Reading Scripture

[D-Stan]

How do I read Scripture? My view of Scripture has changed drastically in the past couple of years, and I have just realized that I am starting to read Scripture differently. Before I go any further, I must confess that I do not look at the Bible as inerrant, but I do believe it is inspired. One thing that I notice when I look at the texts is that they are in conversation with one another. Job and Ecclesiastes are in conversation with the idea of blessings and curses in Deuteronomy, and they also interact with the wisdom of the Proverbs. 1 & 2 Chronicles is in conversation with 1 & 2 Samuel. Joel is in conversation with Isaiah and Micah(he reverses what they say about turning swords into plowshares). Jesus, of course, is in conversation with the Law and the Prophets(you have heard it said....Moses and hard hearts...). All of this is to say is that if Scripture is in dialogue with itself, then I must join that dialogue.

I must see where the writers converge on issues, and where they diverge. Then, I must ask myself do I stay within the tension of these divergences, or do I leave the safety of the middle ground and head to the right or to the left. Surely, the middle ground can always be safe, or can it? A question in addition to that is: is the middle ground always a tenable position? I don’t think it always is. Studying the history of Scripture and its context does not always give us answers. It does give us knowledge, and sometimes that knowledge just leads us to questions. One thing that we all do, whether we realize it or not, is pick and choose from the Bible what parts we think should be authoritative. One of the primary reasons why we do this, lo and behold, is because of the dialogue within Scripture.

If Scripture tells us that loving God and neighbor are the two greatest commandments, shouldn’t our picking and choosing be centered around what causes those things to blossom? The question is: what causes those things to blossom, and what causes those things not to blossom? That is something that each of us has to decide. For example, since women could pray and prophesy(out loud)in 1 Corinthians 11 and since Paul proclaims in Galatians that “There is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus,” I do not believe that women have to keep silent in church(1 Cor 14:34-35).....nor do I believe that it is a disgrace for a woman to speak in church(this is not the only reason why I came to this conclusion either, but I don’t want to list every reason why at the moment).

Another point that might be more controversial is that ancient people had different views than we do. That point in itself is not controversial, but thinking about how to apply that to our reading of the Bible can be. I think the important point is trying to figure out what things are essential to hold on to, and what things aren’t. We do not believe that the sun moves around the Earth, and I don’t think it’s important that we hold on to that view because one can find it in Scripture. 500 years or so ago that was a pretty big deal. It isn’t anymore, and it shouldn’t be! Something that I have been thinking about lately(which is way more controversial)is that, at least, nearly all ancient people believed that their gods or God was responsible for everything that happened.....good or evil. Don’t get me wrong.....just because the people were ancient, does not mean that they were wrong on this, but I do question it(and I think the Bible does at times as well). I just can’t see certain things...like babies getting raped as being the will of God. There is man’s will and there is God’s will. Yes, God’s will is greater than ours, but there is a reason why Jesus said, “Your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.” There are other wills on this Earth, and those are the wills of human beings....limited as they may be.

“God is love.” Yes, I agree. Now, let’s read our bibles in the light of God’s love, realizing that love leads to justice and other things as well. This is not to make God more palatable, at least not necessarily. It is to make sense of the tensions within Scripture. Many will not agree, and that is fine. It took me a long time to come to these kinds of views. We all need to listen carefully to the Holy Spirit and discern how we will dialogue with the Scriptures that dialogue with each other and with us. I know that I might not have been real clear in all of this, but this is the best that I can articulate the way that I read the Bible for myself....for now.

[oneflewoutofthecuckcoosnest]

Lots of good thoughts there D-stan. "Reading the Bible Again (for the First Time)" by Marcus Borg is a good book to offer suggestions on how to take the bible seriously but not literally. Have you read it?

[D-Stan]

Thanks man. I haven't read anything by Borg yet, but I really do want to get something from him soon. I have known about that book for awhile and that might be the first book of his that I'll get.