Magazines Biblical Archaeology Review
Books and Publications Average Rating:

Rating: - Scholarship Deconstructed
There was a time when biblical archeology was a pleasant way to spend an afternoon or a life, when the Biblical Archaeology Review was a part of that pleasant dalliance. Unfortunately, lines have been drawn in the sand, and the armies marshaled into the fray. Somehow everything has become a religious matter, and BAR, rather than playing the part of impartial presenter of the issues has let itself become a part of the problem.

I really don't have a set opinion on the over-arching veracity of the Bible. It simply isn't a necessary part of my religious beliefs that the Bible be absolutely and perfectly factual. So in a discussion about the authenticity of a particular artifact what I want is science and corroboration. Unfortunately BAR has gotten embroiled in the controversy over the James Ossuary and has moved well past the point of scholarly return.

Nor is this the only conflict where they have taken sides. The dating and significance of the Ahwat ruins is another sore point. And they seem to be at war with the Israel Antiquities Authority. This simply does not make for the kind of solid journalism that should mark a field of study that is important to many people of dramatically different faiths. The sad thing is that there are no alternatives that can claim the broad coverage the BAR once provided.

Once the writers veer off from the agruments and vitriol, they manage some interesting discussions, but personally, I would hold off from a subscription. Use the money to do a bit of research and find books and academic materials that may be a bit less exciting to read, but will be much more informative.

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Rating: - Just read the first issue!
All I can think of is how great this journal is. BAR pulls no punches, and the articles are very well written. Biblical discoveries are analyzed from different angles, with contributions coming from a diverse base of experts. Certainly worth every penny!

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Rating: - A SUNDAY SCHOOL PRIMER POSING AS A JOURNAL
If you are an unquestioning believer and are looking for a magazine that both poses as an objective archeology journal while reinforcing your recieved faith-based beliefs, then this is the periodical for you. Biblical Archeology Review (BAR) is dedicated to 'proving' that the Bible's text is the best source of information on the ancient Biblical world rather than empirical archeological evidence. BAR's standard has reached an all time low recently with its editor's oportunistic promotion of the now debunked James ossuary. It serves as a cautionary tale of the predetermined and crack pot modus operandi employed by BAR. The equation goes like this: 1. The text of the Bible is not to be questioned and 2. If you can find any archeological artifact or discovery that you can bend and twist beyond all context to support #1 than you can get it published in BAR. Also, ever present within BAR is a fear and deprication of independant empirical archeology which interprets archeological evidence without predetermined beliefs as having a primacy over the Bible's text (a text that each generation was free to constantly redact to fit its own political exigencies of the day). BAR articles of full of unproven faith-based assumptions and are of little use to the serious student of Biblical archeology. Unfortunately, I wasn't warned about this and subscribed to an entire year, now every few months I have to waste a few seconds taking BAR from my mailbox directly to the trash can where it belongs.

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Rating: - Cancel my subscription. Not!
It seems that at least one letter to the editor in each edition of Biblical Archaeology Review and its companion magazine, Bible Review, has a request to 'cancel my subscription'! Indeed, at one point upon renewing my subscription, I received the bonus gift of a small book that bore the title 'Cancel My Subscription!' These are letters which come from people who have found something offensive or unsettling among the many articles in an issue. And that is perfectly understandable -- these magazines are touching upon very core beliefs in a way that is no respector of interpretative frameworks. BAR and BR are wonderful at letting the scholars, reviewers and other contributors speak for themselves. In fact, one might go so far as to say that the controversies are encouraged -- for every reader who cancels, there are many more who are thankful for the illumination of differing viewpoints.

Biblical Archaeology Review has to its great credit early calls to the end the monopolistic tactics that the review team of the Dead Sea Scrolls seemed to have, and seemed to be poised to keep the scrolls out of the public view for yet another generation of scholars.

BAR takes issue with those who block the free transmission of knowledge and the free exercise of research. They have also taken public issue with archaeologists (the community with whom one would think they need to stay in good standing) for their fairly regular failure to publish results of archaeological research in a timely manner, or at all. And, as much archaeological research involves an element of destruction (when you move one layer off another layer, the top layer is usually destroyed -- documentation of what was removed is critical, or else it really is lost) archaeologists who do not report what they've done are really burying the past more securely than any ocean tide or sand dune could.

The Biblical Archaeology Society (which produces these two magazines and a third, which I haven't read extensively and so do not yet feel qualified to review) also hosts regular seminars and gatherings. When I went the the AAR/SBL (American Academy of Religion/Society for Biblical Literature) conference last year, I also attended the BAS seminars held nearby. These are wonderful occasions, with noted scholars who regularly appear in the pages of BAR and BR, with groups of people, both amateurs and professionals, who are intensively interested in the topics presented. And, of course, one of the questions which always arises is, 'Where is Hershel?'

This refers to Hershel Shanks, editor and founder, who has, through his efforts and style, seemed to have established an instant rapport with his readers, such that those who have never met him feel they are on a first-name basis.

BAR has various sections with short newsy updates and in-depth articles on current archaeological problems, issues or discoveries. They also highlight personalities. Some scholars have regular columns (Elie Wiesel has been contributing a regular column to Bible Review for the past few years on significant figures from the Hebrew Scriptures).

Articles include an examination of current archaeological investigations and digs, as well as past digs that were not adequately covered. Architectural and artifact analysis is done, with extensive scientific reporting, but not so much that the articles are inaccessible to the interested layperson. Textual analysis and new interpretations are presented, both on newly discovered biblical and proto-biblical texts (the Dead Sea Scrolls aren't the only ones), as well an non-biblical texts from the region, to illustrate better the culture and society. There is usually at least one article on a major player in the field, again past or present, often in an interview with Hershel Shanks.

For the low price, one gets a wonderful magazine that always leaves one wanting more. Glossy pages, beautiful photography, interesting maps and diagrams -- this magazine is a visual feast as well as an intellectual treat. Biblical Archaeology Review invests as much in the outstanding photography (for which it has won awards) as it does in the clear and precise writing. BAR is not afraid to contradict itself (archaeological evidence is often susceptible to multiple, sometimes conflicting interpretations) and will be up front with what it does and does not believe. It does not purport to support any particular doctrinal or dogmatic view, inviting the reader to take what is presented and work for her or himself the implications for faith, both spiritual and historical.

Read it to find out what you agree with; don't be afraid to disagree -- write in and tell them about it! Just don't cancel your subscription!