Back to the Well: Women's Encounters With Jesus in the Gospels (Paperback)

by Gench (Author), Frances Taylor (Author) "Jesus' unexpected encounter with the Canaanite woman proved to be a defining moment in his ministry..." (more)
Key Phrases: messianic bridegroom, hemorrhaging woman, bent woman, New Testament, Amy Jill Levine, Fourth Gospel (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Exploring six Gospel texts in which women encounter Jesus, Frances Taylor Gench encourages us to view these stories anew through the eyes of contemporary biblical scholarship. Summarizing and making accessible the work of a diversity of feminist scholars while also engaging many of the more traditional voices of the past, she examines each story's language, structure, and literary and socio-cultural context, and recounts many traditional and contemporary interpretations. In the process, she opens up new possibilities for reading these texts. Includes helpful questions for discussion.

Stories discussed: the Canaanite woman of Matthew 15:21-29; a hemorrhaging woman and Jairus's daughter of Mark 5:21-43; Martha and Mary in Luke 10:38-42; a woman bent over and a daughter of Abraham in Luke 13:10-17; the Samaritan woman of John 4; and a woman accused of adultery in John 7:53ff.

About the Author
Frances Taylor Gench is Professor of New Testament at Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, Virginia. She is the author of a commentary on "Hebrews and James" in the Westminster Bible Companion.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: WJK (July 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0664227155
• ISBN-13: 978-0664227159
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #216,621 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Bible study, December 30, 2007

By	Kathy Sizer "Rev. Kathy" (Laguna Beach, CA United States) - See all my reviews

Frances Taylor Gench brings new insight into Jesus' encounters with women. No matter how much you have studied the Bible, this book will be an eye-opener for you! Wonderful scholarship and insight.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Reading the Bible soberly, December 22, 2008

By	Orysya Hachko (United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Frances Taylor Gench, biblical scholar and feminist, professor at Union Theological
Seminary in Virginia, does not feel comfortable with this traditional scheme of exegesis.
She believes that as there are no uniform readers of the Bible, that there cannot be an
identical approach to it. The importance of social location in interpreting the Gospels
should not be overlooked, as the author explains: All of us bring our own political,
gender, racial, and religious biases to a biblical text, which affect not only what we see,
but even the questions we think to ask (xiii). She asks her readers to put aside their old
glasses of Sunday schools and familiar preaching themes for a moment and to look at the
biblical narrative as a challenging and unknown ground. Posing herself beside the biblical
narrative as a Reformed Christian, woman, and feminist, Gench is not afraid to recognize
a male-centered perspective dominating Gospel stories and to engage herself and her
readers in a challenging odyssey of interpretation. She recognizes that feminist scholars
were one of the first to identify and criticize the one-sidedness of the traditional biblical
scholarship; they also were the first to pay closer attention to the so-called silenced
figures of the narratives: women and others, the marginal figures of the Scriptures.
Readiness to be confronted by allegedly well-known biblical storylines is what Gench
expects from her readers. Even given the most profound exegesis, she says, we must not
limit our horizons to one way of interpretation but remain open to a range of possibilities
as they open to us throughout our experience of the living God.