“Thy Law Is within My Heart” (Ps 40:7). Sacred Tradition in the Hebrew Psalter and in African Indigenous Texts
Every society possesses systems for accessing, preserving, and transmitting its traditions. These are meant to ensure that privileged knowledge entrusted to reliable custodians is passed on unchanged between generations for the preservation of society. In Africa, scholars have advocated new hermeneu...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-09-01
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| Series: | Religions |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/14/10/1227 |
| _version_ | 1797572391883243520 |
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| author | Michael Kodzo Mensah |
| author_facet | Michael Kodzo Mensah |
| author_sort | Michael Kodzo Mensah |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Every society possesses systems for accessing, preserving, and transmitting its traditions. These are meant to ensure that privileged knowledge entrusted to reliable custodians is passed on unchanged between generations for the preservation of society. In Africa, scholars have advocated new hermeneutical approaches to the study of the Bible, arguing that the adoption of traditional methods of exegesis served as another instrument in the colonialists’ toolkit to undermine the reception and preservation of Africa’s sacred traditions. Using African Biblical Hermeneutics, this paper studies the processes for preserving Sacred Tradition in Psalm 40. Similar processes are found in African Indigenous Sacred Texts such as the <i>mate masie</i> of the Adinkra textual system. I argue, therefore, that a complementary reading of the texts of the two traditions could serve to de-link from the monocular vision of traditional exegesis and offer a much more fruitful approach to interpreting these texts and making them relevant to the contemporary African reader. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T20:56:34Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-58350fc9cb3c42f6a8866f580f9b2404 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T20:56:34Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj.art-58350fc9cb3c42f6a8866f580f9b24042023-11-19T17:56:23ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442023-09-011410122710.3390/rel14101227“Thy Law Is within My Heart” (Ps 40:7). Sacred Tradition in the Hebrew Psalter and in African Indigenous TextsMichael Kodzo Mensah0Department for the Study of Religions, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra P.O. Box LG66, GhanaEvery society possesses systems for accessing, preserving, and transmitting its traditions. These are meant to ensure that privileged knowledge entrusted to reliable custodians is passed on unchanged between generations for the preservation of society. In Africa, scholars have advocated new hermeneutical approaches to the study of the Bible, arguing that the adoption of traditional methods of exegesis served as another instrument in the colonialists’ toolkit to undermine the reception and preservation of Africa’s sacred traditions. Using African Biblical Hermeneutics, this paper studies the processes for preserving Sacred Tradition in Psalm 40. Similar processes are found in African Indigenous Sacred Texts such as the <i>mate masie</i> of the Adinkra textual system. I argue, therefore, that a complementary reading of the texts of the two traditions could serve to de-link from the monocular vision of traditional exegesis and offer a much more fruitful approach to interpreting these texts and making them relevant to the contemporary African reader.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/14/10/1227sacred textsAfrican Biblical HermeneuticsdecolonialityPsalm 40Adinkra |
| spellingShingle | Michael Kodzo Mensah “Thy Law Is within My Heart” (Ps 40:7). Sacred Tradition in the Hebrew Psalter and in African Indigenous Texts Religions sacred texts African Biblical Hermeneutics decoloniality Psalm 40 Adinkra |
| title | “Thy Law Is within My Heart” (Ps 40:7). Sacred Tradition in the Hebrew Psalter and in African Indigenous Texts |
| title_full | “Thy Law Is within My Heart” (Ps 40:7). Sacred Tradition in the Hebrew Psalter and in African Indigenous Texts |
| title_fullStr | “Thy Law Is within My Heart” (Ps 40:7). Sacred Tradition in the Hebrew Psalter and in African Indigenous Texts |
| title_full_unstemmed | “Thy Law Is within My Heart” (Ps 40:7). Sacred Tradition in the Hebrew Psalter and in African Indigenous Texts |
| title_short | “Thy Law Is within My Heart” (Ps 40:7). Sacred Tradition in the Hebrew Psalter and in African Indigenous Texts |
| title_sort | thy law is within my heart ps 40 7 sacred tradition in the hebrew psalter and in african indigenous texts |
| topic | sacred texts African Biblical Hermeneutics decoloniality Psalm 40 Adinkra |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/14/10/1227 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT michaelkodzomensah thylawiswithinmyheartps407sacredtraditioninthehebrewpsalterandinafricanindigenoustexts |