# Application
_Bridging the historical distance between ancient and modern contexts is a creative act, and must be undertaken with wisdom, humility, and a healthy dose of pragmatism._
## Our own context
An understanding of past meaning equips us to find faithful applications today. Unpacking meaning from a historical context into a modern one begins with understanding our _own_ context.
The German term _Umwelt_ (English: "environment") is used to describe how animals experience their environment. A bat, dolphin, and dog will all have very different sensory experiences of a wave crashing onto a beach, even though they are encountering the same physical objects.
This concept can be used to reflect on our own perceptions of reality, which are subconsciously shaped by our own history, education, language, and expectations. We are each trapped in _"the cage of our own experience"_: hostage to the limitations of our understanding and circumstance. Our thoughts, feelings, and responses are so ingrained that we can be unaware of how they shape our worldview.[^byas][^plato]
A good example of this phenomenon is how we recall a key moment in the _Parable of the Prodigal Son_: for what reason did the prodigal son return home (Luke 15:11-32)? Common answers are:[^context]
1. _He ran out of money_
2. _There was a famine_
Typically those from a Western, wealthy context tend toward the former answer. In these places, "running out of food" is not a common problem, and the collective fear of society is "running out of money". Those in poorer countries (particularly ones with experience of famine) connect with the terror of famine.
Our personal experiences shape our interpretation in both obvious and subtle ways. Recognising our limitations, biases, and "blind spots" helps us develop the necessary humility to read the Bible without imposing our local, modern, or personal concerns upon it.
### Theology always has an adjective
There is no such thing as unbiased and impartial theology: all attempts at interpretation and application should be prefixed with a descriptor that qualifies the group, community, or outlook performing the theology.[^tshirt]
| Type. | Example | Description |
|------------|------------|------------------------------------------------------------|
| Geographic | German | Belief frameworks of German-born theologians. |
| Temporal | Medieval | Changes in theological outlook in the medieval period. |
| Community | Catholic | Interpretation based on the Catholic Church magisterium. |
| Principle | Unitarian | Non-trinitarian readings of the Bible, Jesus, and God. |
| Gender | Feminist | Revisiting male-dominated context of religious thought. |
| Race | Black | Focus on injustice arising from segregation and apartheid. |
From these examples it is clear that _multiple_ adjectives typically have to be used to describe a theological outlook. Naming the adjectives of our own interpretive lenses and communities helps us to recognise that our own perspectives are limited, and prepare us to engage with a rich and diverse set of voices and theologies.
Armed with a breadth of perspectives we are able to make better value judgements relating to our own situations. This ability to contextualise and nuance the issues affecting people in our spheres of influence enables us to identify pragmatic next steps in our lived experience, an ability that is essential in an increasingly polarised and interconnected world.
Living in tension with a range of contradictory practical applications is clearly modelled in the Bible:[^paradox]
> [!bible]
> "Do not answer fools according to their folly, or you will be a fool yourself. Answer fools according to their folly, or they will be wise in their own eyes." — Proverbs 26:4-5 (NRSV)
### Government and politics
National frameworks of law and decision-making also influence how Christian principles can be applied.
- #### State-sanctioned religion
Some countries have a limited number of permitted religions, and members of other communities face harassment, prosecution, or harm for arranging or attending meetings outside these organised groups.
> [!quote]
> Since 2012, the \[Chinese\] government has introduced a program of sinicization of religion. "This requires religions to adapt their practices and doctrines to conform to traditional Chinese culture and values. Religious groups need to register with the government’s Patriotic Associations to operate and undertake religious activities." — UK Home Office, IAGCI (2024)
While it is important to form contextual interpretations which address the concerns of local communities, enforced adaptation to existing culture and values reduces the power of interpretive communities to freely question, challenge, and evolve.
- #### Banned conversion
In some countries, becoming a Christian can result in active persecution. For example, Iranian nationals converting from Islam to Christianity can face arrest, detention, and execution.[^iran]
> [!quote]
> "The law prohibits Muslim citizens from changing or renouncing their religious beliefs. The only recognised conversions are from another religion to Islam. Apostasy from Islam is a crime punishable by death." — USSD Report on International Religious Freedom (2017)
Converts may take the risk of attending "underground" churches, or flee to other safer countries as refugees.
- #### Conscription
Christians have a long history[^max] of refusing military service on religious grounds, translating principles of non-violence drawn from the Biblical text into contemporary action. During the second World War objectors faced varying consequences for their convictions: in Great Britain many were assigned civilian roles supporting the war effort. In Germany treatment of objectors varied from incarceration to the death.[^merz]
In 1948 the UN General Assembly ratified article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, enshrining the right to freedom of conscience in international law.
> [!quote]
> "Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion" — UN Declaration of Human Rights, Article 18 (1948)
- #### Voting
In some countries, participation in political life is made mandatory through a legal requirement to cast a vote in an election.[^australia]
Communities or individuals who reject participation in political systems on ideological, conscience, or interpretive grounds may choose to "spoil" their ballot.
State persecution of minority religious communities is a common theme in Scripture,[^state] providing a variety of faithful past responses to consider. [The Bible Project](https://bibleproject.com) _"Ethic of the Exile"_ series presents an accessible summary of these ideas.
<iframe width="635" height="357" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XzWpa0gcPyo" title="YouTube video player: The Way of the Exile" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Individual and community risk, perception by non-Christians, personal responsibility, and conscience all interact to inform our response when law and politics intersect with our lives.
### Culture
manifestation or incarnation today
## Creativity
Applying the meaning we derive from the past to contemporary situations is a creative endeavour. It requires us to make choices about:
- Which of different, potentially competing, meanings we privilege.
- What contemporary practices we choose to adopt, avoid, or nuance.
- How we might emphasise, subvert, or minimise elements of our practice.
Examples over time (Sunday School)
Difficulty of honouring past today.
### Standing out and fitting in
Constistency
Incomplete knowledge
Over generalising
Moralistic Therapeutic Deism
Charity
## Summary
1. We each have a context, the “cage of our own experience”, which shapes our perceptions of the world and therefore how we apply the meaning we discover in the Bible.
2. Building an awareness of our own context challenges us to empathise and reflect: we begin to see how and why others make different choices, and consider how our own choices and assumptions have been informed.
3. Acknowledging our application of scripture is a creative process allows us to be intentional about how we manifest Christian ideals today, rather than being shaped by unconscious cultural biases.
As we seek ways to honour the principles and trajectory of salvation history in our daily lives we will have opportunity to hear how others approach these same challenges, and to explain our own perspectives. Read about how we can do this in the next section, [[Communication]].
## Appendix
### Bibliography
- Byas, J. (2020). _Love Matters More: How Fighting to Be Right Keeps Us from Loving Like Jesus_. Zondervan. (Amazon [UK](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Love-Matters-More-Jared-Byas/dp/0310358604) | [US](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0310358604), [Barnes & Noble](https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/love-matters-more-jared-byas/1134978655)).
- McKnight, S. (2010). _The Blue Parakeet: Rethinking How You Read the Bible_. Zondervan. (Amazon [UK](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Blue-Parakeet-Rethinking-Read-Bible/dp/0310331668) | [US](https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Parakeet-Rethinking-Read-Bible/dp/0310331668), [Zondervan](https://www.zondervan.com/9780310538936/the-blue-parakeet-2nd-edition/)).
- Evans, R. H. (2012). _A Year of Biblical Womanhood: How a Liberated Woman Found Herself Sitting on Her Roof, Covering Her Head, and Calling Her Husband 'Master'_. Thomas Nelson. (Amazon [UK](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0078FA8TS/) | [US](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0078FA8TS/), [rachelheldevans.com](https://rachelheldevans.com/biblical-womanhood)).
- Various. (2012). _NIV Application Commentary: Old Testament & New Testament, 42 Volumes (NIVAC)_. Zondervan. (Amazon [UK](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07X348537) | [US](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07X348537), [Logos](https://www.logos.com/product/37365/niv-application-commentary-old-testament-and-new-testament-42-volumes)).
- Holland, T. (2020). _Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind_. Abacus. (Amazon [UK](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0349141207) | [US](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0349141207), [World of Books](https://www.wob.com/en-gb/books/tom-holland/dominion/9780349141206)).
- Carnegie, D. (1948). _How to Stop Worrying and Start Living_. Amaryllis. (Amazon [UK](https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Stop-Worrying-Start-Living/dp/818322802X/) | [US](https://www.amazon.com/How-Stop-Worrying-Start-Living/dp/818322802X/), [Barnes & Noble](https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/how-to-stop-worrying-and-start-living-dale-carnegie/1100370319)).
- Byas, J. & Enns, P (Hosts). (2021). _Episode 191: Creative Interpretation as Necessary_. The Bible for Normal People. ([Apple](https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-bible-for-normal-people/id1215420422?i=1000544767233), [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/episode/5Do0OZqxr061wZeb7eHb3i?si=5be0434e7ad644a8)).
- Jackman, G. (2020). _"As dying, and behold, we live”: The Merz brothers and the Third Reich_. Independent. (Amazon [UK](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08LRDQD42) | [US](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08LRDQD42))
### Notes
[^byas]: In _Love Matters More_, author Jared Byas explains these concepts by comparing our different human perspectives and experiences via the cognitive philosophy of [umwelt](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umwelt), the idea that different types of animal all perceive and experienceof the same real environment in very different ways.
[^plato]: See also [Plato's Cave](https://www.storyboardthat.com/storyboards/nataliehe/plato-s-cave). These concepts are also arguably a key plot device for the [Lego Movie](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZ_JOBCLF-I). You might also come across similar ideas in [Wittgenstein's Lion](https://existentialcomics.com/comic/245).
[^context]: This example is from _Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes_ (see Bibliography).
[^china]: UK Home Office. (2024). Country information and guidance: Christians, China. Available [online](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/china-country-policy-and-information-notes/country-information-and-guidance-christians-china-march-2024-accessible).
[^iran]: Home Office. (2020). Country Policy and Information Note. Iran: Christians and Christian Converts. Retrieved from [justice.gov](https://www.justice.gov/eoir/page/file/1253351/download), November 2021.
[^max]: Saint Maximilian of Tebessa (274–295ACE) refused to be enlisted into the Roman army due to his Christian convictions and was killed: "I cannot serve. I cannot commit a sin. I am a Christian." While he is the earliest recorded conscientious objector there were likely other earlier unrecorded objectors. For more information see: Musurillo, H A. (1972). _The Acts Of The Christian Martyrs_. Clarendon Press, Oxford. p244-248.
[^merz]: [Albert Merz](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Merz) was a member of the _Urchristen_ church in Germany: part of the Christadelphian community. He was imprisoned in the Brandenburg-Gorden Prison and executed there on April 3rd, 1941.
[^australia]: "Under the Electoral Act, the actual duty of the elector is to attend a polling place, have their name marked off the certified list, receive a ballot paper and take it to an individual voting booth, mark it, fold the ballot paper and place it in the ballot box." - Compulsory voting in Australia, Australian Electoral Commission. [Link](https://www.aec.gov.au/about_aec/publications/voting/).
[^state]: National persecution of Jews (Daniel, Esther); Jewish persecution of early Christians (Acts); Roman persecution of the growing Church (Revelation). Later, as the church became a dominant political power, it too persecuted minority communities.
[^tshirt]: This observation has received considerable attention on the _Bible for Normal People_ podcast, you can get it [on a t-shirt](https://peteenns.com/shop/theology-tee/).
[^paradox]: Tensions in behaviour are particularly evident as the Gospel message spread to new communities: Romans 14:5-6. Contextual pragmatism helped to navigate these tensions in the past: 1 Cor 8:8-9, 9:20-21.