"Interrupting Silence" by Walter Brueggemann: A Book Review

I was a college sophomore when I picked up a book by Walter Brueggemann for the first time.  The experience then is one that has been repeated a dozen times, or with every book I have read by him (alas, by way of embarrassing confession, I have barely made a dent in reading from his impressive oeuvre).  It doesn’t matter if it is an academic tome on Old Testament theology, a collection of sermons, or simply a theological handbook of themes in the Old Testament—the experience and result is always the same: my love for Scripture and concomitant understanding of its beautiful complexity and prophetic urgency deepens.  It seems that my love and understanding work in profound conjunction with one another.  The more I understand, the more I love.  And the more I love, the more I understand.  

Brueggemann has that effect on a person.

This was made fresh to me again, as I read one of his most recent works, Interrupting Silence: God's Command to Speak Out.  Its relevance is made all the more important by what has been happening recently in the news—especially with the #MeToo movement and now even #ChurchToo, of which the news out of Willow Creek sadly highlights. 

Interrupting Silence is about “breaking the silence.”  Throughout the book, Brueggemann engages passages and stories in Scripture, from the Old to the New Testament, that demonstrate the power and necessity of “speaking out” and finding ways to break the silence.  One is reminded of the Teacher's declaration in Ecclesiastes 3:7 that there is “a time to speak and a time to be silent.”  If one has ever struggled with discerning between the two, Brueggemann makes a remarkable and helpful contribution. 

I won't spoil the experience for anyone, for truly one has to read the book to understand how remarkable it is, but one profound example of this is in Chapter Four, “Jesus Rudely Interrupted.”  For me, this chapter demonstrates in nuce what the book is all about.  

The chapter focuses on the story of the Syrophoenician woman who interrupts Jesus’ meal and challenges him on the extent of God’s blessings.  Her desire, after all, is to receive help for her demon-possessed daughter.  Any parent would understand her relentless urgency. Brueggemann provides needed context here.  The woman’s ethnic background and, most obviously, her gender illumine how unconventional and radical her interruption is.  As if that wasn’t enough, her rejoinder to Jesus—a daring act, considering the social milieu—is particularly noteworthy.  Jesus has just compared her to a “dog” (one can easily infer this given that the “children” used in this analogy refer to the “Israelites”).  This would seem to put her in her place.  But she refuses.  Her response is bold and beautiful—“yes, but even the dogs eat the crumbs under the table.”  That Jesus commends her for this reply is telling.  After the women leaves, she finds her daughter demon-free at home, as Jesus promised.  

Brueggemann uses this story to explain all the forces at work (some visible and others not so visible) to keep this woman silent.  And yet, she spoke.  She broke the silence.  “Nevertheless, she persisted.” Interestingly, this seems to be the true miracle in the story.  One barely remembers the exorcism of the daughter at this point. 

Interrupting Silence is prophetic and relevant.  I would recommend it to anyone, churched or un-churched. And I will note that it is formatted for small group use, as it has discussion questions at the end of each chapter.  These questions are especially great.  Most of the time discussion questions at the end of books like these are uninspired and, as a result, unchallenging.  These questions are incisive and to the point.  Small groups and book clubs will greatly benefit from them.


*I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher. These opinions are entirely my own.