[CS-FSLUG] Current vs. Scriptural Epistemology

[Timothy Butler]

On Dec 27, 2009, at 9:13 PM, Ed Hurst wrote:

> As for pomo -- I sincerely wish it was more than simply rejecting  
> the Enlightenment. That's pretty good, but doesn't go far enough,  
> and I think they end up skipping over the boundaries the Bible does  
> demand of us. "We are under grace, not under law." Those words from  
> Romans 6 don't mean what it would appear on the surface they mean.  
> If your only point of reference is rejecting the Enlightenment, you  
> are still left rather rootless. If you embrace the ANE, you end up  
> with understanding Paul describes grace as holding in the Spirit  
> Realm the same place as Law in the realm of the flesh. The chapter  
> is loaded with contrast and comparison between the two realms. We  
> don't need to create something just utterly fresh and new; we need  
> to find out what has been trashed over the centuries and reclaim it.

Well, what I think postmodernism brings to the table is the  
understanding of different interpretive frameworks such as the point  
you are presenting. It recognizes the lack of a single objective point  
of reference for understanding the text.

As far as interpretation, I'm not broadly postmodern. I consider  
myself New Historicist. That brings with it plenty of attachments to  
meaning, while recognizing some of the influences in understanding.  
Moreover, when dealing with Paul, keeping in mind different socio- 
cultural influences is helpful, since he is writing from a Hebraic  
standpoint, but trained Hellenistically and writing to Hellenistic  
(and outright Greek) folks.

	-Tim