From: Trevor Nicholls (tcn@inform.co.nz)
Date: Wed Apr 17 1996 - 22:00:03 EDT
Allegory or simple message?
I think it is worth noting that, although most parables in the gospels
are not explicitly interpreted, the small number that are (by Jesus
himself, as well) are given an allegorical meaning.
We need a good reason to conclude that the other parables should not
be interpreted along similar lines. "I can't see an allegory so there
isn't one" is not a very humble approach to take.
Of course I wouldn't claim that there aren't simple messages being
conveyed as well. A good teacher can communicate on several levels
at once, and I guess we all accept that Jesus was an excellent example.
(most of you have probably encountered this "transposition" but for
those who haven't: is a parable an earthly story with a heavenly
meaning, or a heavenly story with no earthly meaning?)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trevor Nicholls, Development Manager, InForm Group Ltd,
PO Box 1444, Wellington, New Zealand.
Ph: +64 4 472 0996 Fax: +64 4 473 2407 Email: tcn@inform.co.nz
------------------------------------------------------------------------
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Sat Apr 20 2002 - 15:37:40 EDT