1. "I believe the Bible is God's word, but what does that mean to me." and I would add, what does that mean to how I read God's word.
and
2. "The Bible is not a book containing one theology, but a library composed of many perspectives"
This has caused to me draw the conclusion... the Bible is like a rubik's cube.
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| http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optimal_solutions_for_Rubik's_Cube |
The Bible is like a rubik's cube because there are many different ways to look at and approach this ONE cube. Sometimes people have a favorite color or side, a favorite way to look at scripture. It takes a combination of all the sides put together to "solve" the cube. While I don't think the Bible is something we can just "solve" or every claim to fully understand, I think this concept is a good place to start.
We have to take many things into consideration when reading a passage, a FEW examples:
- Author
- Author's purpose/audience/motive
- Language of Origin
- Other Historical Texts
- Relation to other Scripture
- Personal experiences/Personal History
- and so many more...
I am so excited to dive deeper into these Holy Scriptures and learn more about HOW to read this familiar passages.
Let's get started!
Lori - I love your concept of the Rubik's Cube! There are SO many ways to approach scripture and how to get the one cube moved to the right row, just as there are many genres, historical and social contexts, how we read through the lens of the OT and so many more. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI love this analogy! One other major point to take into consideration is the literary genre. The text of the Old Testament includes a variety of these which can have a deep impact on how we interpret the text. Stanley states these genres include historical narrative, proverb, legal code, prophetic oracle, legend, prayer, letter, funeral dirge and love poetry (p. 35-37).
ReplyDeleteStanley, Christopher, D. The Hebrew Bible: A Comparative Approach (Minneapolis, MN. Fortress Press 2010) Pages 35-37