Friday, December 10, 2010

Faithful Interpretation and the Church

SOURCE:  by Mark Achtemeier, overheard.
KEYWORD:  bible, scripture, interpretation, church

"Ireanaeus of Lyons noted the problem of multiple readings of Scripture in the second century. He compared biblical interpretation practiced by the heretics of his day to a person who takes apart a mosaic of the emperor and reassembles the colored stones so as now to depict a dog. The raw materials are all from an authentic source, says Irenaeus, but their arrangement and interrelations communicate a vastly different message!

The heretics and the true church both quote Scripture, but the church knows how to arrange the pieces of the biblical witness into a faithful portrait."

--Mark Achtemeier

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