One of the problematic consequences of adopting a doctrine of the infallibility and/or inerrancy of Scripture is that we are blinded to the fact that what we read in a text is what we bring to it. We always read ourselves and our assumptions and contexts into texts. We cannot do otherwise. As a result,... Continue Reading →
The Bible: Some Assembly Required
If you insist that the Bible is inerrant or infallible, the question you need to answer is “Which Bible?” Even without the complications we explored in the last post – that human engagements with texts are always interpretive and subjective and that what we read in a text is what we bring to it, so... Continue Reading →
The Importance of Checking Your Blindspots
A dear friend of mine recently posted this picture. I was immediately taken with it. Doesn’t it sum up the human condition so succinctly? Too often, like the pigeon in the picture, our limited minds seem incapable of comprehending a bigger picture; sometimes they are unwilling to concede that there even is one. We will... Continue Reading →
Why I teach
When people find out that I am a teacher, they often look at me in the way one would look at somebody who had just confessed to being a substance abuser - vaguely distrustful, slightly embarrassed for having asked, and possibly possessing a morbid curiosity about what on earth it was that compelled me to... Continue Reading →
Unlearning Part 2
Whatever you believe about God, you are wrong. At least to some degree. It is unavoidable that you will see God as you are, not as He is. The key to understanding the phenomenon lies in accepting how extremely limited your perspective is. I am aware that Wikipedia is not considered an authoritative source, but... Continue Reading →