The Problem of REALITY

Part One - Foundations (The Issue of Epistemology) - Lessons 1-15

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1 The Problem of Reality

2 A Simple Start

3 Adventure Land

4 A Sample of Places Ahead

5 The Place of Absolute Truth

6 Systems Within Systems, Within Systems

7 The Hermeneutic Circle

8 It is Beginning

9 Hermeneutics and More

10 Revelation Requires Response

11 Externalized Hermeneutics

12 More Than Meets the Eye

13 Invisible Reality

14 A Quick Look At the Compass

15 Being Human

Ron MacDonald

Presently Director of Distance Learning at Trinity Ministry Institute, Inc., Florida, USA.

Over 17 years as a teaching missionary in South Africa._ B.A. Washington & Jefferson _ M Div Wheaton Graduate School of Theology,_ PhD , Commonwealth Open University _ Involved in planting 3 churches in the USA, 3 Zulu churches and 2 Bible Colleges in South Africa._ Ten years prior to entering the ministry worked in R&D as a physicist in medical and scientific instrumentation.

1. A PROBLEM OF REALITY

WHICH ONE IS CLOSER TO REALITY?

Actually neither one is very realistic. The colored one "seems" more real to us because it contains colors that are close to what our eyes see in natural light. The other is taken from infra-red sensitive film and is actually a "translation" of what we cannot see (IR wavelengths) into our visible range. As we see the colored one, some critters perceive black and white, IR, UV or a mix -and for them that represents reality.

Then there is the aspect that we "see" 3- D ; -and that involves actually two separate and different pictures, plus the larger "screen" of our wide field vision. Now add the actual way the eye physically breaks up the image and the brain processes it, and we are still a long way from being able to say just what we see. But we propose that, "The truth is out there". How to access it is the question. Now apply this to reading the Scriptures with some ancient words and -how in the world can we ever know anything for sure? (The Post-Modern question)

2. A Simple Start
A fellow pioneer on this journey recently asked a question on his blog concerning the salvation of a friend. It seems that after some years of claiming to be a Christian, she presently denies any special value to the Bible, claiming that it is only stories written by people and of no unique authority. On his blog he presented the question of the necessity of a belief in a supernaturally inspired Bible for salvation. John says eternal life is to know God and his son, Jesus.(Jn17) Most Evangelical statements of faith have a stand on this matter, but is this a leftover from fundamentalism, or are there greater implications? I put my two cents into the question with a brief consideration quoted below.

"It seems ironic that this is a question that we easily knew the answer to "back at the beginning of our journey". As to the specifics of the question; we realize that for over a thousand years most Christians did not even know about a Bible. What teachings were available came through the teaching and preaching of the scholars and the clergy. How many of them were actually "born again" is a heavy thing to ponder.

Regarding the lady mentioned, I would think a more revealing question would be why and how she came to her decision. In a very loose paraphrase, Jesus said to the Pharisees that if they really worshipped the true God, they would recognize him. (The discourse in John 8:30 and on-.) Our relationship is, as you indicated, not a derivative of logic or proof texts, but a matter of faith.

Walter Brueggemann says on page 10 of Texts Under Negotiation, that our faith stands no longer on logic or fact, but on our very life's commitment of who we are, at cost and at risk. For more on this specific issue of Fideism, see-
As a young Christian I understood this, because the Lord I fell in love with was a transcendent God, well beyond the confines of the limited natural world. But it was only in my later years, as I began to realize that truth would not come from science or theology, that I again found my rest in my faith. After all, "faith is for resting in." (Heb4)"    

3. Adventure Land

As we start our adventure I would like to paraphrase what I think Leonard Sweet said, and that was that we could plan a journey, but only prepare for an adventure. Many of us have been on numerous journeys, and after finding some profit, might better identify with the now trite saying, “been there, done that”. But an adventure evokes a fresh challenge and youthfulness that even some of us older travelers find impossible to ignore.

When Alice, in Alice in Wonderland, asked directions, she in turn was asked where she wanted to go. When she said that she didn’t know, the reply was that it then did not matter which way she set off. We do not want an adventure in “wonderland”, which is a place where some theologians seem quite comfortable. We must state the place of our exploration, and ours will be the supernaturally inspired Scriptures. There are other alternatives some consider, but this must be the primary presupposition for us, even though there are many that claim such a land does not exist, - at least in reality. As mentioned, the second presumption is that “the Truth is out there", providing reward for those who diligently seek and find it (Him).

Ours, or in fact, anyone’s starting place must be an act of belief, and for us – faith. An excellent text on this problem is Theology and the Justification of Faith by Wentzel van Huyssteen. Belief is really empty and passive; - a "posture" of our mind and thoughts, -like sitting in a chair and going through a check list, marking, "yes, yes, no, yes, no". There is no substance in it, unlike Faith which is "the substance---". It is that which causes an incarnated step into the adventure.    

4. A Sample of Places Ahead

Before we actually start into the problems and expectations of Truth and Hermeneutics, an example showing the value of this discipline in a positive perspective is in order. (As opposed to “keeping us from error”)

Hebrew thinking – compared to Greek thinking, OT/NT - both worldviews. (not rules but tendencies)
a. Holistic comp to Greek reductionist (look at parts)
b. Parallel comp to Greek linear
c. Natural comp to Greek humanistic
d. Historical comp to Greek mythological
e. Intuitive comp to Greek abstract
f. Poetic comp to Greek literal
g. Experiential comp to Greek analytical
h. Macroscopic comp to Greek microscopic
i. Story tellers comp to Greek Propositional
j. The Land comp to Greek the city
k. The Traditions comp to Greek future
l. Conversational comp to Greek argumentative, confrontational
m. Inductive comp to Greek deductive
n. Relational comp to Greek doctrinal
o. Metaphorical comp to Greek scientific
p. Community comp to Greek Individual
q. Discipleship comp to Greek didactics

The above means that the "glasses" the Hebrews looked through gave different views than the way the Greeks saw things. The Western world today is very much Greek. For a Jew to say Jesus was in the tomb for 3 days was sufficient. Today we would want to quibble over - 'now was it 3 or 2 3/4 days?' Joshua said the sun stopped in the sky. Jews were not interested in scientific explanations, that - indeed- is how it appeared to them! Period. Even if someone could have explained it scientifically to them, they would have probably responded, "Like I said, the sun stopped!" To miss this is to try to make the Scriptures say something they don't.

Here is an example of how this can give valuable insight into Scripture.
The Hebrews used what we call parallelism extensively. In order to describe a complex thing, they wouldn't try to say it precisely- but would say it in several different ways. This could be by showing similarities or contrasts. -The meaning being the sum of statements. Where the Greeks (and in our Western tradition also) would pick the following verses apart to derive many different points, the Hebrews meant it to be looked at as a whole. Consider the following verses in Psalm 19.

Psalm 19:7-9
7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.

This is not saying six different things, but the same thing, six different ways. Allow me to lay it out this way:
    The Law of the Lord
        is perfect
            converting the soul
    The testimony of the Lord
        is sure
            making wise the simple
    The statutes of the Lord
        are right
            rejoicing the heart
    The commandment of the Lord
        is pure
            enlightening the eyes
    The fear of the Lord
        is clean
            enduring forever
    The judgments of the Lord
        are true
            altogether righteous

Each of the three colors is saying something about a complex thought. In a sense, everything in each same color is about the same thing. That is:
There is something from the Lord that we call law, testimony, statutes, commandments, fear, and judgment that are all the same unknown eternal word. The law of the Lord is also the testimony of who He is. David delighted in the law of the Lord. To him, thou shall not kill revealed to him that God is not a life taker, but is for life. And it is sure and able to prevail. It is not tainted or mixed with compromise or special interests. It is representative of truth. It is all of the above mixed together into an “unknown word” of God. That unknown word is all of those attributes, -wrapped up into another unknown word. (perhaps “Holy” comes close. Here is also a clue to the problem of evil, or theodicy. Goodness, as opposed to evil, is not an arbitrary fiat made by God. It is defined by an intrinsic element of God's own nature.)

And look at what it does! It not only changes our mind and emotions, it makes the simple wise. (the Hebrew word rendered “simple” is not retarded, but used in describing a new unfolded or virgin piece of cloth). It brings joy to the heart that is even able to shine from our eyes – the windows of our soul. (a witness) And it is something that is fit and proper to be ours forever.

Words Adam heard from God in the still of the evening before "The Fall" can again be like rivers of clean cool waters to us who live in this desert land of torment and pain, manipulated and choked by evil and corruption. How precious are those unknown spiritual words*, and yet there are some – even Christians, that use the Law as an instrument of flesh, or even despise it as a constraint against what they see as their personal rights and agendas. What treasures are still denied us because we refuse to humble ourselves and admit that there is so much more, and God has His servants working – even now – to mine the gold from the places God Has it hidden.  

*1 Corinthians 2:12-16 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. But a soulish man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is judged by no one. For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ.

5. The Place of Absolute Truth

systems of reference

Above is a picture of eyeglasses and a pen placed on a tablet. The cap from the pen lies on the table. The question I put forward is: If the tablet is gently moved to the left without disturbing the glasses, the pen, and its cap; is the pen moving?

I have asked this in numerous classes and the answers always differ. If one says, “no”, then I point out that the pen and its cap are no longer close together. Something had to have moved. If the answer is, “yes”, I point out that as far as the tablet, pen and glasses were affected, nothing changed. After we talked around this rather old demonstration of relativity, I would stand back from the table and again ask if anything was moving. Usually one or two would say it was, while most of the students would take a minute or two before it dawned on them that, of course the earth is rotating, and then the other cosmic movements of our solar system and on.

The answer is, indeed, that it is relative to the place or grouping where “you ask the question”. To a microbe on the pen, it is certainly a static world. So everything within a grouping, or let’s call it a system, has different relationships from those things in other systems. What does this have to do with hermeneutics?

Let’s look at systems a little. As bottom line basics for Christians, we believe in at least two systems; the natural world. Which includes “outer space”, and a spiritual “world”. Scripture calls these heavenly places, or the unseen world. The use of the word heaven in the Bible seems to indicate three heavens; the first -in the natural world, the second -where the spiritual conflicts and activities occur, and finally the third heaven -where the throne of God is over all else. We will go into these later in our studies. I would like to suggest that there are other systems we need to acknowledge. (Please note that I am not endorsing the foundationalist, dualistic system of Descartes, which is a non-biblical concept of knowledge in the tradition of Enlightenment.)

Some Christians become very agitated when confronted with a concept of relatively, partly because today our societies have made morality, values, and even truth to be only an issue of relativity. There are other systems that are not so obvious, but just as significant in our quest to find direction on this journey. We have already observed how space changes relationships. There is space (in miles) between the Western culture and the Eastern, as well as the thousands of smaller communities in the earth. Time, which is inter-related with cultural issues also separates us, particularly when dealing with words written thousands of years ago.

Thinking follows the understanding of that which one encounters within a culture. People outside of a technological culture think differently than those within it. Thoughts and words are constructed and built from what we have encountered in life. It builds as we try to make sense and integrate our experiences. Scripturally these issues span thousands of years, and yet we all struggle with this in daily life. We call it a generation gap, or differentiate and feel differently based on ethnic differences. Countries that were our enemies years ago, are today our friends, and even behavior that would have been illegal and seriously judged is now acceptable. All of this and more can occur within a single lifetime. Parents find themselves living with children that already are in a different culture even while they still live at home. Communications breaks down, it seems at every turn; so how can we expect to bridge such huge gaps when we seek to understand the Scriptures?

In the beginning lesson we explored the problem of knowing truth with any certainty, and now we complicate the problem even more. If everything is so subjective and relative, what hope do we have? With the exception of mathematics, there is very little we can do to cross from one system to another. But even there, traditional logic with its mutual exclusiveness fails, for “things” can be both true and false when seen from our inevitably limited reference place. Our “arms” are not long enough to reach the places we need to touch. We probably can never know anything with absolute certainty from our limited place within a system which is within other systems.

This is why we affirm that there is one who sits outside of all other systems. We have evidence because that Absolute Ancient of Days has, in His initiative, reached down and touched us. We have given a name to that evidence, even though it is unseen; and it is - faith. And - we didn't access it; it bridged all the gaps and found us.   

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