'The Book and the Sword': The Bible in the Experience and Legacy of the Great War
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Divinity
Abstract
The Bible is an inescapable part of the cultural landscape of WW1. It was perhaps the single most widely-read book during the war. It offered inspiration and consolation to soldiers and civilians alike. Preachers and politicians used it to instil national pride and fighting spirit, and conscientious objectors in defence of pacifism. It offered concepts and metaphors which helped men and women make sense of their everyday experience. Its words were quoted with pious hope on gravestones and war memorials, and recast by angry poets. It was read in every language and on all sides of the conflict by Christians (Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox) and by Jews. Despite the challenges of 19th-century advances in science and biblical criticism, the Bible remained at the centre of Western culture.
Yet the Bible is something of a blind spot in our understanding of the Great War and its legacy. It is a popular commonplace that the war provoked a crisis of belief across the Western world. In Britain, at least, the war has regularly been seen as the epitome of waste and futility, and a source of deep disenchantment with traditional religious values. Nevertheless, historians increasingly recognize that religious faith remained a fundamental source of identity, conviction and morale both in the trenches and on the home front. The centrality of the Bible to that faith is clear from the millions of Bibles printed and distributed each year of the war (especially to soldiers), the thousands of biblical sermons preached every week, and the continued vitality of both popular and scholarly publishing on biblical themes. The Bible and biblical interpretation therefore offer an important lens through which to examine the religious and cultural experience of a world at war, especially since it is a fundamental common point of reference across different religious traditions, institutions and national contexts.
Our project will focus on two main questions: How did the Bible shape and influence people's experience of WW1, and how did the war impact its reading and interpretation? To address these questions we will set up three workshops to discuss the Bible in wartime culture. These will focus on the contribution of biblical scholars and the development of scholarship during the war, the use of the Bible on the front lines by Jewish and Christian soldiers, the role of the Bible in preaching and popular piety, and the place of the Bible in the memory and legacy of the war. We will attend to both the Allied and the Central Powers, allowing comparison of different national and religious contexts.
We will include participants from a range of disciplines (biblical studies, theology and religious studies, history, literary studies, Jewish studies) as well as from key faith-based organisations and cultural agencies. Our aim is to support the exchange of ideas across disciplinary boundaries and to consolidate and extend research links between the UK and other parts of the world by bringing together academics from countries on both sides of the conflict. The international and interdenominational/interfaith aspect of the project is especially important because the history of WW1 has tended to be compartmentalized into different 'national stories'. The Bible was common to all sides but often used very differently, and therefore makes an ideal point of comparison. The workshops will set the agenda for new research on the Bible and warfare, and work to establish a new international centre for the study of the Bible and armed conflict.
The project will also foster public understanding of the Bible's place in the experience and legacy of WW1. We will work with the Bible Society to produce a special magazine edition, organise workshops for religious practitioners to coincide with Remembrance Day 2015 and the anniversary of the Battle of the Somme in 2016, and lay on public lectures and presentations aimed at the wider public in both the UK and Germany.
Yet the Bible is something of a blind spot in our understanding of the Great War and its legacy. It is a popular commonplace that the war provoked a crisis of belief across the Western world. In Britain, at least, the war has regularly been seen as the epitome of waste and futility, and a source of deep disenchantment with traditional religious values. Nevertheless, historians increasingly recognize that religious faith remained a fundamental source of identity, conviction and morale both in the trenches and on the home front. The centrality of the Bible to that faith is clear from the millions of Bibles printed and distributed each year of the war (especially to soldiers), the thousands of biblical sermons preached every week, and the continued vitality of both popular and scholarly publishing on biblical themes. The Bible and biblical interpretation therefore offer an important lens through which to examine the religious and cultural experience of a world at war, especially since it is a fundamental common point of reference across different religious traditions, institutions and national contexts.
Our project will focus on two main questions: How did the Bible shape and influence people's experience of WW1, and how did the war impact its reading and interpretation? To address these questions we will set up three workshops to discuss the Bible in wartime culture. These will focus on the contribution of biblical scholars and the development of scholarship during the war, the use of the Bible on the front lines by Jewish and Christian soldiers, the role of the Bible in preaching and popular piety, and the place of the Bible in the memory and legacy of the war. We will attend to both the Allied and the Central Powers, allowing comparison of different national and religious contexts.
We will include participants from a range of disciplines (biblical studies, theology and religious studies, history, literary studies, Jewish studies) as well as from key faith-based organisations and cultural agencies. Our aim is to support the exchange of ideas across disciplinary boundaries and to consolidate and extend research links between the UK and other parts of the world by bringing together academics from countries on both sides of the conflict. The international and interdenominational/interfaith aspect of the project is especially important because the history of WW1 has tended to be compartmentalized into different 'national stories'. The Bible was common to all sides but often used very differently, and therefore makes an ideal point of comparison. The workshops will set the agenda for new research on the Bible and warfare, and work to establish a new international centre for the study of the Bible and armed conflict.
The project will also foster public understanding of the Bible's place in the experience and legacy of WW1. We will work with the Bible Society to produce a special magazine edition, organise workshops for religious practitioners to coincide with Remembrance Day 2015 and the anniversary of the Battle of the Somme in 2016, and lay on public lectures and presentations aimed at the wider public in both the UK and Germany.
Planned Impact
The Bible remains a fundamental part of the way people throughout Europe encounter the history and legacy of the First World War, especially through inscriptions on war memorials and through liturgical acts of remembrance that form the centrepiece of a season of remembrance, that in Britain at least has become increasingly central to the 'national calendar' (perhaps as a response to the ongoing conflicts and military casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan).
We envisage impact activities that will address the following main topics:
1) The use and impact of the Bible during the war, not only by clergy and other professionals, but also by ordinary people at home and at the front.
2) The role of the Bible in the legacy of the war, in memorials and liturgy as well as literature, art and music.
3) The place of the Bible within contemporary cultures of national remembrance.
4) The question of the relationship between scriptural religion and violence.
We currently have plans for several impact events:
1) A special edition of the Bible Society's magazine The Bible in TransMission, which will be edited by the PI in collaboration with other participants in the network. The Bible in TransMission is a free magazine, which is published twice a year, and focuses on a particular topic or theme. It has a print circulation of 19,000, reaching primarily church leaders, and is also available to download from the Bible Society's website.
2) Two day-workshops for clergy and other practitioners on 'The Bible, War, and Remembrance' in association with the Westcott Foundation (Cambridge) in October 2015 and the St Paul's Cathedral Forum (London) in October 2016. We will also organise a workshop for trainee ministers from both Britain and Germany in collaboration with the Wittenberger Predigerseminar (July 2016).
3) A major public lecture by Prof. Friedrich Wilhelm Graz in association with our Munich workshop. He is a well-known speaker who regularly draws large audiences (September 2016).
4) A public lecture and/or panel discussion at the Cambridge Festival of Ideas (October 2015).
5) A contribution to the Cambridge Interfaith Programme/Coexist Foundation programme at the Cheltenham Literary Festival (October 2016).
6) A public lecture and/or panel discussion in Chester, organised in collaboration with the University of Chester and the Chester Theological Society (May 2016).
Who will benefit?
An important group of beneficiaries will be those faith leaders who make up the audience of the Bible Society magazine and who participate in the workshops. There will also be a wider (if less measurable) impact as these faith leaders engage with questions of the war and remembrance with their own local communities and congregations. Other beneficiaries will be those members of the public that attend the lectures and panel discussions in Cambridge, Munich, Cheltenham, and Chester.
How will they benefit?
The magazine and workshops will provide resources for the leaders of religious organizations to engage in debate about the history and impact of the war, especially its impact on religious belief. The workshops in particular will offer an opportunity for professional clergy (and clergy in training) to reflect critically on their own practice, and to develop pastoral and liturgical resources for use in contexts of remembrance.
Both the faith-based projects and the cultural events can feed into public debate about the relationship between religious faith, scriptures and violence - themes which have been especially prominent since 9/11, and which can be informed by attention to both warmongering and pacifist use of the Bible during 1914-18.
The network will also lay the groundwork for further impact events, which would accompany our development of an ongoing research agenda relating to the Bible and wartime violence.
We envisage impact activities that will address the following main topics:
1) The use and impact of the Bible during the war, not only by clergy and other professionals, but also by ordinary people at home and at the front.
2) The role of the Bible in the legacy of the war, in memorials and liturgy as well as literature, art and music.
3) The place of the Bible within contemporary cultures of national remembrance.
4) The question of the relationship between scriptural religion and violence.
We currently have plans for several impact events:
1) A special edition of the Bible Society's magazine The Bible in TransMission, which will be edited by the PI in collaboration with other participants in the network. The Bible in TransMission is a free magazine, which is published twice a year, and focuses on a particular topic or theme. It has a print circulation of 19,000, reaching primarily church leaders, and is also available to download from the Bible Society's website.
2) Two day-workshops for clergy and other practitioners on 'The Bible, War, and Remembrance' in association with the Westcott Foundation (Cambridge) in October 2015 and the St Paul's Cathedral Forum (London) in October 2016. We will also organise a workshop for trainee ministers from both Britain and Germany in collaboration with the Wittenberger Predigerseminar (July 2016).
3) A major public lecture by Prof. Friedrich Wilhelm Graz in association with our Munich workshop. He is a well-known speaker who regularly draws large audiences (September 2016).
4) A public lecture and/or panel discussion at the Cambridge Festival of Ideas (October 2015).
5) A contribution to the Cambridge Interfaith Programme/Coexist Foundation programme at the Cheltenham Literary Festival (October 2016).
6) A public lecture and/or panel discussion in Chester, organised in collaboration with the University of Chester and the Chester Theological Society (May 2016).
Who will benefit?
An important group of beneficiaries will be those faith leaders who make up the audience of the Bible Society magazine and who participate in the workshops. There will also be a wider (if less measurable) impact as these faith leaders engage with questions of the war and remembrance with their own local communities and congregations. Other beneficiaries will be those members of the public that attend the lectures and panel discussions in Cambridge, Munich, Cheltenham, and Chester.
How will they benefit?
The magazine and workshops will provide resources for the leaders of religious organizations to engage in debate about the history and impact of the war, especially its impact on religious belief. The workshops in particular will offer an opportunity for professional clergy (and clergy in training) to reflect critically on their own practice, and to develop pastoral and liturgical resources for use in contexts of remembrance.
Both the faith-based projects and the cultural events can feed into public debate about the relationship between religious faith, scriptures and violence - themes which have been especially prominent since 9/11, and which can be informed by attention to both warmongering and pacifist use of the Bible during 1914-18.
The network will also lay the groundwork for further impact events, which would accompany our development of an ongoing research agenda relating to the Bible and wartime violence.
Organisations
- University of Cambridge (Lead Research Organisation)
- Westcott House (Collaboration)
- Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU Munich) (Collaboration)
- St Paul's Cathedral (Collaboration, Project Partner)
- Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (Project Partner)
- Westcott Foundation (Project Partner)
- Bible Society (Project Partner)
Publications
Randall I
(2017)
"All War is Contrary to the Mind of Christ:" The Bible and the Fellowship of Reconciliation
in Journal of the Bible and its Reception
Methuen C
(2017)
"The Bible is the Word of God. What does it Tell us About War?" The Use of Scripture in Professor James Cooper's The Soldiers of the Bible and in his Sermon on the National Day of Prayer and Intercession, 3 January 1915
in Journal of the Bible and its Reception
Reisenauer E
(2017)
"The Merchants of Tarshish, with all the Young Lions Thereof." The British Empire, Scripture Prophecy, and the War of Armageddon, 1914-1918
in Journal of the Bible and its Reception
Mein A
(2017)
Bishops, Baby-Killers and Broken Teeth: Psalm 58 and the Air War
in Journal of the Bible and its Reception
Vincent A
(2017)
Ecclesiasticus, War Graves, and the Secularization of British Values
in Journal of the Bible and its Reception
Wesley C
(2017)
Making the Bible Safe for Democracy: American Methodists and the First World War
in Journal of the Bible and its Reception
Mein A
(2017)
The 'Cursing Psalms' in Wartime: Lessons from 1917
in The Reader
Snape M
(2017)
The Bible and the British and American Armed Forces in Two World Wars
in Journal of the Bible and its Reception
MacDonald N
(2017)
The Bible in America and Britain at War
in Journal of the Bible and its Reception
MacDonald N
(2017)
The Bible in America and Britain at War
MacDonald N
(2019)
The First World War and the Mobilization of Biblical Scholarship
Description | We successfully organised the three workshops as planned, bringing together a wide range of scholars from different disciplines. The research presented and the ensuing conversations confirmed the significance of the Bible as a religious and cultural resource for people making sense of the experience of the First World War, as well as underlining the value of collaboration across disciplines as we explored the material. |
Exploitation Route | Through the work of the network we have been to map of a range of possibilities for further research. We have begun to disseminate some of our findings in a special edition of the Journal for the Bible and its Reception, which focused on the use of the Bible in Britain and America. We have also now published a collection of essays on the Mobilization of Biblical Scholarship during the war, which draws primarily on material presented to the first of our workshops. We are also continuing to explore possibilities for impact and engagement work with religious organisations. |
Sectors | Education,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections,Other |
URL | https://www.bibleandww1.divinity.cam.ac.uk/ |
Description | We have successfully organized a range of impact events aimed at the three overlapping beneficiaries we identified in our proposal: the general public, religious believers, and clergy/religious professionals. These include three study days aimed at working and/or trainee clergy, a study afternoon aimed at religious believers, and a public lecture for the general public. The events have been well-received, and offer potential for further impact, especially amongst religious believers and religious professionals. The intersections of Bible, War and Church life are often perceived as 'difficult', and there is a real lack of opportunities for learning and training, so this is an area for further development. We have also disseminated some of the results of our research to a wider audience of interested practitioners by the publication of an article in 'The Reader' magazine, which is distributed to around 10,000 readers (licensed local ministers) in the Church of England and the Church in Wales. |
First Year Of Impact | 2016 |
Sector | Education,Other |
Impact Types | Cultural,Societal |
Description | Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship |
Amount | € 183,455 (EUR) |
Organisation | European Union |
Sector | Public |
Country | European Union (EU) |
Start | 08/2017 |
End | 08/2019 |
Description | St John's College Cambridge Research and Enterprise Grant |
Amount | £800 (GBP) |
Organisation | University of Cambridge |
Sector | Academic/University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 08/2015 |
End | 09/2015 |
Description | LMU Collaboration |
Organisation | Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU Munich) |
Country | Germany |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | We organised the first of our workshops on 'The Mobilization of Biblical Scholarship 1914-1918' to take place at LMU from April. We designed the workshop, made invitations, and paid for travel expenses for all of the participants out of the finds provided by our grant. |
Collaborator Contribution | Prof Loren Stuckenbruck of LMU has served as part of our advisory board and joined us in the planning of the first workshop in Munich. The Evangelisch-Theologische Fakultät provided the funding for all local costs of the workshop, as agreed in our original grant application. Professor Stuckenbruck continues to be involved in the ongoing running of the project. |
Impact | The workshop took place successfully. There were 19 participants, drawn from the UK, Germany, France, the Netherlands, and the US, and representing the disciplines of biblical studies, theology, military history, and intellectual history. 15 papers were presented. |
Start Year | 2015 |
Description | St Paul's Collaboration |
Organisation | St Paul's Cathedral |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
PI Contribution | Andrew Mein planned and delivered a study afternoon on the Bible and War, with particular emphasis on WW1. |
Collaborator Contribution | St Paul's Head of Adult Learning, Elizabeth Foy, has been part of our advisory board, and given advice about impact events. She also provided a platform for us to present our research as part of the Adult Learning programme at St Paul's, and we are in discussion about further events to commemorate the end of the war in 2018. |
Impact | Study afternoon: 'Swords into Ploughshares? War and the Old Testament. 18 November 2016. The presentation bought together biblical studies, theology, and history. |
Start Year | 2015 |
Description | Westcott Collaboration |
Organisation | Westcott House |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | We worked with staff at Westcott to plan and deliver two study days, one for trainee clergy from Germany and the UK, the other for UK-based clergy and trainee clergy. |
Collaborator Contribution | Westcott House offered us a venue to present the results of our research, and worked with us to design a programme that would engage effectively with the needs of religious professionals. |
Impact | 'The Bible, War and Remembrance' - study day as part of the annual student exchange between Westcott House and the Wittenberger Predigerseminar, July 16 2017. 'The Bible, the Great War, and Remembrance'; Westcott Foundation study day, October 5 2016. |
Start Year | 2015 |
Description | Cambridge Festival of Ideas |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | A talk with questions afterwards on the use of the Bible in Germany and Britiain during the First World War. Around 60 people attended. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | http://www.festivalofideas.cam.ac.uk/events/book-and-sword-bible-world-war-1 |
Description | Cambridge TV Feature |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | We made a short feature (11 minutes), where we were interviewed on the use of the Bible in the First World War that was broadcast on Cambridge TV in May 2016. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | http://www.cambridge-tv.co.uk/world-war-one-bible |
Description | St Paul's Event |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | A study afternoon on the subject of War and Peace in the Old Testament, drawing on the experience of the First World War, and attend by about 60 people This was part of St Paul's Cathedral's Adult Learning programme, aimed at lay Christians from both the cathedral congregation and the wider Diocese of London. St Pauls reported back high satisfaction from the participants, and many requests for more on the subject and from the speaker. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Stockport Study Day |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | We organised a day workshop at St George's Church, Stockport on 'The Bible, the Great War and Remembrance: Reflection and Commemoration'. Addressed to working clergy and a few interested lay people, it offered the opportunity for continuing professional development by reflecting on current practices of remembrance, and by drawing on the use of the Bible during 1914-1918 to find new resources for theology, liturgical practice, and preaching. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Westcott Foundation Day |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | We organised a day workshop through the Westcott Foundation on 'The Bible, the Great War and Remembrance'. Addressed to both working and trainee clergy, it offered the opportunity to reflect on current practices of remembrance, and to draw on the use of the Bible during 1914-1918 to find new resources for theology, liturgical practice, and preaching. This workshop was particularly valuable for the presenters, as it raised our awareness of the need for more theological/historical resources for remembrancetide, and impressed on us the value of this kind of multi-disciplinary reflective learning. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | http://www.westcott.cam.ac.uk/biblegreatwarremembrance/ |
Description | Wittenberg Exchange |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | A mixed group of trainee clergy drawn from Westcott House, Cambridge (UK), and the Wittenberger Predigerseminar (Germany) took part in a day workshop on 'The Bible, War and Remembrance', which included a morning of classroom time, and an afternoon visit to London War Memorials. Participants reported informally the value of learning about different histories of war and cultures of remembrance in both countries. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |