Doing / Teaching Theology & Di Jamiekan Baibl

Lynette Mullings' Teaching Black Biblical Studies in the UK: Special Issues for Consideration and Suggested Hermeneutical Approaches makes for an interesting read. And this is why: In her paper, Mullings seeks to outline how "Black vernacular" and "Black Hermeneutics" – not so clearly defined, unfortunately - could contribute to the expression of "Black Theology." She writes from the perspective of Blacks in the UK so she uses the BSWI's translation of the Scriptures into JamC as a case study, seeing it is the most influention Creole spoken by persons of African descent in Britain. In her own words, she sets out "to address...the need for the development of a form of biblical scholarship that applies a reading strategy that is distinct to a particular aspect of Black culture...to make a case for the use of Black vernacular and vernacular hermeneutics for critical dialogue and interpretation of the Scriptures through an assessment of the Bible Society of the West Indies' work, 'A Who Run Tings?'...and subsequently the Bible Society's effort to build upon this seminal work in a bid to translate the entire Bible into Jamaican."

Mullings does not stop there, however; she suggests a rather radical course of action (something she acknowledges several times): provide theological education from a Black perspective, utilising "Black vernacular" and Black Hermeneutics" – after all, all theologies are culturally conditioned (and one of the problems is that the theological education persons get in most seminaries are, for the most part, largely formulated and handed down to us by non-blacks).

What are your thoughts?