Starting this Monday, many in our congregation will take up the challenge of reading the Bible in a year. We have broken the reading down into daily assignments for 10 months and we have discussion groups Mondays at 9am at the Create Café (starting Sept. 16th) and Tuesdays at 7pm (starting Sept. 17th).
We will also be posting background information about the assigned reading for each week. In this first post, I wanted to make a few remarks about the Bible as a whole.
1.) The Bible is one book, and many different books at the same time. In many ways, the whole of Scripture is one unit, telling one large and grand narrative of God's interaction with creation and with a particular people (Israel and the early Church). In other ways, each book stands as its own perspective. Some are written as histories, some as poetic prophecies, some are letters to different churches, some are law. We have four gospels talking about the same Jesus Christ, but with their own focuses. Each book was written independently and in different contexts, and for the first few centuries of the Church, different communities had access to different works. But over time, certain works consistently emerged as authoritative throughout the Christian world, and around the end of the 4th century, the Church recognized and canonized these books. Our challenge will be to acknowledge and respect each book's individual and unique witness and their place in the whole of Scripture.
2.) Reading vs. Reference. Scripture has a larger story and purpose and is not just available as a reference. We cannot treat the Bible as something to be consulted when we have a particular issue, but as something to be read, appreciated, and have a formative influence on our lives. One of the best and worst things to happen to the Bible was the introduction of chapters and verses. The Bible is easier to navigate, but now we have the practice of plucking out verses independently. Each verse is in the context of a paragraph, each paragraph is in the context of their book, and each book is in the larger context of the biblical canon, which is not always in one neat, singular voice.
There is a difference between being shaped by the constant engagement and exposure to a book and merely pulling it out when we have a question or need to pull out a verse to win an argument. We live in a society that treats books as reference resources and must learn what it means to read the Bible.
3.) Be gracious to yourself and open to questions. You may fall behind and get sidetracked. You won't be the only one. Don't be embarrassed, but continue in the journey, especially as you have the opportunity to do it in community. And also know that you will have questions and confusion in this process, many of which will not be resolved, but even the questions are a sign of seeking God. Know this up front and know that it will not only be part of the journey of this particular exercise, but of the life of faith for all of us. Let us do so in prayer, openness to the Holy Spirit, in community, and in obedience to God.
We will also be posting background information about the assigned reading for each week. In this first post, I wanted to make a few remarks about the Bible as a whole.
1.) The Bible is one book, and many different books at the same time. In many ways, the whole of Scripture is one unit, telling one large and grand narrative of God's interaction with creation and with a particular people (Israel and the early Church). In other ways, each book stands as its own perspective. Some are written as histories, some as poetic prophecies, some are letters to different churches, some are law. We have four gospels talking about the same Jesus Christ, but with their own focuses. Each book was written independently and in different contexts, and for the first few centuries of the Church, different communities had access to different works. But over time, certain works consistently emerged as authoritative throughout the Christian world, and around the end of the 4th century, the Church recognized and canonized these books. Our challenge will be to acknowledge and respect each book's individual and unique witness and their place in the whole of Scripture.
2.) Reading vs. Reference. Scripture has a larger story and purpose and is not just available as a reference. We cannot treat the Bible as something to be consulted when we have a particular issue, but as something to be read, appreciated, and have a formative influence on our lives. One of the best and worst things to happen to the Bible was the introduction of chapters and verses. The Bible is easier to navigate, but now we have the practice of plucking out verses independently. Each verse is in the context of a paragraph, each paragraph is in the context of their book, and each book is in the larger context of the biblical canon, which is not always in one neat, singular voice.
There is a difference between being shaped by the constant engagement and exposure to a book and merely pulling it out when we have a question or need to pull out a verse to win an argument. We live in a society that treats books as reference resources and must learn what it means to read the Bible.
3.) Be gracious to yourself and open to questions. You may fall behind and get sidetracked. You won't be the only one. Don't be embarrassed, but continue in the journey, especially as you have the opportunity to do it in community. And also know that you will have questions and confusion in this process, many of which will not be resolved, but even the questions are a sign of seeking God. Know this up front and know that it will not only be part of the journey of this particular exercise, but of the life of faith for all of us. Let us do so in prayer, openness to the Holy Spirit, in community, and in obedience to God.
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