In Dr. Williams's words, "it is a question, agonisingly difficult for many, as to what kinds of behaviour a Church that seeks to be loyal to the Bible can bless, and what kinds of behaviour it must warn against." Whilst one can appreciate the Archbishop's challenge, what many church leaders fail to realize is that the Church has not equipped adult Christians to debate issues such as these. Many adult Christians regard Biblical interpretation as the sole domain of their priest or minister.

Instead, a critically thinking adult Christian should be able to appreciate that, because Holy Scripture was not written in a void, it can only be accurately interpreted in light of its original context, audience and language.

Context acts as a catalyst for the message and is what informs the messenger. When St. Paul wrote to his adopted son Timothy and gave him guidance about how women should behave in church, when and to whom they should speak and what they should wear (1 Timothy 3:9-15) did he do so because he was in an inspired trance-like state and was being motivated to give directives that would forever bind the roles of women in the church?

Or, was St. Paul responding to a situation in which some rowdy Ephesian women, used to pagan temple settings where order and dignity was not a priority, were causing disturbances at worship services?

Did the fact that St. Paul was a part of a patriarchal society-where women are subjugated to men-have any bearing on his views towards women?

In other words, the issue St. Paul was responding to and the views he likely held, are all part of his context.

Scriptural texts would be purposeless without an audience-without someone or some group to whom the writer is trying to convey a message in a particular way. St. Peter clearly identifies the audience of his first epistle in the opening verse (1 Peter 1:1): Christians living in the Roman Empire who were undergoing persecution at the hands of the Emperor Nero (the one who played the fiddle while Rome burned, then blamed it on the Christians).

The persecution of Christians began in A.D. 64 and, in fact, resulted in the martyrdom of St. Peter himself (which, ironically, is quite helpful in dating his letters). St. Peter's audience faced imminent death in the jaws of lions, at the end of a spear or tied to a stake. Even so, he is writing his letter to tell these Christians not to be surprised at the suffering they are experiencing, but to rejoice, to praise God and to commit themselves to Him. (4:12, 16, 19). 1 Peter certainly has a lot to say to us today about holy, righteous living and our conduct in the face of adversity, but what did these words mean to the original audience? Stop and consider that for a moment.

When we consider language, we are attempting to discern whether there are any nuances inherent in the original language that are possibly lost or hidden in a modern translation. An interesting example is found in the account of Moses' first meeting with God.

Genesis 3:14 is usually taken to be only a clever word play on the part of God. An examination of the Hebrew language illustrates that here God is actually revealing the Divine Name-the 'Tetragramaton'-YHWH.

An older form of the Hebrew word for "I am" or 'to be' was, in the third person, the word Yahweh, which was likely close to how one pronounced the Tetragrammaton (which was never pronounced and, in most cases, the word LORD was substituted for it to avoid accidental pronunciation) .

Moses lived in a polytheistic environment, where there were many deities (Horus, the Egyptian sun-god, was one he would have been especially familiar with). By asking God to reveal God's name, Moses is seeking to define this new deity.

God's response is to reveal a name that declares that God is beyond definition. Talk about hidden nuances!

The easiest way to employ these tools is to use a good commentary, like The Oxford Bible Commentary or The Intepreter's One-Volume Commentary on the Bible.

It is also helpful to join a Bible study group that uses a guided module, like the Serendipity Bible. I am not suggesting that all adult Christians have to become Biblical scholars.

Adult Christians are like homeowners. Every homeowner, sooner or later, has to learn how to solve basic problems (or go broke). They become a 'do-it-yourselfer' who knows when to pull out the screwdriver, wrench, and so on.

Far too often, however, adult Christians just stare at their Bibles (their toolboxes), afraid of what's inside. I challenge you to move to the next level: you can't fix a leak and keep your wrench shiny at the same time!

---Charles D. Bush is a playwright/short-story writer and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Bible & Christian Education from Anderson University. He is a member of St. George's Anglican (Episcopal) Church.

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