Steps in Constructing a Contextual Bible Study

The next aspect of CBS which needs dissection, is the process, the steps in the construction of a Bible study. Readers familiar with the see-judge-act method would have already

recognized it in the assembly of this specific academic exercise: the chapters of this study mirror a typical see-judge-act discourse. It makes sense, then, that the first three steps of a CBS have determined relevance to this study, although the manual identifies five steps in the construction of a CBS (Ujamaa 2015: 9). Although they are called a guide only and may be improvised upon, for the purpose of this study, the first three will be used as is.

Step 1: Identifying a Theme (See): CBS always starts with the reality of the local community. The Bible study on 1 Samuel 25 in this study will also do this, as illustrated in chapter one. Communities already deal with issues, and organized Bible study groups are often aware of what they are. Otherwise, if they are not aware, the Ujamaa Centre helps with a social analysis. From my own situatedness, Chapter Two has posited the distinct issues that motivated the creation of this study.

Step 2: Discerning a Biblical text (Judge): Once a theme has been chosen, a Biblical text that addresses the theme must be chosen. In Chapter Four, I will explain why 1 Samuel 25 has been chosen specifically for an intercultural conversation; this text speaks into the issues that pains my community. The Ujamaa Centre uses one of two ways to use a Biblical text: when they read a familiar text, they use an unfamiliar approach, or they choose an unfamiliar text altogether. The only reason provided for this is that this allows participants to re-read the Bible, hearing it speak in a new way (Ujamaa 2015: 10).

1 Samuel 25 cannot be labelled an unfamiliar text, although it certainly is not popular. I have not come across a CBS on the Abigail story, and from a feminist perspective, the possibilities

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are captivating, since she is such a convincing leading lady. Furthermore, as explained in Chapter Four, the Abigail story introduces engaging conversation topics, especially for an intercultural conversation: power and politics, violence and crime, peace and forgiveness, sustenance and generosity.

The Ujamaa Manual (2015: 11) discusses an idea under this phase of the process, step 2, which they call “linking”. The process of linking involves connecting the lines between the context of the biblical story, the context of the biblical writer, to the context of the

contemporary reader. According to the Manual, these links provide valuable clues to which texts are suited for Bible study with which groups, and obviously to discern a specific text for the problem or theme identified by a group. This is true, but an academic discussion like this deserves one more remark. Biblical students often use these “links” as hermeneutical tools. In Chapter Four of this study, the suffering of the characters in the Biblical story and the pain of the contemporary readers living in a fragmented reality, are utilized to discuss

flourishing/peace in a context of trauma (see Chapter 2.4.2.).

Step 3: Formulating Questions (Analysing and linking text and context/Act): For Ujamaa, as for many others who create group exercises, it is of utmost importance to ensure the optimal participation of all individuals involved. Much can be said about this: from the engaging nature of contextual theology, to how important the role of the facilitator is. At this stage, however, it is important to state the importance of the technique of using questions. In order to not teach or preach, and involve all participants in thinking and speaking, CBS is built on asking questions (Ujamaa 2015: 11). The type and order of questions have been tested repeatedly, and this method is as reliable as can be. It is important to respect the history and status of this method when constructing any similar type of Bible study. Therefore, the CBS will be used as such when creating the Bible study on 1 Samuel 25, and explained in detail, question by question. For now, it suffices to explain that two types of questions prevail: contextual and textual.

a) Contextual questions are used to begin and to end the CBS, and because these questions draw on the resources of the community, they are also called “community consciousness questions”. The CBS draws upon the lived experience and the

embodied theologies of the participants, and on what participants have experienced in and brought from the church.

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b) Special attention needs to be given to textual questions, which steers the group to constantly engage with the text. Ujamaa also calls this group of questions the “critical consciousness questions”, because they draw on the systematic and structured

resources of Biblical scholarship. Not all scholarly questions or ideas are used in this section. No information is added simply because it is interesting or enriching. The questions should engage the Biblical text so that the potential that it has, to address the context of the group, is excavated.

Ujamaa names the well-known three categories of dimensions of a biblical text (Ujamaa 2015: 11), and as underlined by reader-response theories, the second is highlighted (Selden, Widdowson & Brooker 2017: 35). a) The world behind the text – socio-historical context that produced the text; b) The world on the text – which means what comes to the fore as a text is read as a literary composition; c) The world in front of the text, which focuses on the possible worlds the text projects beyond itself towards the actual reader.

Each of the above can be used in the CBS process, although the world behind the text should be handled with circumspection. If questions on this dimension only adds to information and not formation, they should be avoided. The use of all three as possibilities are explained in the following methodology (Ujamaa 2015: 12): Begin in front of the text, asking participants what they think the text is about, and to answer, they have to draw on their own

understanding. Then the focus moves to on the text itself, allowing the detail of the text to have its own voice among the voices of the participants. Literary questions are most handy in a process like this, because of quite a few reasons: they are not difficult, and anyone who reads carefully can answer them, therefor they draw everyone into the text. Also, the careful reading that answering literary questions require, slows down the process, which helps with other things: critical thinking, emphasising with characters, and appropriating the context of the text to the reader’s own life. (This explains the attention that literary reading receives in Chapter Four of this study.)

Next, questions on the world behind the text can be carefully used. They often flow spontaneously from questions on the text, but the facilitator may also plainly inform participants by asking questions on the social and historical background – as long as that information is crucial to their understanding or the stated desired interpretation. The CBS always ends again with questions in front of the text, to conclude what the text’s message is today, to the reader.

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In this study, the full three-step methodology is used, with more emphasis on questions on and in front of the text, than behind the text.