibitive), I would argue that the primary virtue of Webb's book is in his ability to assess the value of each criteria given - what does the criteria tell us or not tell us, how can it be used or not used?

Too often when we debate hot issues like women in the church or homosexuality, we are too quick to say, "But that bit is cultural," or "That bit is meant to be carried out for all time," without ever giving proper consideration to the interpretive work necessary to make those determinations. Even if you should disagree with the positions Webb stakes out, this is a valuable book for anyone interested in understanding what the Bible means, in the culture it was written, now, and into the future.

[Hal Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Slaves, Women & Homosexuals: Exploring the Hermeneutics of Cultural Analysis, William J. Webb tackles the issues from our current culture that are hermeneutically challenging. The two most significant challenging issues of our culture are women’s issues and the homosexual issue. As the Christian culture faces these issues, there must be a reevaluation of beliefs in light of the changing attitudes toward these issues. Webb points out that there are four positions that provide a framework for us as we consider these challenging issues: 1. Hard/strong patriarchy (hierarchy) 2. Soft patriarchy (hierarchy) 3. Evangelical egalitarianism and 4. Secular egalitarianism. The question, as stated on page 29, is “…to determine whether the church should move with our culture or against our culture on these two issues.”
The “redemptive-movement hermeneutic” is the hermeneutical method that Webb introduces as to how one is able to discern what is cultural, which is to say, what is restrictive to the Bible and what transcultural. Within the redemptive-movement hermeneutic, there is a distinction between a “redemptive-sprit” and a “static” appropriation of Scripture. The redemptive spirit encourages movement beyond the original application of the text in the ancient world while the static appropriation of Scripture takes the words of the text as isolated words in their original setting which restricts any modern application of Scripture. For example, Webb points out, that a static hermeneutic would not condemn slavery as defined in the Bible.
Webb refers to his model as “The X—>Y—>Z Principle.” (Page 31). Webb points out that any letter will do as long is there is a progression. Webb states that “The point of the model is to show how perspective and a redemptive spirit work together in the application of Scripture.” The way the model works is Y is the central position which stands for the isolated words of the Bible. On either side of Y or the Biblical text, is the question of perspective. X would be the original cultural context of the biblical text and Z would be the contemporary culture which leads to the ultimate ethic.
In most of the remaking chapters, Webb discusses the criteria for determining what is cultural or transcultural. There are eighteen criteria that Webb discusses. The way Webb organizes this material is extremely helpful. Sixteen of the criteria are Intrascriptural while two are extra-scriptural. The Intrascriptural criteria are categorized into three groups as they relate to women and the homosexual issue. The three groups are 1. Persuasive; 2. Moderately persuasive; and 3. Inconclusive. Both of the extra-scriptural criteria fall in the persuasive category. In most cases, the criteria for both women’s issues and the homosexual issue fall in the same category, however there is some fluidity and Webb does not have them aligned exactly alike. For the purposes of this review and to save space, I will list all eighteen criteria using the women’s issue and how they are grouped within the Intrascriptural and Extra-Scriptural format.
INTRASCRIPTURAL CRITERIA
Persuasive
1. Preliminary Movement
2. Seed Ideas
3. Breakouts
4. Purpose/Intent statements
5. Basis in Fall and/or Curse
Moderately Persuasive
6. Original Creation, I: Patterns
7. Original Creation, II: Primogeniture
8. New Creation
9. Competing Options
10. Opposition to Original Culture
11. Closely related Issues
12. Penal Code
Inconclusive
13. Specific verse General
14. Basis in Theological Analogy
15. Contextual Comparisons
16. Appeal to Old Testament
EXTRA-SCRIPTURAL CRITERIA
Persuasive
17. Pragmatic Between Two Cultures
18. Scientific Evidence

In the Intrascriptural Criteria there are five criterion. The first criterion is Preliminary Movement. The text may be culturally bound if Scripture modifies the original cultural norms. If the text has modified the original cultural norms, then the next question is the movement and absolute movement of a preliminary movement. When investigating these movements they must be assessed within the ancient Near Eastern and/or Greco-Roman cultures.
The second criterion is Seed Ideas. Seed ideas are not fully grown and describe something in the early stages. I like the example Webb gave of slavery. There are certain texts that appear to support slavery and were used used to support a pro-slavery position. Yet, these texts incorporate a redemptive dimension. Passages like Galatians 3:28 and others provide a “seedbed” for the redemptive element to grow. These texts foster the idea that the legislative texts could be modified by later generations and take the redemptive element of Scripture to a higher level.
Criterion three is Breakouts. This criterion takes preliminary movement and seedbed a step further. Breakouts completely overturn the expected cultural norms. As Webb points out in the discussion of women, most often the biblical writers proclaim oracles, narrate and legislate within a patriarchal male dominated culture. However, there are occasions when there is a “breakout” from these cultural norms. Deborah is an example of this. Her life stands in stark contrast to the standard patterns of male leadership in Israelite community. As a judge, she settles disputes, prophecies, leads worship and is a military leader for Israel against the Canaanite army. While there are some issues with Deborah, it would appear as if God blesses her and her leadership regardless of her gender.
Criterion Four is Purpose/Intent Statements. A text may be culturally bound if it no longer fulfills its original intent/purpose. It is more likely to be transcultural when it’s purpose is fulfilled at a later time. Within this framework there are explicitly stated or implied purposes for instruction within the text. For example, Webb asks the question “Should the church…accept a homosexual lifestyle within its own community because to do otherwise would make the gospel less attractive to the unbelieving community?” (Page 109). The interpreter of Scripture must ask the question in regard to homosexual texts to what degree is the stated purpose of the text being fulfilled. The prohibitions against homosexuality are related to purpose. Sexual practices in the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of this world are markedly different. The holiness code of Leviticus provides a clear purpose for sexual prohibitions. The Israelites were to be different from the Egyptians from where they came and the land of Canaan where God was leading them. The purpose was that Israel’s sexual practices would be different from their surrounding cultures and would be pleasing to Yahweh. The prohibitions against homosexual behavior was not an attempt to gain society’s approval.
Webb follows a similar pattern in discussing the remaining fourteen Criterion. He has a statement regarding the criterion, gives a neutral example, a women’s issue example, a homosexual issue example, he evaluates the criterion and gives a summary. Using Webb’s redemptive movement hermeneutic and following the 18 criteria for determining what is cultural and transcultural is a very thorough way to interpret the more hermeneutically challenging texts so that we can appropriately apply them to our culture.
While I do believe that we can be grateful to Webb for helping us think more deeply about Scripture in light of the important issues of our day, I found his eighteen criteria at times somewhat abstract and ambiguous. On occasion I had to go back and reread what Webb was trying to say. I do believe, however, that Webb has developed a hermeneutic that will bring a dimension of commonality between egalitarians and patriarchalists. I also believe he has made a compelling case for the complementary egalitarian position while using the redemptive-movement hermeneutic. For us, the reader/student, Webb has also provided a framework to live out the redemptive spirit as we appropriately apply Scripture while pursing it’s ultimate ethic for the 21st Century.

[Corey Hampton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is good, but it is really boring.

It's definitely written for a very conservative audience, as Webb spends a bit too much time trying to convince his readers of what seems to be quite obvious already (such the difference in first and twenty-first century understanding of women and how the Bible progresses in its own understanding over time). But despite this, the book was really insightful. I do think that he could have done much better on the issue of homosexuality though, but I understand his context.

If your reading of the Bible leads you to undervalue women (or if you find it difficult to reconcile your progressive understanding of women with the Bible), then read this book. It will help you!

[James Korsmo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really appreciated this book! I think it is fair to say that hermeneutics, and specifically hermeneutics as it relates to cultural anaylsis, is one of the most pressing issues facing the church today. How we understand Scripture to relate to its original culture and how we appropriate it in our own culture is one of the issues that is driving our current era of church history. How we understand issues such as those surrounding women and homosexuals are very live and important questions in our day. And this is why I commend William Webb's book as highly as I possibly can. He addresses these issues by carefully probing the underlying hermeneutical questions with thoroughness and and an irenic and humble spirit.

Webb begins by laying out the Christian's challenge with regard to these issues, "It is necessar for Christians to challenge their culture where it departs from kingdom values; it is equally necessary for them to identify with their culture on all other matters" (22, italics in original). This is difficult because though Scripture contains both culture-bound and transcultural elements, these would have been nearly indistinguishable to its original readers. The challenge, then, is to live out the spirit of the text without being too inseparably bound to the "isolated words." For Webb, this means undertaking a "redemptive-movement hermeneutic" as opposed to a "static" hermeneutic.

A redemptive-movement hermeneutic seeks to assess the "movement" of a text relative to its original cultural setting. It then moves into our own day and seeks to retain the same direction of movement relative to our current culture in places where our cultural setting has gone beyond that of the original culture. An explicit component of this assessment is that the Bible doesn't only contain an "ultimate" ethic, but often contains provisions, laws, and instructions that entail only a "partially realized" ethic. It is worth taking a second to look at the reasons Webb outlines for this to be so, because I don't think this concept is one most readers of Scripture consciously ascribe to. Webb asserts that God often inspired a "partially realized" ethic (1) for pastoral reasons, to stretch his people as far as they could go without snapping; (2) for padagogical reasons, to help people move from the known to a foreseeable future with enough continuity so they can find their way; (3) for evangelistic reasons, thus reform was intended to better social structures without being so radical as to jeopardize other aspects of the Christian mission; (4) to sustain competing values, such as upholding temporary values in pursuit of associated goods, such as slavery in service of social welfare or patriarchy in service to gender differentiation; and (5) for soteriological resons, to to deal with a fallen and sinful humanity to whom reform does not come easiliy and move us in a process of progressive sanctification.

Throughout the book, Webb sustains an argument that, taking the presence of elements of both an ultimate and a provisional ethic within Scripture (and he certainly acknowledges the presence of an ultimate ethic in Scripture), we must undertake careful cultural analysis to determine what components of Scripture are culture-bound and which are transcultural. Once this is done, we seek to uphold the transcultural components and seek to live out the culture-bound components through a process of "redemptive movement" where we seek to follow the redemptive spirit within the text by reapplying that same spirit to our own culture. Let's follow a similar flow to Webb's own argument to flesh this out a bit.

Webb argues that the neutral example of slavery provides an important case study for understanding how a redemptive movement hermeneutic works. The culture of the Ancient Near East and of the Greco-Roman world upheld a structure of slavery. The Bible, written within this culture, reflects this setting, in that it assumes the general structure of slavery. There are no explicit texts or passages that speak directly to the need for the abolition of slavery (except perhaps for Gal 3:28 and parallels); there are, on the flip side, though, many texts that assume that slavery exists. But many of these texts reflect a "redemptive movement," that is, they demonstrate a limited but real movement away from the worst abuses of slavery toward better and more equal treatment of slaves. This movement, when coupled with the ultimate ethic in Scripture that acknowledges the equality of all people before God and the need to love neighbor as self, points toward the need for further movement beyond the movement accomplished in the OT or NT. Thus, as we live out the spirit of these texts, we appreciate our different cultural setting and seek to move closer to the unrealized ultimate ethic of abolition of slavery, and even beyond this toward fuller workplace and economic justice.

Webb takes this same process of analysis into his discussion of texts surrounding women. In that cultural analysis, through the use of eighteen different criteria, he assesses the culture-bound components of patriarchy, relating to economic, social, and practical concerns. This analysis includes a careful exposition of the pertinent New Testament texts in their cultural settings, as well as a thorough discussion of the relation between the testaments on this point, and especially of the role played by Genesis texts in the discussion. He then couples this with an investigation of the ultimate ethic present in scripture, and concludes that the Bible moves toward a complementary egalitarianism or an ultra-soft patriarchy.

The third issue Webb looks at throughout the book is that of homosexuality. This is important in two respects. First, it is important because it is a vital issue in its own right, and second, because it is often related either positively or negatively to discussion of issues regarding women, usually to rhetorical effect. Thus, importantly, Webb demonstrates that the two issues, both needing careful cultural analysis, demonstrate opposite movements within Scripture. Whereas the patriarchy texts evidence a positive movement toward egalitarianism, the homosexual texts consistently demonstrate an absolute movement away from freedom to complete prohibition, and this movement is to be carried over into our own culture, albeit slightly modified.

William Webb's book is often cited and quoted in studies surrounding these important and divisive issues, and this is with good reason. I wish I had read this book years ago, and have deeply appreciated his hermeneutical insights. He shows how to recognize a redemptive movement in Scripture that acknowledges and appreciates the spirit of the text without being too bound to the "isolated words," by which he means the words taken in isolation from their cultural and canonical context. He demonstrates a genuine faithfulness to Scripture and an intense pursuit of God's truth and God's desire for our lives here in the in-between time, while also demonstrating how to carefully move beyond the bare words of Scripture in those cases when it is bound to its cultural setting. I look forward to appropriating his insights in future study. I must say that I also deeply appreciated his humble and irenic tone. He openly acknowledged the areas of greatest weakness in his own case (even writing a "What If I Am Wrong?" chapter to lay bare and discuss these weaknesses and their bearing on his case), and also sought to acknowledge the strengths of his opponents positions and demonstrated charitable readings of opposing views. All the same, I think he also admirably shows the promise of careful cultural analysis for faithful application of Scripture, in a convincing assessment of the issues surrounding both homosexuality and women. I also hope at the very least that this book dismantles the arguments often bandied about that those who favor women in ministry are on the slippery slope to accepting homosexuality or that those who accept women in ministry must make this subsequent move, as Webb demonstrates how this is clearly not so.

In all, this book is a landmark study of hermeneutics especially as it bears on these important issues, and is a must read for those on all sides of these pressing discussions. Do not miss this book, and do not delay.

[David Lasley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly probably 3.5 stars. Webb proposes a “redemptive movement hermeneutic” to answer the tough biblical questions our culture is asking. He suggests that “without this interpretive framework we fail to answer the criticisms of those who rightfully find abhorrent things within the sacred text”(p. 302). He lists and rates 18 criterion to help the reader decipher texts that address the three topics listed in the title.
I honestly had a hard time in rating this book. I think there are aspects of it that are incredibly valuable. His “breakouts” criterion, and more than a few others, are really well done. I think many wouldn’t argue with more than a few of them as aspects of a sound approach to understanding/applying scripture in these three areas. I also really appreciated that he was somewhat (though not as extensively as he could have been) willing to acknowledge the very real possibility that his conclusions could be wrong or incomplete (especially on various biblical aspects in the “women” topic). That self reflection and humility was a breath of fresh air for a treatment on these topics especially that often get mired in rhetoric and/or the demonizing of other perspectives.
However, I wasn’t quite sure I could go as far as he does in trying to attain the “spirit” of the text for current cultural application. It feels as though there is a line being crossed that passes beyond the authority of scripture and places that authority (at least somewhat) into our hands. I also felt like his criterion were sometimes disjointed and detached the text from its context or how it fit with other texts - especially those which Jesus Himself addresses and interprets.
All in all I can understand why I’ve heard more than a few seminary folks reference the book in one setting or another. In my limited reading, it seems like an important, helpful contribution in grappling with how to read scripture addressing the topics of slaves, women and homosexuals. However, Im not sure I’m ready to go “all in” for his approach.

[Lily Evangeline]

Problematic and dated title aside, this was an interesting read for me. Hermeneutics (and biblical interpretation in general) is not a regular area of study for me, nor one that comes particularly naturally to me, but I've been beginning to feel my deficiencies in this area when having discussions with family and friends in an overwhelming evangelical conservative environment.

So while I would never have read this book on my own, when offered the chance to do so in company of a book club, I could hardly pass it up. Trying to maintain relationships with more conservative friends and family (while also rejecting particular interpretations of scripture that I grew up with) demands that I have at least some baseline proficiency in explaining my convictions.

I appreciate that this book seems to have that conservative demographic primarily in mind as it painstakingly develops criteria for cultural analysis while arguing for a "redemptive spirit" interpretation of scripture. I don't feel that his dealings with homosexuality to be particularly thorough or overall convincing, and would need further personal research on that issue, but I really appreciate his thoughts and interpretations on women in the church. Coming from a patriarchal conservative background, with all the (more literal) methods of interpretation that comes with that, it was something of a relief to read a convincing egalitarian interpretation of 1 Tim 2. Personally, I feel that the complementarian perspective was absolutely detrimental to my faith and a barrier to real knowledge of God. in light of that, it's important to me that I have an interpretation that I feel would at least warrant respect (if not conversion) for my theology from complementarian evangelicals, instead of the vague, "Ah, so you're a liberal christian who doesn't care for the Bible" vibes I get now.

Church division aside, I also think this book has a nice message for "living in theological greyness" that everyone could learn from. An interpretation is, after all, at the end of the day only that--an interpretation.

[Blaine Tucker · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this book, Webb takes on the challenging task of creating an exegetical method that takes into consideration issues that create challenging cultural implications for our time. The three test issues are included in the title. It is almost universally agreed that slavery is inherently wrong, though the Bible does not explicitly say so, and gives guidelines for how it is to be done (implicitly supporting the practice). What does a faithful reading of Scripture lead us to in this area? Given the changing roles of women in our culture from the first century, are the boundaries placed on women in Scripture still relevant? With the cultural acceptance of homosexual relationships and gay marriage in our culture, should it still be considered 'sin'?

Webb's exegetical practice follows the movement of individual issues throughout Scripture and advocates that we should follow that same trajectory. He argues that: In the case of slavery movement in Scripture leads to freedom. Regarding women, movement in Scripture moves toward greater inclusion and equity. With homosexuality, there is no movement in Scripture, and therefore the church's stance should not change.

Positively, the book moves slowly and takes small theological steps and doesn't try to take on these topics all at once. However, he speaks almost exclusively from his own expertise and rarely cites the work of other theologians for support.

The book is most helpful in dealing with women's roles, but not as helpful with the other two topics. Few are probably asking if slavery is "okay", but this book was very lacking in understanding, nuance, and sensitivity regarding theology that directly impacts the gay community. To be fair, this book was written in the 90's when he would not have been expected to provide much more.

Overall, this book should be included in rounding out your understanding exegetical methods, but is not as useful for the specific issues stated in the title.

[Carl Jenkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

In short summary, Webb proposes a hermeneutic of a progressive story of scripture. That is to say, quite often the commands we read in scripture are not necessarily given for all time, but are given for that time to move God's people close to God's desired ethic and morality. The question is how do we know what issues this applies to, and Webb attempts to give his readers the tools to do that.

Webb chooses three topics. The first is slavery, one that most Christians today would recognize as being regulated and allowed in scripture, but regulated in ways that were typically progressive for its time. Most would read scripture and argue that the story of the Bible is moving its readers to a point that rejects slavery. Through the book he works to show how we typically reach that conclusion.

His second topic is the question of gender roles and leadership within the church. A much debated topic, Webb uses the tools we often use in discussion about scripture and slavery to show that scripture seems to be moving a story along where Christians leave behind the patriarchy we find within its page and move towards a ethic where women are not seen and treated as inferior to men, and are able to work equally to men within the church.

His third topic is homosexuality, and Webb uses this as a negative example. That is, Webb works to show that scripture does not approach this topic the same way it approaches slavery and gender roles, attempting to help people see ways in which scripture shows us what God wants us to move towards as well as what God has commanded that doesn't change.

Regardless of how you might feel about any of these three topics, Webb's books provide a lot of good tools to help us better handle and interpret scripture for our lives as Christians.

[Adam Shields · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short Review: I think this is a helpful (although a bit dull) book on how to parse out cultural and transcultural aspects of scripture and how to think think about our own culture and how we put scripture into practice within that culture. We cannot read scripture without our culture. We are not transcultural beings. But there are things we can do to try to identify cultural blind spots and all scripture to speak to us in our cultural setting.

Slaves, Women, and Homosexuals presents 18 criteria for cultural evaluation of scripture according to his Redemptive Movement Hermeneutic. Although it is long and complicated, I am basically in agreement with the concept. I am not sure I agree with the results of his analysis of the three subjects (Slaves is a neutral subject that he assumes most Christians now agree is sinful, Women in the church is one that he thinks is a positive answer and acceptance of gay marriage in the church is one that he thinks is transcultural command and is his negative example.)

There is no way, even in my long review to work through all 18 criteria. But I do think they are helpful and worth working through.

My nearly 1200 word review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/webb/ ‎

[Richard Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Important Strategies for Determining the Cultural and Transcultural Nature of Biblical Texts

This book takes the position that is available cannot be read as static words on the page. The biblical text provides a redemptive movement from the culture of the readers' and authors' culture. That movement gives us insight into the possible trajectory intended by God and how to interpret the biblical text today. The first chapter made me wonder whether the author was simply pushing an agenda, but while he has definite positions there seemed little agenda pushing through the book. The strategies he suggests are important and well-thought out. The illustrations were mostly convincing. Whether the reader agrees with the books applications in every situation, the book and it's criteria for determining the cultural or trans-cultural nature of the biblical text is well worth engaging.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sound hermeneutical principles

Webb provides a compelling interpretive approach to the Bible for discerning the application for just about any issue, but with the intention of drawing out conclusions for two key issues: women in church (and home) leadership, and homosexuality. Using and spiritual-redemptive trajectory approach, and working through 18 possible criteria, Webb demonstrates that a strong case can be made in Scripture for moving toward an egalitarian position with regard to women, while at the same time affirming a transcultural restriction towards homosexual practice. While some may disagree with some of Webb's conclusions in these matters, it cannot be said that he has not provided ample reasoning and support for his views. Aside from the 2 issues Webb addresses, this book would serve as an excellent text for a biblical hermeneutics course, since the process and principles expounded are applicable to a far wider range of issues.