Psalms in Community: Jewish and Christian Textual, Liturgical, and Artistic Traditions.

• Author: Way, Kenneth C.

Psalms in Community: Jewish and Christian Textual. Liturgical, and Artistic Traditions. Edited by HAROLD W. ATTRIDGE AND MARGOT E. FASSLER. SBL Symposium Series, vol. 25. Atlanta: SOCIETY OF BIBLICAL LITERATURE, 2003, Pp. xiii + 474, illus. $49.95 (paper).

The book of Psalms, or the Psalter, is arguably the most familiar and popular biblical book of the Judeo-Christian tradition. It is unparalleled in its universal appeal, poetic quality, emotional depth, and its wide array of approaches to deity. It is the book quoted more frequently in the Christian Scriptures than any other book of the Hebrew Bible, and it is extensively employed in both Jewish and Christian liturgies.

Psalms in Community, edited by Harold W. Attridge and Margot E. Fassler, is a new book in the SBL Symposium series that serves as an interfaith guide to what the Psalms have meant throughout the centuries. It also has a practical purpose, which is "to help worshipping congregations restore their psalmody where it is lost and to understand it more fully where it is not" (p. 3). The book is a compilation of articles based on papers that were presented at the conference "Up with a Shout" held at Yale University in January 2002. Not surprisingly, many of the contributors (eleven out of twenty-five) are from Yale. The contributors include scholars, performers, composers, and religious leaders.

The two introductory essays by Robert Taft and Lawrence Hoffman examine liturgical psalmody in the Christian and Jewish traditions, respectively. Part 1, "Psalms in the Life of Ancient Israel," includes articles on David and the Psalms in early Judaism (Esther Menn), the Thanksgiving Hymn at Qumran (John Collins), and the Psalter as a book of theology (Patrick Miller). Part 2, "Psalms in Christian Origins," includes articles on the use of the Psalms in the New Testament (Harold Attridge), the Psalms and the origins of Christology (Adela Yarbro Collins), and Christian "Rock" music at Corinth (Diana Swancutt). Part 3, "Psalms in Formative Judaism and Christianity," includes articles about Philo's impact on Christian psalmody (Peter Jeffery), early Christian interpretation of the Psalms (Brian Daley), and Peshitta Psalms in the East Syrian tradition (Bryan Spinks). Part 4, "Psalms in the Latin Middle Ages and the Early Modem Period," includes articles on Hildegard and Benedictine psalmody (Margot Fassler), illuminated Psalter commentaries (Walter Cahn), Calvin's commentary on the Psalms...