Is the Word Inerrant?
I realize that I am about to tread on some people's toes. As with most of what I believe it has taken me a long time to work out my view of the Bible. I was raised by people who believed the scripture was inerrant, and that the King James Version was the everlasting version that Saint Paul himself toted on his missionary journeys. I remember lots of rumbling through my church during the seventies when newer, more modern translations were published. I also remember when I first took a look at the New International Version as a teen, and began to realize what "translation" meant and what this action entailed.Around the same time, I began college and started really learning about literature.
A literature major who has a deep interest in scripture and belief is a dangerous person.
I was taught early on in my life that the Bible was God-inspired and that God told the authors what to write. What I came to understand as I grew up was that (1) the authors that my early educators taught me were the authors probably weren't and (2) that the scripture was rooted in a deep oral tradition, in other words, the stories of the Old Testament were passed on for generations by word of mouth. They were written down years or centuries after the stories were supposed to occur. Then they were translated to Latin, then German, then English, and then other languages.
Translation is not a perfect art. Words in one language don't line up with words in another. Sometimes translators have "agendas" and tell the story with "spin." Some ideas are left out, while others are emphasized.
Can something that has been through this kind of work be "inerrant?" I don't believe it can. God is inerrant, but people, being who we are, are not;therefore, what we write down, even if it is God-inspired, by default is not "inerrant." My friend, Julie, mentioned that she was taught that even though the translation is not exact, "God would make it right." I've also been told over and over again that if something in the translation doesn't make sense, then maybe it's a thought that is "not something we need right now."
Sounds like some serious avoidance of deeper thought to me.
So Does the Lack of Inerrancy Mean the Bible is Without Value?
I'm a literature major, so I will approach this question as such. I have read at least two translations of Beowulf, and three translations of Dante's Inferno. There are also the countless interpretations of Greek plays and stories, and other tales I've heard that are orally based. Despite the differences in wording, the basic stories, the basic themes are still at the core of the literature. The literature still has it's intrinsic value because the heart of the literature is still in place and still resonates, despite the wording.
The Bible is the same way. I could see a problem if the translation ignored the center of the Book, which is God, His journey with us as His children, and the journey man and woman kind has taken with Him. I haven't really ever seen a translation that does that. The words may be slightly different in each translation, in each telling of the Story, but the core song remains the same, and that is what gives it an eternal value.
An Honest Book
Idom says in his article:
I must always remember, it is not through the bible that I am found. No, that is more about the one God I understand the bible to be revealing. And in that sense, it is more about honesty than anything else. God is the author of grace, not the bible. The bible reveals that grace, but can never dispense it. And as one reads the very real, very human struggles of biblical characters that, in all honesty, have the same failures and hang ups as the rest of us, we actually begin to see ourselves. Honestly.
I love this! When I read about the people in the Bible, whether they are historical (as some are) or not (I believe some are literary constructs), what I am forced to face is my own struggles, my own humanity, my own darkness. I am also given a place to see a God who loves me and the entire family of humanity, as well as a God who never gives up on us. Even when He says, "That's it. I can't stand it anymore," He ends up coming back, or we end up going back, or He ends up trying a new way to reveal Himself to us.
I find more comfort in what I see about God in the Bible, than in thinking that the Bible is inerrant. God and His grace and love is the center of this book that has been spoke, then written, then written some more, then cut and folded, translated, printed, digitized, and distributed to people in places all over the planet. That's what we need to focus on as we read. The scripture is our guide to see God and experience God. It is not a place to get bogged down in arguing over every word, jot and tittle. Rooms versus mansions, real events versus symbolics---when we focus and argue over such petty things, even if we read scripture every single day, we can't focus on God. . We miss a chance to share and be a part of the larger more important themes.
