The Four Codes of Preaching: Rhetorical Strategies

by John S. McClure

The Four Codes of Preaching , John McClure's first book-length treatment of homiletical theory, is a sophisticated and, at times, controversial contribution to the field of homiletics.

216 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

Reviews

[Knut Kåre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Etter å ha lest innledningen, tenkte jeg at dette var noe pretensiøst vås. Men siden alle homiletikere forholder seg til McClure, syntes jeg det var best å fortsette. Og det angrer jeg ikke på. For etter hvert som man får tak i hva McClure holder på med, blir det veldig tydelig at dette er en svært nyttig bok.

Svært kort og noe upresist oppsummert identifiserer han fire "koder" som gjør seg gjeldende i prekensituasjonen:
a) Hvordan vi forholder oss til Bibelen og bruker den overfor våre tilhørere. (Scriptural Code)
b) Måten vi framfører poengene/sannhetene på. Noen antyder, noen drøfter, noen slår fast, noen forsvarer. (Semantic Code)
c) Hvilket verdensbilde/gud-og-verden-bilde vi direkte eller indirekte utfolder. Noen fokuserer på mangelen som må overvinnes, noen på konfrontasjonen med det onde, noen på at det onde er overvunnet, noen på at det onde er overvunnet og derfor kan vi få så uendelig mye mer enn vi noensinne våget å drømme om (Theosymbolic Code)
d) Hvordan vi forholder oss til kulturen. Noen er helt åpne, noen forholder seg dialektisk, noen dualistisk og noen avviser kulturen fullstendig og vil etablere en helt egen subkultur atskilt fra den omliggende.

Dersom man aktivt skal bruke de fire kodene og analysere egen forkynnelse ut fra dem, kreves det en hel mengde arbeid for virkelig å komme på innsiden av dem og helt ut forstå tankegangen. Jeg gjør ikke det etter en rask gjennomlesning av boken. Men selv på det nivået setter den i gang mange tanker og gir god hjelp til å sortere.

Alt i alt var dette svært nyttig, selv om det var krevende lesning, og jeg synes kanskje at McClure gjør seg litt i overkant lekker til tider.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finished rereading this old friend from my homiletics library in preparation for a paper I'm writing on John Caputo. His chapter on (what he calls) the "Theosymbolic Code," in particular, helps me to visualize the structural elements of many works' world views. Based on the work of Propp, Gremais, and and Barthes, McClure's book is too technical to have much chance to be widely appreciated. But ever since my communication theory days, I've found it (and others like it) helpful for getting at the motor or heart of many communication pieces, from sermons to movies to bumper stickers. I recommend it!

[Nick Di Mauro · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the most precocious book on preaching I have ever read. The author gets in his own way with his use of stylized jargon. He sacrifices clarity for the sake of sounding learned. If you are looking for a book with some practical insights that will help you to improve as a preacher, this is not the book for you. You are better off with books by Thomas Long, Fred Craddock, Cleophus LaRue, Eugene Lowry etc.

If you are a seminary or Ph.D professor, this is a good book for analyzing sermons. In my estimation, this is symptomatic if the “ivory tower” condition of white American preaching that LaRue and Lamin Sanneh push back against in their treatments of American Christianity.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book provides a phenomenal and precise systematization of kerygmatic theory. Many books recommend various stylistic models or current trends for preaching, but The Four Codes of Preaching approaches the genre from a more "scientific" angle. If I were to make a comparison: most books vs. this book is like grammar vs. linguistics.

Dr. McClure breaks down homiletical rhetoric into its interchangeable moving parts, providing what he calls a "rhetorical schema," which outlines four codes--scriptural, semantic, theosymbolic and cultural. These individual codes are analyzed from a content perspective, intertextual perspective and stylistic perspective and then practically applied, for example, in how to analyze and determine one's own preaching methods, create a personal homiletical structure that resonates with the preacher's truth and fulfills the genre's "contract" with the listeners, and "negotiate" a hearing with an audience.

I can't do the concepts justice here, but this book is definitely a valuable addition to my library on homiletics, and I recommend it.

[Seth Pierce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent, and very technical rhetorical analysis of the sermon process and how we encode the gospel in the preaching event. Even after completing the book, I will use this as a reference work for my own analysis and development.

The author does suffer from a little bit of over-detailing which can bleed the power out off his points and make it a little inaccessible. Some of the material would fit better in an appendix, that way the more technical aspects of various codes could be consulted once the "big ideas" had been communicated.

Good stuff.