"[Geoff's] insights and his way of expressing them are fresh — and very meaningful. His thoughts have become favorites of the Sunday School class I teach, as I quote him frequently. It's hard to find a new approach for folks who've been studying the Bible as long as my folks have (five regulars over 90!), but Geoff succeeds."
—Helen Mountjoy, former Secretary of the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet, State of Kentucky; awarded the Distinguished Service Award by the National Association of State Boards of Education

"Geoff Pope engages both himself and the reader in a dialogue with the Bible and with some of its most famous figures, turning the well-known stories over to see what new facets flash. His style is engaging, gentle, and his lines are well shaped. Bravo!"
—Jane Wilson Joyce, Professor of Classics, Centre College; author of Quilt Poems; translator of Thebaid: A Song of Thebes by Statius

"I have been thoroughly enjoying a new book, The Word In Question, written by my Facebook friend Geoff M. Pope. It's a fun book because it takes a look at some of the more puzzling Bible verses and asks questions about them that [most of us] have asked. Some of the more obscure verses of the Bible appear to be, at best, scientifically inaccurate and, at worst, deceptive. Geoff has done a good work with this book. He leaves many unanswered questions, but who doesn't have unanswered questions?"
—Jeff LaVoice, Anchorage, Alaska

"[Geoff Pope's] poetry is unusual, hard to classify, harder, even, to compare with other biblically inspired writing and therefore hard to evaluate. Harold Bloom, Edward Hirsch, and Gerald L. Bruns, however, would have no problems seeing instantly that his pages are also music."
—Stavros Deligiorgis, Professor Emeritus, The University of Iowa; co-translator of Deep Blue Almost Black and Data from the Decade of the Sixties: A Novel by Thanassis Valtinos

"What a wonderful, unexpected, delightful thing your book was. I immediately read it and have dipped into it many times since."
—Milton Reigelman, Professor of English, Director of International Programs, Centre College; author of The Midland: A Venture in Literary Regionalism and an editorial board member of the Kentucky Philological Review

"Geoff Pope's voice—warm, gently probing, wry, always thoughtful in his invitation toward dialogue—makes The Word in Question a truly welcome companion on the road of one's faith journey."
—Rowena Torrevillas, author of The Sea-Gypsies Stay and Flying Over Kansas; winner of the Philippines National Book Award

"I think all Christians can be at risk of being quite black and white about the 'rules & ethics' of our religion, and church leaders especially have a strong sense of responsibility to keep everybody on the 'straight and narrow'. While I know nothing about poetry (and only a little about theology), and haven't read your book yet, I suspect that mature thinkers of an analytical nature might appreciate your work more."
—Sue Horton, author of Living in the Real World

"I took your stimulating trip through many mind-boggling Bible passages and found it a very readable and engaging combination of faith and fun."
—Eric Mount, Jr., Professor Emeritus of Religion, Centre College; author of Covenant, Community, and the Common Good and Professional Ethics in Context: Institutions, Images, and Empathy

"Congratulations on the book's publication. That's a notable achievement, one, I know, that must give you, deservedly, a great deal of satisfaction. I really admire your use of language and the results of your expert exercise of the poet's craft — sometimes poignant, sometimes amusing, sometimes provocative, always stimulating. I suppose if I had to pick the one I found most powerful it would be "Boil a Son?" (23).
      With that said, I was left wondering at a few places (28, 29, 40) if you were doing sufficient justice to the Bible's language as "God-breathed" (2 Timothy 3:16) — unique as such, in terms of its absolute truthfulness and ultimate authority, in relation to any other language (or language capacity), of whatever genre whether written or spoken, at our disposal presently (until Jesus returns). I probably wouldn't bother mentioning this and take it as "poetic license" (whatever that and its limits are!), were it not for the inclusion of the Afterword, which I find to be obscure and elusive at a number of points as well as making some questionable statements."
—Richard B. Gaffin, Jr., Professor Emeritus of Biblical and Systematic Theology, Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia; author of Resurrection and Redemption, Perspectives on Pentecost, and By Faith, Not By Sight: Paul and the Order of Salvation