“Be very firm, then, to keep and do all that is written in the book of the law…” Joshua 23:6 The Bible

Opening and the central Question

One of the crucial questions every Christian must decide for themselves is what they believe about the Bible.  Each must decide where and how the Bible fits into and informs their faith.  What level of authority are we to ascribe to it, and how important is it to our understanding of God and our relationship to Him?  While the answers to these questions may be self-evident to some, to others these are far from settled and a better understanding of the Bible is crucial to their ability to define and understand their own faith.

The subject of the Bible is one that offers almost infinite opportunities for discussion.  Its history, why some books were included, and some weren’t, and the interpretation of the revelations provided are but a few.  All are pertinent to a student’s understanding of the Bible, and to their own perceptions of it and its importance and relevance to their own faith.   Personally, I see it as a living breathing example of a genuine Miracle from God.  But that and some of these other themes can be explored by this site at later times.  For our current discussion, I’d like to focus on one key question that all students of the Bible must answer for themselves.  That is, “How do you view the Bible?”

To view the Bible as central to anyone’s Christian belief is correct.  To view it as necessary to define the origins of Christianity is correct.  To believe that all Christians agree as to its accuracy, source of doctrine, or its role in current Christian theology would be a mistake.  It is extremely dangerous for any of us to assume that our perception and appreciation of the Bible is shared by anyone else.  The Bible is foundational to and an integral part of any Christian belief system, but those belief systems span a wide range of ideologies and theologies, and can vary greatly from one denomination to another, from one church to another within the same denomination, and from one person to another within the same congregation.

To start our conversation about the question presented, I have attempted to present below some prevalent Views (as I understand them) about the Bible.  Again, I remind the reader that these are my own thoughts and ideas.

The Three Main Views

There seem to me to be three main Views or understandings of the Bible in vogue today.  There are many more in existence, and there are a huge number of shadings of each that I’ve described.  However, in the interest of economy of time and the reader’s attention, I’ve elected to try to keep the comments as direct and succinct as possible.

We’ll call the three main Views of the Bible, the “Fundamentalist,” the “Modern,” and the “Modified.” (My apologies in advance for any offence that may be given by my selection of names for these positions.)

The Fundamentalist View

The basic precepts of this View are: (1) The Bible is Literally the Word of God; meaning that it was transcribed by the writers exactly as God spoke the words to them. (2) The Bible is Immutable or Complete; meaning that nothing more can or will be added to the Bible, nor is anything to be taken away.  The books that make up the Bible as it is composed were determined by God.  It says all that needs to be said about Him, and no further revelation is necessary or intended. (3)  The Bible is Infallible; meaning that its every word is true and correct.  Every event and/or fact presented occurred exactly as stated.

Precepts (2) and (3) derive from precept (1).  If the Bible was literally dictated, word for word, to the writers, then because God is Perfect, so are His words, and so, therefore is the Bible.  The Bible MUST be Immutable because God doesn’t change, and neither would therefore His revelation(s) to man change.  Likewise, the Bible MUST be Infallible because God is Perfect, thereby making everything He says Perfect, and every Perfect word cannot be other than TRUE.

This (or some close variation of it) is the view presented by many of the more ‘fundamentalist’ Protestant denominations or unaffiliated congregations.  We will compare it to the other two after all three have been presented.

The Modern View

The basic precepts of this View are: (1) The Bible is not the literal Word of God, but rather the various writers’ interpretation of the revelations they may have had from Him; meaning that the words of the Bible do not have to be taken literally.  (2) The Bible is not Immutable; meaning that while the books of the Bible are to be respected and read, the selection of Books for inclusion was the result of a contentious and messy process conducted by well-intentioned men. Additional writings or revelations could be just as valid as those included in the Canon.  And, the Bible’s pertinence to the lives of Christians is relative to the time and culture wherein they live.  (3) Since the content of the Bible was not literally dictated to the writers by God, it is not Infallible; meaning that it could be possible for certain facts, stories, or admonitions to have been misunderstood or misinterpreted by the writers.  As such the facts, stories, or admonitions may or may not be true and may not even be applicable to Christians today.

A number of today’s non-denominational congregations, and some of the more ‘liberal’ denominational churches promote this view, or some variation of it.  Again, we’ll compare this View to the other two after we’ve reviewed the third.

The Modified View

The basic precepts of this View are: (1) The Bible is not the literal Word of God, but all the writings were inspired by Him; meaning that they may not be a literal transcription of His word, but they have inspired Authority and Authenticity.  Also, thousands of years of study, reflection and subsequent revelation have added to the validity and understanding of its message.  As such it is seen as presenting an accurate rendering of God, His Plan for man, and the true story of Jesus Christ.  (2)  The Bible is not Immutable; meaning that it is not absolutely “fixed” or “static.” It can be seen as a dynamic assemblage of inspired writings which could be added to by subsequent inspiration or revelation.  However, as it is currently composed it is completely sufficient for man’s understanding of God’s message and intent.  Further inspiration and revelation continue, but if the historical Bible were to be the only resource one had to know and understand God, His Plan for His creation, and the revelation of Jesus Christ, it would be enough. (3) The Bible is not Infallible; meaning that some facts and events have to be interpreted and understood for the time in which they were written. The Bible contradicts itself in many instances indicating that its writings may not be meant to be taken as absolute fact.  But it contains many Truths that are Infallible and Immutable while the stories that surround or illuminate them may not be.

This is the understanding presented by the majority of “mainline” denominations today. Each denomination has its own slant on the basic precepts, but they are in general agreement with those I’ve laid out here.

Now we can discuss the commonalities and differences among the three basic views.

Discussion & Comparison

First, let’s look at the Fundamentalist View.

The Fundamentalist View that the Bible is literally the Word of God, places a number of requirements on its adherents.  If the wording is literally true, then the believer must accept all its words, regardless of their scientific accuracy or their applicability to today’s society and culture.  There is no “middle ground.”  If the Bible as it is written is to be taken literally, the believer must be prepared to stone to death anyone proven to have been doing any work on the Sabbath [Genesis 31:15].  No woman is allowed to speak while in church or to instruct her husband regarding religion [Corinthians 14:33-35].  Divorce, for any reason other than the woman’s infidelity, is theologically illegal [Matthew 19:8].  A virgin who has been found to have been raped, but who did not cry out while the rape was occurring is to be stoned to death [Deuteronomy 22:23-24].  Slavery should be accepted and tolerated [Titus 2:8].  No one must ever eat pork (sorry, no more pork barbecue) [Leviticus 11:7].

These are but a few of the prohibitions found in the Bible which contradict everyday life in the 21^st Century.  There are dozens more, both in the Old and the New Testaments.  One could argue that the words may remain the same, but that they should be regarded from the viewpoint of our current time.  However, if one says that, they’re saying that the Bible is Contextual and not Immutable. If we believe that God said it, and that God does not change, then the meaning of His words would have to be the same for us today as they were nearly 3,000 years ago when they first began to be written down.  You cannot have it “both ways.” In this view, it either “is” or it “isn’t.”  It’s either Immutable or it isn’t.

One must also believe that the Bible is Infallible.  So, one must believe that the world was flooded by a rain that lasted forty days and forty nights [Genesis 7:4], and that some number (we’re not sure how many because of conflicting orders given to Noah in Genesis 6 and 7) of each and every creature then existent was somehow herded onto the Ark that was exactly 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet in height [Genesis 615].  Also, we are led to believe that there are certain instances where incest and illicit sex outside of marriage are O.K. [Genesis 19:30-36, and Ruth 3:1-14].  One must also believe that exactly one hundred and forty-four thousand Jews will be saved at the End of Days [Revelation 7:4].  That at the End of Days, all the stars (literally trillions) will fall from the sky onto the Earth [Revelation 6:12] without the Earth being destroyed.  And that the New Jerusalem (the place where all the Saved will live forever) which will descend from Heaven onto the Earth will be exactly one thousand, five hundred miles square [Revelation 21:16-17].

I think that’s about enough for now.  We’ll pick up the discussion in next week’s Post and look at the Modern and Modified Views.

Until then,

God Bless You All

Richard

August 31, 2018

P.S.  I neglected to make it clear that when I refer to the “Bible” I’m referring to the book universally used by Christian congregations which contains their understanding of the history of God, the revelation of His Plan for His creation, and the revelation of Jesus Christ.  There are various forms of the Bible.  Not all denominations use the same version.  Regardless, when I speak of the “Bible” in this piece I’m speaking about ALL versions and variations; the Catholic Bible.

Thanks,

RC