Introduction: The Interpretive Power of the Frame
In the study of art, psychology, and cognitive science, "framing" refers to the way a specific context influences the perception of an object or idea. Physically, a frame separates a picture from the rest of the world, directing the eye and telling the viewer, "Look here; this matters." But the frame is more than just the gilded wood bordering a canvas; it is the lighting, the room, the building, and the cultural moment in which the art sits. A Renaissance Madonna placed in a 15th-century cathedral invites worship; the same painting placed in a 21st-century secular museum invites critique or historical appreciation. The content of the image— the brushstrokes, the colors, the subject— has not changed, but the viewer’s relationship to it has been fundamentally altered by the frame.
This dynamic is even more potent when applied to literature, and specifically to the Bible. We never come to the text naked. We come clothed in our assumptions, our cultural baggage, and our subconscious desires. We place a metaphorical frame around Scripture that determines what we see and what we miss. If we frame the Bible as a rulebook for a club, we will find rules. If we frame it as a love letter from the Creator, we will find grace. The tragedy of much of religious history is that we have often chosen a frame that distorts the image of God, turning the Prince of Peace into a mascot for our wars, and the Bread of Life into a stone of judgment. To understand the Bible, and to understand our own spiritual lives, we must interrogate the frames we use to look at the Bible through. Two of the most powerful frames we can choose between are the Privilege-Performance Frame, which serves the selfish power, and the Spiritual-Ethical Frame, which serves God's Kingdom.
