My new book Conversations with My Inner Atheist features an extended conversation ranging over 25 chapters with my inner voice of questioning and doubt, My Inner Atheist (Mia). I have included chapter 6 below: “If the Bible includes immoral laws, how can it be inspired?” If you enjoy the chapter, consider buying the book. Mia: […]
inspiration
Problems with the Bible that Aren’t Problems at All
The other day, I posted the following tweet: Atheists who dismiss the Bible as “iron age fables” should invest a month studying a single book of the Bible by reading a range of biblical commentaries, monographs, and articles on that book. They will come to appreciate that much more is going on than they realized, […]
A Logically Valid But Unsound Argument for Biblical Inerrancy
Here is my attempt to articulate a logical argument in support of inerrancy. By “inerrancy”, I refer here to the view that the affirmations of all human authors are true. I should stress that this is not a view I hold and I have little sympathy with this argument. But be that as it may, […]
My Monday Morning Rant Against Evangelicals Who Undermine the Bible
This morning, a tweet from Fuz Rana got under my skin. I should begin by saying that he seems like a nice chap and Reasons to Believe is less bad than Answers in Genesis. However, being nice and less-bad cannot save one from the fundamental error of treating the Bible as a confirmatory textbook for […]
When conservative Christians confuse their interpretation of the Bible with the Bible
Yesterday, I tweeted the following observation: Many Christian conservatives profess to defend the inerrancy of Scripture when, in fact, they are defending the inerrancy of their interpretation of Scripture. In order to appreciate the reasoning of the conservative Christian, we should begin by unpacking the assumption that there is a commonsense way to interpret a […]
Why belief in divine inspiration commits the reader to wrestling with Scripture
We begin with a tweet from Brian Zahnd: “Biblical inerrancy” is an empty signifier. Why? Because an inerrant text still has to be interpreted. Then you run into the problem of pervasive interpretive pluralism (to borrow a phrase from Christian Smith). Plenty of people agree on inerrancy and disagree on everything else!” Next, we have a […]
Does inerrancy apply to the human authors of the Bible?
This morning I posted a tweet on inerrancy which prompted a reply from the philosopher Paul Franks. I thought it was an interesting Twitter exchange and worth repeating here. After compiling our tweets, I’m a bit surprised at how long it is too. I have not bothered to flag or correct the typos that appear in […]
Is the Exodus as important to Christian belief as Jesus’ resurrection?
When I was growing up, I learned to read biblical narratives as historically reliable accounts of past events. Whether the issue was the death and resurrection of Jesus, the curious maritime journey of Jonah, the Exodus from Egypt, Samson’s killing a thousand men with the jawbone of an ass, or Adam and Eve talking to […]
If this is God’s Word, why isn’t it easier to understand?
That’s the question. You can read my latest article at confusedaboutgrace.com here.
The Bible as God’s Anthology
My views on the Bible really began to change when I went to university to pursue a double major in English and religious studies. At that time I began to learn about hermeneutics including the importance of interpreting distinct literary genres, heeding historical context, and attending to the many distinct approaches to textual interpretation. Along […]
How do you defend the Bible to those who dismiss it as the product of savage minds?
The other day I received an emailed question from a reader which focused on the problem of genocide in the Bible. The reader asked: “If someone brought up these biblical narratives [of genocide], as Dawkins and the like have, as a means of discrediting the Christian faith and the biblical text how would you respond?” Note […]
Should Protestants accept the Deuterocanon?
In response to my article “Should additions to the biblical texts be treated as canon?” Simon K posed the following question: “Did Protestants do the right thing by rejecting the deuterocanon? Should that decision be reconsidered? You are discussing here whether people should accept textual variants as inspired; but which books should be accepted in […]
Should additions to the biblical texts be treated as canon?
Occasionally I get asked about the canonical status of additions and interpolations to the original writings of the New Testament. (The Old Testament is a somewhat different matter since the original forms of the texts that comprise this collection is shrouded in the mists of antiquity in a way that it is not for the New […]
95. The Problem of God-Breathed Violence
Over the last several years I’ve reflected, written, and spoken extensively on the problem of biblical violence. So when I was recently invited to present a devotional at a board meeting, of course I decided to talk about the Bible and violence. In this episode of The Tentative Apologist Podcast I read that devotional reflection […]
