2.3. Hodegesis as a hermeneutical tool for Christians in bringing out the Gospel messages into real life
The word hodegesis signifies the interpretation of the Scripture as a practice of leading or guiding into a certain understanding. I came to use this word by Timothy Brown's1 interpretation and application of the Greek hodegeo (to guide) used by the Ethiopian eunuch in conversation with one of the seven deacons, Philip, who then interprets Isaiah 53:7, 8 in light of Christ-events (Acts 8:26-40). Therefore, hodegesis is christocentric in its orientation, meaning that the interpretation, proclamation, and implementation of the scriptural teaching is saturated with the meaning of Christ's life, death, and resurrection.
Hodegesis embraces methodologies designed to shed light on the biblical texts in order to make them communicative to the present hearers in the light of God's redeeming act in Christ. It aims to resurrect the purpose behind every interpretation and action in connection to the local tradition, the context, and the community of believers. Hence it affirms Church Father Augustine's approach to biblical interpretation that all texts have to be interpreted “according to the aim of love, whether it is love of God, or love of one’s neighbors, or both.”2 When love for God and our neighbor is upheld, a culture will be impacted for the better.
David C. Steinmetz has argued convincingly for the superiority of the pre-critical over the critical methods of interpreting the Scripture.3 This has been done not to dismiss historical-critical approaches altogether. In contrast, the effort is a proposal to bring together two approaches, wisdom (sapientia) and knowledge (scientia), to complement each other.4 Now there is also a post-critical approach where the background of culture, identity, ideology, and moral philosophy of the writer(s) are taken into account.5 The writers can no longer hide behind the 'neutrality' or 'objectivity' of science which itself is a social construct.6 Hence, left on the round-table of academic pursuit is theological and critical engagement, wherein every method, assumption and application is readily scrutinized.
With hodegesis, our interpretation of the Scripture must start and end with Christ's Gospel that cares about all peoples, and consequently their cultures and sense of ethnic identity; this is the Gospel that respectfully and humbly invites all into repentance and knowledge of God, and empowers each one to work together in an active participation within the Body of Christ to exercise, by the power of the Holy Spirit, the hope of the kingdom of heaven in the world that God has created.
-------
1 Dr. Timothy Brown is presently professor of preaching and homiletics as well as president of Western Theological Seminary, Holland, Michigan, USA. I was in his Summer 2012 Ancient and Future Preaching class, where he discussed Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch with particular attention to the word hodegeo.
2 Augustine and R. P. H. Green, On Christian Teaching (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011), 78-79.
3 “The Superiority of Pre-Critical Exegesis,” Theology Today (1980):27-37, now available at http://home.zonnet.nl/chotki/superiority_of_pre.htm (accessed May 17, 2013).
4 Shreiter provides some important insights into “theology as wisdom” (sapientia) and “theology as sure knowledge” (scientia) (Constructing Local Theologies, 85-91). These two should be taken as complementary rather than competing paradigms and may further inform what he calls “theology as praxis,” with its main thrust being that “[t]heology cannot remain only with reflection; nor can it be reduced to practice. Good reflection leads to action, and action is not complete until it has been reflected upon” (92). In addition Shreiter proposes “theology as variations on a sacred text” (80-85), which draws attention to different “cultural conditions” and, therefore, contextualization approaches.
5 David Parker provides a helpful overview on biblical criticism from early Christianity through the Aufklärung era and to the postmodern approach in his contribution on the topic “Biblical Criticism” in The Cambridge Dictionary of Christian Theology, ed. Ian A. McFarland, et.al. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011), 60-62.
No comments:
Post a Comment