A Myth of Innocence: Mark and Christian Origins. By Burton L. MackBURTON MACK AND THE LOSS OF OUR INNOCENCE1A Myth of Innocence: Mark and Christian Origins. By Burton L. MackA Myth of Innocence: Mark and Christian Origins. By Burton L. Mack A Myth of Innocence: Mark and Christian Origins. By Burton L. Mack
Year: 2015
Type: article
Abstract: FOR OVER TWENTY-FIVE YEARS, Burton Mack's A Myth of Innocence: Mark and Christian Origins has had a profound yet ambivalent influence on how scholars have worked on biblical texts in particular and theorized religion in general. A Myth of Innocence, along with the multiple emerging methodologies in contemporary biblical scholarship and religious studies, demonstrates that any responsible engagement of the Bible in the twenty-first century must include not only historical analyses of ancient texts but also the critical analyses of the legacies—for better or worse—of subsequent textual interpretations and appropriations. The following review essay roundtable has five contributions by scholars who articulate their relationship to and understanding of Mack's multifaceted work: Davina Lopez and Todd Penner, William Arnal, Maia Kotrosits, Eric Stewart, and Hal Taussig. The roundtable is enhanced by the multi-generational composition of the scholars involved, since the reception of A Myth of Innocence has evolved over time. Two senior scholars and long-time colleagues of Mack, Bill Arnal and Hal Taussig, highlight the early reception of A Myth of Innocence in academic biblical circles that at the time of the book's publication had concentrated on historical methodology and social analysis of first-century Christian social experiments.
Institutions: Loyola Marymount University, Eckerd College
Language: English
Subfield: Religious studies
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2154598949