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Papers by Kathryn Schifferdecker

The Heythrop Journal, 2012

Encyclopedia of the Bible Online, 2013

The Oxford Handbook of the Bible and Ecology

The whirlwind speeches at the end of the book of Job (38–41) provide an essential “voice” in the ... more The whirlwind speeches at the end of the book of Job (38–41) provide an essential “voice” in the conversation about Bible and ecology. Job asks the question, “What are human beings?” (Job 7:17), and the voice from the whirlwind answers the question with a resounding silence about humanity. Nevertheless, humanity (in the person of Job) plays an important role in the whirlwind speeches, as the sole passenger on God’s tour of the cosmos. Those speeches call human beings to humility—to know their place in the world but also to wonder and to justice. These biblical texts are particularly pertinent for us today, as we wrestle with the effects of human activity on the earth’s climate and ecosystems.

The world is charged with the grandeur of God. It will flame out, like shining from shook foil; I... more The world is charged with the grandeur of God. It will flame out, like shining from shook foil; It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod? Generations have trod, have trod, have trod; And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil; And wears man's smudge and shares man's smell: the soil Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod. And for all this, nature is never spent; There lives the dearest freshness deep down things; And though the last lights off the black West went Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs-Because the Holy Ghost over the bent World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.-Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844-1889) 1 erard Manley Hopkins, writing in 1877 in industrial England, knew the effect that humanity could have on God's creation-a creation "bleared, smeared," wearing "man's smudge" and sharing "man's smell." One wonders what Hopkins 210

Document Type Article Publication Date Fall 2011 Abstract The whirlwind speeches at the end of Jo... more Document Type Article Publication Date Fall 2011 Abstract The whirlwind speeches at the end of Job (Job 38–41) depict a cosmos that is radically nonanthropocentric. This cosmos includes creatures and places indifferent towards human beings and quite dangerous for them. Nevertheless, God delights in these wild creatures and places and gives them a place in creation. Job responds to the whirlwind speeches by choosing to live with the same freedom God grants all of God’s creatures. Publication Title Word & World

To rest, we must accept Nature's limits and our own. When we come to our limit, we must be still.... more To rest, we must accept Nature's limits and our own. When we come to our limit, we must be still. 1 I grew up in the land of Walmart. In those days (the 1970s and 1980s) in southern Missouri, not far from the Arkansas border, many small towns had a Walmart, including my hometown, Farmington. There were Walmarts in several of the towns that surrounded us, five stores in a twenty-five mile radius. Of course, when I was growing up, these were not the Walmart "Supercenters" of todayopen twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year-with full grocery stores, auto repair shops, garden centers, and pharmacies included. These were relatively modest shopping centers, open during waking hours with a somewhat limited variety of goods and services. Nevertheless, our local family-owned stores had a hard time competing against Walmart and, as happened in many small towns, some of these smaller stores closed because of it. My grandfather, a devout Lutheran and a milkman by trade, refused to shop at Walmart. He did so not out of loyalty (though he was friends with many of the

The world is charged with the grandeur of God. It will flame out, like shining from shook foil; I... more The world is charged with the grandeur of God. It will flame out, like shining from shook foil; It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod? Generations have trod, have trod, have trod; And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil; And wears man's smudge and shares man's smell: the soil Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod. And for all this, nature is never spent; There lives the dearest freshness deep down things; And though the last lights off the black West went Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs-Because the Holy Ghost over the bent World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.-Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844-1889) 1 erard Manley Hopkins, writing in 1877 in industrial England, knew the effect that humanity could have on God's creation-a creation "bleared, smeared," wearing "man's smudge" and sharing "man's smell." One wonders what Hopkins 210

PROFESSIONAL POSITIONS: Associate Professor of Old Testament, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN 2011p... more PROFESSIONAL POSITIONS: Associate Professor of Old Testament, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN 2011present Visiting Professor, Mekane Yesus Seminary, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 2012-2013 Assistant Professor of Old Testament, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN 2006 2011 Associate Pastor, Trinity Lutheran Church, Arkdale, WI 2001-2006 Teaching Fellow, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 1998-2000 Pastoral Intern, Zion Lutheran Church, Gowrie, IA 1994-1995

Encyclopedia of the Bible Online

Encyclopedia of the Bible Online

The Heythrop Journal, 2012

Encyclopedia of the Bible Online, 2013

The Oxford Handbook of the Bible and Ecology

The whirlwind speeches at the end of the book of Job (38–41) provide an essential “voice” in the ... more The whirlwind speeches at the end of the book of Job (38–41) provide an essential “voice” in the conversation about Bible and ecology. Job asks the question, “What are human beings?” (Job 7:17), and the voice from the whirlwind answers the question with a resounding silence about humanity. Nevertheless, humanity (in the person of Job) plays an important role in the whirlwind speeches, as the sole passenger on God’s tour of the cosmos. Those speeches call human beings to humility—to know their place in the world but also to wonder and to justice. These biblical texts are particularly pertinent for us today, as we wrestle with the effects of human activity on the earth’s climate and ecosystems.

The world is charged with the grandeur of God. It will flame out, like shining from shook foil; I... more The world is charged with the grandeur of God. It will flame out, like shining from shook foil; It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod? Generations have trod, have trod, have trod; And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil; And wears man's smudge and shares man's smell: the soil Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod. And for all this, nature is never spent; There lives the dearest freshness deep down things; And though the last lights off the black West went Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs-Because the Holy Ghost over the bent World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.-Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844-1889) 1 erard Manley Hopkins, writing in 1877 in industrial England, knew the effect that humanity could have on God's creation-a creation "bleared, smeared," wearing "man's smudge" and sharing "man's smell." One wonders what Hopkins 210

Document Type Article Publication Date Fall 2011 Abstract The whirlwind speeches at the end of Jo... more Document Type Article Publication Date Fall 2011 Abstract The whirlwind speeches at the end of Job (Job 38–41) depict a cosmos that is radically nonanthropocentric. This cosmos includes creatures and places indifferent towards human beings and quite dangerous for them. Nevertheless, God delights in these wild creatures and places and gives them a place in creation. Job responds to the whirlwind speeches by choosing to live with the same freedom God grants all of God’s creatures. Publication Title Word & World

To rest, we must accept Nature's limits and our own. When we come to our limit, we must be still.... more To rest, we must accept Nature's limits and our own. When we come to our limit, we must be still. 1 I grew up in the land of Walmart. In those days (the 1970s and 1980s) in southern Missouri, not far from the Arkansas border, many small towns had a Walmart, including my hometown, Farmington. There were Walmarts in several of the towns that surrounded us, five stores in a twenty-five mile radius. Of course, when I was growing up, these were not the Walmart "Supercenters" of todayopen twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year-with full grocery stores, auto repair shops, garden centers, and pharmacies included. These were relatively modest shopping centers, open during waking hours with a somewhat limited variety of goods and services. Nevertheless, our local family-owned stores had a hard time competing against Walmart and, as happened in many small towns, some of these smaller stores closed because of it. My grandfather, a devout Lutheran and a milkman by trade, refused to shop at Walmart. He did so not out of loyalty (though he was friends with many of the

The world is charged with the grandeur of God. It will flame out, like shining from shook foil; I... more The world is charged with the grandeur of God. It will flame out, like shining from shook foil; It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod? Generations have trod, have trod, have trod; And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil; And wears man's smudge and shares man's smell: the soil Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod. And for all this, nature is never spent; There lives the dearest freshness deep down things; And though the last lights off the black West went Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs-Because the Holy Ghost over the bent World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.-Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844-1889) 1 erard Manley Hopkins, writing in 1877 in industrial England, knew the effect that humanity could have on God's creation-a creation "bleared, smeared," wearing "man's smudge" and sharing "man's smell." One wonders what Hopkins 210

PROFESSIONAL POSITIONS: Associate Professor of Old Testament, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN 2011p... more PROFESSIONAL POSITIONS: Associate Professor of Old Testament, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN 2011present Visiting Professor, Mekane Yesus Seminary, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 2012-2013 Assistant Professor of Old Testament, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN 2006 2011 Associate Pastor, Trinity Lutheran Church, Arkdale, WI 2001-2006 Teaching Fellow, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 1998-2000 Pastoral Intern, Zion Lutheran Church, Gowrie, IA 1994-1995

Encyclopedia of the Bible Online

Encyclopedia of the Bible Online