During the summer before my sophomore year of high school, I read the Bible cover to cover. I mainly did this because I wanted to become a Jesuit priest, and believed that reading the entire thing would somehow “prepare” me for such a calling. While I never became a Jesuit priest, I figured I’d use what I learned from both reading the Bible and studying it in school to clear up some common misconceptions about “The Good Book.” Also, I should probably mention that even though I was raised Roman Catholic, the views expressed in this “listicle” do not reflect those of the Roman Catholic Church.
1. The Bible is Boring to Read
While there are definitely some dull parts throughout it, I’d still argue that the Bible has more fascinating stories than boring ones. The Book of Psalms contains songs of worship that have influenced both traditional Catholic hymns and contemporary Christian music. The Acts of the Apostles and The Letters of Paul describe the Church’s early history and struggles. But The Book of Revelations, on the other hand, is pretty much the Biblical equivalent of an acid trip.
2. Only Christians Can Benefit from Reading the Bible
Love it or hate it, there’s no denying that Christianity has had a profound effect on Western civilization. And since the Bible is the primary religious text for all Christian denominations, you can find biblical references throughout Western politics, art, literature, and media. If you take the time to read the Bible, you’ll become keen to these references and can better understand many aspects of Western civilization. There’s also that whole thing about the Bible being “The Word of God,” but let’s not go there.
3. Reading the Bible Automatically Makes You a Better Christian
Famous baseball player and evangelist Billy Sunday once said “Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than going to a garage makes you an automobile.” I couldn’t agree more, and I think the same goes for reading the Bible. In fact, reading the Bible made me question my faith in ways that I never considered. This is mainly because there is some pretty messed up stuff in the Bible, which can be misinterpreted and cause Christians to act in ways completely antithetical to Jesus’ message. Just look at the Westboro Baptist Church who, between their apocalyptic drivel and picketing of soldiers’ funerals, represent Christianity the same way that ISIS represents Islam (as in they don’t).
4. Jesus Condemned Homosexuality in the Bible
The most famous verse in the Bible concerning homosexuality is Leviticus 18:22, which states: “You shall not lie with a man as with a woman, such a thing is an abomination” (NABRE). It should be noted, however, that a verse only a few lines after this one forbids crossbreeding domestic animals, planting two different kinds of seed in the same field, and wearing clothes made out of more than one kind of fabric or material (Leviticus 19:19). And while there are also verses in the New Testament that condemn homosexuality, they can only be found in The Letters of Paul. Although the Bible never mentions Jesus condemning homosexuality, some biblical scholars argue that He implied condemnation when answering a question about marriage and divorce with a reference to Genesis’ definition of the former (Matthew 19:1-12 and Mark 10:1-12). Who knows, maybe the Biblical verse of Jesus explicitly condemning homosexuality is just hidden along with the one that describes Him as a white man with long, flowing brown hair and an incredibly trimmed beard.
5. All Christians Interpret the Bible Literally
A Christian’s interpretation of the Bible depends on their denomination, with the three main Christian denominations being Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Protestant. The Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church are the result of a schism between early Western and Eastern Christians, while Protestant is more or less an umbrella term for any Christian who is neither Roman Catholic nor Eastern Orthodox. Christians that fall under this umbrella include Lutherans, Southern Baptists, Presbyterians, and the like. Now each of the three main Christian denominations have their own versions of the Bible, with the main differences being the translation and the books that are either included in or excluded from a particular denomination’s Bible. You might think that the Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church are far more fundamentalist or literal in their interpretations of the Bible, seeing how they are both hundreds of years older than any Protestant church. But this actually is not the case, since many Protestants follow the doctrine of “Sola Scriptura” (Latin for “Scripture Alone”). This doctrine states that the Bible contains everything necessary for salvation, and is the supreme authority in all matters regarding the Christian faith. This obviously leaves little to no room for interpretations of the Bible other than that of Biblical literalism, which has heavily influenced modern-day creationism. Although to be far to Protestants, the Roman Catholic Church also has a sordid history with the Big Bang theory and Evolution, since both concepts seemingly contradict The Book of Genesis’ creation story. But in 2014, Pope Francis announced that not only did the Big Bang theory and Evolution exist, but they also didn’t contradict the existence of God. Baby steps, people. Baby steps.
