The Bible and Colonialism: A Moral Critique

343 Pages·1997·12.974 MB·English

by  Michael Prior

A
MORAL CRITIQUE
Michael Prior, CM

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Michael Prior, CM
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Sheffield Academic;: Press
Copyright © 1997 Sheffield Academic Press
Published by Sheffield Academic Press Ltd
Mansion House
19 Kingfield Road
Sheffield S II 9 AS
England
Printed on acid-free paper in Great Britain
by The Cromwell Press
Melksham, Wiltshire
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available
from the British Library
ISBN 1-85075-815-8
--,
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments 9
Preface 11
Part I
THE MORAL PROBLEM OF THE BIBLICAL LAND TRADITIONS
Chapter 1
THE BIBLICAL TRADITIONS ON LAND 16
The Biblical Traditions on Land, at Face Value 16
The Land in the Torah 18
The Land in the Book of Joshua 29
The Land in Other Books of the Bible 32
Exploitation of the Biblical Traditions on Land 33
Part II
COLONIAL APPROPRIATIONS OF THE LAND TRADITIONS
Chapter 2
COLONIALISM AND LAT IN AMERICA 48
12 October 1492: The 'Discovery' of America and its Cost 48
Theological Underpinning: Mediaeval Christian Theology 52
Dissenting Voices 57
Modem Theological Reflection and the Bible 62
Chapter 3
COLONIALISM AND SOUTH AFRICA 71
Sketching Boer History 71
Fabricating the Myth of Early Afrikaner Nationalism 78
The Biblical-Theological Core of Afrikaner Nationalism 89
Myth, History, Science and Morality 94
Conclusion 103
6 The Bible and Colonialism
Chapter 4
COLONIALISM AND PALESTINE 106
The Early Phase of Zionism (1896-1917) 106
The Second Phase of Zionism (1917-1948) 122
The Third Phase of Zionism (The State of Israel, 1948-1967) 136
The Fourth Phase of Zionism (1967-) 140
The Religious Dimension 149
IN
Coocl~oo
Chapter 5
FABRICATING COLONIAL MYTHS 174
The Comparative Myths of Colonialism 175
The Myths of Zionism 185
The Foundational Myths of the State of Israel 185
Conclusion 208
Part III
COLONIALISM AND BIBLICAL EVIDENCE
Chapter 6
REINTERPRETING THE BIBLICAL EVIDENCE:
LITERARY AND HISTORICAL QUESTIONS 216
The Patriarchal Narratives 216
The Pentateuchal Narratives 223
The 'Israelite' Conquest-Settlement Narratives 228
Conclusion 247
Chapter 7
REHABILITATING THE BIBLE:
TOWARDS A MORAL READING OF THE BIBLE 253
The Land in Modem Biblical Scholarship: Status Quaestionis 253
The Moral Problem of the Land Traditions of the Bible 260
The Impact of Reading the Bible 264
The Divine Provenance of the Bible 266
Liturgical 'Censoring' of the Word of God 273
The Problem of the Exodus Paradigm 278
From Jerusalem to Rome 284
Contents 7
CONCLUSION 287
Bibliography 297
Index of References 331
Index of Authors 338

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Much of the research for this study was done at considerable remove
from the effects of colonial exploitation. My colleague at St Mary's
University College, Dr Alan Lester, read an earlier draft of the chap
ter on South Africa, and offered many fundamental insights on the
revisionist trends within more recent Afrikaner historiography. David
McDowall made very valuable suggestions for the material on Zionism.
I am grateful to St Mary's for granting me a sabbatical year which
enabled me to complete the work.
The final revision was undertaken during my tenure as Visiting
Professor at Bethlehem University and Scholar-in-Residence at Tantur
Ecumenical Institute for Theology in Jerusalem. Movement between
Tantur and the University was interrupted daily by the checkpoint
preventing Bethlehemites entering Jerusalem. My context was a per
sistent reminder of the humiliation, degradation and oppression which
colonizing enterprises invariably inflict on their indigenes. Working
against a background of bullet fire and in the shadow of tanks added
a certain intensity to my research. A former student of Bethlehem
University was among those killed in the disturbances of 25 and
26 September 1996. Despite the difficulties, I was able to deliver a
public lecture in Jerusalem on 'Does the God of the Bible sanction
ethnic cleansing?' At the beginning of term, the staff of the University
speculated whether the academic year would proceed without too
much interruption to the teaching schedule. In all, we lost about a
month's work. I am very grateful to my colleagues at the University,
and to the De la Salle Brothers for the warmth of their hospitality. I
am deeply indebted to the Vice-Chancellor, Br Ronald Gallagher FSC
for getting me to Bethlehem University, and to the Superior of the
Community, Br Cyril Litecky FSC for his daily kindnesses.
Professor Thomas L. Thompson of Copenhagen read a draft of
Chapters 6 and 7, and offered many suggestions. Tantur postgraduate
student, Fr Rene Otzoy, SOB of Guatemala read the chapter on Latin
10 The Bible and Colonialism
America, and many others read different sections. Tantur scholars
Dr Bengt Holmberg of Lund University, and Dr Marlin Jeschke of
Goshen College read the entire manuscript, and offered very helpful
suggestions. The staff and post-graduate students at Tantur provided a
most pleasant and exciting context for my sabbatical study.
Almost at the end of the revision of the book, I developed one 'total
closure' and one 'partial closure' in the arteries of my heart, as if
mirroring the externals of my day at the Tantur checkpoint. Instruc
tions I had left for its completion in the event of God surprising me
with death proved to be redundant, thanks to the medical expertise of
Dr Hisham Nassar and the staff of St Joseph's and the Hadassah
hospitals in Jerusalem, to whom, under God, I am indebted for the
opportunity of completing what I began several years ago. I was fully
supported while I was ill by the concern of family, my Vincentian
Community, and by friends and colleagues.
In the course of preparing the manuscript for publication I was
greatly encouraged and helped by Dr John Jarick, and enthusiastically
supported by Mrs Jean Allen of Sheffield Academic Press. I am very
grateful to Steve Barganski, Malcolm Ward and Robert Knight for the
care with which the book was produced. The anonymous reader of the
draft manuscript offered many helpful suggestions.