Hagar, Sarah & Their Children: Jewish, Christian & Muslim Perspectives

by Phyllis Trible (Editor), Letty M. Russell (Editor)

In different ways, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all trace their beginnings to Abraham. His wives, Hagar and Sarah, though also pivotal in the story, have received far less attention. In this book, however, noted Jewish, Christian, and Muslim scholars focus on Hagar, Sarah, and their children, from Ishmael and Isaac to their many descendents through the centuries.

Moving from ancient and medieval sources to contemporary appropriations of the Sarah and Hagar story, the authors begin with an overview of the three religions--from their scriptural beginnings to their contemporary questions. They then explore how the story was developed after its canonization, in rabbinic interpretations, in the stories of Islam, and in the teachings of the early church fathers. They also present contemporary womanist and feminist perspectives. Timely, relevant, and provocative, this book provides an entree into interreligious discussion and understanding.

Genres: Religion, Theology, Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Nonfiction, Biblical Studies

224 pages, Paperback

First published March 2, 2006

Reviews

[Tristan Sherwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent volume of essays, from various contributors, offering plenty of insight. The opening survey by Phyllis Trible, about the differing perspectives regarding Sarah and Hagar and how they’ve historically played out, is worth the price tag alone. A great resource for those seeking understanding.

[Cary · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading Phyllis Trible's "Texts of Terror," I picked up this book. It feels a lot like a textbook, and I wouldn't be surprised if Trible, a university professor, uses this as a textbook. I really liked Trible's contribution to this text, but the other authors were tedious and boring. Trible takes a 'womanist' perspective, not at all a radical feminist perspective though. She approaches the text, simply from a woman's perspective and interprets it from there. Her perspective is fresh and unique and well researched. The section on Paul's dialog from Galatians gets tedious and overly drawn out. Also, the section on African American women's application of the story is a little contrived. I had hoped to see a fair balance of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim coverage, but there was very little Muslim take on the text. The nature of the text regarding Sarah and Hagar is by necessity Judeo-Christian, so of course those are covered thoroughly. Overall, the beginning of the book was very good. After Trible handed it off to the other authors, my interest declined. If I only rated this on Trible's content, I would have given it a higher rating.

[Rev. Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enlightening - From the Publisher: In different ways, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all trace their beginnings to Abraham. His wives, Hagar and Sarah, though also pivotal in the story, have received far less attention. In this book, however, noted Jewish, Christian, and Muslim scholars focus on Hagar, Sarah, and their children, from Ishmael and Isaac to their many descendents through the centuries. Moving from ancient and medieval sources to contemporary appropriations of the Sarah and Hagar story, the authors begin with an overview of the three religions--from their scriptural beginnings to their contemporary questions. They then explore how the story was developed after its canonization, in rabbinic interpretations, in the stories of Islam, and in the teachings of the early church fathers. They also present contemporary womanist and feminist perspectives. Timely, relevant, and provocative, this book provides an entree into interreligious discussion and understanding.

[Luke Hillier · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this to be pretty hit-or-miss, thought it's hits were certainly good enough to warrant reading. Tribel starts off the collection with an excellent, comprehensive exegesis of Sarah and Hagar's intersecting lives as they are portrayed in Genesis. Her commentary is robust and rife with interesting insight and implications, and draws the readers below the surface to achieve a much richer sense of both figures and the complicated world they shared. Unfortunately, she seems to do so much and so well that I found it created a sort of ceiling for the remaining pieces. Russell's "twists and Turns in Paul's Allegory" had, well, too many twists and turns for me; it felt like she was wrestling an unwieldy subject that resulted in a reading I found choppy and convoluted. Thankfully, Delores William's essay was another highlight, expanding upon her work in Sisters in the Wilderness: The Challenge of Womanist God-Talk to perform a meta-analysis of Black Christianity's appropriation of the Hagar figure within the shared African American imagination. She presents an excellent argument for the expansion of the tradition (beyond its appreciation for God's liberating power as evidenced in the Exodus narrative and popularized by Black liberation theology) to also regard God's sustaining power to enable ongoing survival.

Despite the subheading's reference to "Jewish, Christian, & Muslim Perspectives," that is only really relevant in Part Two, which features an essay co-written by two Jewish scholars, one studying patristic Christianity, and a third who is Muslim. This means the book contains 5 essays from a Christian perspective (only 2 of which aren't written by the co-editors), and then one from each of the other Abrahamic faiths. Although the Christian perspectives are hospitable and strive to be respectful of inter-religious convictions, it still makes the subheading feel a bit misleading, and I was disappointed after anticipating a more thorough engagement across faiths.

[Vicky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very feminist, perhaps overly so. But it was a good exposition on the text, and the different perspectives gave a broad look at the implications of this story. As the book talked about Sarah and her relationship with her husband, we realize the tremendous influence we have on our husbands.

[TJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book. Collection of essays about Hagar and Sarah. This book gave me even more repect from the Islam faith. Give a balanced perspective of the three different faiths and the Hagar/ Sarah story.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Collection of academic feminist articles concerning the texts in Genesis.