Re: Does the Bible teach a flat earth?

From: George Murphy (gmurphy@raex.com)
Date: Fri Dec 27 2002 - 20:10:07 EST

  • Next message: Michael Roberts: "Re: Does the Bible teach a flat earth?"

    John Burgeson wrote:
    >
    > Jim Wrote: "If Christianity is to survive, it is going to have to accept the
    > Bible as a human document. I don't know how successful Christians will be
    > with that approach, but its the only hope that they have."
    >
    > In this, Jim, you appear to be in substantial agreement with the process
    > theologians Peacocke, Borg, Spong and Griffin. The latest books from the
    > first and last of these four Christians were reviewed by me both in
    > PERSPECTIVES and in an expanded article on Metanexus; copies are on my web
    > site.
    >
    > I've read much of both Spong and Borg (not reviewed them however). Although
    > I personally don't agree with much of their theology, I see theirs as a
    > valid Christian worldview. The best book by Borg I have is the one he
    > co-wrote with a conservative (orthodox) Christian as a back and forth debate
    > over these issues.

            The trouble with the statement that "the Bible is a human
    document" is that it's
    usually assumed tacitly - both by "liberals" and "conservatives" -
    that that would mean
    that it _wasn't_ "a divine document." The church would have been
    much better off if it
    had realized from the beginning the close parallel between our understanding of
    scripture and christology. Jesus is fully human - and as a fully
    human being he is the
    Word of God. The Bible is a collection of human documents, subject
    to all the vagaries
    of human authorship. And as a human document it is the witness to
    the Word of God.
            It is no accident that some liberals who one-sidedly
    emphasize the human
    character of scripture also have trouble with the credal statement
    that Christ is "true
    God of true God." And it is also no accident that some conservatives
    who one-sidedly
    emphasize that the Bible is the Word of God think of Christ as God
    just temporarily
    dressed up as a human.

                                                    Shalom,
                                                    George

    George L. Murphy
    gmurphy@raex.com
    http://web.raex.com/~gmurphy/

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