Postcanonical doctrinal development as hermeneutical phenomenon

The purpose of this dissertation is to address the so-called problem of postcanonical doctrinal development with insights from contemporary philosophical hermeneutics by analyzing how Anthony C. Thiselton and Kevin J. Vanhoozer interact with the issue in their respective works in theological prolegomena. As this dissertation will evidence, the historical development of doctrine is a hermeneutical phenomenon best explained as the church's ongoing attempt to interpret and explain Scripture and the Christian tradition in new settings and in response to new challenges. The unique contribution of a hermeneutical model of development is the way it takes into consideration questions about textual and interpretive authority, the ability of language to depict extratextual realities, and continuity in the tradition throughout reinterpretation.;Thiselton and Vanhoozer are choice interlocutors for this dissertation because of their numerous works in contemporary hermeneutical theory and theological prolegomena. These works provide the primary data for this research. Supplementary sources include other treatments of the development problem and contemporary works in hermeneutics, literary theory, and the philosophy of language.;Chapter 1 is an introduction to the complex theological issues surrounding postcanonical doctrinal development. Christian theologians who affirm the "deposited" nature of Christian revelation must find a means to explain the tension between a completed revelatory process and the ongoing practice of doctrinal development. Chapter 2 briefly surveys the hermeneutical aspects of pre-critical and post-critical approaches to development throughout the history of the concept.;The analyses of the models of development provided by Thiselton and Vanhoozer in chapters 3 and 4 constitute the crux of this project. Questions about authority, reality depiction, and identity will shape the analyses. Critical evaluations follow these analyses. Whereas Thiselton's model of development is primarily descriptive, Vanhoozer's model is primarily normative. The final chapter of this dissertation presents general conclusions about how contemporary hermeneutical theory aids in answering key questions related to doctrinal development and offers tentative, normative suggestions for a hermeneutical model of postcanonical doctrinal development.