Alex, I will take “Praise the Misinterpretations for 500.”

Deconstruct to Reconstruct: Dismantling Dogma

Andy Hahn

“Anti-intellectualism is a lethal infection that is destroying Evangelicalism, rotting it from the inside out.”

-Dr. Kevin M. Young

“I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with senses, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use and by some other means to give us knowledge which we can attain by them.”

-Galileo

Should I go to a dictionary for a recipe to bake a cake? What would happen if I tried to bake a cake using instructions from the dictionary?

I could find a lot of good information in a dictionary. I would also be unsatisfied if I tried to bake a cake based on the definitions of the ingredients and what a cake is.

I find modern-day evangelicalism has some extreme anti-intellectual ideas and rigid beliefs which tend to be driven by either clear misinterpretations of the Bible or creating misconceptions about what the Bible is and is not.

Misconception #1: The Bible is a science book

Memory can be funny, and I may have missed some context in this next story. I remember being about seven or eight years old and being at a Vacation Bible School where the teacher stated that men had one less rib than women because of the creation story in Genesis, where Eve’s creation was from Adam’s rib. The woman may have been joking, which leads to the question of why you would tell that “joke” to impressionable seven and eight-year-olds. Thankfully my mother told me this was not true and modern-day science would agree.

However, this silly story illustrates what I have repeatedly found to be one of the biggest misconceptions about the Bible; that it is a science book and contradicts scientific discovery. While the Bible does talk about the natural world, it is not intended to be a scientific textbook. The Bible was written when scientific knowledge was minimal, and its purpose was to convey spiritual and moral truths.

Misconception #2: The Bible is anti-science

While some may interpret specific Bible passages as conflicting with scientific discoveries, this is not necessary. Viewing the Bible as a scientific textbook is the same as viewing the dictionary as a recipe book. The fact that the dictionary is not a recipe book does not make it anti-cooking.

Misconception #3: The Bible is a history book

The Bible contains historical information and is not comprehensive world history. Both these statements are factual and independent of each other. Public personas of people such as Ken Ham do more harm to a view of the Bible than the genuine respect he publicly desires. Understanding the Bible is written from a religious perspective, and the primary purpose of conveying the message of God’s love and plan for humanity does not invalidate what we understand of human history. Likewise, the Biblical accounts of ancient Egypt have a scholarship that allows for a deeper understanding of history.

Misconception #4: The Bible promotes violence and intolerance

There are instances of violence, discrimination, and prejudice in the Bible. However, to view these instances as virtuous or promotion is to ignore the overall message and story. Repeatedly in Biblical accounts, we find Jesus reaches out to those on the margins of society, individuals who would have first-hand accounts of dealing with violence, discrimination, and prejudice. Is it not telling that one of Jesus’s most overt reveals of himself as the Messiah is to the Samaritan woman at the well? She was shocked that a Jew would associate himself with a Samaritan, and there is a strong argument that she was the first “evangelist.” Repeatedly there are examples of those on the margins of society being those who Jesus promotes. Contrary to the Bible promoting intolerance, the overall message of the Bible is one of love, forgiveness, and compassion.

Misconception #5: The Bible is outdated and irrelevant

Finally, some people believe that the Bible is outdated and irrelevant in today’s world. However, this could not be further from the truth. The Bible contains timeless spiritual truths that are just as relevant today as they were thousands of years ago. Its message of love, forgiveness, and compassion speaks to the human heart across all cultures and times. The only outdated and irrelevant thing is many interpretations of the Bible that mistake the actual message and use its teachings to divide and push people away instead of offering hope and truth.