It
should be no surprise that we Christians fight over interpretation
of the Bible. Like blood relatives contesting who should inherit family treasures,
we argue about the foundational document that gives us our identity as Christians
and our orientation for life. Our differences over wedge issues like women
in ministry and homosexuality stem in part from the fact we hold to differing
understandings about biblical authority and use different schemes for interpreting
scripture. But our differences have just as much to do with the unique life
experiences that serve as a “pre-text” for how we read the biblical
texts. What we bring to the scriptures by way of our own life experience
shapes what we get out of the scriptures.
Though we argue endlessly about the meaning of certain texts and how they apply to our own context, rarely do we share with our brothers and sisters in the community of faith the personal stories that are reflected in our reading of the biblical story. It doesn’t have to be this way. A few years ago a group of Mennonite leaders convened at Laurelville Mennonite Church Center for a consultation on telling our stories about scripture. Each of us was to prepare an autobiography of sorts ahead of time—the story of our journey with scripture and how it had shaped us personally, theologically, and spiritually.
We need Christian brothers and sisters to help us think rightly about our own stories.
At the event we were divided into small groups where everyone was able to share their story. It was a gripping experience. While we all cared deeply about the Bible, some told heart-rending stories of the Bible being used to keep them in their place. Rather than the Bible being a source of liberation, as it should be, it was used as a means of keeping people captive. Painful stories were told, tears were shared, and the differing life experiences were accepted and validated in spite of a variety of theological commitments.
We spent considerable time in plenary discussion reflecting on what we had learned from this experience of sharing our stories. For instance, a number of us had independently come to the conclusion that the Reformation principle of sola scriptura (that scripture alone is the authority for our life and faith) is less than helpful and had instead adopted the Wesleyan quadrilateral perspective: that it is not just scripture that is authoritative in our faith and life, but also Christian tradition, human reason, and personal experience. It is true that scripture rules and that the other sources of theological truth are ruled by scripture, but in all honesty no Christian theology is developed on the basis of scripture alone.
Our life experience shapes what we get out of the scriptures.
The stories from this group experience have been gathered in a book, Telling Our Stories: Personal Accounts of Engagement with Scripture, edited by Ray Gingerich and Earl Zimmerman (Cascadia). A group of young adults was convened for a similar experience a year later in New York City, and their stories are shared in Wrestling with the Text: Young Adult Perspectives on Scriptures, edited by Keith Graber Miller and Malinda Elizabeth Berry (Cascadia).
Numerous people have told me that they have found these stories both interesting and useful. But more important than the individual stories is the model behind the stories, one that could well be adapted for congregational use. For instance, a Sunday school class at Perkasie Mennonite Church in Pennsylvania has been reading and studying the first of these two books, and people from their congregation have been given an opportunity in worship to share their journeys with scripture.
But a word of caution is in order here. Our stories don’t consist simply of brute facts from our past. Like scripture, they demand interpretation, and there are both healthy and unhealthy ways of viewing our past. Just as we need to interpret scripture in Christian community rather than in isolation from each other, we need Christian brothers and sisters to help us think rightly about our own stories, in ways that will be life-giving rather than deterministically making us victims of our past. As painful as our experiences with the Bible might be, others can mediate to us both the grace and the liberation of the biblical story, which is about our redemption.
Richard A. Kauffman