Reading Scripture with the Church Fathers - Christopher A. Hall

Hall’s book was definitely an interesting read.  It was a little different than what I expected.  I was hoping for a look at patristic hermeneutics, which was in the text.  But, Hall organized his book with three main sections: an introduction, mini-biographies of key figures in both Eastern and Western patristic history, and concluding thoughts concerning the patristic history of interpretation.

The mini-biographies are particularly beneficial to those unfamiliar with the great doctors of the Church.  Not only does Hall give readers a brief look at the lives of some early heroes of the faith, but he also helps elucidate the various backgrounds of interpretation for the Fathers.  No one interprets Scripture in a vacuum.  Instead, our various cultural, educational, and family backgrounds form presuppositions that create grids by which we read the Bible.  As Hall provides a tour of the lives of the Fathers, readers are aided in understanding not only how, but also why the Fathers read texts in certain ways.

In fact, this was the best part of the book.  Hall’s critique of modernity in the introductory chapters is what made the book worth reading.  In his conclusion he discusses how modern persons, especially Protestants, can make sense of patristic exegesis.  Hall’s arguments for reclaiming tradition and focusing on the larger narrative of Scripture found a home in my heart.  Furthermore, Hall’s articulation of the Father’s christological interpretation of the Old Testament further resonated with my own position - that Old Testament study should be informed by the revelation of Jesus Christ (i.e. - the New Testament) in some of the same ways that the New Testament is informed by an Old Testament foundation.

All in all, for those looking to start studying the Church Fathers and patristic hermeneutics, Hall’s book is great place to begin.  He avoids technical language, or defines his terms well when he does introduce new vocabulary.  While other volumes would be better for a detailed look at exegetical methods and specific hermeneutics in the Fathers (especially Sanctified Vision), this volume does a magnificent job of demonstrating how one’s worldview and philosophical paradigms contribute to reading and interpreting the Bible.