pinkvoy

Growing up, one of the books I've unfortunately read was the Bible. As a Christian I was also asked to read Allan Bloom's The Closing of the American Mind (or via: amazon.co.uk), where Allan Bloom thinks the Bible is a necessary part of a Great Books liberal education for the University student.

Over the years I've seen Rabbi Wolpe on Bible Mysteries on AETV, to Elaine Pagels and Karen Armstrong, etc., all praising the Bible as essential reading for the educated liberally educated citizen. Of course there are the Jews with their insane praise of the inscrutable Torah, and fundamentalists promoting the Bible.


I've wondered if there is a The Bible-industrial complex: the bible as a must-read for educated. Seriously, leviticus and Numbers as must-read? Chronicles? The bible is boring and instrutable and largely irrelevant. I find Allan Bloom and Elaine Pagels and Karen Armstrong effusive praise of this book to be highly suspect. I think they are promoting an educational complex that supports their own employment.

I don't feel my life is better for having read the Bible. I think these so-called intellectuals are promoting the bible for self-serving reasons. Caveat emptor.

Toto

In our culture, you have to know something about the Bible to understand what other people are talking or writing about. That's about as far as I would go.

dockeen

I find a certain irony in the fact that for centuries, the Church did NOT want the bible
in the hands of the great unwashed masses (of course at that time, amy could not
have read it if they had it), convinced that reading it would confuse them and
interfere with their faith.

dockeen

In college, I had to take a number of various lit courses. I did find that having
a really good professor who could give you historical context, hints on difficult
parts, without telling you how to read made it very possible to have a great time
getting a lot out of "classic" literature.

Getting someone like that for the bible might be a little harder...

braces_for_impact

I say it's a must read. Western culture and literature relies heavily on the bible.

More importantly, if everyone were to read the bible - honestly read it, not this bible study stuff where they gloss over the violence, inconsistencies, contradictions and other wonderful "family values", then perhaps people would stop thinking that ancient books and religion have a monopoly on morality. Then perhaps some real progress could be made in these areas. I think it would be an excellent part of actual religious education that everyone should receive as part of their curriculum. People should be taught (without bias or prejudice) about the major world religions. Their beliefs, rituals and practices. This would reduce extremism I think.

dockeen

It also helps very much to meet people of other religions. (At least, it did
for me)

Splarnst

I'm sure the Cliff Notes version is sufficient.

dockeen

Cliff Notes made with your cross pen.... :devil3:

neo5apien

The Bible has been and continues to be so influential in Western society that it should be read. That being said, I don't think I've ever actually sat down and read it Genesis to Revelations, so I'm admittedly hypocritical here.

DCHindley

Before you dismiss familiarity with the bible as something worth doing, keep in mind that absolutely every single thing you think you know, every "original idea" and every fact you have ever learned have been influenced by the bible. I am not joking. Until you read it as literature, you will not recognize these influences. But like a lot of things, once something is brought to your attention, you start to see it everywhere.

Why should you be aware of its influence? Because it is so pervasive in our western culture that if you cannot formulate a strategy to deal with it, you are doomed to be consumed by frustration. You have to learn how to disarm the influence, especially when it is irrelevant to the subject at hand. You also have to learn how to use its influence wherever you can.

DCH