Hannah M. Strømmen – författare

This study explores the role that Bibles have come to play in the worldview of the contemporary European far right. Taking the case of far-right terrorism in Norway on 22 July 2011 as a starting point, Hannah M. Strømmen argues that particular perceptions of “the Bible” and particular uses of biblical texts have been significant in staking claims to European identity in opposition to Islam. Such perceptions and uses are not only to be found in the case of far-right extremism. The Bible-use that this study maps operates more broadly in counter-jihadist writings, transnational right-wing movements, and conservative philosophy. Crucially, connections and continuities with past Bible-use are brought to light. Strømmen charts new directions for research in biblical studies, presenting a proposal for mapping how Bibles operate in the world as assemblages. Mapping biblical assemblages allows scholars of biblical reception to analyse diverse forms of Bible-use. Such mapping goes beyond the notion of the Bible as text to be read in order to address questions of agency, affect, and materiality. Ultimately, Strømmen proposes new ways to understand political Bible-use today in order to respond to violence inspired by biblical texts.

This open access, edited collection explores the paramount question of precisely how to research biblical reception and what approaches should be taken. The expanding area of biblical reception prompts reflection on the possibility of shared approaches when the subject material is so various, and thus all who have contributed to this book provide numerous models and methods for undertaking biblical reception work, supplying fuel for scholarly conversations across individual cases of reception.Beginning with an introductory analysis from Hannah M. Strømmen on what constitutes “reception” and “biblical reception”, and a challenge that methodology can be a means of seeking new ground and disturbing the disciplinary status quo, several designations of reception are explored, including literary retellings, liberative criticism and transformative justice. Moving to delineations, several biblical representations are discussed, from the ‘afterlives’ of several female characters and digital archives to Biblicisms in the modern media age and biblical retellings for children. Concentrating finally on directions, the contributors examine reception criticism, the political use of scriptures and conceptual shifts for biblical reception studies.The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by Lund University.