Interpretations and Arguments

There is always another way of interpreting things.

However you argue things are going in some culture, there is always some way of spinning things to argue that things are going another way. That doesn't mean that neither interpretation is right or wrong. In fact, it should make us wary of a move which simply notes the possibility of an alternative interpretation in order to dismiss an uncomfortable interpretation.

When we have competing interpretations like this, we must weigh the plausibility of each. In some cases, there are many layers to the interpretations. In the especially heated cases, where we are arguing about how someone's milieu is, we are often dealing not only with interpretations of events at, e.g., a local church or a denominational meeting, but with the narrative by which others live. This is part of why deconstruction is unsettling: it requires us to revisit how we interpret our whole lives in light of how we interpret those cultures in which we have been formed. This same dynamic also explains why so many are so resistant to deconstruction. No one wants to have their life narratives dug out from under them.

So, when I argue that various ways of talking are harmful, that there are systematic forms of thought manifested and taught through the stock phrases in the church, those around me who are still comfortable in those spaces resist. They offer alternative interpretations. These interpretations are the ones which enable them to stay comfortable, to keep from having to reinvestigate their whole faith journey, and to stay in their church.

Part of the felt plausibility of the comfortable interpretations comes from their comfortability. As I think about how our beliefs are structured, it seems that we gradual incorporate some beliefs more deeply into our lives. There are some beliefs which operate as "hinge beliefs" giving structure to the beliefs around them, being proven effective hypotheses for living, and so on. As we build on beliefs, it becomes harder and harder to change them, and I think that there is nothing inherently wrong with that. The problem comes when we build with junk. Then the whole structure starts to rot, and eventually either we have a mess of incoherent beliefs which deconstructs, or we have perverse beliefs which stands opposed to justice.

To those deconstructing, then, I want to say: the fact that you haven't convinced those around you might have nothing to do with how good your arguments are, and far more to do with how uncomfortable they are with re-interpreting their whole lives, their journey in the faith, and their place in society. These are heavy matters, and we should recognize that what we are asking for is a repentance that is difficult for those who have things easy in this world.

To those resisting deconstruction, I want to simply suggest that we should be careful that we do not resist uncomfortable interpretation. We need to be careful that we weigh these interpretations carefully and seek to be challenged by those who are weaker and more vulnerable. Even if the deconstructionist interpretations re wrong, an unwillingness to engage the interpretations deeply and register them as, at least, symptomatic of a failure of communication and of understanding on the part of the church. If we would preach the Gospel to those who deconstruct, we must first understand what they have heard and why, or we will simply double-down preaching what they are already resisting and what, I would argue, is at best not heard as the Gospel and at worst simply is a false Gospel.

I think many of the deconstructive interpretations have a lot going for them. They are not all compatible with one another, and some are more plausible than others. Many arise from particular ways the church has harmed us. Others are more academic, but nevertheless also expose ways the church has fallen into legalism of various kinds. I think the deconstructive critiques can do a lot to help us get clear on what the Gospel truly is and how it transforms lives, relationships, cultures, societies, and even institutions. If we have ears to hear the unsettling news which challenges those in authority, perhaps the deconstructing Christians can be shown that the institutions they flee yet have a share in the grace of Christ rather than the lies of the Pharisees.