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Meet Your Bible - stuff we're talking about

This January we're having a four-week class called "Meet Your Bible" in Room 6 at 9:30am. These are the anonymous questions people asked our first week and some of my rambling answers. Feel free to join us for the other 3 weeks of class if you'd like. - Caela

How is it possible to have so many versions? Is that the beginning of all the different beliefs?

We will talk about this quite a bit in week 3 and also the handouts should help some. It is amazing how many versions there are, huh? One of the difficulties is that there are several different versions of the original manuscripts (the stuff in Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic). Another issue is that some words aren't used much anymore in those original languages, so there's some guesswork involved. Yet another issue is that – like with any translation – there are always going to be situations where you could interpret it different ways.

There are some interesting connections between translations of the Bible and the reformations of the Christian Church in history. For example, part of the reason Luther was upset with the Catholic Church in the 16^th century was because he wanted to use a version of the Bible that was translated into a vernacular language (used by regular people – instead of the Latin Vulgate). In doing so, he wanted to go back to the original Hebrew/Greek/Aramaic instead of just making a German translation from the Latin Vulgate.

How much has the Bible, as we know it today, been widdled down/edited? (and what are the implications?)

There is plenty of editing on different levels. Here's what comes to mind…

1. Perhaps the biggest "editing" of all is the canonization of the Bible – meaning the people who met and decided what would be in and what didn't make the cut. For example, you can buy whole books of the "other gospels" (called apocryphal) and there are also several books that belong in the Catholic version of the First Testament (also called apocryphal) that we don't have as Protestants.
   
2. Also, a lot of the books in the Bible weren't written down "as is" and sent to press. For example, the entire Pentateuch (first five books of the First Testament – penta = five, teuch = teaching) was likely written by at least four different groups of people writing at varying times. Someone, we don't know who, eventually edited these together to make the first five books. In fancy Bible-study-talk they call that person the "redactor" (editor).
   
3. And then…there are of course the issues with translation! A good study Bible will tell you with little footnotes where the manuscripts vary. Things called "parallel Bibles" will show you multiple versions at once. Also, websites like http://bible.oremus.org allow you to look up several versions quickly. Websites like http://www.blueletterbible.com let you look at the original languages, too (even if you can't read them!).
   

Implication-wise, it's huge, of course. For just one little example, check out the last couple chapters of Mark (the earliest gospel we have). Did you notice there are a couple of different endings? The original version likely ended with 16:8 – the women flee in terror, telling no one about the resurrected Christ. The "shorter ending" added in the 4^th century or so says they told some folks about what happened. The "longer ending" was added in the 2^nd century or so and bears more resemblance to the other gospels.

What the different versions are/where they come from. Are specific versions connected to specific religions?

For week two, I'll have a handy little handout chart and I can also make photocopies of this fantastic resource if you'd like them http://www.cts.edu/Documents/Choosing_a_Bible.pdf. Its a booklet that's about 20 pages long and explains the origins and pros/cons of various translations available today. Some translations are used by particular groups, for example the TANAKH is what the Jews use. The New American Bible was created by Catholics. Many Pentecostals use the King James Version. The New International Version was primarily created for modern evangelicals. The NRSV is used a lot by scholars (when they aren't using the original manuscripts, of course!).

Where do the names of the books come from? (I was shocked to learn the authors weren't necessarily the names of the books)

Primarily, they come from custom. A lot of them were originally passed on as oral stories long before they were written down and edited into a coherent fashion. Some of the names are just naming "what this is about" for example, "Genesis" is beginning and "Leviticus" has a lot of laws! The major and minor prophets were primarily named for the people who wrote them. An exception is Isaiah which was written by at least 3 groups of people. Later writers wanted to have the credibility that came with Isaiah's name, so they added their words to his. This was quite common in the ancient world. In fact, we see a lot of that happening in the Second Testament. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were not written by people who knew Jesus. And 1-3 John and the Revelation to John were not written by the disciple John either. Also, several people pretended to be Paul. Here's a handy chart…

Pauline Letters

Of the 13 letters we have, six letters' authenticities are debated.

Undisputed

Romans

1 and 2 Corinthians

Galatians

Philemon

1 Thessalonians

Philippians

Disputed

2 Thessalonians

Colossians

Ephesians

2 Timothy

1 Timothy

Titus

(in order of "more likely to be Paul" to "almost certainly not Paul")

This info came from my wonderful NT teacher at Perkins in Dallas, Dr. Jouette Bassler. Hope I took the notes right!

Who wrote the Bible (or wrote down the Bible)?

It's different for every single book. The easiest way to find the answer to that is to look at the beginning of each book in your study Bible. A good study Bible will tell you who wrote the book, when, where, and to whom. Be careful, though – some study Bibles are still using old scholarship and might have incorrect information. A couple easy ones to check would be the first five books (if it says Moses wrote them, it's either old information or written by people who are fundamentalists) and also to check out Isaiah (does it say there are at least two authors? Good!)

Who decided what made it into the Bible – and what didn't.

I'll admit I was never very good at memorizing this stuff in my history classes, so I'll encourage you to do some web searching on this. Basically, things were decided in a couple of ways. A lot of it was based primarily on prevailing custom – which books were religious people (Jews and later Christians) using in their worship and teaching? Those books that had stood the test of time were the ones that got in. Secondly, there were formal councils that decided some of this stuff. It was mostly decided by around the 5^th century. If you want tons of details, check out this great website from the United Methodist Church (http://gbgm-umc.org/umw/bible/canon.html). In fact, you should just read that whole website I should stop trying to teach this class. J It's pretty thorough.

Who wrote which portions and how do we know this? How did it survive? I mean was it kept in the library at Alexandria? Then how did it get put together? In short, what is the biography of the Bible?

Oh, boy. Hopefully I'm not just getting lazy here at the end, but this question is a doozy! Much of this information can be found in the handout I gave at the end of week one. Things primarily survived because people used them over time in synagogues and later churches. Each religious community would have a copy that they studied together. The really tricky part, of course, is that it was a bit like playing telephone…over time you might get a version that had been copied several times over and had strayed a little bit here and there. That's why, when people in modern times have done translations, many of them have tried to use the oldest possible manuscripts they can find – to try and get as close to the sources as possible. The obsession with doing this started in the late middle ages…think Luther and all that.

For a "modern" Christian new to the bible, how do you approach the Bible? How do I find meaning beyond it being a historical document?

I'm guessing this will be different for each person, but here's what my journey was like. I found that I absolutely had to begin to understand things on an intellectual level before I could do much else. It was kind of like when your teachers tried to make you enjoy Macbeth in 9^th grade and you were all "what? This is DUMB!" but then you discussed it in class, looked up the words you didn't know, watched a film version, read the Cliffs Notes…then your brain started to grasp it and you could move on to thinking, "Wow, this is amazing stuff. It's still relevant so many years later. I wonder how it applies to my life?"

The Bible is like that, too. You've got to understand some of the basics in order to make it meaningful. How to learn the basics? It's a little like doing anything…it requires some work. Coming to adult education at the church, getting yourself a good study Bible, learning to use some of the resources in the library – these are all good things!

After you start to get the basics, the other stuff will come naturally. It's truly the most amazing collection of books. One of the things I do when I read it try to ask myself these three questions, "What does this passage say about humanity? What does it say about God? What does it say about the relationship between God and humanity?" (I didn't make those up – I learned them from the book Teaching the Bible to Adults by Dick Murray). Finally, I always ask myself – "so what?" What does this have to do with my life?

If you don't know where to start reading the Bible, might I suggest using the lectionary? (http://divinity.library.vanderbilt.edu/lectionary/) We just started "Year B" (it's a three year cycle) and we're in Epiphany right now. You'll notice there are 4 passages per week. If you sat down four days a week and did a passage each time you'd read most of the Bible in three years. You'd also be really in tune with everyone else at church because we use the lectionary when we plan worship each week. Also, the class that meets on Sunday mornings in Room 5 discussed the lectionary texts!

How do you learn to read the Bible seriously (maybe metaphorically) not literally?

Such an important, important question. This may just be a shameless plug for the class I'm teaching on Tuesday nights starting in February, but I really commend to you the book The Heart of Christianity by Marcus Borg. Reading that book (and it's an easy read) will really help you start thinking in that direction. Coming to the 12 weeks of the Tuesday night class will just be fun and enrich your experience of reading it! There is a copy in the church library if you want to check it out. J

If you can't make time for the book right now, I'd give you just this one thought to remember….our modern conception of "truth = facts" is really just that, quite modern. It has to do with the Enlightenment and love of science, etc. The people who wrote the Bible did not have that mindset. So if you met the person who wrote Jonah and said, "I'm confused – how was Jonah in the whale for so long? Is that really a true story?" They would probably say YES because truth for them meant something that expressed a truth about life. The truth there is that Jonah had a life-altering experience that enabled him to change his commitment to being who God called him to be. It's not factual (of course, the whole story of Jonah is a short story – fictional) but that doesn't make it any less TRUE. The Bible is full of truths – just look at the first two chapters of Genesis. There are two completely different versions of how the world was created. Neither is "factual" the way we think of it but both of them are TRUE. They both teach us about who God is, who we are, and how we're all supposed to live our time on this little blue orb. Thanks be to God for that!

Lake Michigan Bike Trip - 2008

We’ll ride about 30 miles north to Manistee and camp on the shores of Manistee Lake. Left to right – John and Susan Bassett, Lou and June Cooper, Beverly McGahey, Jack Skiles, Barb Clark, and Jill Watkins.


Saturday was a long hilly 72 miles to Empire, Gateway to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. We hiked up the Empire Bluff Trail before dinner and were rewarded for our efforts with this breathtaking view of the dunes and Lake Michigan.


Who could resist taking a photo of a group like this?


After getting in over half of our 40 mile day, noontime Monday found us at the Weathervane Restaurant in Charlevoix where we treated ourselves to various Adult Beverages and a fine lunch. Behind us is the harbor inlet to Lake Charlevoix. A busy drawbridge off to the left of where we sat controls access in and out of the harbor.


Wednesday – the Mackinac Bridge. Finished in 1957, Mighty Mac at its total length of 28,195 feet is the third longest suspension bridge in the world. There are 41,000 miles of wire in its cables and the total estimated weight of the superstructure is 66,000 tons.


We visited Mackinac Island Wednesday morning and took a ride around its 8.5 mile bike trail, then each of us went our separate ways to explore, shop, or chill out. Lou and June visited the Grand Hotel, where they’d honeymooned 64 years ago! After lunch we ferried to St. Ignace and rode US 2 along the coast to our next stop at Brevort.


Thursday started out cool and clear, but by afternoon we were riding in the rain. Fortunately the heavy rain in this picture didn’t start until we were done for the day.


Friday – June? Whatever are you doing?! I guess she just couldn’t help herself. I hope it wasn’t boredom that drove her. Maybe she was homesick! In any case, the Riverside Motel had the cleanest sidewalk and parking lot when she was done tidying up.


On our way out of Green Bay, Wisconsin Sunday morning, we stopped at Lambeau Field, home of the Green Bay Packers and shrine to Coach Vince Lombardi. Though we went into the stadium’s impressive atrium, we were too early to take a tour and so missed seeing the field, so off we went, on the road again, to Kewaunee. The wind was at our backs this day, a relief after the relentless headwind of the day before.


Monday, July 14 – the last day on bikes before we start home. From Kewaunee it was a bright clear morning’s ride to Manitowoc, where we boarded the ferry S.S. Badger for the four hour trip back to Ludington. A round of Adult Beverages and lunch was consumed, and while June wandered off to check out the gift shop and the other on-board amenities, the rest of us settled in for several serious games of euchre. Our last official bike miles were from the ferry to where the cars had been parked. Our total accomplishment? 600 miles in 11 days!

VBS - 2008 - Heroes of the Bible

Vacation Bible School 2008 was great fun! We learned all about heroes of the Bible - Gideon, Esther, Rahab, Jonathan, and Elijah. We also did crafts each night and played outside. There were anywhere between 26 and 31 kids at VBS each night (Monday, July 21 through Friday, July 26) and about 15 helpers, too. The kids sucessfully met their goal of brining 12 friends to VBS and on Thursday, July 31st about 50 kids and parents celebrated by going to Holiday World.

For photos from VBS, click here:

1st United - VBS 2008

Ignorance and Resurrection in Chicago

Last week, I updated you on my visit to Chicago and promised to report back in at a later date. I shared with you that my two goals for my time in Chicago were to 1) listen from a position of ignorance, and, 2) see resurrection. I'd like to tell you about how these two things happened for me as a part of my course on urban ministry.

First, I was incredibly blessed to have the opportunity to hear Harry Belafonte speak at St. Sabina's church on the south side of Chicago. Mr. Belafonte has dedicated his life to working for justice. Many people believe he is just a singer; more savvy folks know that he was a major financial supporter for Dr. King's work; those who really watch the news these days know that he is often in trouble for his current stance on the way America is moving.

I was hoping we'd be in for a good show and that he would rant and rail. (After a week of sitting in calm presentations, I was ready for some action!). It turns out that this oft-maligned "radical" is soft-spoken and wears a smile most of the time. Father Pfleger, the priest at St. Sabina, had asked Mr. Belafonte to speak on the subject of "what would Martin Luther King, Jr. do today if he were still alive?"

This is where I was able to listen from a position of ignorance. The audience at St. Sabina that night was about 98% African American and Belafonte spoke to the audience as a black man speaking to other blacks. It was a privilege to be able to listen in on the conversation. Belafonte mourned the way former civil rights leaders have been all too happy to calmly become the power structure they once fought against. He talked about the shared responsibility all people have for working toward justice. And he spoke at length about the necessity of raising up a new generation of leaders to continue the work of the civil rights movement. (For more about what Belafonte is doing in this area, I recommend checking out the website for "The Gathering for Justice" - a group that Belafonte founded).

Finally, it was a privilege just to be in this amazing sanctuary. I truly saw resurrection there. Formerly an Irish Catholic church, St. Sabina's is the place where the annual St. Patrick's Day parade of Chicago used to start. After the neighborhood became more and more African American, the demographics of the congregation changed, too. Father Michael Pfleger is a man of incredible faith who has been serving this congregation since 1981. Under his leadership, this congregation has transformed the neighborhood - creating new businesses, providing computer labs and career counselors so people can find jobs, teaching 500+ children in a private school that provides art, music, bilingual education, and Africana studies. They have also reduced violence in their neighborhood by taking to the streets - protesting the creation of liquor stores, speaking out against the culture of guns, visiting gang leaders in their homes, and spending Friday nights on the streets to tell the community they will not stand for violence in their neighborhood.

It was truly a place of resurrection. I leave you with a photograph from their sanctuary. It is based on John 3:16 and depicts God's hands offering Jesus to the world. Jesus has one hand beckoning and one had open - both calling us and offering himself.

Update from the Windy City

I've been in Chicago for a week now and am finally blogging! I meant to do it much sooner, but have just been exhausted at the end of every day. The program has been fantastic so far and - although I am looking forward to getting home at the end of this week - I am also excited to see what we will learn about in this second week.

A bit about what I'm doing here: for my seminary degree, I am required to have a "cross-cultural experience." Our seminary has a partnership with a group called SCUPE (Seminary Consortium for Urban Pastoral Education) and we are allowed to take courses here. So, I signed up for a two-week introductory class on urban ministry. There are 26 people in my class from all over the country. We are all seminary students. The group is mostly Lutheran, but there are two other UCC folks in the class (no ABCs, though).

Our instructor is Rev. Dr. Yvonne Delk, who is also UCC. She lived and worked in Chicago for years, so she knows the city and its issues/resources very well. Our daily format is to visit two sites where urban ministry is happening. Dr. Delk is very big on noting the difference between charity and advocacy models, so we spend a lot of time looking at HOW the agency is trying to serve people. Are they just giving them basic assistance (charity - like a soup kitchen) or are they actually working to change the system to get rid of poverty and racism (advocacy - changing the laws and system).

One of my biggest insights so far has been they way in which I see the "revitalization" of Chicago. Growing up in the midwest, I've been to Chicago a few times over the years and it is certainly a "nicer" city than it was in my childhood. The Loop and downtown area are beautiful...clean, lots to do, nice restaurants and shops. Mayor Daley and the other folks in Chicago have done an excellent job making this into a world-class city.

But this week, amidst the sounds of construction and the breathtaking views of the new Trump tower going up along the riverfront, I've learned to see all of this newness with new eyes. In the midst of this big "clean up" many people have been "cleaned out." Chicago has seen major destruction of its public housing in the last 10-15 years. They estimate that somewhere between 35,000 and 45,000 units of public housing have been destroyed. Although a small number of new units have been built, much of the housing has been replaced by expensive condos or mixed-income housing. Those who can't afford to live in the newly revitalized city seem to have disappeared. Some have moved away, but many are now living on the streets or doubling up with friends and family. The government hasn't really kept track of where they all went - it would be the equivalent of all of IUs students disappearing and no one being sure where they went.

With this knowledge, the sounds of construction and the billboards for new condos in the heart of the city have a different impact on my heart.

In the midst of all of this, I've identified two major goals for my time here: 1) to listen from a position of ignorance, and, 2) to see resurrection.

I hope to update you on my progress later this week. Peace be with all of you.

New Photos Available

If you were at the Stewardship dinner at Bell Trace in November, you got to see the wonderful slideshow prepared by Tom Busey. The photos are now available online (but you won't get Pat's commentary this way, sorry about that!). Click here to view them:

1st United - Stewardship slideshow

Also, you may not have know it, but we had 8 great helpers spend the morning at the food pantry at MCUM on December 1st. Our second through sixth graders went with Elizabeth to work. Photos are available online here:

1st United - kids work day at MCUM