Keyser Soze
2005-10-05 22:29:47 UTC
Catholic Church no longer swears by truth of the Bible
By Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent
THE hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church has published a
teaching document instructing the faithful that some parts of the
Bible are not actually true.
The Catholic bishops of England, Wales and Scotland are
warning their five million worshippers, as well as any others drawn to
the study of scripture, that they should not expect "total accuracy"
from the Bible.
"We should not expect to find in Scripture full scientific
accuracy or complete historical precision," they say in The Gift of
Scripture.
The document is timely, coming as it does amid the rise of
the religious Right, in particular in the US.
Some Christians want a literal interpretation of the story
of creation, as told in Genesis, taught alongside Darwin's theory of
evolution in schools, believing "intelligent design" to be an equally
plausible theory of how the world began.
But the first 11 chapters of Genesis, in which two
different and at times conflicting stories of creation are told, are
among those that this country's Catholic bishops insist cannot be
"historical". At most, they say, they may contain "historical traces".
The document shows how far the Catholic Church has come
since the 17th century, when Galileo was condemned as a heretic for
flouting a near-universal belief in the divine inspiration of the
Bible by advocating the Copernican view of the solar system. Only a
century ago, Pope Pius X condemned Modernist Catholic scholars who
adapted historical-critical methods of analysing ancient literature to
the Bible.
In the document, the bishops acknowledge their debt to
biblical scholars. They say the Bible must be approached in the
knowledge that it is "God's word expressed in human language" and that
proper acknowledgement should be given both to the word of God and its
human dimensions.
They say the Church must offer the gospel in ways
"appropriate to changing times, intelligible and attractive to our
contemporaries".
The Bible is true in passages relating to human salvation,
they say, but continue: "We should not expect total accuracy from the
Bible in other, secular matters."
They go on to condemn fundamentalism for its "intransigent
intolerance" and to warn of "significant dangers" involved in a
fundamentalist approach.
"Such an approach is dangerous, for example, when people
of one nation or group see in the Bible a mandate for their own
superiority, and even consider themselves permitted by the Bible to
use violence against others."
Of the notorious anti-Jewish curse in Matthew 27:25, "His
blood be on us and on our children", a passage used to justify
centuries of anti-Semitism, the bishops say these and other words must
never be used again as a pretext to treat Jewish people with contempt.
Describing this passage as an example of dramatic exaggeration, the
bishops say they have had "tragic consequences" in encouraging hatred
and persecution. "The attitudes and language of first-century quarrels
between Jews and Jewish Christians should never again be emulated in
relations between Jews and Christians."
As examples of passages not to be taken literally, the
bishops cite the early chapters of Genesis, comparing them with early
creation legends from other cultures, especially from the ancient
East. The bishops say it is clear that the primary purpose of these
chapters was to provide religious teaching and that they could not be
described as historical writing.
Similarly, they refute the apocalyptic prophecies of
Revelation, the last book of the Christian Bible, in which the writer
describes the work of the risen Jesus, the death of the Beast and the
wedding feast of Christ the Lamb.
The bishops say: "Such symbolic language must be respected
for what it is, and is not to be interpreted literally. We should not
expect to discover in this book details about the end of the world,
about how many will be saved and about when the end will come."
In their foreword to the teaching document, the two most
senior Catholics of the land, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor,
Archbishop of Westminster, and Cardinal Keith O'Brien, Archbishop of
St Andrew's and Edinburgh, explain its context.
They say people today are searching for what is
worthwhile, what has real value, what can be trusted and what is
really true.
The new teaching has been issued as part of the 40th
anniversary celebrations of Dei Verbum, the Second Vatican Council
document explaining the place of Scripture in revelation. In the past
40 years, Catholics have learnt more than ever before to cherish the
Bible. "We have rediscovered the Bible as a precious treasure, both
ancient and ever new."
A Christian charity is sending a film about the Christmas
story to every primary school in Britain after hearing of a young boy
who asked his teacher why Mary and Joseph had named their baby after a
swear word. The Breakout Trust raised £200,000 to make the 30-minute
animated film, It's a Boy. Steve Legg, head of the charity, said:
"There are over 12 million children in the UK and only 756,000 of them
go to church regularly.
That leaves a staggering number who are probably not
receiving basic Christian teaching."
BELIEVE IT OR NOT
UNTRUE
Genesis ii, 21-22
So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man,
and while he slept he took one of his ribs and closed up its place
with flesh; and the rib which the Lord God had taken from the man he
made into a woman and brought her to the man
Genesis iii, 16
God said to the woman [after she was beguiled by the
serpent]: "I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain
you shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your
husband, and he shall rule over you."
Matthew xxvii, 25
The words of the crowd: "His blood be on us and on our
children."
Revelation xix,20
And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet
who in its presence had worked the signs by which he deceived those
who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshipped its
image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns
with brimstone."
TRUE
Exodus iii, 14
God reveals himself to Moses as: "I am who I am."
Leviticus xxvi,12
"I will be your God, and you shall be my people."
Exodus xx,1-17
The Ten Commandments
Matthew v,7
The Sermon on the Mount
Mark viii,29
Peter declares Jesus to be the Christ
Luke i
The Virgin Birth
John xx,28
Proof of bodily resurrection
--
Alistair Sim
"I am the Whistler, and I know many things, for I walk by night. I
know many strange tales, many secrets hidden in the hearts of men and
women who have stepped into the shadows. Yes, I know the nameless
terrors of which they dare not speak."
They seek him here
They seek him there.
Those Frenchies seek him everywhere.
Is he in heaven?
Or is he in hell? That damned elusive Pimpernel!
"How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the
impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?"
The little things are infinitely more important."
"I am an omnivorous reader with a strangely retentive memory for
trifles."
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By Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent
THE hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church has published a
teaching document instructing the faithful that some parts of the
Bible are not actually true.
The Catholic bishops of England, Wales and Scotland are
warning their five million worshippers, as well as any others drawn to
the study of scripture, that they should not expect "total accuracy"
from the Bible.
"We should not expect to find in Scripture full scientific
accuracy or complete historical precision," they say in The Gift of
Scripture.
The document is timely, coming as it does amid the rise of
the religious Right, in particular in the US.
Some Christians want a literal interpretation of the story
of creation, as told in Genesis, taught alongside Darwin's theory of
evolution in schools, believing "intelligent design" to be an equally
plausible theory of how the world began.
But the first 11 chapters of Genesis, in which two
different and at times conflicting stories of creation are told, are
among those that this country's Catholic bishops insist cannot be
"historical". At most, they say, they may contain "historical traces".
The document shows how far the Catholic Church has come
since the 17th century, when Galileo was condemned as a heretic for
flouting a near-universal belief in the divine inspiration of the
Bible by advocating the Copernican view of the solar system. Only a
century ago, Pope Pius X condemned Modernist Catholic scholars who
adapted historical-critical methods of analysing ancient literature to
the Bible.
In the document, the bishops acknowledge their debt to
biblical scholars. They say the Bible must be approached in the
knowledge that it is "God's word expressed in human language" and that
proper acknowledgement should be given both to the word of God and its
human dimensions.
They say the Church must offer the gospel in ways
"appropriate to changing times, intelligible and attractive to our
contemporaries".
The Bible is true in passages relating to human salvation,
they say, but continue: "We should not expect total accuracy from the
Bible in other, secular matters."
They go on to condemn fundamentalism for its "intransigent
intolerance" and to warn of "significant dangers" involved in a
fundamentalist approach.
"Such an approach is dangerous, for example, when people
of one nation or group see in the Bible a mandate for their own
superiority, and even consider themselves permitted by the Bible to
use violence against others."
Of the notorious anti-Jewish curse in Matthew 27:25, "His
blood be on us and on our children", a passage used to justify
centuries of anti-Semitism, the bishops say these and other words must
never be used again as a pretext to treat Jewish people with contempt.
Describing this passage as an example of dramatic exaggeration, the
bishops say they have had "tragic consequences" in encouraging hatred
and persecution. "The attitudes and language of first-century quarrels
between Jews and Jewish Christians should never again be emulated in
relations between Jews and Christians."
As examples of passages not to be taken literally, the
bishops cite the early chapters of Genesis, comparing them with early
creation legends from other cultures, especially from the ancient
East. The bishops say it is clear that the primary purpose of these
chapters was to provide religious teaching and that they could not be
described as historical writing.
Similarly, they refute the apocalyptic prophecies of
Revelation, the last book of the Christian Bible, in which the writer
describes the work of the risen Jesus, the death of the Beast and the
wedding feast of Christ the Lamb.
The bishops say: "Such symbolic language must be respected
for what it is, and is not to be interpreted literally. We should not
expect to discover in this book details about the end of the world,
about how many will be saved and about when the end will come."
In their foreword to the teaching document, the two most
senior Catholics of the land, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor,
Archbishop of Westminster, and Cardinal Keith O'Brien, Archbishop of
St Andrew's and Edinburgh, explain its context.
They say people today are searching for what is
worthwhile, what has real value, what can be trusted and what is
really true.
The new teaching has been issued as part of the 40th
anniversary celebrations of Dei Verbum, the Second Vatican Council
document explaining the place of Scripture in revelation. In the past
40 years, Catholics have learnt more than ever before to cherish the
Bible. "We have rediscovered the Bible as a precious treasure, both
ancient and ever new."
A Christian charity is sending a film about the Christmas
story to every primary school in Britain after hearing of a young boy
who asked his teacher why Mary and Joseph had named their baby after a
swear word. The Breakout Trust raised £200,000 to make the 30-minute
animated film, It's a Boy. Steve Legg, head of the charity, said:
"There are over 12 million children in the UK and only 756,000 of them
go to church regularly.
That leaves a staggering number who are probably not
receiving basic Christian teaching."
BELIEVE IT OR NOT
UNTRUE
Genesis ii, 21-22
So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man,
and while he slept he took one of his ribs and closed up its place
with flesh; and the rib which the Lord God had taken from the man he
made into a woman and brought her to the man
Genesis iii, 16
God said to the woman [after she was beguiled by the
serpent]: "I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain
you shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your
husband, and he shall rule over you."
Matthew xxvii, 25
The words of the crowd: "His blood be on us and on our
children."
Revelation xix,20
And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet
who in its presence had worked the signs by which he deceived those
who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshipped its
image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns
with brimstone."
TRUE
Exodus iii, 14
God reveals himself to Moses as: "I am who I am."
Leviticus xxvi,12
"I will be your God, and you shall be my people."
Exodus xx,1-17
The Ten Commandments
Matthew v,7
The Sermon on the Mount
Mark viii,29
Peter declares Jesus to be the Christ
Luke i
The Virgin Birth
John xx,28
Proof of bodily resurrection
--
Alistair Sim
"I am the Whistler, and I know many things, for I walk by night. I
know many strange tales, many secrets hidden in the hearts of men and
women who have stepped into the shadows. Yes, I know the nameless
terrors of which they dare not speak."
They seek him here
They seek him there.
Those Frenchies seek him everywhere.
Is he in heaven?
Or is he in hell? That damned elusive Pimpernel!
"How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the
impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?"
The little things are infinitely more important."
"I am an omnivorous reader with a strangely retentive memory for
trifles."
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$5 $`.P``
`
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