Sources of wisdom and authority Flashcards
What are three different ways of interpreting the Bible?
Conservatism, Neo-orthodoxy and liberalism
What are two denominations who have a conservative interpretation of scripture?
Evangelical Protestants and Catholics
What is the Evangelical Protestant view of the Bible?
- They believed that scripture is ‘God-breathed’, so in essence, God wrote scripture
- Some interpret this to mean that God literally dictated the books of the Bible
- Therefore, the text is inerrant
- This means that the text is literally true, eg if the Bible says that God created the world in 6 days, then it is literally the case that God created the world in 6, 24hr periods
- If there is any conflict between religion and science, religion holds the authority to dictate what science actually is
- God inspired the authors to produce the precise words that he wanted, but at the same time the human authors were allowed to express their own personalities when writing, eg when directing different Gospels towards different audiences
What is the Catholic interpretation of the Bible?
- For them, scripture remains eternally dynamic and alive because Tradition finds new interpretations of scripture to address modern situations and needs
- Scripture is the speech of God put down in writing under the breath of the Holy Spirit
- Tradition (ie the Pope and magisterium) transmits the active word of God given by Jesus and the Holy spirt
- The whole body of the Catholic faith is inerrant because there is an instinct of faith that allows the faithful to recognise the authentic Christian doctrine and to reject what is false
- In writing the books of the Bible, God chose the human authors and inspired them, but allowed them to use full faculty to write what they wanted and no more
- However, over the course of time, mistakes have arisen so the Scriptures need to be interpreted in order to understanding their original meaning and to apply them to modern issues
Who is the primary scholar for neo-orthodoxy?
Karl Barth
What is the neo-orthodoxy interpretation of the Bible?
- Reject conservative belief in biblical inerrancy
- Due to plethora of evidence of historical and scientific inaccuracies in scripture
- The Bible is not the word of God, but it contains the Word of God
- This means that God does not reveal himself in the words of the Bible, but he reveals himself in Jesus
- For Barth, scripture is a vehicle through which God may be experienced
What are two denominations who have a liberal view of the Bible?
Social Gospel Movement and Process Theology
What does the Social Gospel Movement believe about the Bible?
- For them, social actions inspired by the Bible and Jesus is more important than worrying about which doctrines are true
- More important to put the gospels into practice, rather than debate unsolvable questions about inspiration and authority
What does Process Theology believe about the Bible?
- The Bible is an entirely human document
- It is inspired only in the sense that it contains passages that people might find uplifting
What are the two titles given to Jesus in the Bible?
Son of God and Son of Man
Where are two places in the Bible that suggest Jesus is the Son of God?
In the Nicene Creed, he is referred to as the ‘Son of God’
During Jesus’ baptism, Mark recalled that a voice from heaven said “thou art my beloved son”
What do Christians take the title ‘Son of God’ to mean?
- This title is sometimes used in the Old Testament as a special title for a human being. Not claiming that the person has a divine nature, but that they have God’s authority, as his representative on earth. Eg, this title is also given to David
- For Mark, Jesus seems to have a father-son relationship with God, in that he has an intimate relationship and he has the same qualities and powers
- Some take Son of God to refer to Jesus’ role as the messiah and as the descendent of David
What does the title of Son of Man mean?
- Jesus is recorded as having used this title to refer to himself
- In most places it serves to emphasise his humanity
- But, this title is also a way for Jesus to avoid making explicit claims of divinity that could be regarded as blasphemous by the authorities
- The ambiguous nature of this title may have therefore been very useful, as to outsiders he would be doing nothing more than claiming to be a normal human, but to those who knew him well, it would hint at his divine mission as a representative of God
What is the Messianic secret?
those around him knew that he was the messiah, but Jesus urged them to conceal this understanding
What do adoptionists believe about Jesus’ authority?
- In the early church, some taught that Jesus was born human, but was later adopted by God at his baptism
- They believe Jesus’ authority was something he acquired from God when he was baptised, not something he had a right to from birth
