Abstract / DOI
On Spiritual Interpretation of Scripture. This article explores the connection between spiritual (mystical) experience and spiritual interpretation of Scripture based on the Pentecost event (Acts 2) and the Damascus experience of the Apostle Paul (Gal 1:10-24; 2 Cor 3:4-4:6). Following Henri de Lubac and Joseph Ratzinger, the article pleads for an interpretation of Scripture that raises historical-critical exegesis to the level of a genuinely theological interpretation of Scripture. Ratzinger’s habilitation thesis from 1955 contains valuable suggestions for this project: «Scripture is born out of a mystical contact of the hagiographers with God; it can therefore be correctly understood, in turn, only on a level that can ultimately be called ‹mystical›» (JRGS 2,518).