Abstract:
The present study offers an intercultural exegesis of Matt 20:1-16 and shows how it
provides grounds for alleviating poverty and promoting justice which goes beyond just
wages. This exegesis proceeds through a constructive dialogue between a contemporary
culture, a church culture and an original biblical culture. After a detailed presentation of
intercultural exegesis, the concept of just wages is examined in the Democratic Republic
of the Congo (DRC) and its neighbour Rwanda before exploring it in a Catholic Church
culture and in an original Matthean culture. Rephrased in words borrowed from G. West,
‘the world in front of the text’ is here represented by a contemporary target culture,
while both ‘the world in the text’ and ‘the world behind the text’ rhyme with an original
biblical culture; and finally a Catholic Church culture stands for ‘the world around the
text.’ The word ‘text’ refers to Christian canonical scriptures.
