Abstract:
A group of 20 Muslim educators participating in an M-level module on Islamic Education
were invited to explore their preferences for sensing and intuition (the two functions of the
Jungian perceiving process). They were then invited to work in three groups (eight clear
intuitive types, four clear sensing types and eight individuals who expressed less strong
preferences) to discuss Psalm 73:1–10, specifically addressing two distinctive perceiving
questions: What do you see in this description (sensing) and what ideas does this passage set
running in your mind (intuition)? Clear differences emerged between the ways in which
sensing types and intuitive types handled these two questions. The intuitive types relished the
opportunity to chase after ideas and to make connections. The sensing types stuck more closely
to a literal analysis of the text and felt much less confident in chasing after ideas and making
connections. These findings support the thesis that scriptural interpretation is shaped, at least
to some extent, by the psychological type preferences of the reader.
CONTRIBUTION: Situated within the reader-perspective approach to biblical hermeneutics, the
SIFT method is concerned with identifying the influence of the psychological type of the reader
in shaping the interpretation of text. The present study demonstrates that this theory holds
true for the way in which Muslim educators read Psalm 73.
