Questioning the Bible
Why are questions threatening?
Once I asked an innocent question of a pastor after a service and was told off for doing so, as I obviously had a critical attitude. (LOL)
I think asking a question shows interest and a desire to understand.
I think my God is big enough to handle reality. If faith is so fragile it cannot be discussed, how can it survive in the harsh reality of life?
I have started a bible college paper on the Old Testament. Deciding to take the class was hard for me.
To me the focus of Christianity is allowing the bible to inform our lives and to follow Jesus teachings. So reading the bible on a personal, spiritual level is comfortable for me, but I am finding there are other ways as well.
Understanding historical context, how the bible came into being or the bible as a whole has never been important to me. When these topics came up I loftily claimed that the important part was allowing the bible to impact your life.
I see now that I never wanted to discuss these things because I was afraid of getting out of my depth. But if my faith can be damaged by knowledge then what sort of faith is it?
More knowledge will allow my faith to grow, to change and to deepen. If my faith needs lies, misunderstanding and half-truths to stay alive, I do not want it.
After only a week of this course I have learnt a little, and facing my fear is working out well.
I have learnt that contrary to my general assumption, the scriptures were not originally set and fixed. They were quite fluid for some time before being made official canon.
I have learnt more about the discussion around the canonisation process, where many books/scrolls were contested and greatly debated. This debate around what is scripture and what is not appears to be why the Catholic bible has more books than the Protestant, and the Greek Orthadox has more than both.
A lot of well-read and well informed religious leaders had a lot of arguments and eventually came to some sort of agreement based on some sensible criteria.
It makes me wonder, did early Christians see the Old Testament scriptures as the inspired word of God? Also what does the phrase “inspired word of God” actually mean?
My class seems to be teaching us that we should be interested and read the extra-biblical books too, not as “inspired scripture” but as historical insight into scriptural times and thinking.
I believe the bible is true and inspired by God. I am choosing to believe that the scripture I read is the one that God wanted me to have. If God wanted different books in my bible surely he could have organised it?
I once heard a story; in a country where bibles were banned, one village got hold of a single gospel (the book of John from memory). That was their only bible. Years later it was found that EVERYONE in the village was Christian. The entirety of their faith was based on that one gospel.
When they got access to more scriptures I am sure they were pleased, but it gives me hope to know that faith can come from the reading of a single gospel.
I am sure that the people who decided what ended up in my bible did a far better job than I could have done, and if a village can have faith from one gospel, I can have confidence. In my bible I will surely find enough to have faith in the living God too.
KG
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