You’re Encased in Your Hermeneutical Assumptions, There’s No Escape.

Hermeneutics [hur-muh-noo-tiks], broadly, is the art and science of text interpretation. Traditional hermeneutics is the study of the interpretation of written texts, especially texts in the areas of literature, religion and law. A type of traditional hermeneutic is biblical hermeneutics which concerns the study of the interpretation of the Bible.

With that in mind, I stumbled across this free book on Amazon today and began looking at some of its content.  The title is “A Better Atonement: Beyond the Depraved Doctrine of Original Sin”  This post is not dealing with that issue, “original sin,” but if you would like to weigh in on it, please use the comment section.  Instead I’d like to focus on this quote from the book:

“I’ve been very clear on this point here and elsewhere: I do not think it possible to begin with the Bible. We always begin with our own hermeneutical assumptions. Always. No exceptions. A human being cannot escape her/his own hermeneutical horizon. You are encased in it, just as you are encased in your own skin. There’s no escape.” ~ Tony Jones

I simply disagree.  As I’ve stated before on multiple occasions, followers of Jesus, Disciples, His Sheep, are being transformed by the renewing of their minds. (Romans 12:2)  It is a necessary result of being translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. (Colossians 1:13)  You can not be encased in any hermeneutic. 

Can you? 

 
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