An overview of the biblical interpretation series the “Wisdom Commentary” (Wisdom Commentary series).
The Wisdom Commentary (the “Wisdom Commentary” series) is the first international and interdenominational academic collaboration that offers detailed feminist-interpretation commentaries on all 66 books of the Bible. The series is published by Liturgical Press (Minnesota, USA), and its general editor is the New Testament scholar Barbara Reid (Barbara Reid, OP).
Although the name of the Wisdom Commentary series is not directly connected with Sophia – the personification of the highest wisdom in the mystical tradition of Judaism and Christianity, it has a thematic connection, highlighting several meanings of wisdom. “Wisdom” points to an inclusive and diverse perspective – to a wisdom that arises in dialogue with the biblical text, involving various voices, including historically marginalized groups and women. It emphasizes the valuable insights that arise when various geographical, theological, cultural and social perspectives are involved.
A second essential aspect is feminist and interdisciplinary wisdom – this commentary series highlights female scholars and women who, in the process of interpretation, provide various kinds of “wisdom,” drawing on feminism, women’s studies, postcolonialism and ecological perspectives. The third aspect is the depth of the Bible and theologies themselves – the wisdom of the biblical tradition is always connected with critical thinking, justice and a deeper understanding of life.
In addition to the Wisdom Commentary series, other current commentary series should also be mentioned that are based on or include the feminist perspective: the Feminist Companion to the Bible Series (published by Sheffield Academic Press, editor Athalya Brenner-Idan), which offers feminist interpretations of the Old Testament, using literary and social-scientific analysis. Parallel to this series, the Feminist Companion to the New Testament and Early Christian Writings is also published (editors: Amy-Jill Levine, Marianne Blickenstaff and Maria Mayo Robbins) – a series of essays on individual biblical texts, rather than commentaries on whole books of the Bible. The Texts @ Contexts Series (published by Fortress Press) offers readings of biblical texts from various perspectives, including through a postcolonial and feminist prism. One should also mention the Sacra Pagina Series (published by Liturgical Press), some volumes of which include a gender-sensitive approach to interpreting biblical texts, especially from the perspective of Catholic theology.
In German, but now also in English, a single-volume feminist Bible compendium has been published, the Kompendium Feministische Bibelauslegung (published by Gütersloher Verlagshaus; editors Luise Schottroff and Marie-Theres Wacker), which offers German feminist Bible interpretations for each book of the Bible, including the apocrypha and other texts outside the canon. Work also continues on the multivolume project, published in several languages, The Bible and Women: An Encyclopedia of Exegesis and Cultural History (editors Irmtraud Fischer, Adriana Valerio, Mercedes Navarro Puerto and Christiana de Groot), which introduces the history of the Bible’s reception in Western cultural history, with special attention to gender themes, the female characters of the Bible and women interpreters of the Bible.
Wisdom Commentary is a multivolume project that began in 2014. Work on the commentaries for all sixty-six books of the Bible is planned to be completed in 2025, and so far 58 volumes have already been published. Each volume follows a similar structure, in which a team of scholars offers a commentary on the biblical text through a feminist prism, supplementing it with insights from various academic disciplines and perspectives. The result is a collection of commentaries that is not only academically solid, but also draws attention to questions of justice and inclusion in today’s diverse cultural contexts.
Unlike earlier feminist approaches, in which the main goal was to point out and criticize the patriarchal structures in the Bible, the task of this series is to speak, in an accessible way – in a format understandable to preachers, teachers of the Scriptures and scholars – about a vision of God in which inclusive equality, respect and justice are offered to all. The goal is not opposition, but rather a broadened approach and participation in the interpretive dialogue.
Barbara Reid notes that the research goal of Wisdom Commentary is not to impose contemporary views on ancient cultures, but rather to reveal how the ideologically problematic patterns of thought that influenced the creation of the ancient texts are still being promoted today. Modern feminist Bible scholars not only deconstruct, but also restore and reconstruct the history of the Bible as a history of women, in which women have been central and active shapers of the religious heritage.
The Wisdom Commentary series is a significant step in Bible scholarship, bringing together many voices from various geographical, cultural and theological contexts, offering a fresh and inclusive view of the Holy Scriptures. The series deliberately differs from traditional commentaries, examining biblical texts through the prism of feminist theology for all the books of the Bible. Readers can study the Bible while understanding that gender, culture and context influence both the text and its interpretation.
The aim of the commentary series is to provide a platform in which various perspectives, especially the viewpoints of women and marginalized groups, participate in the process of interpretation. Barbara Reid says: “The aim of the Wisdom Commentary is to give women their deserved place at the table of biblical interpretation.” This means that voices that are often ignored in traditional Bible scholarship, where (white) male interpretations dominate, are brought to the foreground, offering new insights that challenge and enrich the customary traditions of reading the Holy Scriptures.
One of the strongest aspects of this series is its commitment to approaching the biblical text from the perspectives of those women who represent various geographical, social and theological contexts. The contributors are not limited to one particular tradition, but each author brings their own experience and scholarly heritage into the research, fostering diversity and multilayeredness. Among the co-authors of Wisdom Commentary are feminist theologians (women and men) from various church and theological traditions, as well as scholars of Judaism, ethics specialists and historians, who represent all the continents of the world — Africa, Asia, Latin America, North America and Europe. These authors bring their individual cultural and theological heritages into conversation with the biblical texts. This global perspective emphasizes how Bible interpretations can be influenced by various contexts, indicating that there is no single, absolute tradition of reading. Rather, there exists a diversity of readings, shaped by various social, cultural and theological factors.
By broadening the process of interpretation and opening it to various voices, Wisdom Commentary allows readers to see how the Bible speaks about questions of gender, power, justice and liberation in new and transformative ways. The editors of the commentary series emphasize that these editions are useful in various contexts — from academic research to personal reflection and even pastoral work. For those engaged in academic research, this series offers many new insights that challenge traditional ways of biblical interpretation and open up new paths of research. For pastors and religious leaders, Wisdom Commentary can be a valuable resource in preparing sermons and teachings, offering new perspectives on familiar texts that can help congregations understand and reflect on the Holy Scriptures more deeply. And for those engaged in personal study or reflection, this series offers a diversity of voices that helps readers see the Bible in a new, rich and transformative light.
Thanks to the series’ commitment to building an inclusive dialogue, to its diverse range of authors and its careful approach to the biblical text, Wisdom Commentary serves as a model of how Bible scholarship can be both academically grounded and socially transformative. This commentary series will most likely leave a lasting legacy, offering future generations a valuable resource that approaches the Bible through the prism of justice, inclusion and wisdom.
*Ecclesiastes 1:17
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoTmqgpY8uE
https://bestcommentaries.com/series/wisdom-commentary-wc/
Eds. Alice L. Laffey, Mahri Leonard-Fleckman, Wisdom commentary: Vol. 8, Ruth, MN: Liturgical Press, 2017. (Editor’s Introduction to Wisdom Commentary xvii – xxxvii).