By Dr. Frank Leeds III

If you are looking at this little article, then I assume you have a Bible or are thinking about reading one.  If so, good for you.  My congratulations.  You will find it a life-giving experience.  I wish to share a few things about it whether you are a new reader or a more experienced one.  These are things I wish someone had shared with me when I first started reading.

The Bible is not one book,

And should not be treated as such. Likewise, it is not something that just fell from heaven, leather bound and with gold leaves. As you open it, you will be opening a world of numerous ancient and beloved manuscripts. Some go back thousands of years and reveal how people thought and what values they cherished. You will learn how they made their living, how they raised their children, and what they tried to teach them. 

You will also discover that their lives were as fractured as yours.  Do you have any troubles with any of your brothers or sisters?  You will see how ‘sibling rivalry’ extended from generation to generation. You will also discover that it is all laid bare. It is not about a ‘master race’ but it is about a ‘chosen people’. It is not about an embellished Jewish life.  It is about life…with all of its glories and flaws.

These manuscripts are written in Ancient Hebrew, and Greek with a little Aramaic thrown in. 

All languages have words that change meaning over time, so translators are forced to learn both the language and appropriate time frame of the culture that embraced these writings.  I find it wonderful that so many scholars dedicated their lives to this.

It is not just about translating a manuscript, finding them is also a challenge. There are thousands of them and fragments of them found even today in trash cans or being used for insulation in homes or as wrapping paper. When people find writings with foreign words, the writings lose their value and just become paper.  Of course, the Catholic Church has plenty of manuscripts as do many collectors. I have been to the office of Scott Carroll who evaluates manuscripts and I have been privileged to see and handle some of his collection.

The Bible that you are reading is a translation. 

That is important to remember.  Your translation may differ somewhat from your neighbors.  It may have purposefully been translated as a paraphrase to make it easier to read or it may be a King James translation which makes it read like Shakespeare.  Thus, you will find differences.

I am often asked about the different wording at the end of the Lord’s Prayer between the Protestant translations and the Roman Catholic.  The scholarly approach to translating manuscript is that the oldest known manuscript wins. In my life time, I have seen that switch several times.  “For thou are the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.” was the oldest translation when I was young, then an older manuscript was found, and that phrase was not in it. Thus, changes were made to fit the oldest manuscript. I am not sure what the latest manuscript / translation is today.

Do all Bibles have the same books in them?

The answer is no; they do not.  Looked at on a worldwide perspective, there is not, and there never has been a collection of Hebrew and Christian manuscripts that are found acceptable to all Christians. The Christian church never had ‘one acceptable’ Bible.  Because of Martin Luther, several books were pushed aside.  The Catholic Church kept them, called them the ‘Apocrypha’ and it may be bundled separately in your Bible.  Other books have been kept, because they are valuable, but put on the bottom shelf, so to speak.

Luther was also interested in throwing out the book of Hebrews and the book of James.  The reason? They did not match his theological thought at the time. It is the same as our present situation where liberals watch one TV station and Conservatives watch another.  If you don’t like what you read or hear, change stations. I get it, but I find it sad.  We all, it seems, prefer to read what confirms what we already believe to be true. Luther could have loved the book by James and disregarded the writings of Paul and that would have made an entirely different Bible.

Are there any contradictions in the Bible?

Yes, there are plenty.  I have often been told there are not any.  It is like when a news event is happening and three different TV stations show up and give their report, there are always differences…but all the same story.  Only people who want it to be true will say the gospels all tell the same story.  There are even scholars who try to ‘harmonize’ the gospels.  For me, when one tries to harmonize ‘Black’ with ‘White’ one gets ‘Gray’ which does justice to neither.

When the Church finally had the four Gospels, which they later named Mathew, Mark, Luke, and John [these were originally all anonymous with no names attached] they immediately recognized that there were inconsistencies.  The church chose to ignore them.  Why?  The Christian church was growing in leaps and bounds and converts could not be expected to be drawn to Christ with no clear story.

Please permit me to digress at this point.  Ancient Jewish religion was never defined by what these people believed. They were defined by what they did. In the same manner also, people were becoming followers of Jesus because of what his followers where doing.  They were feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, carrying for the sick and dying, collecting babies that were placed alone in the woods to die because families could not afford to take care of them.

All this had such a powerful force on Rome, the Emperor Julian said the Christians were more helpful to the citizens of Rome than his own government was.  Considering all this, conflicting stories did not matter that much as they relate to the gospels.  It was more about what these Christians had heard about Jesus and what they were doing rather than on details of what they were putting in their holy book.

The Church never used the term, but I would describe the Bible process as rooted in a contributory linage. Christian theology began to be formed from stories that were told and from Hebrew Scriptures.  If what was written did not correspond to the theology that was being shared, then attempts were made to make it fit…thus, ‘contributory linage’.  Consequently, church leaders had little problem with that.

Starting with the Hebrew Scriptures, which we Christians call the Old Testament, the foundation was the Torah [five books of Moses]. Later prophets then had the task of doing two things.

1 determining what was meant by what was written.

2 determining what that meant for the age in which the prophet was writing.

Other writings, such as Job, Song of Solomon, Psalms, and Proverbs, were also added to the Hebrew Bible, because they contained wisdom for the people.

With the New Testament, it began with the writings of Paul. It is generally accepted that his first letter was to the church in Thessalonica and there is concern in many circles over the fact that his calendar about Christ’s return was so far off. OK, so he was wrong. I am Ok with that, people make mistakes.

When we get to the gospels, you will find vastly different accounts of Jesus’ birth.  Who showed up, shepherds or wise men?  Did baby Jesus go to Egypt as per Mathew?  Or did he go straight back to Jerusalem for his circumcision and Mary for her cleansing and then immediately returned to Nazareth as per Luke?  As mentioned, all these type things are what I call contributory linage where scribes added or deleted what they thought best for their own reasons.  The church accepted the manuscripts for what they were.

The Church then began to accent the ‘liturgy’ in their services and read sections from the scriptures in ways that covered various selections of the Bible in a year’s time.  Thus, they attempted to avoid accenting just one book or just one theme, to keep things balanced.  This also deemphasized the inconsistencies between Gospels.

What came first, the Church or the Bible? 

The Hebrew Scriptures came first or what Christians refer to as the Old Testament.  The early church came next.  Following that, the New Testament developed over time.  Paul’s letters started with I Thessalonians and other letters followed.  It needs to be noted that different letters arrived at different Christian gatherings at different times and thus what was accented first depended on which letter was received first.  That is why early churches had different accents. The Gospels came later. 

Beginning around Cir. 1500, Luther, Calvin, and Melanchthon saw such a difference between what the church was doing and what the Bible was saying, they switched their allegiance from the church to the Bible.  And made a few Bible alterations as indicated above.

Allow me to digression again: It is my opinion that the Catholic Church went way too far when they decided, for theological reasons, to venerate Mary to such a high status even though I would acknowledge that honor is due.  Likewise, I think the same for how much Protestants venerate the Bible.  The Bible is the sea in which we fish swim.  It is not for fact checking to prove a point.  

A Note about Paul’s Letters

This brings me to the Apostle Paul.  Because of guilt-ridden Luther’s accent on “Justification by Faith”, people think that is the major theme of Paul.  For me, it is not.  Paul’s letters point out two themes that are the ‘guard rails for the church. 

The first is Holiness.  Now that really sounds like a churchy word.  What it means is the concern on how one is to live one’s life.  This includes one’s values, one’s priorities, one’s love for their neighbor, one’s ways to love God and to serve in God’s world. 

The second is Unity. The church is the body of Christ and needs to stay together.  I am afraid that we frail humans can rationalize a thousand ways why we should separate ourselves from people who do not think exactly the way we do.

The Influence of Politics

I often remind people that the Jews were unable to pick their ‘High Priest of the Jewish Temple’.  The final decision rested with the Roman Government.  Their hand was in the glove of Jewish society. 

Shortly after churches began, there was a worldwide policy agreement that all decisions the churches made were to be agreed to by all.  There were churches in Rome, but there were also churches in Syria, in Greece, in Russia, in Jerusalem, etc.  It was Rome that separated from everyone else.  That meant there was no longer a ‘central place of authority’.  No longer was there a commitment to “we must all stay on the same page”. 

There were also times in history where the Catholic Church was unable to pick their own Pope.  Politics is everywhere and the Catholic Church was not exempt.  That is important to keep in mind as one reads the Gospels and the Church Reformers (e.g. Luther, Calvin, and Melanchthon).  Nothing in life comes with antiseptic approval.  

In Conclusion

I hope you have friends and a community in which people are free and open about their opinions and beliefs.  Our conclusions all change over time don’t they.  Hopefully, one did not think the same when leaving primary school as they did when leaving high school.  What about what one believes at age 20 compared to 40, or 60, or 80.

I suppose being part of a community is being part of ‘like mined people’.  It is sharing that leads to growth.  It is in defending our beliefs that we close our minds.  May your reading of the Bible open your mind, and free you to explore the wonders of our world.

So, dear reader, I hope I have not discouraged you from wanting to read the Bible.  Maybe I have swept the floor enough to make you curious as to how this Bible has revolutionized the western world…and the lives of those who read it.  It may revolutionize you.