Re: [TruthTalk] Communicating & Understanding....Joint participants in a story

[Judy Taylor]

On Mon, 11 Jul 2005 09:21:12 -0400 "Lance Muir" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: Well, sort of like LOR, Judy. Good observation. But, Jesus' parables (stories) certainly come closer. What is your understanding of the parables, Judy?   The parables are no different, they are given to illustrate spiritual realities to which common understanding is blind. When the disciples question Jesus about why he spake in parables he said nothing about "common understanding" In fact he used them as a type of judgment ie "Because it is given unto you (disciples) to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath to him shall be given and he shall have more abundance but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables because they seeing see not and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.... (Matt 13:10-17)   As an aside, Judy. Feel free not to pursue the 'content of TFT'. Just make an attemp not to critique him out of hand in the future, please?   What do you mean by "out of hand?" From: Judy Taylor Lance Muir wrote: Each living person draws upon two quite distinct sources of meaning. The current 'vulgate' or common understanding. This is that which enables us to communicate with one another. Hidden beneath this is a 'private thesaurus'. What any two people mean when they speak or hear will overlap only to a certain extent by virtue of their sharing the 'vulgate' of a particular human group.   The above is myth. No person ever receives revelation from God through "cultural or common vulgate/understanding" and the Bible is a closed book to those who possess that alone.   No reader comes to a text as a 'cultural virgin'. Our readings are affected at the outset by pre-understanding and private thesaurus.The meaning which we retrieve from a text will never be absolutely identical with the meaning which it had for its author or, for any other reader.   Thoughts of a "natural man" Lance.  Doesn't matter how many cultures one understands the issue is natural vs spiritual when it comes to understanding God's Word.  One is life the other is death.  Oh and BTW this is not just a "story" it is life vs death.   Meaning is something which 'happens' when we read the text and which is like the knowledge of the Lord in which the Psalmist rejoiced, new every morning. This is not a transparent text through which we view something else. It is like a stained glass window depicting a story. It is 'the story we find ourselves in'.   Sure Lance, it's just like Lord of the Rings....