Do men and women read the Scriptures differently? Do they bring different concerns and presuppositions to the text, use different methods? Read with different eyes? And should they? This two-volume commentary project grew out of a five-year-long series of discussions in the 'Women in the Biblical World' section of the Society of Biblical Literature, involving feminist scholars from the world. Like that volume, Searching the Scriptures underlines the political character of biblical interpretation. However, it does not adopt the conceptual and methodological approach of The Women's Bible, not does it limit its theoretical focus to gender. Rather, it seeks to be inclusive, ecumenical and multicultural. It brings together the best in contemporary feminist biblical and historical studies to explore critical issues of perspective, method and communication.