Natural and Unnatural Relations Between Text and Context: A Canonical Reading of Romans 1:26-27‪.‬

One common thread amid the wide variety of approaches applied to the biblical texts over the last century has been a concern for context. The choice of context determines the lens through which an interpreter views a text. This common thread also tends to separate one method from another, as each selects a particular context (historical, literary, narrative, rhetorical, canonical, or ideological) within or from which to examine Scripture. Indeed, many interpreters combine multiple methods in the readings of texts, and thus the lens becomes more like a prism as various contexts are brought into play. At its core, however, the question of biblical hermeneutics is the question of the context or contexts engaged in the reading of Scripture. With controversial passages such as Romans 1:26-27, the importance of context becomes all the more apparent as various attempts are made to understand this text and its relevance for believing communities. At the heart of the debate over this text is the struggle to determine what are the most appropriate or faithful contexts within which to view it and how those contexts are to be employed.