The Human Faces of God

Book excerpt: Does accepting the doctrine of biblical inspiration necessitate belief in biblical inerrancy? The Bible has always functioned authoritatively in the life of the church, but what exactly should that mean? Must it mean the Bible is without error in all historical details and ethical teachings? What should thoughtful Christians do with texts that propose God is pleased by human sacrifice or that God commanded Israel to commit acts of genocide? What about texts that contain historical errors or predictions that have gone unfulfilled long beyond their expiration dates? In The Human Faces of God, Thom Stark moves beyond notions of inerrancy in order to confront such problematic texts and open up a conversation about new ways they can be used in service of the church and its moral witness today. Readers looking for an academically informed yet accessible discussion of the Bible's thorniest texts will find a thought-provoking and indispensible resource in The Human Faces of God. ""Christians can ignore the facts that Stark brings into the light of day only if they want to be wrong."" --Dale C. Allison, Jr. author of Constructing Jesus ""The Human Faces of God is one of the most challenging and well-argued cases against the doctrine of biblical inerrancy I have ever read."" --Greg A. Boyd author of The Myth of a Christian Nation ""I learned so much from this book that I can strongly encourage anyone who is seeking to move from simplistic proof-texting to a comprehensive understanding of the Bible to read this book carefully."" --Tony Campolo author of Red Letter Christians ""This is must reading for Christians who have agonized over their own private doubts about Scripture--and for others who have given up hope that evangelical Christians can practice intelligent, moral interpretation of the Bible."" --Neil Elliot author of Liberating Paul ""[W]ith the help of this book, we may discover that the Bible--when we read it in all its diversity and vulnerability--does bring healing words to those who keep listening."" --Ted Grimsrud author of Embodying the Way of Jesus ""Stark's book effectively demonstrates how the Bible, in practice, is the most dangerous enemy of fundamentalists."" --James F. McGrath author of The Only True God ""Stark provides a model for theology that is committed to hearing the voice of the victims of history, especially the victims of our own religious traditions."" --Michael J. Iafrate PhD Cadidate, University of Toronto ""This book is the most powerful antidote to fundamentalism that I've ever read."" --Frank Schaeffer author of Crazy for God Thom Stark was a Fig Tree and Ledbetter scholar at Emmanuel School of Religion. His academic interests include second temple apocalyptic Judaism and Christian origins, as well as modern Christian and Islamic theologies of liberation.