Biblical Literature and the Hermeneutics of Trauma

Call For Papers: This section will receive paper proposals for two sessions, each with its own topic. Papers may explore any dimension of trauma, including the following: individual, collective, and intergenerational experience; events or ongoing situations that traumatize; effects of traumatization; and strategies for recovery from and resilience against traumatization. Avenues of inquiry may include the ancient contexts from which the biblical texts emerged and in which they were appropriated, the history of their appropriation up to the present, as well as possibilities for their appropriation in the future. We encourage papers that address New Testament texts as well as those that address Old Testament texts. All papers should explicitly define the aspect(s) of trauma being employed and offer some evaluation of the usefulness of that definition for interpreting the biblical text. Proposals should indicate which of the following two topics will be addressed: (1) This session invites papers that give particular attention to the relationships among individual, collective, and intergenerational dimensions of trauma. (2) This session invites papers that address the polarizing effects of the "trauma narratives" that collectives adopt, especially to the extent that these narratives assign to certain groups blame for collective suffering. The work of Jeffrey Alexander and of Vamik Volkan offer useful points of departure for this discussion.

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