A TEXT OUT OF CONTEXT IS A PRETEXT
INTRODUCTION
There is an old saying to keep in mind when reading and understanding the Bible. It goes like this, "A text out of context is a pretext."
The classic example of this is: “The Bible says, ‘There is no God.’”
It says that. It is a text in the first verse of Psalm 14.
But if someone says only that part of the text, it’s pulling the text out of context.
The whole text goes like this: “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’”
PRETEXT
In my title - I’d say we all know the meaning of “text”. We know the meaning of “context”. It’s the word “pretext” that could be fuzzy – yet we use the word at times – as in the sentence, “This is a pretext. It’s fake news.”
In Webster’s Dictionary – the word pretext has only one meaning: “to cloak the real meaning or intention of a text or a situation.”
People do this to us at times.
They say things that we said, but we say, “Wait a minute. I might have said that, but you’re taking me out of context.”
People hear what they want to hear. People cherry pick – to further their agenda.
Since twitter and texting have to be short – things said with texts or twitter can be both cherry picked and picked apart – especially because there is not that much context.
TV
If we listen to the TV coverage of people running for office we hear people going after another candidate for something she or he said. It might be from last week or last year or 8 years ago. If they have changed their position they will be screaming in some form or other, “A text out of context is a pretext.”
TODAY’S FIRST READING
Now why am I bringing up this topic?
Well, here is where I have another saying, “If we’re going to read the first reading at Mass, please say something about it once and a while.”
We’ve been having these readings from Samuel and Kings at Mass for a while now – and that’s when I remembered the principle that is the title of my homily: “A text out of context is a pretext.”
As I listen to them – being at daily Mass every day – I keep in mind a question: “When did what is being described here happen and when was this text written?”
For example, what is being described in this first reading for this 5th Saturday in Ordinary Time is from 1 Kings 12: 26-32; 13: 33-34. It takes place in the 900’s – but the final copy which we have - was written or finalized 400 years later – perhaps before - as well as during the Exile [597-540].
This stuff has been written and rewritten over and over again. And why rewrite – if not to get your message and your agenda across. We’re not getting our kind of history in the Bible, but the way history was told way, way back when.
So, we’re not getting exact history. But we’re getting how the author of Kings saw what happened to his country and to his religion – way after the events took place.
Today’s first reading tells us that looking back we Israelites messed everything up when we started to worship false gods. We messed up when our country divided itself up - north and south. Jeroboam split off from the south and started the Northern Kingdom as its first king.
Meanwhile Rehoboam was king of Judah – the South – with Jerusalem as the key city.
TODAY’S GOSPEL
I understand the New Testament with the same principle and understandings.
The authors of the gospels – for example – use what Jesus said and did around 30 to 33 – but they especially write about what Christian communities were dealing with between 60 to 100 – all more or less.
For example, whenever we hear about Samaritans – especially in Luke, we’re dealing with how the church were dealing with all these foreigners who are showing up in our communities.
For example, on Thursday we heard about Jesus struggling with a Greek woman of Syro-Phoenician background. I was taught by scripture commentators who would say, “That might be in there for Christians dealing with Greeks of various backgrounds becoming Christian. If Jesus struggled with them, come on, be nice to the strangers in our midst.”
CONCLUSION
The title of my homily was, “A text out of context is a pretext.”
Next time you’re confused or concerned or in conflict with something someone said, say, “”I’m trying to get what you’re getting at, so please give me some more context? Thank you.”
