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13 - Balthasar’s biblical hermeneutics

from Part III - Disciplines

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 May 2006

Edward T. Oakes, S. J.
Affiliation:
University of St Mary of the Lake, Mundelein Seminary, Illinois
David Moss
Affiliation:
The Diocese of Exeter
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Summary

Hans Urs von Balthasar believed that all theology is hermeneutics: theologians should devote their energies to interpreting God's self-revelation in nature, history, and the Bible (TD2, 91). His principal theoretical remarks about scriptural interpretation are found in the first volume of The Glory of the Lord, the second volume of the Theo-Drama, the third volume of the Theo-Logic, and in a handful of essays. Although he sometimes emphasized different aspects of biblical hermeneutics in these discussions, several salient points, summarized briefly here, will be elaborated in this chapter. Balthasar argued that the atrophied aesthetic sensibilities of most modern theologians and biblical scholars have undermined the Church's biblical interpretation in various ways. Appropriating the lessons of premodern theological aesthetics would help to revive a set of ancient and medieval hermeneutical conventions that are not incompatible with certain features of contemporary biblical scholarship. These conventions include viewing the Bible as a self-glossing, christologically focused story, the proper interpretation of which is enabled by the Holy Spirit and nourished by regular liturgical worship. The range of ecclesially fruitful interpretation is constrained both by the intentions of its human and divine authors and by the rule of faith.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2004

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