In this significant step forward in feminist biblical studies, Elaine Wainwright develops a feminist hermeneutic of reading scripture. Applying that hermeneutic to four key passages from the Gospel of Matthew, she shows how an informed reading and hearing of the Gospel stories can lead to a new understanding of Jesus.Instead of focusing solely on the role and nature of women in the Bible, as many feminist biblical scholars have done, Wainwright turns to the person of Jesus in the context of Matthew, describing the complex web of Jesus traditions that are represented in both text and context. She considers in turn four texts: the Gospel prologue, Jesus' encounter with the Canaanite woman, the Petrine confession, and the crucifixion and resurrection narratives.
Wainwright's hermeneutical "map" considers both historical and literary factors. In looking at the context -- the group of Jewish households or communities at the end of the first century -- she demonstrates how factors of gender, status, and ethnicity were as significant then as they are today. Wainwright is equally concerned with the role of language, especially its polyvalence and its impact on understanding of a given text. A particular concern is metaphor (such as Jesus as king or hero) and how, as a metaphor becomes part of the network of everyday understanding, it loses its position as metaphor and takes on a new reality.
