Divine Masculinity in the Books of Samuel: How the Deity Acts the Man

(Hardback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Barbara Thiede presents an exploration of Yhwh as a complex character who models biblical masculinity by forming intimate relationships with his people Israel in the service of establishing his power and authority. Divine Masculinity in the Books of Samuel reveals that the Israelite deitys relationships with Israel, the prophet Samuel, King Saul, and King David feature a wide-ranging emotional palette. Yhwhs intense bonds with his men produce shifting and unstable male alliances and networks, which are homoerotic and often triangular. As Israels ber-man, his character demonstrates that biblical masculinity is assertive, forceful, jealous, vulnerable, and controlling.

Thiede illustrates how emotion is made to serve divine agenda and divine might is established and maintained through emotions and emotional display in the Books of Samuel. Yhwh is womanless, but the men he chooses to serve him may be brought to the height of ecstasy, emotionally abused, and sexually humiliated. The book demonstrates that Yhwhs emotional and sexual life revolves around his relationships with other male characters, exposing the uncompromising hegemonic masculinity that undergirds the biblical world.

Author Bio

Barbara Thiede is a teaching professor in the Religious Studies Department at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, USA. She is also an ordained rabbi.