Abstract:
Rather than function as a
catalyst for unity, the Bible can be the cause of conflict among Christian believers. The Bible is
also often the reason for strife, specifically in the Reformed tradition, even though Protestants
uphold the creedal truism of sola Scriptura and though the authority of the Bible is seen as selfmandatory,
transcending the normative power of ecclesiastical or confessional traditions. This
article focuses on biblical interpretation as both a cause of disunity and a possible means to
achieve greater unity. The point of departure is that biblical interpretation consists of a fusion
of horizons; it is primarily about the fusion of two horizons, namely that of the Bible and
that of the reader. However, both these horizons represent a great diversity of perspectives.
A variety of readers interpret the Bible from diverse contexts. The Bible itself also communicates
a diversity of ideas. Even the notion ‘Jesus Christ’ does not function as a unified or unifying
concept. The article proposes that the idea of ‘Jesus’ cause’ (Sache Jesu) could provide continuity
between the world of the reader and the world of a biblical passage.
Description:
This article is a reworked
version of a paper presented
at the Sola Scriptura Group
of the Global Network of
Theologians of the World
Communion of Reformed
Churches at its Consultation
in Hannover, Germany, 02−03
June 2014.
