Karl Barth's Theological Exegesis: The Hermeneutical Principles of the Romerbrief Period

Richard E. Burnett

Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2004 - Religion - 312 pages

Foreword by Bruce McCormack

For many students of Scripture and Christian theology, Karl Barth's break with liberalism is the most important event that has occurred in theology in over 200 years. In Karl Barth's Theological Exegesis Richard E. Burnett provides the first detailed look at this watershed event, showing how Barth read the Bible before and after his break with liberalism, how he came to read the Bible differently than most of his contemporaries, and why Barth's contribution is still significant today.

As Burnett explains, the crux of Barth's legacy is his abandonment of the hermeneutical tradition of Schleiermacher, which had had such a profound influence on Christian thought in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This hermeneutical tradition, which began with Herder and extended through Dilthey, Troeltsch, Wobbermin, Wernle, and Barth himself prior to 1915, is characterized by its attempt to integrate broad aspects of interpretation, to establish universally valid rules of interpretation on the basis of a general anthropology, and by its reliance on empathy.

Barth's discovery that "the being of God is the hermeneutical problem" implied that the object to be known should determine the way taken in knowing. This fundamental insight brought about a hermeneutical revolution that gave priority to content over method, to actual exegesis over hermeneutical theory. The development of Barth's new approach to Scripture is especially evident in his Römerbrief period, during which he developed a set of principles for properly reading Scripture. Burnett focuses on these principles, which have never been discussed at length or viewed specifically in relationship to Schleiermacher, and presents a study that challenges both "neo-orthodox" and "postmodern" readings of Barth.

This is a crucial piece of scholarship. Not only is it the first major book in English on Barth's hermeneutics, but it also employs pioneering research in Barth studies. Burnett includes in his discussion important material only recently discovered in Switzerland and made available here in English for the first time -- namely, six preface drafts that Barth wrote for his famous Romans commentary, which some regard as the greatest theological work of all time.

In making a major contribution to Barth studies, this volume will also inform scholars, pastors, and students whose interests range from modern Christian theology to the history of biblical interpretation.

Contents

• Introduction: 1
• A Hermeneutical Manifesto Earths Hermeneutical Discovery in Context: 13
• A The Priority of Exegesis Over Hermeneutics: 14
• B Karl Barths Commitment to Theological Exegesis: 23
• C The PostWar Appraisal of Barths Hermeneutic: 31
• D Karl Barths Problem with The Hermeneutical Problem: 35
• Background to Barths Discovery: 41
• F From Special Hermeneutics to General Hermeneutics: 50
• G The School of the Holy Spirit: 56
• Sachlicher Inhaltlicher Wesentlicher: 65
• A Sachlicher Approach: 70
• C What Exactly Is Die Sache of the Bible?: 74
• D The Whole in Light of Its Parts and the Parts in Light of the Whole: 78
• E The Challenge of Interpreting What is There Dialectically: 84
• F Truth and Memory: 86
• Entering into the Meaning of the Bible: 95
• A A Scientific Approach to Exegesis: 96
• B A Living Context: 100
• C Active Participation: 111
• 1 No Reading Out Without Reading In: 112
• 2 Like Through Like: 114
• 3 Until I Almost Forget That I Am Not the Author: 117
• With More Attention and Love: 125
• B The HistoricalPsychological Approach of Paul Wernle: 128
• C Beyond Religious Personality and Experience: 134
• D A Short History of the Empathetic Tradition of Interpretation: 142
• 1 Johann Gottfried von Herder: 143
• 2 Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher: 149
• 3 Wilhelm Dilthey: 158
• 4 Ernst Troeltsch and Georg Wobbermin: 166
• 5 The Young Karl Barth Pre1915: 169
• a Moder n Theology and Work in the Kingdom of God: 171
• b The Christian Faith and History: 176
• E A Hermeneutics of Love and Trust: 184
• 1 No Art of Empathy Can Offer the Slightest Substitute: 185
• 2 A Relationship of Faithfulness: 192
• 3 An Emergency Clause: 197
• An Excursus: 207
• a Love is a Gift a Miracle: 208
• b Love is Always for Another: 210
• c To Love is to Receive and to Be a Witness: 213
• The Meaning of the Bible Itself: 221
• B The Service of Historical Criticism: 230
• C The Art of Paraphrasing: 240
• D Calvin as Exemplar: 250
• Conclusion: 255
• The Historical Background of the Preface to the First Edition of Barths Romerbrief: 265
• The Preface Drafts to the First Edition of Earths Romerbrief: 277
• Bibliography: 293
• Index of Names: 307

About the author

Richard E. Burnett is associate professor of theology at Erskine Theological Seminary, Due West, South Carolina. He has been a pastor in the Presbyterian Church (USA) for more than a decade and has served churches in Tennessee, New Jersey, and North Carolina. He recently edited A Cry of Need and of Joy: Confessing The Faith in a New Millennium."

Bibliographic information

• Title: Karl Barth's Theological Exegesis: The Hermeneutical Principles of the Romerbrief Period
• Author: Richard E. Burnett
• Edition: reprint
• Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2004
• ISBN: 0802809995, 9780802809995
• Length: 312 pages
• Subjects: Religion / Biblical Studies / Exegesis & Hermeneutics; Religion / Christian Theology / Systematic