- 期刊
社會處境中的意義—對韋恩．亞瑟頓．米克斯（Wayne Atherton Meeks）社會科學方法論之研究
Meaning in Context: A Study of Wayne Atherton Meeks' Contribution to The New Testament Interpretation
並列摘要
This paper will introduce the major methodology of Wayne A. Meeks, and will highlight the strengthens and indicates some issues that might be problematic in this framework. Wayne A. Meeks, who is one of the noted social critics in the field of New Testament studies. This approach draws upon ideas and perspectives from social sciences for interpretation. Meeks indeed provides a new perspective for interpreting history and texts. He correctly points out that Christianity was not developed in a vacuum, and is not composed of abstract ideas or regulations. His method leads us neither to understand history merely as records of events nor to separate doctrines from the real environments within which they develop, but push us to reconsider the role of contexts. Nevertheless, there are several concerns one can have about Meeks's methodology. Objectivity will be the major concern since it is not easy to distinguish whether the information represents the whole picture of the life of this tribe or merely observers selectively gathered notes. Also, it may be problematic to apply contemporary social theories or models to the ancient community. Although social phenomena could last for a long time, it is difficult to differentiate the continuity and discontinuity within communities, especially in intercultural studies. Overall, Meeks's works put much emphasis upon what a text meant in contexts to force us to apply more tools to fill in the gaps between the outcomes and doctrines.