Creation, Evolution, and Hermeneutics: Recent Trends in Adventism
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.19141/1809-2454.kerygma.v17.n1.pe01564Keywords:
Hermeneutics, Doctrine, Theology and Science, AdventismAbstract
Abstract: Seventh-day Adventists, since their early days, have regarded themselves as a religious movement that bases its beliefs on the Bible and advocates for historical creation in six literal days. Recently, proposals that confront this belief have emerged in the Adventist milieu causing some reflection on issues hitherto undiscussed. However, as this debate involves the ancient conflict between theology and science, it is necessary to recognize that, generally, the discussions boil down to conflicts between different interpretations and perceptions, and little attention is paid to the philosophical presuppositions of each model.
Goal: To identify the broader hermeneutical presuppositions that influence the main proposals about the debate between creation and evolution in Adventism.
Methodology: Through a bibliographic survey of the writings of Desmond Ford, Fritz Guy and Roy Graf, this work highlights, without exhausting the theme, the main proponents of three different models, called respectively in this research progressive, modern (Guy) and historical (Graf).
Results: The doctrinal differences within Adventism are conditioned by deep philosophical (ontological) foundations, and a hermeneutic (and not merely doctrinal) analysis of the debate between creation and evolution reveals the different paradigms that act as keys of interpretation for Ford, Guy and Graf, and the latter model seems to fit more with all the information provided by the scriptures and with the Adventist philosophical system.
Conclusion: Indeed, different philosophical bases and assumptions shape the worldview in such a way that it is possible to perceive different interpretations of the biblical text even within a single religious movement. It is also perceived the need, in future research on Adventist beliefs and different proposals, to always recognize the need to go beyond the doctrinal and exegetical debate, seeking to perceive the different paradigms of each interpreter and their implications in the theological formulation.
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