2013 Reviews and Articles

Book Review: Reading from the Edges: The Bible and People on the Move by Jean-Pierre Ruiz

Vaughan, Matthew

This is a book review of Jean-Pierre Ruiz, "Readings from the Edges." As its title suggests, this short book is located at the edges. More to the point, its thesis is at the intersection and overlapping of two distinct loyalties: a loyalty to the Bible as a guide for theological reflection, and a loyalty to migrant communities throughout the world (especially among the Latino/a communities in the United States). This is a theology of migration, one that revolves primarily around often-neglected biblical texts, and seeks to call biblical scholarship to consider the experience of migrant communities as a central component of its theological vision.
Ruiz divides the book into two main parts, with the final chapter radically shifting the book’s focus. In the first part, Ruiz discusses what he calls “reading strategies”: the exegetical and hermeneutical process of interpreting the Bible, not as detached observers, but alongside the migrant communities of the world. In the second part, Ruiz discusses select passages from the Bible itself, offering interpretations of texts that are frequently neglected in considerations of faith and migration (particularly in the official documents of the Catholic Church).