Missional Hermeneutics: A Self-Involving Reading of John 14:6

Abstract Missional hermeneutics seeks to read the Bible in a participatory and interested way. This article demonstrates one such way to read John 14:6. First, I draw on developments in narratology and the conversation around the theological interpretation of Scripture (TIS) movement to develop what I term a self-involving approach—an approach wherein the reader looks to constitute the narrativity of the text. I then briefly survey various ways John 14:6 has been used in mission theology, particularly in constructing the categories of exclusivism, inclusivism, and pluralism for a Christian theology of religions. I claim that these readings are beholden to a biblical basis for missions approach that originated in an older, biblical theology method. Last, I demonstrate a self-involving reading of John 13:30b–14:31, focusing on 14:6.