The Homeless Jesus In The Gospel Of Matthew
by Robert J. Myles /
2014 / English / PDF
3 MB Download
If homelessness typically entails a loss of social power and
agency, then why do New Testament scholars so often envisage Jesus'
itinerancy as a chosen lifestyle devoid of hardship? In this
provocative new reading of the Gospel of Matthew, Robert J. Myles
explores the disjuncture between Jesus and homelessness by exposing
the political biases of modern Western readers. Drawing on the
ideological politics of homelessness in contemporary society, Myles
develops an interpretative lens informed by the Marxist critique of
neoliberalism and, in particular, by the critical theory of Slavoj
ÎiÏek. Homelessness, from this perspective, is viewed not as an
individual choice but rather as the by-product of wider economic,
political and social forces. Myles argues that Jesus' homelessness
has become largely romanticized in recent biblical scholarship. Is
the flight to Egypt, for instance, important primarily for its
recasting of Jesus as the new Moses, or should the basic narrative
of forced displacement take centre stage? The remedy, Myles
contends, is to read directly against the grain of contemporary
scholarship by interpreting Jesus' homelessness through his wider
economic, political and social context, as it is encoded in the
biblical text. To demonstrate how ideology is complicit in shaping
the interpretation of a homeless Jesus, selected texts from the
Gospel of Matthew is re-read to amplify the destitution,
desperation and constraints on agency that are integral to a
critical understanding of homelessness. What emerges is a refreshed
appreciation for the deviancy of Matthew's Jesus, in which his
status as a displaced and expendable outsider is identified as
contributing to the conflict and violence of the narrative, leading
ultimately to his execution on the cross.
If homelessness typically entails a loss of social power and
agency, then why do New Testament scholars so often envisage Jesus'
itinerancy as a chosen lifestyle devoid of hardship? In this
provocative new reading of the Gospel of Matthew, Robert J. Myles
explores the disjuncture between Jesus and homelessness by exposing
the political biases of modern Western readers. Drawing on the
ideological politics of homelessness in contemporary society, Myles
develops an interpretative lens informed by the Marxist critique of
neoliberalism and, in particular, by the critical theory of Slavoj
ÎiÏek. Homelessness, from this perspective, is viewed not as an
individual choice but rather as the by-product of wider economic,
political and social forces. Myles argues that Jesus' homelessness
has become largely romanticized in recent biblical scholarship. Is
the flight to Egypt, for instance, important primarily for its
recasting of Jesus as the new Moses, or should the basic narrative
of forced displacement take centre stage? The remedy, Myles
contends, is to read directly against the grain of contemporary
scholarship by interpreting Jesus' homelessness through his wider
economic, political and social context, as it is encoded in the
biblical text. To demonstrate how ideology is complicit in shaping
the interpretation of a homeless Jesus, selected texts from the
Gospel of Matthew is re-read to amplify the destitution,
desperation and constraints on agency that are integral to a
critical understanding of homelessness. What emerges is a refreshed
appreciation for the deviancy of Matthew's Jesus, in which his
status as a displaced and expendable outsider is identified as
contributing to the conflict and violence of the narrative, leading
ultimately to his execution on the cross.