Imagine, Another World is Possible: A Bible Study and Reflection Guide
Vol. 1 Issue 1.
Justice and Witness Ministries, United Church of Christ in partnership with the UCC Council for American Indian Ministries
12 pages
Free download from www.ucc.org/nin/biblestudy06.pdf.

Neighbors in Need is the only special offering of the United Church of Christ which benefits the work of JWM through support to the Council of American Indian Ministries, the 20 UCC American Indian congregations, justice advocacy, and community grants for peace with justice programs. So it is fitting that the reflection guide to be used in conjunction with preparation for the offering is also titled "Imagine, Another World is Possible."

This booklet offers two Bible studies by American Indian leaders in the UCC. Rev. Norman W. Jackson, former conference minister of the Hawaii Conference, is a member of Church of the Crossroads in Honolulu, Hawaii. Rev. Rosemary McCombs Maxey , acting director of the Eagle Butte Learning Center, is a member of Fellowship Congregational UCC is Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Jackson is the author of "Exploring Postcolonial Racism: A Native American Prospective." He identifies postcolonialism as the time following the colonizing impulse when there yet remains extreme harm done to the formerly colonized and the ideology of the colonizer, both of which must be rectified. The reality of postcolonialism is used in the context of Biblical study. Jackson writes, "postcolonial Bible study sets out to show how thoroughly the assumptions of the colonial West are embedded in much biblical interpretation." Within this framework Jackson proposes several questions to guide Bible study from a postcolonial perspective, including:
     Who has the power to interpret or tell stories?
     To whom do the stories/texts belong?
     Who controls the meaning?
He offers up postcolonial interpretations of a few passages from the New Testament. One of these concerns the gospel texts (Matthew 22: 15-22, Mark 12: 13-17, and Luke 20: 20-26) about taxes in which Jesus declares "Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the Emperor's, and to God the things that are God's." A traditional interpretation would argue that Jesus compartmentalizing church and state. From a Native American theological perspective everything is God's, says Jackson. Thus one postcolonial interpretation is that everything of empire is subordinate to God and God's creation.

Maxey recalls how one preacher turned the story of the Good Samaritan on its head in "Good Sam." In the sermon Maxey heard the pastor offered the interpretation that Jesus is "the ultimate neighbor," like the good Samaritan, ready to reach out to those abandoned, robbed, and beaten. The author expected a sermon demanding yet more service from Christians. Yet while the sermon affirmed the need for service, it recognized that Christians also need to be served as while when they find themselves hurt on the roadside. She further interprets the text as an example of how one labeled as "the other" also have "the means which to bless, show mercy, to extend justice beyond the requirements of Old Testament social legislation."

Maxey and Jackson provide two markedly different studies. Jackson's comes with an academic outlook, not surprising considering the author's experience in theological education. Maxey's piece is more anecdotal, but contains just as much depth as Jackson's writing. Both of these brief essays challenge the ways in which Western Biblical interpretations devalue non-European interpretations, providing insights on American Indian perspectives on familiar texts.

This booklet, though short, could be used for very rich discussion within campus ministries. Too often, Biblical texts are read only in light of their traditional Western interpretations and the worldview of the majority. The reflections offer ways to interpret texts while considering the viewpoint of the oppressed. Each essay could be used for a separate session. The essays are probably too long to be read out loud; a summarization by a group leader before a discussion would be helpful. There are no guiding questions for the reflections, however using the interpretive questions Jackson provides would likely produce some exciting conversation.