| Part of a series on |
| Dialectical theology |
|---|
 |
 Christianityportal |
New hermeneutic is the theory and methodology of interpretation (hermeneutics) to understand biblical texts through existentialism.
| Part of a series on |
| Dialectical theology |
|---|
| |
| Christianityportal |
New hermeneutic is the theory and methodology of interpretation (hermeneutics) to understand biblical texts through existentialism.
The essence of new hermeneutic emphasizes not only the existence of language but also the fact that language is eventualized in the history of individual life. [1] This is called the event of language. Ernst Fuchs, [2] Gerhard Ebeling, and James M. Robinson are the scholars who represent the new hermeneutics. And it is said that language event (German: Sprachereignis, the word event) occurs continuously, not that the interpreter insists on the text, but the text continually asserts the interpreter. Fuchs' concern is not to ask for the meaning of the text, but to learn how to listen to unobtrusive language about human beings' existence according to the hermeneutical help given with the text itself. Fuchs' achievement lay in bringing the insights of Karl Barth, Rudolf Bultmann, and Martin Heidegger into fruitful conjunction. He sought to bridge Barth's Calvinist emphasis on the revealed Word of God with Rudolf Bultmann's Lutheran emphasis on the nature of human existence before God by employing a phenomenology of language derived in part from Heidegger's later position, arguing that both human existence and the being of God are ultimately linguistic - made available in language - and that theology is thus properly "faith's doctrine of language" (German: Sprachlehre des Glaubens).
Theology's task is essentially hermeneutical, i.e., theology translates Scripture into contemporary terms and contemporary existence into scriptural terms. Fuchs' interest is language event with existential philosophy. Conversely, the reality of God's love is verbalized in Jesus' word and deeds recorded in the Gospels and is thus preserved as language gain (German: Sprachgewinn). In the freedom of proclamation God's presence in the gospel and the "Yes of love: happens again - that is, comes to be as language, opening up the future to authentic existence (faith, hope, and love).
Theologians such as Cornelius Van Til were strong opponents of New hermeneutics whereas Johannes Blauw was a proponent of New hermeneutics. [3] [4] Blauw's work, for example, focused on the interpretation of the Bible in the context of the modern world although he was critical of overly rationalistic approaches to biblical interpretation and sought to emphasize the importance of understanding the cultural and historical context of the biblical texts. His ideas were part of a broader movement in theology that sought to engage more deeply with the existential and cultural challenges of the time.. [5] [6] But Cornelius Van Til, based on the Reformed tradition, took a critical stance towards the New Hermeneutics. Van Til believed that the New Hermeneutics, by introducing human-centered perspectives and existentialist philosophy into biblical interpretation, undermined the absolute authority of Scripture and subordinated God’s revelation to human experience.
Hermeneutics is the theory and methodology of interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts. As necessary, hermeneutics may include the art of understanding and communication.
Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher was a German Reformed theologian, philosopher, and biblical scholar known for his attempt to reconcile the criticisms of the Enlightenment with traditional Protestant Christianity. He also became influential in the evolution of higher criticism, and his work forms part of the foundation of the modern field of hermeneutics. Because of his profound effect on subsequent Christian thought, he is often called the "Father of Modern Liberal Theology" and is considered an early leader in liberal Christianity. The neo-orthodoxy movement of the twentieth century, typically seen to be spearheaded by Karl Barth, was in many ways an attempt to challenge his influence. As a philosopher he was a leader of German Romanticism. Schleiermacher is considered the most important Protestant theologian between John Calvin and Karl Barth.
Rudolf Karl Bultmann was a German Lutheran theologian and professor of the New Testament at the University of Marburg. He was one of the major figures of early 20th-century biblical studies. A prominent critic of liberal theology, Bultmann instead argued for an existentialist interpretation of the New Testament. His hermeneutical approach to the New Testament led him to be a proponent of dialectical theology.
Presuppositional apologetics, shortened to presuppositionalism, is an epistemological school of Christian apologetics that examines the presuppositions on which worldviews are based, and invites comparison and contrast between the results of those presuppositions.
Christian existentialism is a theo-philosophical movement which takes an existentialist approach to Christian theology. The school of thought is often traced back to the work of the Danish philosopher and theologian Søren Kierkegaard (1813–1855) who is widely regarded as the father of existentialism.
In Christianity, Neo-orthodoxy or Neoorthodoxy, also known as theology of crisis and dialectical theology, was a theological movement developed in the aftermath of the First World War. The movement was largely a reaction against doctrines of 19th century liberal theology and a reevaluation of the teachings of the Reformation. Karl Barth is the leading figure associated with the movement. In the U.S., Reinhold Niebuhr was a leading exponent of neo-orthodoxy. It is unrelated to Eastern Orthodoxy.
Liberal Christianity, also known as liberal theology and historically as Christian Modernism, is a movement that interprets Christian teaching by taking into consideration modern knowledge, science and ethics. It emphasizes the importance of reason and experience over doctrinal authority. Liberal Christians view their theology as an alternative to both atheistic rationalism and theologies based on traditional interpretations of external authority, such as the Bible or sacred tradition.
Biblical hermeneutics is the study of the principles of interpretation concerning the books of the Bible. It is part of the broader field of hermeneutics, which involves the study of principles of interpretation, both theory and methodology, for all forms of communication, nonverbal and verbal. While Jewish and Christian biblical hermeneutics have some overlap and dialogue, they have distinctly separate interpretative traditions.
Johannes Christian Konrad von Hofmann was a Lutheran professor of systematic and historical theology.
The historical-grammatical method is a modern Christian hermeneutical method that strives to discover the biblical authors' original intended meaning in the text. According to the historical-grammatical method, if based on an analysis of the grammatical style of a passage, it appears that the author intended to convey an account of events that actually happened, then the text should be taken as representing history; passages should only be interpreted symbolically, poetically, or allegorically if to the best of our understanding, that is what the writer intended to convey to the original audience. It is the primary method of interpretation for many conservative Protestant exegetes who reject the historical-critical method to various degrees, in contrast to the overwhelming reliance on historical-critical interpretation in biblical studies at the academic level.
Bernard L. Ramm was a Baptist theologian and apologist within the broad evangelical tradition. He wrote prolifically on topics concerned with biblical hermeneutics, religion and science, Christology, and apologetics. The hermeneutical principles presented in his 1956 book Protestant Biblical Interpretation influenced a wide spectrum of Baptist theologians. During the 1970s he was widely regarded as a leading evangelical theologian as well known as Carl F.H. Henry. His equally celebrated and criticized 1954 book The Christian View of Science and Scripture was the theme of a 1979 issue of the Journal of the American Scientific Affiliation, while a 1990 issue of Baylor University's Perspectives in Religious Studies was devoted to Ramm's views on theology.
Kevin Jon Vanhoozer is an American theologian and current research professor of Systematic Theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS) in Deerfield, Illinois. Much of Vanhoozer's work focuses on systematic theology, hermeneutics, and postmodernism.
The hermeneutic circle describes the process of understanding a text hermeneutically. It refers to the idea that one's understanding of the text as a whole is established by reference to the individual parts and one's understanding of each individual part by reference to the whole. The circle is a metaphor for the procedure of transforming one's understanding of the part and the whole through iterative recontextualization.
Over the last few decades in the United States, some homiletical theorists and preachers have questioned the hegemony of the traditional rhetorical approaches to preaching. Many alternative styles and approaches have been developed, many of which are called "narrative" in either style or content.
Gerhard Ebeling (1912–2001) was a German Lutheran theologian and with Ernst Fuchs a leading proponent of new hermeneutic theology in the 20th century.
Cornelius Van Til was a Dutch-American Reformed theologian, who is credited as being the originator of modern presuppositional apologetics.
Demythologization as a hermeneutic approach to religious texts seeks to separate or recover cosmological, sociological and historic claims from philosophical, ethical and theological teachings. Mostly applied to biblical texts, demythologization often overlaps with philology, biblical criticism and form criticism. The term demythologization was introduced by Rudolf Bultmann (1884–1976) in existential context, but the concept has earlier precedents.
Ernst Fuchs was a German New Testament theologian and a student of Rudolf Bultmann. With Gerhard Ebeling he was a leading proponent of a New Hermeneutic theology in the 20th century.
Language event is an act or instance of written or spoken communication. In the 1920s earliest use of the word was found in Journal of Philosophy. In theology this word was used by Ernest Fuchs, relating to New Hermeneutic. Fuchs' doctrine of language helped to inspire a "new quest" for the historical Jesus because it could now be said that Jesus' words and deeds constituted that "language event" in which faith first entered into language, thereby becoming available as an existential possibility within language, the "house of being" (Heidegger). Conversely, the reality of God's love is verbalized in Jesus' words and deeds recorded in the Gospels and is thus preserved as language gain. In the freedom of proclamation God's presence in the gospel as the "Yes of love" happens again-that is, comes to be as language, opening up the future to authentic existence
Johannes Blauw (1912-2007) was a Dutch Reformed theologian known for his contributions to the field of biblical studies and hermeneutics. He played a significant role in the development of a hermeneutical approach known as the new hermeneutic, which emerged in the mid-20th century.