The Golden Calf between Bible and Qur'an
The title is a book by Michael Pregill concerning The Golden Calf between Bible and Qur'an reading Scripture, Polemic, and Exegesis from Late Antiquity to Islam. It was published by Oxford University Press, 2017 as one of the Oxford Studies in the Abrahamic Religions series. The following is a report of the book.[1]
Overview
• A compelling exploration of the Jewish, Christian, and Islamic understandings of the account of the Golden Calf
• Contributes to the ongoing reevaluation of the relationship between Bible and Qur'an
• The first major monograph on the story of the Golden Calf
• The book also addresses the issue of Western approaches to the Qur'an, arguing that the historical reliance of scholars and translators on classical Muslim exegesis of scripture has led to misleading conclusions
Description
This book explores the story of the Israelites' worship of the Golden Calf in its Jewish, Christian, and Muslim contexts, from ancient Israel to the emergence of Islam. It focuses in particular on the Qur'an's presentation of the narrative and its background in Jewish and Christian retellings of the episode from Late Antiquity. Across the centuries, the interpretation of the Calf episode underwent major changes reflecting the varying cultural, religious, and ideological contexts in which various communities used the story to legitimate their own tradition, challenge the claims of others, and delineate the boundaries between self and other. The book contributes to the ongoing reevaluation of the relationship between Bible and Qur'an, arguing for the necessity of understanding the Qur'an and Islamic interpretations of the history and narratives of ancient Israel as part of the broader biblical tradition. The Calf narrative in the Qur'an, central to the qur'anic conception of the legacy of Israel and the status of the Jews of its own time, reflects a profound engagement with the biblical account in Exodus, as well as being informed by exegetical and parascriptural traditions in circulation in the Qur'an's milieu in Late Antiquity. The book also addresses the issue of Western approaches to the Qur'an, arguing that the historical reliance of scholars and translators on classical Muslim exegesis of scripture has led to misleading conclusions about the meaning of qur'anic episodes.
Table of Contents
Preface and Acknowledgements
Note on Style
1:Introduction: Method and Context in the Study of Bible and Qur'an
Part I: Foundations
2:Biblical Beginnings: The Calf of Sinai, the Calves of Jeroboam, and the Invention of Idolatry
3:Early Jewish Interpretation: An Opportunity for Repentance, a Pretext for Polemic
Part II: Jews, Christians, and the Contested Legacy of Israel
4:A Hard Yoke upon Their Neck: Patristic Polemic and Amoraic Apologetic
5:The Syrian-Palestinian Milieu in Late Antiquity: The Contested Legacy of Aaron and the Priesthood
Part III: The Qur'anic Calf Episode
6:The Qur'anic Calf Episode between Orientalism and Islamic Tradition
7:A Living Calf at Sinai? Reevaluating the Qur'anic Calf Episode
8:Rescripting Sinai: The Qur'an in the History of Interpretation of the Calf Episode
9:Conclusion
Bibliography
Author Information
Michael Pregill, Lecturer, University of California, Los Angeles
Michael Pregill is a scholar of comparative religion, specializing in the history of the scriptural cultures of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Much of his research focuses on the reception of biblical, Jewish, and Christian traditions in the Qur'an and Islam. He lives and teaches in Los Angeles, California.
Reviews and Awards
Winner of the Award for Excellence in the Study of Religion: Textual Studies at the 2021 AAR Book Awards
"...excellent study" - Stephen J. Shoemaker, University of Oregon, Church History
"This fascinating and brilliant study traces the use and transformation of the episode of the Golden Calf (Exod. 32.1-35) in Judaism, Christianity and the Qur'an...This is an incredibly rich study that will set new standards for the exploration of biblical themes in the Qur'an." - Anslem C. Hagedorn, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament
"Pregill's work provides an outstanding example of the uses to which comparison can be put when done seriously and on a small scale. While based on careful scholarship and responsible philological practice, his comfort with the material and the novelty of the analysis leads him to venture forth and make much bolder claims about the nature of the Hebrew Bible and the Quran. The result is a textually rich and theoretically sophisticated work that, while closely focused on one base text, subsequently broaches much larger issues that deal with textuality, politics, and the nature of scholarship." - 2021 AAR Book Awards
"This monograph is one of the most comprehensive works to investigate the interpretation of the Golden Calf narrative, as it includes the full spectrum of Jewish, Christian and Muslim reception history." - Abdulla Galadari, Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations