Presuppositions and preunderstandings are similar in essence but different in flexibility. Presuppositions are deeply held beliefs about reality. They form a person’s worldview, and they do not easily change. When it comes to Scripture, presuppositions affect how you interpret the Bible; they form the lens by which you interpret.

For the evangelical Christian, presuppositions about the Bible affirm its divine inspiration, authority and truthfulness, historical reliability, supernatural events, and canonicity within Christianity. However, an atheist may interpret the Bible as a human document not inspired by God that contains errors and fictional myths. Ultimately, the presuppositions of the interpreter affect the outcome of the interpretation.

Preunderstandings are similar but more fluid. In Introduction to Biblical Interpretation by Klein, Bloomberg, and Hubbard, the authors provide a definition for preunderstanding from D. S. Ferguson:

“Preunderstanding may be defined as a body of assumptions and attitudes which a person brings to the perception and interpretation of reality or any aspect to it.”

The book provides four categories of preunderstanding:

• 1. Informational (information one possesses prior to approaching a subject)
• 2. Attitudinal (disposition one brings to a subject, also known as prejudice or bias)
• 3. Ideological (includes both worldview and individual perspective)
• 4. Methodological (approach taken to explaining something)

Each of these categories affect the interpretation of Scripture, but these preunderstandings are more prone to change when confronted with new information.

To share a personal example, one preunderstanding I held for most of my life was communion as a merely symbolic act of remembrance, known as the Memorialist view. This was the mainstream idea taught at my Christian school and practiced at my church growing up. I didn’t even realize there were other views until interacting with a Catholic friend in college. I began to research transubstantiation and the other views of communion like consubstantiation and spiritual presence.

However, I still held to my preunderstanding. I debated John 6 with a Catholic friend in college, asserting that Jesus’ words about eating his flesh and drinking his blood were “spiritual,” not physical. Similar with Matthew 26:26–28, I held that Jesus meant represents when He said, “This is my body” and “This is my blood” during the Last Supper. It seemed ludicrous to me that it could be anything more than a symbolic gesture. That Christ was spiritually presence or, much more, bodily present, in the elements seemed grotesque and farfetched to me.

However, my preunderstanding began to change when I listened to an album by one of my favorite Christian hip-hop artists, Flame. He converted from Calvinism to the Lutheran tradition and wrote an entire album on the Lutheran view of the Real Presence called Christ for You.

I found his arguments compelling, and as I began to learn about church history and how the Real Presence was taught and believed almost universally for 1,500 years until the Reformation, and that both Martin Luther and John Calvin believed in the Real Presence (with some nuances), I began to question my preunderstanding.

Perhaps I’m wrong, and the historic teaching from the church is right on this, I reasoned.

I reread John 6 carefully, seeing how Jesus amplified his emphasis on physically eating his flesh and drinking his blood after the crowd questioned him, and I also found Paul’s teachings on communion in 1 Corinthians 10:16–17 and 11:17–32 to point to something deeper than mere symbolism. My shift in preunderstanding is similar to when Francis Chan discussed his shift toward a Real Presence view of communion.

My new preunderstanding of the Real Presence is still developing as I evaluate Scripture and historic teachings on this doctrine, but ultimately the goal of any interpreter of Scripture, as described in Intro to Biblical Interpretation, is to:

• 1. Admit you have presuppositions
• 2. Identify those presuppositions that you bring to the text
• 3. Evaluate your presuppositions
• 4. Embrace the presuppositions you believe are valid
• 5. Jettison the presuppositions you deem invalid

This is how you arrive at truth, and being open to hearing perspectives from Christians who share the most essential presuppositions but differ in their preunderstandings is essential for growing in the knowledge and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.