higher view of symbols. Reality is not found only in objective symbols but also
in non-objective symbols which depend on an interaction of subject and object
for interpretation. His claim of symbolic realism rests on this subject-object
complex and the wholistic position which accepts symbols as constituting reality
rather than just describing it. Modern culture, however, has difficulty with the
notion of symbolic realism and continues to espouse symbolic reductionism. The
biblical notion of wisdom is a case in point. The concept suggests an insightful
use of knowledge which is not reducible to empirical means. But today, any
knowledge not based on what is considered to be "facts" is often
deemed invalid. Consequently, wisdom loses much of its credibility as a modern
form of knowledge. In a computerized age, information has taken the place of
wisdom and fact replaces faith as the basis for knowing truth. The erosion of
biblical language has led to symbolicreductionism. As modern life incessantly
produces new meanings to replace the old, biblical language gives way to symbols
that relate those meanings to modern life. In biblical language, the meaning of
a work-life was described by the concept of a vocation to which a person was
called by God. In a secular society, the biblical meaning of a vocation has
little relevance. In its place, the concept "career" has evolved to
describe work as "a race…which affords opportunity for progress or
advancement in the world" (Oxford English Dictionary). With the erosion of
biblical language, new concepts and the modern life they describe fill the void.
According to Bellah, theologians and social scientists share some responsibility
for restoring the integrity of biblical language in everyday life. Cooperation
is possible because "theologian and secular intellectual can speak the same
language. Their tasks are different, but their conceptual framework is
shared." l5 The task of the theologian is to describe reality with biblical
language and to assert its truth. But according to Bellah, concepts constitute
reality when they are put into practice. The biblical principle should be
interpreted for modern life so it becomes part of a believer’s lifestyle. This
task of interpretation is to be shared by the social scientist. The Problem of
Ambiguity Bellah suggests that, although current language is saturated with
terminology that is biblical in origin, the language of popular psychology
provides an alternative and often conflicting system of symbols. Consequently,
"the Biblical and the contemporary or psychological terminologies are
hopelessly confused, and it does not always seem that the Biblical discourse
carries the determining weight." l6 Conceptual ambiguity occurs when we
lose sight of this fact. Many believers blend, often irresponsibly and
unconsciously, language that is both biblical and modern. Biblical concepts such
as wisdom and vocation may be used interchangeably in the same text with the
modern concepts of information and career. Used out of context in this way, each
concept loses its proper meaning. When such concepts are treated as abstractions
with no clear referents, it is not always apparent they represent competing
worldviews. That is not to say that clear separation between biblical and modern
concepts is possible or even desirable. Living "in the world," we need
information and we need to understand which career concerns are appropriate. But
not being "of the world," the believer first needs to seek wisdom and
be guided by a calling. Our objective should be to understand how biblical
concepts are to be given priority and when modern concepts are to be used with
discrimination. Theologians and social scientists, together, can work toward
this objective. Sharing a conceptual framework supporting biblical and modern
language, they can establish principles to help the believer to be more
conscious of competing conceptual systems. They must also reach some agreement
on the interpretation of conceptual meanings and the application of them to
individual situations. The Hidden Threads Paradigm l7 When Bellah suggests that
theologians and social scientists share a common "conceptual
framework," he seems to imply two things. First, that some concepts have a
biblical meaning that is still appropriate today. Second, that social scientists
may share with theologians in the interpretation of that meaning in modern life.
Specifically, theologians may interpret the meaning of the concept then, while
social scientists may interpret its meaning now. It is this suggestion that
underlies the idea that there are "hidden threads" in scripture:
"Christian principles for social behavior in agreement with social
theory." l8 Such principles describe a reality found not only in scripture
but also in modern life and, especially, in the application of scripture to
modern life. Much of the study of hermeneutics, I’m suggesting, should center in
the description and analysis of these hidden thread The Dimension of Continuity
Modern life demands new language for the new experiences it generates. Either
new concepts must be developed to refer to these experiences or old concepts
must be adapted to describe them. Some experiences, however, are not unique to
modern life and have the same meaning they had in biblical times. These
experiences may be appropriately referred to by biblical concepts. The dimension
of continuity refers to the extent to which the meaning of an experience is or
is not limited to a particular culture. An experience lacks continuity if its
meaning is limited to a particular culture and could be referred to as
culture-bound. Another experience would have continuity if its meaning is not
limited to a particular culture. The modern experience of a work-life directed
only by the modern corporation or profession, for example, is culture-bound. It
has no continuity from biblical times and should be referred to as a career.
While the social scientist might interpret the meaning of such a modern
work-life, it would have no meaning for the theologian. But the experience of a
work-life which pursues "a task set by God" is not culture-bound. It
has continuity from biblical times and may be referred to as a calling. This
type of experience may be interpreted by the theologian as well as those social
scientists who accept the validity of such a work-life experience. At least
three questions must be asked to determine whether an experience may be referred
to with a hidden thread on the dimension of continuity. Does the experience have
a meaning bound by culture or not? If not, does the experience have a biblical
meaning that finds expression in modern life? If so, can the interpretation of
that meaning be shared by both theologian and social scientist? The Dimension of
Universality The dimension of universality refers to the concepts used to
describe experiences that are not culture-bound. Concepts are not universal if
they can only be used to describe the meaning of experiences that are
culture-bound. A concept that has universality cannot accurately describe the
meaning of an experience that lacks continuity and vice versa. The calling, for
example, is a universal concept that appropriately refers to "a task set by
God" as a work-life experience that is not culture-bound. It should not,
however, be used to refer to the modern work-life experience that is
culture-bound and best referred to as a career. Similarly, the concept of career
might best be reserved for a modern culture-bound experience and not one that is
continuous. Since a hidden thread is a concept that describes a
non-culture-bound experience, it is both continuous and universal. At the other
extreme is a concept that is neither continuous nor universal because it
appropriately describes a culture-bound experience. Between these two extremes
are two other types of concepts: those that are not continuous but are universal
and those that are continuous and not universal. Combined, these four types of
concepts describe a wide range of experiences found in the shift from a
traditional, biblically-based culture to one controlled by a modern world view.
Although these last two types of concepts are not our primary concern, they
offer intriguing questions for analysis. The "career missionsary," for
example, is a non-universal, continuous concept. It describes a process whereby
someone presumably called "to a task set by God" has made such a
calling a career. Does this concept point to possible motivational shifts in the
missionary’s work-life or is the term merely an inappropriate use of the
concept. Similarly, the idea that one may be "called to a career"
(universal-non-continuous) raises other questions of motivation. Does the use of
such a phrase imply the socialization of some secular interests? Most hidden
threads are valued highly, especially by believers. Consequently, they may be
used rather loosely and without a clear referent. Joy is such a concept. As a
biblical concept, it refers to a sense of gladness in time of difficulty as one
has faith in God. But secularization in modern socierty has weakened this
meaning and the idea that gladness and difficulty might be found together is
gradually lost. In its place, the culture-bound concept of fun is used to
describe a form of happiness without seriousness. Gradually, fun becomes the
preferred concept to describe happiness in modern life. While joy may still be
used, it has lost much of the integrity of meaning it had as a biblical concept.
At least three questions must be asked to determine whether a concept qualifies
as a hidden thread on the dimension of universality. What is the inherent
meaning of the concept as developed in scripture? Does the concept refer to some
experience found in modern life? If so, can the meaning of that concept be
interpreted by both theologian and social scientist? In modern life, the
integrity found in a hidden thread and the experience it refers to should be
maintained as the concept is applied to daily living. The experience it refers
to should be described so it is faithful to the biblical meaning while losing
none of its usefulness in the modern world. In this way, hidden threads offer
biblical constants that may be used to measure and interpret those
inconsistencies in faith and practice found within the church as well as in the
world. Conclusion A major concern of this paper has been the current problem of
modernity and its erosion of biblical concepts. In l970, Bellah suggested that
"modernization itself is so endlessly subversive of every fixed position,
no matter how great an achievement it may have been originally." l9
Developing this subversion theme, Guinness notes the seductive quality of the
process of modernization: "Something new is assumed, something old is
abandoned, and everything else is adopted. In other words, what remains of
traditional (religious) beliefs andpractices is altered to fit the new
assumption." 20 At the same time, Hunter argues "that modernity is
inimical to traditional religious belief… Its symbols and its structure are
deeply contrary to religious, supernaturalistic presuppositions." 2l
Consequently, he predicts religion will either "seek to preserve its
religious heritage" or offer a bargaining creed as a compromise. l9 The
dilemma of the church involves plotting a careful course between these two
options of preserving and compromising. If the church is to maintain a viable
ministry in a rapidly changing world, it must avoid the traditional separated
approach while also avoiding the worldliness that comes from unwitting approval
of modernity’s attractions. Without such avoidance, religion’s cultural style
rather than its orthodoxy is likely to suffer as a syncretism of evangelical
faith and modernity emerges. 22 Looking for a wedge into this syncretism of
modernity and Christian orthodoxy, the argument has suggested that social
science and theology, together, may interpret those inherent truths found in
that conceptual framework shared by them. Basic to this conceptual framework,
hidden threads provide a link between a traditional world of religious meaning
and a modern world devoid of such meaning. Our culture needs an engagement of
scripture and social science, in which a tension must be both perceived and
maintained if any basis for applying biblical principles to modern life is to be
discovered. The church and the believer need to recognize this tension and deal
with it realistically if the hermeneutical task is to be pursued with
faithfulness and integrity.
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