Ruth: An Earth Bible Commentary

This ecological reading of the book of Ruth takes into account the power of this short story to speak to the whole person by engaging each reader's emotions, imagination, memory, and reason. Sinnott shows how the story of Ruth transcends geographical, spatial and historical boundaries by speaking to all concerned with the plight of the Earth. Sinnott highlights ecological dimensions of the text that scholars have ignored or dismissed in the past and shows how the narrator gives voice to the way in which the Earth functions throughout the story. Sinnott considers non-human characters as legitimate determining factors in the structuring of the narrative and recognizes Earth and members of the Earth community as valid subjects in the narrative.

Integral to Sinnott's reading of the text is a concern for Earth and matters such as food, famine, death, harvests, grain, day and night and members of the Earth community. By identifying with non-human characters and elements in the narrative, Sinnott is able to read the text with new eyes. By paying particular attention to how the narrator depicts the natural world, Sinnott discovers whether subjects from that world emerge as components that deserve attention regarding the habitat of the text.