I have had sort of a meltdown of late. I have been asking questions that Christians arent supposed to ask. And reading interesting blogs by people who are deconverting or have done so. Here is where I am at:
I still believe in Christ. I would have to say that I believe more because in my heart I know what I believe to be true than because anyone or any book tells me to. I believe he was really here, died, rose again and took away my sins. I believe the gospels (the first four books of the NT) are fairly accurate and should be a basis for belief
I am confused by the Old testament and some of Pauls teachings and wonder if they are tainted. I can no longer call myself a biblical innerantist. Is that even a word?
I think now that the Bible is 66 books not one and each one should be looked at individually. Why trust the catholics who put them all together. Now I am not trying to shake anyones faith, but I am saying I question some things. That doesnt shake my faith at all.
Please dont Bible bomb me.
I think the inner witness of God is probably more real to me than religion. He has been there for me I believe. I dont think I would be alive today if somethign hadnt guided me. I believe that somethign to be Christ.
I know I am speaking heresy but arent there any Christians out there that ever ask questions about the Bible.
Some may say I am falling away. I think not.
Some use the Bible to justify war, genocide, torture, putting down women, slavery, etc. I am tired of running circles around why it didnt really mean that and ask why do we believe it. Not God, but the weirdness.
Anybody have a clue what I am talking about because I am not sure I do.
6 comments:
No, I think you're on the path you're on for a reason. The word "bible" means "collection of books" (that's what a bible, any bible, not just the OT and NT is), so it's totally on to think of them as separate books (or letters), since that is what they are.
I also think that the Bible is not inerrant. Some people like to say the autographs (originals) are inerrant, but the subsequent copies have mistakes. But we don't have the autographs, so arguing that is a moot point. We can only deal with what we have, not what we wish we had. Something I've noticed is the people who insist the Bible is inerrant are really saying that their interpretation is inerrant. I just can't insist on that anymore, it's not intellectually honest. The more I studied the Bible and the original languages, the more I saw that there are several legitimate interpretations. Not to say they are all correct, but that hermeneutics and word choice can lead two honest, God-seeking,
spirit-filled Christians to two completely different interpretations of the same passage. (One of the main reasons we have so many denominations today, no doubt). Plus, just the act of translating the Bible from one language to another involves some degree of interpretation, and who's to say which one is correct?
No advice for you, other than to say, I don't put much stock in what the fundamentalists say anymore. For them, certainty is a virtue, whereas I think certainty is the opposite of faith. When one is absolutely certain that they are correct, they are in danger of doing/saying horrible things in the name of "their faith" and never questioning if maybe, possibly, they were wrong.
Ninjanun,
Thanks for your post. You make me feel a lot better and less condemned for my questioning
Ha - well *I* won't condemn you for your questions! :)
And perhaps, just perhaps, you will learn something important about any co-religionists in your life who do condemn, judge, belittle, gloss over, or ignore your questions.
Those who truly know God (to the extent I still think God exists!) will respond to you with love, patience, and kindness.
Hi Spiritbear,
I hear the guilt behind your admission that you are questioning the Bible. As a fellow Christian, I want to encourage you. Please don't let guilt or fear silence your questions. It is no sin to voice our doubts and wonderings. I believe it's much worse to squish them down in fear and ignore them. Ask your questions to God. He's God - he can handle a few questions. He is able to answer in ways that we can understand, but the path can get rough before it gets better.
Go ahead - jump. He'll catch you if you let him.
i ask them all the time......especially struggling with some stuff right now....and more and more having to rest in the not knowing....
i very much appreciate your tone
the truth, as i see it, is that honest human beings encounter questions pertaining to life which have no definitive answer, the solution is not to pick one in particular over all the others, but to accept the mystery yet unfolding.
the simple fact is, once humanity stops building up walls, physical and intellectual/spiritual walls, and starts uniting in common reverence for life, god's manifestation in our everyday lives will truly be miraculous. iow, lets stop arguing and demanding to resolve unresolveable issues and get down to the nitty gritty business of improving the lot of every last bloody son of a gun among us. that was the message of Christ. love each other. take care of each other. we don't need to KNOW absolutely whether the bible is one thing or the other. we can do our best to follow Jesus' lead/example and trust our conscience as to whether we are doing our best. wwjd? is not a cliche, its an important mantra for keeping christianity relevant in the 21st century.
keep your head up spiritbear, you are on the right track.
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