Embodied Exegesis

Hans Boersma's *Embodied Exegesis* emerges from his sustained critique of modern biblical scholarship's separation of interpretation from metaphysical foundations. Writing as a systematic theologian deeply engaged with patristic thought, Boersma addresses what he sees as the impoverishment of contemporary hermeneutics through its abandonment of a sacramental worldview that once grounded Christian reading of Scripture.

Boersma argues that faithful biblical interpretation requires recovering a participatory metaphysics rooted in the doctrine of the Incarnation. He contends that the Word made flesh reveals not only God's character but also the fundamental structure of reality itself, in which earthly things participate in heavenly realities. This sacramental ontology, Boersma maintains, provides the necessary foundation for reading Scripture as more than mere historical artifact or literary text. He traces this approach through the church fathers, particularly focusing on how figures like Origen and Augustine understood biblical interpretation as participation in divine truth rather than merely academic exercise. The work explicitly challenges the methodological naturalism of historical-critical scholarship while proposing that theological interpretation must be grounded in robust metaphysical commitments about the nature of reality, language, and divine revelation.

The book has contributed to ongoing debates about theological interpretation of Scripture and the relationship between faith and critical scholarship. Boersma's synthesis of patristic theology and contemporary hermeneutical concerns has influenced discussions within evangelical and Anglican circles about recovering pre-modern interpretive practices without abandoning intellectual rigor. This work should be read by theologians, biblical scholars, and pastors seeking to understand how doctrinal commitments about incarnation and creation might reshape interpretive practice. It is not suitable for those seeking practical exegetical methods or introductory biblical studies, as it assumes familiarity with both systematic theology and hermeneutical theory.