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The Forgotten Compass
Marcel Jousse and the Exploration of the Oral World
Edited by Werner H. Kelber and Bruce D. Chilton
Series: Biblical Performance Criticism
Imprint: Cascade Books
312 Pages, 6.00 x 9.00 x 0.62 in
- Paperback
- 9781725278332
- Published: September 2022
$38.00 / £34.00 / AU$59.00
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- 9781725278356
- Published: September 2022
$38.00 / £32.99 / AU$55.99
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As form criticism arose, the French anthropologist Marcel Jousse developed a hermeneutical paradigm, global in scope and prescient in its vision but opposed to the philological paradigm of biblical studies. While the philological methodology came to define modernity's biblical hermeneutics, Jousse's rhythmically energized paradigm was marginalized and largely forgotten. Although Jousse has left relatively few traces in writing, many of his more than one thousand lectures, delivered at four different academic institutions in Paris between 1931 and 1957, have been edited and translated into English by Edgard Sienaert. The Forgotten Compass surveys Jousse's views on biblical tradition and scholarship, documenting the relevance of his paradigm for current biblical studies. What distinguishes Jousse's paradigm is that it is firmly established within the orbit of ancient communications and deeply rooted in Jewish tradition. The Forgotten Compass challenges readers to come to appreciate the print Bible's lack of fluency in the very sensibilities privileged by Jousse's paradigm and to raise consciousness about the multivocal, multisensory culture in which the biblical traditions emerged and from which they drew their initial nourishment.
Werner H. Kelber is the Isla Carroll and Percy E. Turner Professor Emeritus of Biblical Studies at Rice University. He is the author or editor of many books, among them The Oral and the Written Gospel (1997), Imprints, Voiceprints, and Footprints (2013), and Oral-Scribal Dimensions of Scripture, Piety, and Practice (coeditor; Cascade Books, 2016).
Bruce D. Chilton is the Bernard Iddings Bell Professor of Philosophy and Religion at Bard College. His many books include The Way of Jesus (2010), A Galilean Rabbi and His Bible (Wipf & Stock, 2013), and The Herods (2021).
“Experience the excitement of discovery—of an author whose work may well change your way of looking at the Bible. This book lets Marcel Jousse speak for himself but also allows us the privilege of accompanying major scholars as they step out of their routine to engage critically and enthusiastically with Jousse. Unsurprisingly, Jousse taught in Paris. Perhaps surprisingly, he was a Jesuit priest.”
—Bernhard Lang, University of Paderborn
“This excellent introduction to the French ethnographer Marcel Jousse’s pioneering and groundbreaking work on orality and memory within the Palestinian Jewish milieu of Jesus enables readers to (re)discover his contributions to the study of the New Testament and modern intellectual history. Combining two of Jousse’s lectures with an introduction and critical assessments, the book indicates his avant-garde ideas and their relevance for contemporary scholarship.”
—Catherine Hezser, SOAS University of London
“What a joy this volume is for anyone interested in orality! Though focused on biblical studies, it equally appeals to communication or media ecology scholars by its introduction of the work of the anthropologist Marcel Jousse to new generations. Seeing and hearing Jousse in the context of his work makes him come alive and opens up additional ways of thinking about how people interact with their communication environments.”
—Paul A. Soukup, SJ, Santa Clara University
“The Forgotten Compass points the way to a paradigm more fully suited to the Aramaic Targumic world of Rabbi Jeshua of Nazareth. A global anthropologist and contemporary of Rudolf Bultmann, Jousse offers a robust, full-bodied approach to the Scriptures, at once very old and very new. Jousse is a treasure trove indeed for younger scholars especially who seek alternative pathways to discovery.”
—Randolph F. Lumpp, Regis University, emeritus
“Jousse used an argument from the astronomer Laplace: great discoveries occur when previously distant concepts finally meet. The Forgotten Compass is one of those rare events. This magnificent collection constitutes a true reencounter, where Gospel studies come again face to face with the investigation of the traditions of oral style. The intellectual gestures of both sides will create a current able to irrigate the unified field of biblical studies and oral traditions.”
—Gabriel Bourdin, Institute of Anthropological Research
“Marcel Jousse was well known for his groundbreaking study of oral tradition and memory. To celebrate this work and to probe further its significance and ongoing relevance for biblical studies and Jesus research, editors Werner Kelber and Bruce Chilton have assembled an impressive roster of scholars who assess Joussean thought. Rich with insight, these essays move forward in positive ways the study of orality.”
—Craig A. Evans, Houston Baptist University
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