skip to Main Navigation
skip to Main Content
skip to Footer
Path
Success
Path
Created with Sketch.
Warning
Path
Error
FREE SHIPPING Every Day With Purchases Of $60 Or More Of Eligible Items. Online Orders Only.
Click Here To Search
Top Suggestions
Help / Contact
Help
Contact Us
Login / Signup
Log in
Create an Account
0
You have no items in your shopping cart.
Sign In / Create Account
VBS
Books
Back
Preaching
Pastoral Resources
Leadership
Biblical Reference
Biblical Commentary
Worship
Christian Theology
Social Issues
Love & Marriage
Children's Books
Methodist and Wesleyan
UM Music & Worship Resources
Inspirational
Spiritual Growth
Faith
Spirituality
Prayerbooks
Devotional
Bibles
Back
New Revised Standard Version
Common English Bible
New International Version
English Standard Version
King James Version
New King James Version
New Living Translation
Children's Bibles
Teen Bibles
Curriculum
Back
Children
Youth
Adult
Multigenerational
Intergenerational
VBS
Curriculum Automatic Shipping
Studies
Back
Seasonal Studies
New Testament
Old Testament
Whole Bible
Disciple Bible Studies
Church Growth & Outreach
Christian Beliefs
Family & Relationships
Leadership
Adult Bible Studies
Studies for Women
Studies for Men
Prayer & Devotion
Social Issues & Community
Spiritual Growth
Stewardship
United Methodist & Wesleyan
Supplies
Back
Acolyte Supplies
Altarware
Attendance & Visitor Supplies
Banners & Flags
Baptism Supplies
Bulletins & Stationery
Candles
Certificates
Choir Robes & Supplies
Church Bulletin Service
Church Planners & Calendars
Church Record-Keeping
Classroom Supplies
Clergy Crosses
Clergy Robes
Clergy Shirts
Clergy Supplies
Communion Supplies
Confirmation Supplies
Custom Offering Envelopes
Electronics & Software
Funeral Supplies
Furnishings
Handbells & Chimes
Memorial Supplies
Music & Worship Resources
Offering Supplies
Paraments
Signs
Stoles
Ushering Supplies
Wedding Supplies
Supply Subscriptions
UM Official Resources
eCatalogs
Back
Lent Studies Comparison Chart 2025
Cokesbury's 2024-2025 Curriculum Catalog
Cokesbury VBS Catalog 2025
Lent, Easter and Spring 2025 Catalog
Worship Essentials Catalog
VBS Comparison Chart 2025
Abingdon Press Women and Preaching Book Sampler
Word Alive 2024-25 Catalog
Abingdon Women Bible Studies Catalog
Wesleyan Resources Catalog
Liturgical Color Calendar 2025
Amplify Media Planning Guide
Clearance
Back
Books
Bibles
Curriculum
Studies
Gifts
Church Supplies
Cokesbury.com Help
Contact Us
Back
Customer Care
Accounting & Credit Services
About Cokesbury
Books
/
Religion
/
Biblical Criticism & Interpretation
/
General
/
A Most Peculiar Book
A Most Peculiar Book
The Inherent Strangeness of the Bible
By
Kristin Swenson
View More
View Less
Hardcover
$19.99
($27.99)
Product Description
The Bible, we are constantly reminded, is the best-selling book of all time. It is read with intense devotion by hundreds of millions of people, stands as authoritative for Judaism and Christianity, and informs and affects the politics and lives of the religious and non-religious around the world. But how well do we really know it? The Bible is so familiar, so ubiquitous that we have begun to take our knowledge of it for granted. The Bible many of us think we know is a pale imitation of the real thing.
In
A Most Peculiar Book
, Kristin Swenson addresses the dirty little secret of biblical studies that the Bible is a weird book. It is full of surprises and contradictions, unexplained impossibilities, intriguing supernatural creatures, and heroes doing horrible deeds. It does not provide a simple worldview: what "the Bible says" on a given topic is multi-faceted, sometimes even contradictory. Yet, Swenson argues, we have a tendency to reduce the complexities of the Bible to aphorisms, bumper stickers, and slogans. Swenson helps readers look at the text with fresh eyes. A collection of ancient stories and poetry written by multiple authors, held together by the tenuous string of tradition, the Bible often undermines our modern assumptions. And is all the more marvelous and powerful for it.
Rather than dismiss the Bible as an outlandish or irrelevant relic of antiquity, Swenson leans into the messiness full-throttle. Making ample room for discomfort, wonder, and weirdness,
A Most Peculiar Book
guides readers through a Bible that will feel, to many, brand new.
Read More
Read Less
Quantity
Eligible For Free Shipping
Usually ships in 4-5 business days.
Ships from a Cokesbury Connect Partner.
Additional Details
Kit components
The following items and their quantities are included in the kit product:
A Most Peculiar Book
Quantity Included
Item
Format
SKU
Individual Price
Additional Details
Product Specs
SKU:
9780190651732
ISBN 13:
9780190651732
Publication Date:
02/01/2021
Format:
Hardcover
Author:
Kristin Swenson
Width:
6.00 inches
Height:
1.00 inches
Length:
8.50 inches
Weight:
0.07 pounds
View More
View Less
Shipping & Returns
This item is available for return.
At Cokesbury, we offer various expedited shipping methods for an additional charge during checkout. However, products with long lead times and those shipped from a Cokesbury Connect Partner are not eligible for expedited shipping. If you select expedited shipping at checkout and your order includes items that cannot be expedited, you will receive a notice explaining that not all items are eligible.
Recently Viewed Products
Every Time Bread Communion Regular Size Bulletin
$7.99
$8.99
Standard Lesson Quarterly KJV Adult Student Book Fall
$8.49
The Jesus Cow
From $13.79
$17.99
Recommended For You
The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church 2020/2024
$29.99
Adult Bible Studies Summer 2025 Student
$15.99
Adult Bible Studies Summer 2025 Teacher/Commentary Kit
$19.99
The United Methodist Music & Worship Planner 2025-2026 CEB/NRSVue Edition
$32.99
The Official United Methodist Program Calendar 2026: Standard Edition
$14.99
Close