Author Interview: Larry W. Caldwell on The Bible in Culture: Reading the Bible with All the World Using Ethnohermeneutics

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The Bible in Culture: Reading the Bible with All the World Using Ethnohermeneutics

By: Larry W. Caldwell

William Caret, 2025  

381 pages

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Summary

The book seeks to develop biblically grounded and culturally appropriate hermeneutical (or Bible interpretation) approaches that help interpreters to effectively communicate the Christian message (page xxvi) using ethnohermeneutics (i.e., “Bible interpretation done in cross-cultural, multicultural, and multigenerational contexts, that whenever possible, uses culturally appropriate dynamic hermeneutical approaches already in place in the culture” [page 14]). The book uses six fundamental principles: (1) the Bible is authoritative; (2) the Holy Spirit guides in the interpretation; (3) the Bible is easy to understand; (4) Bible interpretation is best done in community; (5) hermeneutics is holistic; and (6) the purpose of Bible interpretation is to make disciples. The author structures his book into two parts: why ethnohermeneutics helps interpreters to read the Bible with all the world, and using ethnohermeneutics to read the Bible with all the world.  

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