Matthew Schlimm
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This Strange and
Sacred Scripture

Wrestling with the Old Testament 
and Its Oddities

Have you ever wondered...

Why does the Old Testament open with an account of the world's origins that appears to contradict science?

Why do its characters sometimes do terrible things?

Why is it so violent?

Why doesn't it treat women better?

Why does it contain so many weird commandments, many of which Christians don't follow?

Why does it appear to contradict itself?

Why do its prayers contain so much grief and anger?

Why is its God so angry?

How should the Old Testament guide Christian living?

In this book, I wrestle with these questions.

Throughout, I make the case that the Old Testament is best understood as a friend in faith.

This book works well in several settings:
    *Adult Christian Education Classes
    *OT Intro Classes at the College Level
    *OT Intro Classes at the Seminary Level



"Schlimm adroitly considers many of the thorny issues that puzzle modern people of faith; he is a gifted guide in showing readers that the Old Testament's alien qualities do not render it useless for Christian faith. To the contrary, he reveals how often the Bible's strangeness leads us into deeper understanding of God and of ourselves."
Jacqueline Lapsley
Princeton Theological Seminary
(Click here for more endorsements.) 
LEADER GUIDE
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This Strange and Sacred Scripture
Table of Contents:
1.   Is the Old Testament an Enemy, Stranger, or Friend to the Christian Faith?
2.   Our Fleeting Moments in Paradise
3.   Darkness over the Face of the Deep
4.   The R-Rated Bible
5.   Killing All That Breathes: Violence in the Old Testament
6.   Male and Female God Created Them: Gender and the Old Testament
7.   God Commands Us to Do What?! The Strange Laws of the Bible
8.   Is the Law Engraved in Stone? The Dynamic Nature of God’s Law
9.   Truth Is Many Sided
10.   Drowning in Tears and Raging at God
11.   Great and Terrible Is the Wrath of the Lord
12.   The Old Testament’s Authority
 
LINKS
  • Buy on Amazon.
  • Publisher: Baker Academic.
  • My writings on the authority of the Old Testament.
  • Additional resources that compliment this book.
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