The Authority of the Old Testament

Rating:
Summary: Asks the critical questions, but stops short of answering
Review: Bright's book is an attempt to answer some of the pressing questions relative to the role the Church should give to the Old Testament. I was thoroughly excited reading the book, being very appreciative of Bright's attempts to be completely candid over the difficulties in holding to a literal hermeneutic of Old Testament authority. I found Bright's conclusion very unsatisfying and quite unfulfilling. He seemed to have the courage to ask the really hard questions, but would not follow through logically on where his questions were taking him. I believe certain attachments to specific evangelical Christian ideas about inerrancy, infallibility and inspiration colored the last ¼ of the book, and as such, limited the poignancy of his conclusions.