Old English Biblical Verse

This is the first extended study of the Old Testament poems of the Junius collection as a group. The circumstances surrounding their composition and transmission are mysterious: none is ascribed to a named author and none situated even relatively within the development of Anglo-Saxon Christian poetry. This book seeks to breach this critical impasse by allowing the Biblical content of the Junius poems to tell its own story. Paul G. Remley compares them with genuine early medieval texts that are most likely to have circulated in Anglo-Saxon centers and offers engaging exercises in hermeneutic and reader-response criticism. All citations of Old English, Latin and Greek texts are accompanied by modern English translations.

Uses a wide range of neglected early medieval biblical material
All citations of Old English, Latin and Greek texts have modern English translations
Highlights details of the day-to-day life of early medieval Christian communities

Reviews & endorsements

"...this study is a model of literary research. With its critical summary of previous studies and its judicious, incisive, and pioneering insights, it is certain to generate further research....Excellent translations help make this scholarly work stimulating reading for expert and layperson alike." J.H.Sims, Choice

"Old English Biblical Verse is not only an excellent scholarly study of a difficult book of texts but also an introduction to the treasures that the intersection of these two cultures brought forth." Gerald J. Russello, Christianity and Literature

"...there is much to learn from the collateral material in this book...." A. D. Doane, Jrnl of English & Germanic Philology

"This careful work provokes important questions in various fields and should prove invaluable not only for continued source study but also for many other forms of literary, historical, and religious scholarship." Susan M. Kim, Journal of Religion

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