Hermeneutics: Interpreting and Teaching the Faith for Today
A small group of six [two ordained, four lay] met on five occasions.
What did we do? The first thing was to tackle the word “hermeneutics.” It’s about how we read the Bible: how we interpret it, find meaning within it which is true both to the text and to the way in which it has been heard in the past, but which also carries meaning within our own context and experience and that of our hearers. That’s a sort of conversation with the text (“the hermeneutical circle”, or spiral).
FIRST MEETING
Most of our first meeting was for some of us about receiving reassurance that we could do it – indeed, are doing it all the time! We all live with that fascinating challenge of holding the tension between continuity and change which is of the essence of Christian faith.
How were we going to “do” it? We decided, rather than work through a particular part of the Bible, to take some of the big themes and look at them from the perspectives of certain key texts, of what the tradition has taught, and of how our own experience and context speaks to us. And we decided to do it by a journey through the liturgical period between Advent and Easter.
NEXT THREE MEETINGS
So we spent the next three meetings on:
- Advent – the Second Coming, death, heaven, hell, judgement
1 Thess. 4: 13-17; 1 Cor.15: 20-28; 50-58; John 3: 19-21 - Incarnation
John 1: 1-14; Matt. 1: 18-25; Phil. 2: 5-11 - Crucifixion and resurrection – sacrifice, atonement
Romans 3: 21-26; Mark 15:33-39; 2 Cor. 5: 21; John 19: 17-30.
FINAL MEETING
Our final meeting was more reflective, as we thought not just about the fresh insights we had received into God’s word in relation to the particular themes, but also about the challenge of interpreting the text as preachers. We kept coming back to the word “ conversation”, to hermeneutics as a form of listening, like prayer: listening to God; tuning in to conversations others have had with the text over the centuries; listening to the needs and thoughts of those to whom we preach, and of the world in which we live.
We thought too about how to “ test” our interpretation. Does it build up the church so that it grows in love and mission? If it is challenging, is it preached to the preacher, not just at the congregation? So, finally, is our preaching an exercise of proper authority, not “snatching at power”, but offering in trust and love what we feel deeply laid upon us in seeking to communicate God’s grace?
Susan Howdle