I have been asking myself this question quite a bit recently. I am not talking about the version of the Bible you read, Message, NIV or King James. This question is in response to what seems to me to be a growing inconsistency between the policies and principles espoused by some “christians” in the public sphere and the teachings of Jesus in the Bible. Self professed “Christians” are agreeing with the idea that someone sick, without anyone to care for them, and no means to pay for that care should be allowed to just die for lack of care. A husband who has a wife with Alzheimer’s disease is encouraged to put her in custodial care and then divorce her because she is already dead.
How does that match up with Jesus teaching that we way we treat the least of these the sick, the prisoner, the hungry, the thirsty is the basis on which our lives will be judged? How about the good samaritan? Or his teaching that divorce should not be taken to lightly. Seriously which Bible are we reading?
Steven Colbert at Comedy Central has a funny tongue in cheek take on the inconsistency.
Now I am not biblical literalist or fundamentalist. I do think if we Christians take our sacred text seriously or expect others to, we need to do more than just cherry pick the parts that are convenient to us while ignoring the rest. Are we prepared as followers of Jesus to be live by his standard or have we become a s society of CHINOS? Christians in name only.
It seems that some western Christians have become very adept at holding tightly to cherry picked aspects of scripture which fit our socio-political views. At the same time other less comfortable teachings from scripture not only get ignored but are “reinterpreted” to fit social sensibilities. I think Christians who take the Bible seriously need to lift up the inaccuracy of these convenient interpretations and point to the counter cultural nature of Jesus teaching in the Bible. So which Bible are you reading?
