Postmodernism and the interpretation of biblical texts for behavior

Biblical Theology Bulletin, Fall, 2003 by John F. O'Grady

Abstract

Postmodernism has many meanings and many names. Whatever it actually means depends on different cultures and different individuals. That explains enough the current American situation, as well as the general condition in developed countries. How much continuity remains from the past? How much discontinuity will characterize the future? How does this affect the interpretation of biblical texts from different cultures and different time periods? Can biblical scholars and religious leaders ever be clever enough to be aware of, and respond to, the lived existence of ordinary believers? This article offes no defintite answers--only attempts to orchestrate the problems. Roland Murphy taught me long ago to "pay attention to your audience." As a scholar he always listened to what ordinary believers had to say and responded accordingly. His senstivity to the everyday disciples of Jesus living their lives of faith today, made him a noble priest first and then a noble scholar.

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Postmodernism entered the stage of linguistics with a furor. For the past twenty years the study of literature has been greatly influenced by the very questioning of any effort to communicate in a coherent manner. Postmodernism differs considerably in English speaking cultures, German cultures and French cultures, with people falling within a spectrum that does not easily bring clarity. All agree, however, that a major shift has taken place in what and how people know.

Recently this phenomenon (the word is chosen deliberately) has begun to influence the interpretation of biblical texts. The very use of the term, moreover, has caused many exegetes--Jewish, Catholic and Protestant--to recoil in fear. Most contemporary biblical scholars are aware of the relativity of many of the texts based on sitz im leben and form criticism but now some question the very possibility of language communication itself. The multiplicity of biblical languages--Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek--in books written over at least several hundred years, certainly causes further problems in communicating. Many fear that in postmodernist thought little remains for both Judaism and Christianity as religions. Yet, no one can deny the influence of postmodernist thought on American culture and on religious traditions. No good can result from failing to confront this phenomenon which has permeated all contemporary cultures.

Hermeneutics has already contributed to the entrance of postmodernism into biblical studies. The art of bridging the gap between the classic and contemporary reality allows for differences in understanding the classic. Tracy's description of the "classic" helps us understand how hermeneutics continues to challenge interpretation: "Certain expressions of the human spirit so disclose a compelling truth about our lives that we cannot deny them some kind of normative status" (Tracy 1981:108). Persons, places, texts, objects, or events function as "classics" and "bear an excess and permanence of meaning, yet always resist definitive interpretation" (Tracy 1987:112). Knowing how to communicate the meaning of the classic understood by the interpreter and knowing the audience to which the meaning of the classic is directed adds further limitations in interpretation. Tracy continues:

   Any contemporary interpreter enters the process of interpretation
   with some preunderstanding of the question
   addressed by a classic and the good interpreter is willing to
   put that preunderstanding at risk by allowing the classic to
   question the interpreter's present expectations and standards
   [Tracy 1987: 116].

With so many variables can anyone be sure of any conclusion for what has been called the Word of God?

Unfortunately in the history of both Judaism and Christianity individuals and even institutions have taken certain verses from the Bible and used them to demand a specific behavior. Little attention was given to the original language, context, or original purpose of the biblical texts. This has caused not only confusion but often great personal damage. Postmodernism suggests that religious leaders re-examine this tendency. Biblical scholars have an obligation to respond to the questions of postmodernism, and in the meantime ordinary believers draw their own conclusions and live accordingly.

Language

Language is a good place to begin. The vast majority of Jews and Christians do not know Hebrew or Greek. Added to this problem is the corrupted text. In most cases Christians have a reasonably good chance to reach the original Greek, but the Hebrew text is another matter. The critical apparatus at the bottom of each page of Kittel's Hebrew text offers visual evidence of textual problems. But even if the original text has been established, how can one translate accurately from three-thousand-year-old Hebrew texts or two-thousand-year-old Greek texts?

Language has always caused problems for translators. The English word fair cannot be translated accurately into Spanish, Italian, French, or German. The English word means more than "just." The Italian word disponibile or the Spanish and French word disponible cannot be accurately translated into English. Available is not accurate; the word's meaning: "to be actively passive," violates the English language structure.