Grant Raymond Shafer

Grant Raymond Shafer
Born	(1951-04-13) April 13, 1951 Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
🏳️ Nationality	American
💼 Occupation	Biblical scholar, educator
Known for	Biblical ethics, Jewish resistance, nonviolence

Grant Raymond Shafer (born April 13, 1951) is an American biblical scholar and Judaic historian. His work focuses on early Christianity’s Jewish roots, ethical issues in religious traditions, and edited volumes such as Probing Parapsychology: Essays on a Controversial Science (McFarland, 2023).

Early life and education

Shafer was born in Detroit, Michigan. He earned a B.A. from Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan and later studied at the University of Michigan, focusing on early Christianity and its Jewish roots—not resistance movements. He also holds a Master of Theological Studies (MTS) from Harvard Divinity School and completed a Ph.D. in Near Eastern Studies from University of Michigan (1995).

Academic career

Shafer maintains an active presence online, publishing analyses of Jewish–Roman history, and biblical ethics, especially on platforms such as LinkedIn and Academia.edu. Shafer has held teaching positions at University of Michigan, Siena Heights University, Eastern Michigan University, Washtenaw Community College, and Henry Ford College, and he has taught religion, Greek language, and Judaic studies at various colleges in Michigan. He is also known for having edited Probing Parapsychology: Essays on a Controversial Science, McFarland, 2023.

Research focus

Shafer's scholarship examines how biblical texts engage with violence and force—particularly in contexts of preventing wrongdoing or preserving covenantal identity.

Old Testament perspectives

Shafer emphasizes passages where violence is depicted as divine justice or legal imperative within the Mosaic covenant.

• He highlights capital punishment laws such as those in Deuteronomy 17:6–7 as emblematic of a covenantal framework mandating communal enforcement of divine statutes.
• He points to the conquest narratives in Joshua 6–12—often termed "holy war"—as textual evidence of divinely sanctioned military action aimed at establishing and safeguarding Israel’s covenant identity.
• He also underscores regulations for self-defense and retributive justice in Exodus 21 as structured mechanisms for maintaining social order.

Shafer argues that, together, these texts reflect ancient Israel’s social and theological rationale for communal protection and the enforcement of justice.

New Testament and emerging nonviolence

Shafer contrasts the Old Testament’s permission for divinely sanctioned violence with the New Testament’s emphasis on ethical non-retaliation and compassionate engagement.

• He identifies Matthew 5:38–48—Jesus’ injunction to “turn the other cheek”—as a pivotal moment reshaping traditional retributive justice into a model of nonviolence.
• Shafer also interprets Romans 13:1–4 as redefining the concept of “the sword,” presenting it as a tool of civil authority rather than individual action.

He contends that this progression in New Testament thought—from Old Testament violence to New Testament ethics—signals a deliberate theological shift toward mercy, forgiveness, and restorative justice within early Christian communities.

Jewish resistance and biblical justification

In “Jewish Wars and Rome,” Shafer examines how Jewish revolts during the Second Temple period were justified via biblical themes of justice and covenant loyalty. He highlights the tension between visions of peace (e.g., Isaiah 2:4) and historic calls to defend sacred identity.

Collaborations

Shafer has co-authored several works with theologian-psychologist Harold Ellens, focusing on the intersection of violence, religion, and psychology.

Personal life

Shafer has one daughter.

Publications

Grant Shafer’s published work primarily consists of essays on biblical ethics, Jewish history, and nonviolence.

Books

• Shafer, Grant R. (2004). "Hell, martyrdom, and war: violence in early Christianity". The destructive power of religion ; Vol 3: Models and cases of violence in religion. Praeger. pp. 193–246. Search this book on
• Shafer, Grant R., ed. (2023-05-29). Probing Parapsychology: Essays on a Controversial Science. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. ISBN 9781476680385. LCCN 2023004082. Search this book on - The volume features prominent scholars—including Stanley Krippner, Dean Radin, V.G. Miller, Ralph W. Hood Jr., and James G. Matlock.”

Selected works by Grant R. Shafer

• Shafer, Grant R. “Jewish Wars and Rome.” December 17, 2014. LinkedIn Pulse essay. Accessed 16 June 2025.
• Shafer, Grant R. "Dating the Cleansing of the Temple." Academia.edu, Download PDF. Accessed 16 June 2025.
• Shafer, Grant R. "Conversion in Buddhism." Academia.edu, Download PDF. Accessed 16 June 2025.
• Shafer, Grant R. "Creation in Buddhism." Academia.edu, Download PDF. Accessed 16 June 2025.
• Shafer, Grant R. "Sin and Atonement in Buddhism." Academia.edu, Download PDF. Accessed 16 June 2025.
• Shafer, Grant R. "Muriel, Akiba, and God." Academia.edu, Download PDF. Accessed 16 June 2025.
• Shafer, Grant R. "The Mahdi in the History of Religions." Academia.edu, Download PDF. Accessed 16 June 2025.
• Shafer, Grant R. "Jews v. Romans." Academia.edu, Download PDF. Accessed 16 June 2025.

See also

• Cognitive science of religion
• Darwin's Cathedral
• Evolution of morality
• Moral relativism
• Normative ethics

External links

• Grant Shafer on Academia.edu
• Grant Shafer on LinkedIn

This article "Grant Shafer" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Grant Shafer. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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