demythologizing

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church | 2000 | 523 words | Copyright

demythologizing. A term used from 1941 by R. Bultmann for his proposal to interpret the NT critically in order to express the theological meaning of its mythological language. He claimed that the biblical three-storied universe, belief in angels, etc., was incredible in the modern world, and that the Gospel message could be freed from these stumbling blocks. Though he insisted that he was interpreting rather than eliminating myth, his slogan came to be attached to various reductionist interpretations of Christianity.

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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "demythologizing." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 30 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "demythologizing." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 30, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-demythologizing.html

E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "demythologizing." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved May 30, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-demythologizing.html

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