Womanist Midrash, Vol. 1

Womanist Midrash is an in-depth and creative exploration of the well- and lesser-known women of the Hebrew Scriptures. Using her own translations, Gafney offers a midrashic interpretation of the biblical text that is rooted in the African American preaching tradition to tell the stories of a variety of female characters, many of whom are often overlooked and nameless. Gafney employs a solid understanding of womanist and feminist approaches to biblical interpretation and the sociohistorical culture of the ancient Near East. This unique and imaginative work is grounded in serious scholarship and will expand conversations about feminist and womanist biblical interpretation.

Wil Gafney is the Right Rev. Sam B. Hulsey Professor of Hebrew Bible at Brite Divinity School in Fort Worth, Texas. A Womanist biblical scholar, she is the author of the four-volume series A Women's Lectionary for the Whole Church and translator of its biblical selections. She is also the author of Womanist Midrash, Volume 1: A Reintroduction to Women of the Torah and the Throne; Daughters of Miriam: Women Prophets in Ancient Israel; and coeditor of The Peoples' Bibleand The Peoples' Companion to the Bible. She is an Episcopal priest canonically resident in the Diocese of Pennsylvania and licensed in the Diocese of Texas and a former Army chaplain and congregational pastor in the AME Zion Church. Visit her website at www.wilgafney.com.