From Minions to the Middle East

 The mitochondria factory minions have decided to take the day off, but perhaps I can still eke out some thoughts on the late Kenneth E. Bailey, ordained Presbyterian minister and research professor fluent in Arabic who spent forty years living and teaching in the Middle East. Check out his Amazon author page for more credentials.

I had never thought about Arabic being an important language for New Testament studies, but it is. Bailey was able to read and study the Arabic Bible and ancient manuscripts. That, plus his close friendships built over the years with Arabic Christians living in rural villages where ancient customs still prevail, allowed him additional insights into the texts and first-century cultural influences.

I don’t remember how I came across his articles and books, but I’m glad I did. The online articles are not as challenging to read as his books, three of which I own: Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels, Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes: Cultural Studies in 1 Corinthians, and Poet and Peasant Through Peasant Eyes: A Literary-Cultural Approach to the Parables in Luke.

I cannot speak adequately to an important part of his scholarship: the close analysis of Bible text structures. Basically, he explains patterns of writing used by first century Hebraic writers, setting up the passage he is examining in a line-by-line format with explanatory notes on its structure. From that, I learned how exquisitely, for example, Jesus told his parables and Paul’s 1 Corinthians was written. Those patterns of writing help uncover emphases that can otherwise be missed.

But the parts that I could easily understand were his explanations of the culture of the times, which bring out even more beauty within the Scripture passages and sometimes puts a whole new spin on them once we understand their cultural context. For example, the family dynamics in the Prodigal Son parable, and architecture of first-century homes in the Nativity story. That “whole new spin” does not change the meaning of the texts but enhances and deepens our understanding of them.

I’ve often wondered over the years how much of the Bible we don’t quite get because we are reading through 21^st century eyes and are not aware of customs and traditions of the first-century Middle East. What I’ve found from Bailey’s books as I prepared sermons over the past few years were insights that demonstrated repeatedly just how God-inspired and magnificent God’s Word is.  It’s amazing to me that the Bible speaks God’s truth throughout time despite changing cultures, and I love getting “the rest of the story” through understanding more of it through Middle Eastern eyes.

For now, though, since my minions are still on break, I think I’ll take a break, too.