Does God require every Christian to be an ancient language professor? (bible, quote)
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I was reading through some of the threads, particularly on the Christianity forum today, and, as it has in the past, the thought struck me that it seems in order to know what Gods true message is from the Bible, you have to understand ancient Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek.
You not only have to understand what the meaning of the words are, but what God meant when they were penned all those thousands of years ago. In other words you have to be a scholar and not only that, also a mind reader. Is that what God wanted for all Christians, that they should all be ancient language professors? And how many would struggle with or not have the mental capacity to become such? That makes God prejudicial for a start.
Even then, when we have attained the dizzy heights of understanding, (I am not being sarcastic here) we would discover that we have to do battle with other scholars because these words and phrases have a multiplicity of meanings which have spawned a multitude of Christian denominations and beliefs. I guess you would be drawn to the belief that closest suits your own bias or agenda, and you would defend that particular interpretation of the ancient language, something I see so often on this forum.
Why would God make it so exclusive, why would he choose such an easily misunderstood medium for contact with his creation, and why has he never qualified what exactly the passages in the Bible, that have caused so much division, suffering and death throughout history, mean?
I was reading through some of the threads, particularly on the Christianity forum today, and, as it has in the past, the thought struck me that it seems in order to know what Gods true message is from the Bible, you have to understand ancient Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek.
You not only have to understand what the meaning of the words are, but what God meant when they were penned all those thousands of years ago. In other words you have to be a scholar and not only that, also a mind reader. Is that what God wanted for all Christians, that they should all be ancient language professors? And how many would struggle with or not have the mental capacity to become such? That makes God prejudicial for a start.
Even then, when we have attained the dizzy heights of understanding, (I am not being sarcastic here) we would discover that we have to do battle with other scholars because these words and phrases have a multiplicity of meanings which have spawned a multitude of Christian denominations and beliefs. I guess you would be drawn to the belief that closest suits your own bias or agenda, and you would defend that particular interpretation of the ancient language, something I see so often on this forum.
Why would God make it so exclusive, why would he choose such an easily misunderstood medium for contact with his creation, and why has he never qualified what exactly the passages in the Bible, that have caused so much division, suffering and death throughout history, mean?
That's why there are self-appointed leaders who do the "interpreting" for the flock. Of course they all have different ideas of what they think God wants and all think they are the only ones who are correct.
It's no surprise that what people think God wants, lines up with what THEY themselves want. Nor is it "rocket science":
Brain scans show how people project their own views onto what they think are "God's" views.
"Their opinions on God's attitudes on important social issues closely mirror their own beliefs. If their own attitudes change, so do their perceptions of what God thinks. They even use the same parts of their brain when considering God's will and their own opinions."
"The results suggest that similar parts of the brain are involved when we consider our own beliefs and those of God - Epley thinks this is why we end up inferring a deity's attitudes based on those we hold ourselves."
I was reading through some of the threads, particularly on the Christianity forum today, and, as it has in the past, the thought struck me that it seems in order to know what Gods true message is from the Bible, you have to understand ancient Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek.
You not only have to understand what the meaning of the words are, but what God meant when they were penned all those thousands of years ago. In other words you have to be a scholar and not only that, also a mind reader. Is that what God wanted for all Christians, that they should all be ancient language professors? And how many would struggle with or not have the mental capacity to become such? That makes God prejudicial for a start.
Even then, when we have attained the dizzy heights of understanding, (I am not being sarcastic here) we would discover that we have to do battle with other scholars because these words and phrases have a multiplicity of meanings which have spawned a multitude of Christian denominations and beliefs. I guess you would be drawn to the belief that closest suits your own bias or agenda, and you would defend that particular interpretation of the ancient language, something I see so often on this forum.
Why would God make it so exclusive, why would he choose such an easily misunderstood medium for contact with his creation, and why has he never qualified what exactly the passages in the Bible, that have caused so much division, suffering and death throughout history, mean?
You don't have to know the Greek and Hebrew, but it does help. There are some excellent Bible study tools to use. I use LOGOS to study the Bible. I can mouse over a word and see the Greek word. A word study is available at a click of the mouse. I took Greek, and can read it a bit, but since I don't speak it daily it's not as if it's a 2nd language to me. Those were the languages that they were written in. Koine Greek, in which the New Testament was written, was actually a great, common language at the time. Many people spoke and wrote it. Put that together with the infrastructure of the Roman Empire, and it's easy to see why God chose that time to bring Jesus into the world.
Suppose God had it written in English....then what? What happens 2000 years from now when everyone is speaking some derivation of English, or German, or Swahili, or some yet-unknown language?
You don't have to know the Greek and Hebrew, but it does help. There are some excellent Bible study tools to use. I use LOGOS to study the Bible. I can mouse over a word and see the Greek word. A word study is available at a click of the mouse. I took Greek, and can read it a bit, but since I don't speak it daily it's not as if it's a 2nd language to me. Those were the languages that they were written in. Koine Greek, in which the New Testament was written, was actually a great, common language at the time. Many people spoke and wrote it. Put that together with the infrastructure of the Roman Empire, and it's easy to see why God chose that time to bring Jesus into the world.
Suppose God had it written in English....then what? What happens 2000 years from now when everyone is speaking some derivation of English, or German, or Swahili, or some yet-unknown language?
You clearly live in a country with such fancy smancy tools and technology. Meanwhile, elsewhere where the other zillions of Christians live....
You clearly live in a country with such fancy smancy tools and technology. Meanwhile, elsewhere where the other zillions of Christians live....
Your point? There were plenty of Christians that lived in the world for centuries long before I came about. Not all of them read Greek. Some did....and were greatly blessed by it.
Your point? There were plenty of Christians that lived in the world for centuries long before I came about. Not all of them read Greek. Some did....and were greatly blessed by it.
The author of this thread asked a few questions and you pointed out that one way to get around the problem is by using modern technology. You clearly can afford to do so, but some Christian in remote Papau New Guinea or some Christian 150 years ago did not have this luxury. That was my point.
The author of this thread asked a few questions and you pointed out that one way to get around the problem is by using modern technology. You clearly can afford to do so, but some Christian in remote Papau New Guinea or some Christian 150 years ago did not have this luxury. That was my point.
Point taken. Sorry...I was a little quick to jump on that.
God calls those he wants to. If they don't have access to the original languages...he'll make sure they have enough to know what they need.
Of course not. God just requires us to "love God and each other" daily and repent when we don't. You don't need to be a scholar for that.
Problem is, none of us can do that. At least not well enough to please God.
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Does God require every Christian to be an ancient language professor?
