Caribbean Biblical Hermeneutics after the Empire

Abstract

This article surveys recent trends in biblical interpretation in the Caribbean in the context of postcolonial biblical criticism, and functions on several levels. First, it examines the strengths, weaknesses, and presuppositions of particular examples of Caribbean readings of biblical texts. Secondly, it interrogates the use of the term “postcolonial” in scholarly discourse on biblical texts. Thirdly, and most importantly, it critiques the presuppositions that underlie the author's own engagements with the material under discussion. Consequently, this article emphasises the importance of the self-criticism of the interpreter in the process of interpretation, and offers an example of how scholars from the “first-world” might engage both critically and constructively with the work of scholars from the “two-thirds world”. It therefore seeks to participate in the “de-centering” of biblical scholarship, advocated by Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza.