Full Text for Auctoritas Absoluta (Text)

sh Bit: Auctoritas Absoluta 'THOXI AS SOI .TIS Tiolv 'Trinity 1,uthcran Church 'S'onl:~II); vary- ing and antithetical idcologies in the history of man. It also ac- counts for the .instabilitv of man in the real111 of human icteologies. Sincc rnan's cxpcrience is limited, and his evaluation of it capable of subjective error, man is always in jeopardy of "changing his mind." Science, bv \;irt~~e of its ver)! definition, cannot be absolute. Hurnan reason, fly virt.uc of its fallible manipulation of worcls, cannot be absolute. Sciet~ce is but a lnethodology of reason used by man in his pursuit toward truth. Reason is but a means to\a:ard uItimate truth; a process toward an end, but never the end itself. 111. GOD'S \\'oRI> -THE INFALLIBLE SOL~IlishecI through thc medium of words. His revealcci wortis arc authoritati\.,e in an absolute sense, since E,ie is "The Absolute". God-brea thed = Authoritativel!l Absolute Written words IV. THX ~?EEI> OF A ~IETHODOLOGY FOE ii CORRECT RECEPTION 0%' GOL)'S REVEI~ATION Since every nlorcl of Scripture has a specific, authoritative mean- ing coupled wit11 a ciivine, absolute intent, man's inajor endeavor in life sllould be to discover the true sense and meaning behind every word of God in Scripture. But as man n~isuses and ~nisunderstands words in his nlultal pursuits to linderstand the material because of human limitations, so also it may occur in the of the spiritual. Man may nlisuse, misunderstand or abuse the thought symbols of God. It is i~.~lportant to maintain a discipline whereby the words of God may consistently represent what God intended. Excgctes, who u~lderstanci the absolute, authoritative nature of God's wrorcls, have adopted the principle : "Let the Scriptures interpret themselves." To allow Scripture to interpret Scripture without private, human, interpretative interference, 1vj11 permit God's concepts to shine through His ~vorrl symbols. Historically the C11urch turned to philosophy for words to explain the unexplainables of Scripture. And today, Christianity is divided in illany areas because of human, falli- ble, philosophical conceyts ground down and fitted into doctrinal systems whicl~ :ire antithetical in many instances to the clear testi- nloily of Scripture. Yet philosophy, by its very nature, is less stable than the scientific process. l'hilosophical wordage is authoritative only to one's relative point of view; it is not absolute. God's words alone are absolute. It is theology's duty to understand God's words in terms of God's thought concepts. To put it another way: "The- ology's basic function is to relate God's words to Goct's words." To accomplish this, the exegete must roam and wade his way through thc heights and depths of God's words and seek to undcrstnnd them as God meant them. \Yith this essential principle in mind, the fol- lowing methodologv is offered. V. A BIBLICAL METHODOLOGY I. TRANSLATION Obtain an accurate rendering of the original tcxt in words cur- rently syn~bolical of thc original. 11. IVORD STUDY Obtain a thorough study of origmal roots, word developments and usage at the time of writing. 111. TEXTUAL SETTING Evaluate each word in its immediate contcxt. IV. TEXTUAL I'OINTS OF EMPHASIS A single verse nlay have more than one point of emphasis. For example, John 14: 6 could speak to the point of "way," "truth," or "life." It is therefore of paramount importance to empha- size specifically which point of truth (embodied in a single word or phrase) will be under study. V. PARALLEL PASSAGES The whole of Scripture must be consulted for I'arallel Passages speaking to the Point of Emphsis in Part IV. Parts I, IT, 111 and IV above lllust be repeated with reference to each Parallel Passage. Thus the original Point of Enlphasis will be reviewed in the total context of Scripture. VI. SUMMARY PARAGRAPH The Summary Paragraph should consist of conclusive sentences speaking to the Textual Point of Emphasis in the light of the whole of Scripture. VII. THESIS A brief statement which would represent the "Auctoritas Abso- luta" of God's 147ord. The above methodology will rotate one's theological pursuit in ever widening circles throughout the vast whirlpool of Scripture's words. As this is done, the objective authority of the words of God should mould his mind in the Mind of Christ. Speculations about what is historically Scriptural and what is Scripturally historical should lose their significance. The authoritative words of God will dominate to set the scene for God's Revelation. Problems between the miraculous and materialism's rationale will disappear as miracu- lous events become factual concepts in the student's mind and his exegetical process. As God's words penetrate deeper and deeper into the rationale of the Scripture student, the authoritative nature of those words will overpower him. He will be assured and reas- surecl that his discipline is sound, his method reliable, and the re- sults of his research irrefutable.