292. What, exactly, is "the hermeneutical problem" of Christian theology?...

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What, exactly, is "the hermeneutical problem" of Christian theology?

Strictly speaking, "the hermeneutical problem" of Christian theology is the problem of critically interpreting Christian witness.

But, as the phrase is commonly used, "the hermeneutical problem" of Christian theology is the problem of critically appropriating Christian witness and, therefore, includes critically validating its claims to validity as well as critically interpreting its meaning.

Of course, this is only what one would expect if "the hermeneutical problem" is simply a verbally different way of speaking of "the problem of interpretation." For "interpretation," also, is commonly used in the broad sense of "critical appropriation," rather than in the strict sense of "critical interpretation."

9 October 1995