On Christian Teaching ... of Psalms

Augustine's scheme of the seven stages from fear to wisdom struck a chord in me. Each one has merit and a purpose in his scheme, and each one offers a unique way to look at the scriptures at hand. The interpretation yielded by a reading based on fear, for example, will me different from that which comes from a reading based on fortitude or compassion. Each stage, in addition, seems to represent a real stage in human emotional development. Every person, at some point, experiences fear, holiness, knowledge, fortitude, compassion, love, and wisdom, some perhaps in more abundance than others. If each passage of the Bible can be interpreted differently according to the stage of the reader, as Augustine suggests, then each of these qualities can help us understand a different part or aspect of a particular passage or psalm.

This point of view could also be helpful in relating to other interpretations of texts. If we can see where a person in coming from when he or she approaches a text, then it is more likely we will be able to make sense of his or her viewpoint. If we can look at an interpretation and say "Hm, it looks like this person was coming from the first stage," we can make certain assumptions about the interpretation and figure out which parts seem to be more subjective than others. This reflection on another person's interpretation quite logically leads to reflection on our own interpretation-- an in-depth look at which parts of our ideas seem to be really there in the text and which may come out of some inner feelings of our own. That in turn can lead to a more careful consideration of viewpoints prior to sharing them with the world, which can only be good.

If we each take just a little time to perhaps examine where we might be in Augustine's seven stages before stating an opinion about a particular text, we could see that there are probably infinite ways of construing each passage in any book, not just the Bible or other religious texts. We could also find ourselves more open to accepting others' interpretations relative to their places in the seven stages. Now, this is not the only way to achieve a more open, tolerant, and accepting environment for the discussion of religious texts, but it will surely help if put into practice.