Abstract
Tendencies in film hermeneutics. Hollywood is synonymous with the tradition of images that are used to create emotion, to strengthen attachment, and to encourage imitation. In a certain sense these values are also encouraged by the church as institution. Scholars who study the connection between cinematography and theology acknowledge that the cinema has become the ‘principal new church’ for post-secularised believers. Films are regarded among the ‘big books’ of ‘postmodern culture’. In this article it is argued that film hermeneutics should be regarded as an epistemological movement which has departed from a typographical culture, including logocentrism, phonocentrism, and text-focused cognition. The movement is towards a visual culture, including audiovisual and virtual realities, and is contextualised in a cyber-community. Tendencies in films with biblical and religious dimensions and themes, including the way in which the Christ figure is portrayed, are discussed. In this article the value of film hermeneutics – that is, the ‘textuality of the screen’ – as public theology, is also identified.
Highlights
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Scholars who study the connection between cinematography and theology acknowledge that the cinema has become the ‘principal new church’ for post-secularised believers
In this article it is argued that film hermeneutics should be regarded as an epistemological movement which has departed from a typographical culture, including logocentrism, phonocentrism, and text-focused cognition
Summary
Affiliation: 1Department of New Testament Studies, Faculty of Theology, University of Pretoria, South Africa. Die insig dat hermeneutiek met taal en kultuur as sodanig te make het, is een van die redes waarom populêre films nie geïgnoreer kan word nie. Dit is egter verstaanbaar dat daar ’n huiwering vanuit die geïnstitusionaliseerde kerke is om populêre films vir onder andere religieuse studies te gebruik. In hierdie verband kan ’n pornografiese film oor Jesus, soos wat Hy deur die oë van ’n jong homoseksueel beskou is, uitgelig word (kyk Campbell & Pitts 1981). Daar is reeds gewys op die feit dat die bekende filmmaker Paul Verhoeven ([2008] 2010) se boek Jezus van Nazaret en sy voorgenome film nie rekonstruksies van historiese Jesus-navorsers en Bybelwetenskaplikes nagevolg het nie, maar eerder sy eie rekonstruksie geskep het. Miskien is dit juis films wat ’n interessante kontakpunt tussen jonk en oud, Christen en nie-Christen kan bied
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