Ways of Knowing: Hermeneutics – part 2
15 March, 2022, Jennifer Jenkins
In my last blog I laid out my proposal for why hermeneutics should be part of any good Religion and Worldviews curriculum. It is my belief that exploring hermeneutics can start in the primary phase. Pupils can be supported to make their own interpretations of texts and consider how their own worldview impacts on their understanding. They can think about the meaning they take from text due to their own prior understanding.
What can textual hermeneutics look like in Primary? Take the Noah story, which many pupils will have encountered in several forms before studying it as a text in an RE lesson. Pupils can explore the specific historical-social context of the text, considering who wrote it and why, who they wrote it to and how it would have been interpreted and understood at the time. They can move on to consider whether the interpretation of the story is different today. They can think about the ways in which a text is interpreted.
Not sure where to access resources for hermeneutical exploration? Books such as The Lion Handbook of the Bible, websites like the British Library’s Sacred Texts or the excellent collection of materials on the Bible Project website can support teachers in locating this knowledge for hermeneutical discovery.
There is also scope for engaging KS2 pupils in philosophical discussions around where meaning lies within a text; with the author’s intention or the reader’s interpretation? Is meaning a static thing or does it evolve and change over time as texts find themselves used and read in new circumstances? Theological hermeneutics could take the form of Dawn Cox’s lenses to ask questions: How would a theologian understand this text? What about a Christian? Would it be understood differently by a Muslim and why? Is there anything of value in this text for someone with a non-religious worldview who might interpret it without religious affiliation or experience?
Primary pupils are more than capable of engaging with interpretation of sacred art in a similar way. They might explore how images represent not only theological ideas but also the contemporary worldview of the artist. For example, studying images of Jesus from different time periods, cultures and geographical regions offers pupils the opportunity to practice interpretative skills. They will consider what an artist is trying to show about their understanding of Jesus for themselves and their community. They will think about how they, as the viewer, makes meaning of the artwork, and how and why this might differ from the meaning made by their peers.
In the secondary phase, pupils can continue to hone these skills, building up their knowledge of the contexts within which sacred texts were written and the authorships and readerships of these texts, as they study more complex and sophisticated texts. They may also be introduced to the ‘hermeneutics of suspicion’, where they ask themselves what the text is not telling us at face value and for which we may have to dig a little deeper e.g. who does it benefit to interpret a text in this way? Who is harmed by such interpretations and why would that be desirable for some? This could lead to study of the Bible through the lenses of topics such as womanism or racial justice.
Not convinced? I can forgive you; maybe I am being cunning just like Hermes. But take a look at my recent article in RE Today on ‘RE Alert to Hermeneutics’, where I shared ten practical ways to bring hermeneutics into the RE classroom or dive into RE:ONLINE’s hermeneutics resource. Hermeneutics is waiting for you to discover its merits for your RE teaching! I hope you come to love it as much as I do.
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