Choosing a First Topic
March 9, 2007I’m in the process currently of choosing which topic listed below (or maybe even one not listed below) will be discussed first.
Setting a hermeneutical standard will be terribly vital to the process through which we analyze and discuss every topic on the list. If we were to jump blindly forward without having the hermeneutics conversation, our readers (and even writers) won’t have the privilege of understanding where we are coming from when we argue.
I teach by what I call the “Rational Bridge” method.
:Step 1: Determine the Destination
:Step 2: Determine the Launching Point
:Step 3: Build the Rational Bridge
Basically, when I have a concept that I am going to teach, I start developing the the lesson by determining what I want my audience to know/believe/do when I am done teaching. Then I figure out where they are starting from on the topic, so as to unveil the “Rational Gap.” When I discover the difference between the Launching Point and the Destination, I am then able to create a Rational Bridge between the two.
But before any of that, we need to do our research, and our research will always be shaped by our interpretive method. Therefore, choosing a standard interpretive process will be necessary to ensure that it’s always clear how we came to any conclusion.
And before we do research, we have to decide on topics that are worth our time. I’m still unsure about a lot of my ideas for possible articles. The KJV Only Movement, for starters, has been discussed in detail in many places. I’m sure that I could not add any content to the argument. But what I think I can add is improved presentation, coupled with precision and concision. And those are things that I value personally. I’ve yet to see a concise, precise, academically researched, and professionally designed article on discussing the KJV Only Movement.
For example, this is a an example of a rather poor article (with no original thought), coupled with terrible presentation, and no formal style. The organization of thought was not clear. The black text on grey background made my eyes hurt.
Likewise, this one also has lots of problems. The main problem is the presentation. The facts are that we live in a world that values presentation as much (or more) than it values content. That doesn’t mean that believers should value them in that order. But it does mean that if we care about our message, we need to package it professionally. If this wasn’t important, Jesus wouldn’t have used farming analogies so much, and Paul would not have gone to Athens and talked about their idols.
