How Might Positionality Be Used in Biblical Studies? Philippians 1:27–2:4 as an Example

How Might Positionality Be Used in Biblical Studies? Philippians 1:27–2:4 as an Example

Using Philippians 1:27–2:4 as an example, this article will explore the role of positionality in biblical studies. Although the process of reflecting on one’s positionality is more prevalent in empirical-based research, one’s positionality is also relevant in text-based research, such as in biblical...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Religions (Basel, Switzerland ) Vol. 15; no. 6; p. 638
Main Author: Tan, Melissa C. M.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Basel MDPI AG 01-06-2024
Subjects:
Anthropology
Biblical studies
collectivism
Cultural anthropology
Culture
emic
etic
Gender
honor
Individualism
New Testament
positionality
shame
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Summary:Using Philippians 1:27–2:4 as an example, this article will explore the role of positionality in biblical studies. Although the process of reflecting on one’s positionality is more prevalent in empirical-based research, one’s positionality is also relevant in text-based research, such as in biblical studies. This article will demonstrate this by observing the following: first, how some analyses of the collectivistic cultural context of Philippians have been inappropriately influenced by certain implicit individualistic perspectives; and second, how an interpretive lens derived from my positionality as a scholar from an explicitly collectivistic culture is able to highlight a mostly ignored intrinsic correlation between social relations and virtue.
ISSN:2077-1444
2077-1444
DOI:10.3390/rel15060638