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‘bible’ meaning
collection of books
no. of books in the Bible
66
OT = 39
NT = 27
no. of Bible authors
40
Bible was written over the course of…
1,500 years
Old Testament
main author is thought to be Moses, who scribed the law that God gave to the Jews including the 10 commandments
the content of the OT was agreed 290 BC
contains historical accounts, poetry, songs and wise sayings
New Testament
written between 50AD and 90 AD
thought to have been written by fewer authors
contains the 4 gospels that detail Jesus’ life from his disciples
by 400 AD the Church finalised the NT
Bible translated into….
2,500 languages
Themes in the Bible
God’s revelation
Sin and its consequences
God rewarding faith
God electing prophets
sacrifice and atonement
Jesus Christ/the Son
exile
Heaven and Earth
Literary Styles in the Bible
Epistle/Letter - personal correspondences eg, Romans, 1&2 Corinthians
Genealogical - lists that family lineage
Historical Narrative
Law/Statutory
Parable
Conservative/Evangelical views on the Bible
the text is inerrant
‘all scripture is inspired by God’ - God breathed the words
Genesis is a literal account of creation
all scripture is profitable for teaching
‘sacred scripture’ is not a human word, it is the word of God written by humans under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit
Catholic views on the Bible
authority of scripture is equal to the authority of the Church (or the Living Tradition)
Tradition and Scripture spring from the same divine source - scripture=speech of God, tradition=active word of God
The Bible was without error but may now contain error due to copying/translation - therefore it is up to the Magisterium to interpret
bishops given teaching authority through apostolic succession
Neo-Orthodoxy
rejects the Conservative belief in biblical inerrancy
argues there are many historical and scientific errors in scripture and some parts are simply not true
Karl Barth argues the Bible cannot be the ‘word of God’ but rather CONTAINS the word of God - scripture is simply a vehicle through which God can be experienced
Liberal views on the Bible
broad term for Christians who reject the idea that the Bible is literally true
T. Wright ‘the Bible is like a play where the playwright has written everything but the final scene, which we hove have the task of completing’
Social Gospel - the Bible is important but social action and relief (the ethical guide found in scripture) is more important
Process Theology view on the Bible
the Bible is an entirely human document
rejects that the Bible contains factual information - as God is not all powerful as scripture suggests
Catholic view of the Church/Tradition
Apostolic Tradition - stems from Jesus’ Apostles whom he commanded to preach the gospel to all men ‘maintain the traditions even as I have delivered them to you’
Apostolic Tradition is carried on through Apostolic Succession - Jesus’ apostles appointed bishops were given teaching authority, forming a continuous line
the Church and the Church alone has the authority to interpret scripture correctly
Protestant view on the Church
Sola Scriptura - through scripture alone, Martin Luther - the Protestant view hinges on this
Luther was concerned that humans should not pass judgement on God’s word - ‘let us not change the Word but let we ourselves be changed by the Word’
all believers can interpret the Bible - rejects the absolute authority of the Church
teaching supporting Jesus’ authority
‘all authority in Heaven and Earth has been given to me’ Matthew 28:18
evidence to support Jesus’ authority
Trinity, miracles, prophecies, incarnation, Nicene Creed (‘begotten not made’), ‘the Word became flesh’, conquered death in resurrection
Matthew 5:36-38 interpretations (Eye for an eye, Love your enemies)
Take figuratively, as a parable/moral story
Jesus was stating an ideal
Not meant to focus on action but intention/heart
OR
taken literally, we should all be pacifists
Biblical criticism of time/content/culture of OT ideals
Son of God authority
Trinitarian doctrine - Jesus is a person of God, he has the complete authority of God and the same divine powers
As such the moral commands of Jesus are imperative as they come from the same divine source of Gods commands
Son of Man authority
the understanding that Jesus’ authority is only human is non-trinitarian and as such is not a widely held view
eg, adoptionists believe Jesus was adopted by God at his baptism, making him lesser i divinity - ‘my father is greater than i’