Gadamer’s hermeneutics and its relevance to biblical interpretation

Abstract

According to  Gadamer, the task  of hermeneutics is to  clarify the

miracle   of  understanding   that  happens   when  an   interpreter

engages a text. The path to this  clarity is the hermeneutical circle

through  which the  interpreter  determines  the  meaning through

dialogue of  the text.  It is  a method of  relating a  work's parts  to

the  work  as   a  whole:  since  the   parts  cannot  be  understood

without  some  preliminary understanding  of  the  whole, and  the

whole cannot be understood without comprehending its parts, our

understanding  of  a  work  must   involve  an  anticipation  of  the

whole  that  informs our  view  of  the  parts while  simultaneously

being modified by them.  The interpreter approaches a text  with a

certain set of prejudice or pre-understanding.  Gadamer identifies

two significant prejudices that must be overcome if understanding

is to  occur: prejudice against  tradition and prejudice  that defies

reason. He  argues against  radical rationalism,  which maintains

that  an  objective,  correct   interpretation  of  texts  can  only  be

achieved  by submitting  them to  the  authority of  the  intellect or

reason which  protects the interpreter  from his own  prejudice. In

order   to  attain   understanding   one  has   the   crucial   task  of understanding one’s prejudice, one’s “historical consciousness,”. Gadamer’s philosophical hermeneutics is vitally important  and  should be  utilized  by  the  biblical  interpreter in order  to  limit  the  possibility  for  erroneous  interpretation  and application.