Iconic Books from Below

The Christian Bible and the Discourse of Duct Tape

Authors

  • Dorina Miller Parmenter Spalding University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/post.v6i1-3.185

Keywords:

iconic books, Bible, popular culture, duct tape

Abstract

Investigating the Christian Bible as “America’s Iconic Book” (following Marty 1982) reveals that this icon is generated and maintained not only through lofty theology and high church rituals, but also through mundane and often invisible biblical practices. By examining how people engage with their personal Bibles, scholars can better understand how status and authority is generated not only through semantic meaning, but also through material and embodied actions. This article looks at one example of this in contemporary American Evangelical Christianity: the display of worn-out Bibles and the discourses that surround the phenomena of duct-taped Bibles.

Author Biography

  • Dorina Miller Parmenter, Spalding University

    Assistant Professor of Religious Studies, School of Liberal Studies, Spalding University.

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Published

2012-06-27

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Parmenter, D. M. (2012). Iconic Books from Below: The Christian Bible and the Discourse of Duct Tape. Postscripts: The Journal of Sacred Texts, Cultural Histories, and Contemporary Contexts, 6(1-3), 185-200. https://doi.org/10.1558/post.v6i1-3.185