I ran across a review of a boot titled The Rise and Fall of the Bible that might be worth checking out. The author of the book points out that lots of Americans buy the Bible without actually bothering to read it. In so doing, they confer the status of holy icon to the Bible, something to be revered rather than actually read. Of course, if many of those Americans were to actually read the Bible that they revere so much, the actual details of what the Bible is really like would contradict the image that they have of it as an infallible instruction book. In the midst of its sublime beauty and moral passion one would also encounter its flaws, its contradictions, and its moral failings. For a lot of people, it is better to remain blissfully ignorant.
I am not familiar with the author of the book, Timothy Beale, but he is a Christian who
would rather see his co-religionists embrace the fact that the Bible is full of contradictions and inconsistencies and come to regard it not as 'the book of answers, but as a library of questions,' many of which can never be conclusively resolved.He also makes the point that the Bible is "poetry, not pool rules."
This is, of course, a point I have tried to make many times myself in this blog. I might have to take a look at this book.
2 comments:
Well spotted Mystical.
I have just order a copy.
Reading it now
Very interesting.
Points out that inerrant bible theory was a reaction to Darwin and higher criticism. Prior to that it was accepted as a book describing a journey....a book that required thought and consideration.
Only downside is Beal makes many claims without any references or supporting documentation.
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