NT520New Testament IntroductionSessions 3-4

Approaches to Understandingthe New Testament:

Models and Methods

Contours of the Current Discussion

Modernism and the Scientific Method The historical basis of all knowing Troeltsch

Principle of SkepticismPrinciple of AnalogyPrinciple of Causation

Historical Distance

The Location of Meaning

In History? (Behind the Text?)On the Page? (In the Text?)In the Reader or Reading

Community? (In Front of the Text?)

In the Narrative of God’s Project?

“Word of God” - In History

Particularity of Biblical Materials 1 Cor 1:11: “It has been reported

to me by people from Chloe…” 1 Cor 7:1: “Now concerning the

matters about which you wrote…”

The Bible as Process

Since many have undertaken to set down an Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed fulfilled among us, just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, I too decided, after investigating everything I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an carefully from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the truth Theophilus, so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have concerning the things about which you have been instructed. (Luke 1:1-4, NRSV)been instructed. (Luke 1:1-4, NRSV)

The Bible as Process

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:30-31, NRSV)

But there are also many other things that Jesus did; if every one of them were written down, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. (John 21:25, NRSV)

The Bible as Process

The Nature of Inspiration?

Were the writers “robots”?Were the writers inspired?Was the church inspired?Is the reader inspired?Does the Bible become the

Word of God?

Inspiration?

Affirm the Ongoing Activity of the Spirit

The Performative Word divine origin: certainty divine origin: ongoing

relevance

Channel

Idea Formation

Encoding

Transmission Reception

Decoding

Idea Reformation

Sender Receiver

Communication Theory and Biblical Interpretation

Models forBiblical Interpretation

BiblicalMessage

ContemporaryMessage

The Traditional Model

The Dogmatic Model

BiblicalMessage

ContemporaryMessage

System

Biblical Context

The Scientific Model

BiblicalMessage

ContemporaryMessage

Biblical Context

Contemporary Context

The Contextual Model

BiblicalMessage

ContemporaryMessage

The Discursive Model

“Discursive” is for “Discourse”Coming Clean on Our Interests

Rom 16:7 jIouniva, a jIouniva

Consequences

Contemporary Context

Biblical Context

The Discursive Model

BiblicalMessage

ContemporaryMessage

More on the Discursive Model

Communities of Faith, the Holy Spirit, and Reading the Bible Self-Criticism and Community (With)Whom do you study? Hermeneutics of Analogy The Place of the Spirit

The Spirit and the Community

The Discursive Model

BiblicalMessage

ContemporaryMessage

Biblical Context

Contemporary Context

Questions to AskinBiblical Interpretation

What is it? (1)

Textual Criticism “The Original Text” Acts 8:37; 20:28 Mark 16:9-20 Probability Internal and External Evidence Metzger, A Textual Commentary

What is it? (2)

Which Translation? Literal: word-for-word Dynamic Equivalence: thought

for thought “Free”

More Literal

NAS NIV “Message”

KJV NAB CEV TEV Williams

RSV NEB/REB Phillips

NRSV NJB NCV NLT

Which Translation?

What is it? (3)

Genre Recognition A “recognizable” form of

literature A “contract” NT: Biography, Historiography,

Letters, Apocalypse Sub-Genres

What is it? (4)

What is the “thought unit”? A “Pericope” For example: Eph 5:21ff. The problem with chapters and verses

Strategies and Arguments

What is the appropriate unit of text for purposes of study?More than a verse, less than a

chapter...usually!A stretch of text that:

has a unity has adequate size for interpretation of its

parts has a sense of completeness text that is set off from the material around

it by genre-specific textual markers

Some Textual MarkersNarrative

change of geography or topography change of characters change of time change of literary form (?)

Letter connectives--e.g., “therefore” or “above all” direct address change of literary form

Apocalyptic (see narrative) change of vision: “Then I saw....”

What is the Co-Text?

Reading from Left to Right prospective development retrospective clarification

What is the Co-Text?

Word Studies: Use and Abuse “Can,” “Father” NOT THE DICTIONARY!!!! Historical: Virtual Co-Textual: Actual Words and “Domains”

What is the Context?

Text

Events

RedactionSource

Form

Tradition

Historical

What is the Context?Historical

Did it happen this way?

In what setting is this message communicated?

Socio-Historical Perspectives “Near” (vs.

“Distant”) Experience

Political Readings...

Liberationist Hermeneutics: “Reading the Bible from the ‘underside’”

Reading the Bible “from this place”

Political Readings…A Test Case

Feminist Exegesis Document the case against

women Identify prophetic/liberating

aspects Retrieve the critique of patriarchy Reconstruct biblical history

Between Reader and Text

Inactive ReadingReactive ReadingHyperactive ReadingInteractive ReadingReading at the intersection of

textual and readerly interests

The Importance of The Importance of Theological and Spiritual Theological and Spiritual Formation….Formation….

The Right Technique?

A Meaning-Making Machine?Cultivating Sensibilities“Good Readings”? Or “Good

People Reading”?