Sacred Hermeneutics Book Review

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Summary

Sacred Hermeneutics consists of eight lessons, which move the reader from a basic introduction to what hermeneutics is (the practice of interpreting the Bible) to a sense of how to use Scripture for devotional and doctrinal purposes. The main points that the text makes include: 1) Scripture contains the Word of God and should be studied carefully for that reason—for what God has said contains information of great significance for mankind; 2) Approaches to interpretation of the Bible have changed over the years: there is the allegorical approach, the literal approach, the devotional approach, the liberal approach and the neo-orthodoxy approach; 3) the need to understand the Protestant approach to Hermeneutics, which includes adopting 4) a literal, cultural and critical perspective; and which suggests that special focus be paid to the original languages used for the writing of the Bible, historical context, the context of Revelation, and a sense of unity of Scripture overall; 5) textual principles are important to keep in mind when analyzing text, such as etymology, grammar, and context; 6) Figurative language does not take away from the meaningful truths contained in Scripture but rather helps to convey them; 7) Parables in Scripture teach important lessons and, as with prophecies in Scripture, there is a spiritual and literal component that must be discerned; 8) When it comes to doctrine, Scripture should serve as the source of all evidence; when it comes to devotion, Scripture should guide the development of the interior life rather than the artifice of an exterior presentation.

These are the main eight points that the text makes, and each point is given its own lesson within the text. Each point is broken down and explained in simple, coherent, and precise terms. No single point is given more emphasis than another. All are recognized as being meaningful in the overall application of hermeneutics. Each point plays a pivotal role in developing the reader’s understanding of how to study the Bible. Each point communicates some aspect of that approach and is thus essential for the formulation of the science of hermeneutics.

The most important points of the text aside from the eight distinct lessons that are provided, would have to be that the Bible contains the Word of God and that interpretation of the Word of God must be rooted in a faithful adherence to the overall message that God is giving. To interpret the Bible in any other way would be to demonstrate unfaithfulness to the teachings of God. Innovation is therefore not the aim of hermeneutics but rather a deeper understanding of what is at stake in the Scriptures and what the Word of God is revealing, how it is being revealed, why it is being revealed, and what the combination of those factors should mean for the student of the Bible. These are the most important points of the text and the various parts serve to underline them as they are explored bit by bit. There is substantial support given to each one so that the points can be understood and appreciated.

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Each of the main points has sub-points within it that help to expand on the main ideas that are being considered. There is no lack of depth or exploration in the text, though it does adopt a modern approach (the Protestant system) as the focus of its hermeneutical exploration. Still, this exploration is adequately defined over the course of the eight lessons, which give an appropriate introductory understanding of what hermeneutics is.

Interpretation

The definition of hermeneutics makes sense and it is clear that the Protestant system is used to study the Bible in this text. However, as Protestantism only arrived roughly 500 years ago…

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…an art “because of the application of the rules”[footnoteRef:7]—but one may easily find the latter reason inadequate. How the rules are applied should still pertain to the realm of the scientific approach to hermeneutics. An artful or artistic approach to hermeneutics would, one could be excused for thinking, be more intuitive, more expressive, more interpretive with the overall teachings of the Christian Church. If context is going to matter in one sense, it should matter in all senses, and so the art of hermeneutical scholarship should take into consideration the teachings that have been passed down from generation to generation. To analyze the Bible as a separate source of faith apart from the Church is to suggest that it dropped down from Heaven as is—but this was not the case at all. [7: Ibid, 1. http://www.ntslibrary.com/PDF%20Books/Sacred%20Hermeneutics.pdf]

Thus, this text is a helpful one for laying a groundwork and basis for understanding of hermeneutics. It provides in a quick, succinct, and bullet-point like way the basic facts about hermeneutics in the modern era. For this reason, however, it does have its weaknesses and drawbacks: it is not a comprehensive explanation of hermeneutics—but to be fair it is not intended to be. It is clearly intended to be an introduction to hermeneutics and in so far as that intention is accomplished the text is sufficient and adequate. In so far as the reader would gain from a more in-depth examination of hermeneutic traditions the text comes up short. Nonetheless it does prepare the way forward for future study. Students who aim to deepen their knowledge of the subject could use this introductory text as a springboard. They could create questions for future exploration and investigation based on this reading, or they could read it and feel that they have a sufficient introductory understanding of the study and be open to experiencing whatever….....

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