With Reverence for the Word Medieval Scriptural Exegesis in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam by Jane Dammen McAuliffe, Barry D. Walfish, and Joseph W. Goering, eds. (USA: Oxford University Press, 2003. 488 pages.)

Abstract

This ground-breaking work is a collection of papers originally given at an
academic conference on the interpretation of scripture in medieval Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam, which was held at the University of Toronto in
1997. Of equal interest to scholars and students of medieval Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam, particularly those concerned with the place of the
scriptures in these religious traditions, it demonstrates both the diversity
within these three faiths’ exegetical traditions as well as their many crosscultural
similarities.
Following a short preface, which briefly outlines the work’s purposes
and scope, the book is divided into three sections, each of which contains
the chapters related to each faith tradition. Each section begins with its
own introduction to the history and methods of the medieval exegesis of
the relevant faith tradition, which provides the non-specialist reader with
a historical context in which to place the individual chapters. The introductions
also draw the reader’s attention to some parallel developments
and possible interfaith influences among these exegetical traditions,
while at the same time promoting a nuanced understanding in order to
avoid facile comparisons. The book contains both a general subject index
and an index to citations from the Bible, Rabbinic literature, and the
Qur’an.
Part 1, which contains 10 chapters on medieval Jewish exegesis, is
arguably the most vibrant portion of this book. It conveys a sense of the
depth and breadth of this exegetical tradition, as well as the variety of
approaches that are being used to study it, and the potential such studies
have for shedding light on a variety of historical issues ...