Abstract
This article is an essay on hermeneutics and examines relationships between the interpreter, the text, and the dangerous necessity of republishing the Gospel through succeeding ages. “Inferential theology” is a neologism which is used by the writer to describe the product of human response and reflection upon the Scriptures. Those branches of theology called Biblical, Systematic, Practical/Pastoral are viewed as containing much inferential interaction with Scripture and, as such, are necessary (de rigueur) and at the same time dangerous (un grand péril). Two concrete examples of inferential theology are exclusive psalmody and the ordination of women, the author concluding that both are inferential rather than primary revelation. The church before a watching world imperils its witness when interpreters fail to grasp the gap that exists between what they interpret the text to say and the actual text itself. Because of a proliferation of what are herein designated “personalized theologies,” the writer urges greater humility among interpreters.
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