Sacred Texts as Sites of Interpretation

Sor Juana was a virtuoso biblical interpreter who demonstrated that Scripture admitted many readings. She challenged male theologians' monopoly on textual authority, showing that a woman's reasoned engagement with sacred texts could yield legitimate theological insight. This hermeneutical approach empowers religious doubters: you need not accept how your tradition has always interpreted its foundational texts. Rereading the Bible, Quran, Torah, or other scriptures through your own lens—informed by contemporary ethics, lived experience, and reason—remains intellectually and spiritually valid. Interpretation is not corruption of truth but the inevitable human engagement with text. Those leaving or questioning religion can honor sacred literature while refusing dogmatic readings. The text opens rather than closes inquiry.