Hermeneutics and Why You Should Have One

March 11, 2024 - #mondaymoment #Bible #hermeneutics

Happy Monday, my friends! Last week I discussed the basics of hermeneutics and said I planned to spend a few weeks on the topic. This is part two. Whether we actively consider it or not, we each have a hermeneutic—a way of looking at the world—which we use when we consider everything from the news to our grocery list to what our friends are wearing today. Our hermeneutic, in its most basic sense, is our lens on the world.

Despite having personally defined ways of viewing the world and making sense of ideas and events with which we agree as well those with which we disagree, less of us have hermeneutics beyond the literature we like and the literature we dislike. I mostly read nonfiction, but when I delve into fiction, I like experimental novels which push the boundaries of what a book can be. Two of my favorites include On a Winter’s Night a Traveler by Italo Calvino—a story told through the fragments of other, closely related stories—and Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellman—a story told in a stream of consciousness and in one sentence which runs more than 1,000 pages. Owing to my relatively short attention span, I also enjoy writing and reading flash fiction, where the goal is to tell a complete story in anywhere from 50 to approximately 1,000 words.

Whether we mean to be or even want to be, we’re critical when we read books. If you like sharply linear story telling and delicious content, Ducks, Newburyport will annoy you within the first five pages. If you like stories, long or short, with clear endings, then most of Calvino’s books aren’t for you, but then the books you like probably aren’t for me. What’s interesting, though, is that most of us have accepted that we can disagree about literary works, we still think that the hermeneutics of our grandparent’s generation are valid ways to interpret the Bible. In fact, for many of us that hermeneutic may be summed up as the Bible is beyond interpretation.

For anyone raised in a tradition or an environment where the Bible supposedly could not be interpreted—but was routinely interpreted by the pastor—the beginning of our deconstruction must be the Bible. Yet, we do not need to get rid of the Bible. No, we need to understand that the Bible is a collection of writings which need to be interpreted in every age and by people of different identities. Simply because you and I interpret the Bible differently and reach different conclusions, does not mean that Bible or our interpretations are untruthful or incorrect. What it means is that we are different and the Bible is big enough for our differences.

What is your hermeneutic for interpreting the Bible? How does it feel to interpret the Bible for yourself?

Let us pray: God, you gave us the minds and will to not only hear you through scripture, but through your ongoing revelation in our lives. As we read, reflect on, and inwardingly process the scripture you inspired certain humans to write, may we continue to hear your voice and know of your action in our lives. We ask this for the sake of knowing and loving you, our Creator, Redeemer, and Guide. Amen.

Blessings on your weeks, my friends! Please let me know if there is anything I can do for you.

Faithfully,

Ben