The paradigm shift from historical criticism to new literary criticism
involves a growing hermeneutical interest in the many functions of the
reader within the process of interpretation of Biblical texts. This
volume, which contains the papers presented at the Sixth international
colloquium of the RRENAB (Réseau de la Narratologie et Bible) in
Louvain-la-Neuve (May 2012), not only shows the state of the art of the
role of the reader in exegesis but also reveals the challenges for
future research: the relationship between the historical reader, the
implied reader and the actual readers; the search for integration of
different methodologies; the inevitable collaboration of Biblical
studies with other disciplines of humanities and social sciences. The
studies in this book are the first steps towards a dialogue on these
themes. They contain contributions on many texts of the Bible and their
reception as well as theoretical reflections on the reader.