Journal of Theological Interpretation 4.1 (2010) 75-90 Relevance Theory and Theological Interpretation: Thoughts on Metarepresentation Gene L. Green Wheaton College Abstract — Theological interpretation endeavors to account for the w interpretation of the biblical text interacts with Christian theology. T approach to biblical interpretation views theology not as an obstacle understanding but rather as a "clarifying agent" (Reno1). It embraces th logical traditions of the church and faith commitments in concert wi exegetical practices. This article explores theological interpretation fro the perspective of relevance theory, with special attention to the not of metarepresentation, the "ability to represent not just states of the ternal physical world but also other representations, and representati of still farther representations, etc., up to several orders of complexi (Carston2). In any communication, metarepresentation allows us to refl on mental states and attribute beliefs. Indeed, holding beliefs becomes sential to comprehension within communication. This article argues th theological interpretation is an approach to biblical interpretation t is consonant with the general cognitive architecture of the human min Key Words — theological interpretation, relevance theory, metarepresentation context, communication Relevance Theory and the Human and Divine Dimensions of Scripture Relevance theory, developed by Dan Sperber and Deirdre Wilson and explored by numerous others, is a general theory of cognition and commu nication that provides a model for understanding how texts and contexts, ι. R. R. Reno, "Series Preface," in Acts (by Jaroslav Pelikan; Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible; Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2005), 14. 2. Robyn Carston, Thoughts and Utterances (Oxford·. Blackwell, 2002), 43. Downloaded from http://scholarlypublishingcollective.org/psup/theological-interpretation/article-pdf/4/1/75/1313846/jtheointe_4_1_75.pdf by guest on 07 February 2022