I'm not posting this because I agree or disagree with the author's position(s) (not that I know of any rule against doing that) on the issues brought up in this book (I don't even know what they are). I am just putting the book "out there" because it looks like something that could provoke thought and study, is very highly rated, and is very inexpensive with the current markdown in force.
Disarming Scripture: Cherry-Picking Liberals, Violence-Loving Conservatives, and Why We All Need to Learn to Read the Bible Like Jesus Did. By Derek Flood. Rated 5 stars, from 35 reviews at the present moment (at Goodreads: 4.39, from 41 ratings). Digital list price $8.99; Kindle price now
$0.99. Metanoia Books, publisher. 295 pages.
http://www.amazon.com/Disarming-Scri...Like+Jesus+Did.
Book Description
A GOD OF LOVE AND GENOCIDE? For many Christians the problem of violence of Scripture can result in a crisis of faith—especially when we see how such passages have been used throughout history to justify horrific bloodshed in God's name. Moving beyond typical conservative and liberal approaches, which seek to either defend or whitewash over violence in the Bible, Disarming Scripture takes a surprising yet compelling approach: Learning to read the Bible like Jesus did.
Along the way the book deals with some very big issues, ranging from passages commanding genocide and infanticide in the Old Testament to passages in the New Testament that have been used to justify slavery, child abuse, and state violence. The take-away is an approach to Scripture that not only sees questioning as an acceptable part of a healthy faith, but as an absolutely essential part of it.