Hey everyone!
I was just wondering, after seeing many different responses to other questions, that do many people who comment on here read the Bible? (or, other holy books for that matter?) I just seem to be noticing a lot of misquoted verses as well as ones taken completely out of context.
I was once told that there are 3 important things you need to remember before reading the Bible. Context, context, context. Of course many verses will sound ridiculous when taken away from their original context!! The Bible NEEDS to be read IN context - when people don't do this all sorts of dodgy stuff happens (cults etc).
I guess it's more of a plea than a question, but PLEASE, maybe consult a few Bible commentaries if you find verses which seem to sound out of place....chances are they ARE out of place
Adding a question - do you think anyone can read the Bible in an unbiased way? (Atheist or Christian?).
Thanks for your responses so far!
@idoubtit - Yes I do actually. I have a couple Bible studies a week with Uni friends in which we openly read and discuss a passage. Of course people get slightly different things out of the Bible (just as different people would get different things out of a movie!) yet rarely is it conflicting! By discussing it in depth with a group, you get a more complete picture as each member of the group often has a slightly different perspective - and that is why I think reading the Bible by yourself can be dangerous (mainly just if you've ONLY ever read it by yourself) because you only view it from your own perspective, and not a more complete view.
@The Great Gazoo - Sorry, I'm not sure what you are referring to....elaborate?
@ Colin Crapper - I totally agree, the Bible shouldn't be nit-picked to make a point - it should be read in it's entirety. A couple issues though, The New Testament wasn't written 2 centuries after events occurred, in fact, pretty much all of it was written within a century of Jesus life (which is quite amazing as in those days oral tradition was the preferred method for recording history and most things wouldn't be written down at all!). Also, I'm interested in your surety about the OT things being stories....how can possibly know that?
Thanks again everyone, I'm enjoying your responses!
I was just wondering, after seeing many different responses to other questions, that do many people who comment on here read the Bible? (or, other holy books for that matter?) I just seem to be noticing a lot of misquoted verses as well as ones taken completely out of context.
I was once told that there are 3 important things you need to remember before reading the Bible. Context, context, context. Of course many verses will sound ridiculous when taken away from their original context!! The Bible NEEDS to be read IN context - when people don't do this all sorts of dodgy stuff happens (cults etc).
I guess it's more of a plea than a question, but PLEASE, maybe consult a few Bible commentaries if you find verses which seem to sound out of place....chances are they ARE out of place
Adding a question - do you think anyone can read the Bible in an unbiased way? (Atheist or Christian?).
Thanks for your responses so far!
@idoubtit - Yes I do actually. I have a couple Bible studies a week with Uni friends in which we openly read and discuss a passage. Of course people get slightly different things out of the Bible (just as different people would get different things out of a movie!) yet rarely is it conflicting! By discussing it in depth with a group, you get a more complete picture as each member of the group often has a slightly different perspective - and that is why I think reading the Bible by yourself can be dangerous (mainly just if you've ONLY ever read it by yourself) because you only view it from your own perspective, and not a more complete view.
@The Great Gazoo - Sorry, I'm not sure what you are referring to....elaborate?
@ Colin Crapper - I totally agree, the Bible shouldn't be nit-picked to make a point - it should be read in it's entirety. A couple issues though, The New Testament wasn't written 2 centuries after events occurred, in fact, pretty much all of it was written within a century of Jesus life (which is quite amazing as in those days oral tradition was the preferred method for recording history and most things wouldn't be written down at all!). Also, I'm interested in your surety about the OT things being stories....how can possibly know that?
Thanks again everyone, I'm enjoying your responses!