06.08.2005
Challenging, Provocative but Useful, Theologians Say of LWF Seminar on Bible Authority
An Open Dialogue on Critical Questions about the Word of GodWARSAW, Poland/GENEVA, 6 August 2005 (LWI) - Challenging, often provocative, but all in all very useful was the general opinion expressed by participants in a Lutheran World Federation (LWF) seminar on the subject, "The Authority of the Bible in the Life of the Church."
Some at the meeting held at the European Center of Communication and Culture in Warsaw, Poland, described it as a "liberating experience" as they could seek answers to critical questions that allowed for a better understanding of the Word of God without putting their own faith to question.
Thirteen representatives drawn from LWF member churches in Central Eastern Europe took part in the June 24-30 seminar organized by the LWF Department for Theology and Studies (DTS) in collaboration with the Department for Mission and Development's Bratislava (Slovak Republic)-based regional office. Participants came from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia-Montenegro and Ukraine.
Rev. Dr Reinhard Böttcher, DTS Study Secretary for Theology and the Church, responsible for the seminar's content, said the meeting's objective was to "support member churches in their efforts to take the Bible seriously as the Word of God and as the decisive norm for preaching, teaching, and practice of Lutheran churches, and also to bear in mind the historical and contextual conditions that inevitably determine our understanding and interpretation of the Bible." The seminar, he remarked, was not aimed at indoctrinating the participants, rather at serving as a forum for discussion and dialogue.
Four key subjects areas were discussed, with a teaching staff team member responsible for each of the four sessions. The DTS study secretary started the sessions with the provocative question: "Is the Bible the Word of God?" In addition to describing the historical process of how the Bible developed, the theologian questioned to what extent it could be perceived as either the Word of God or that of humankind, how both these dimensions related to each other, and what implications this had for the authority of the Bible itself.
Citing experiences with charismatic groups and Pentecostal churches, Rev. Dr Wilfried John from Malaysia sought an answer to the question whether "the Bible is canonized or whether it is a continuous revelation of God?" Prof. Jürgen Ziemer from Leipzig, Germany, presented methodological interpretations of the Bible, which among others, included the historically critical, textually critical, feminist and the theological liberation methods. He also gave insight on how these approaches could be applied to specific biblical texts.
A presentation titled "The Bible - Liberating Gospel or Oppressive Law?" by Dr Marta Cserhati from Hungary focused on the notion of contextual definition, with participants reflecting on their own personal experiences.
A Russian deacon explained: "I was very narrow-minded until now when it came to understanding and interpreting the Bible. This seminar has broadened my outlook considerably." From the Czech Republic, a congregation member discovered that "I now have better insight into my own situation as I consider also experiences that others have had." A teacher from Eastern Europe remarked: "I had always feared that something was not quite right with my faith when critical questions about the Bible arose. Now I know that I need not worry about this." A retired lecturer and member of a church committee added: "I have problems with the feminist interpretation of the Bible that seems to query its content. Nevertheless, I have learnt a tremendous amount that will help me with my work."
DTS Study Secretary Böttcher felt that the seminar represented a "forum to review how to deal with differences in the solidarity of faith." Many participants had clearly pursued "a path of experience and insight" which ultimately enabled them to perceive and appreciate the plurality of possible ways of approaching the Bible and the related analyses from a content view point. (652 words)
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