Question:
Christians: Have you heard of the historical-critical method?
Regit Nairebis
2010-11-21 16:37:38 UTC
If so, do you struggle with it? I do. I was brought up in a small, rural, conservative congregation, but I now attend a liberal arts college that preaches this method. Some things that have been preached include:

-Moses never wrote the Pentateuch; it was composed by 4 sources
-Most of the Old Testament historical books' events were made up, or the history was distorted, or the events contradict themselves in their teachings.
-The Song of Songs is about unmarried people having sex
-Solomon never wrote Song of Songs or Ecclesiastes
-Most of the prophets did not write the books themed about them; people wrote in their name and falsely attributed it to those prophets.
-The teachings of heaven and hell were ripped off from the Zoroastrians.

So, what is your take on this issue?
Ten answers:
Coram Deo
2010-11-21 18:19:14 UTC
While historical criticism has benefited the church, it also carries with it liabilities. Many scholars who practiced historical criticism imbibed the Enlightenment philosophy sweeping Europe in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Their philosophical worldview masqueraded as historical criticism.



They have accepted a naturalistic philosophical standpoint that presupposed that miracles don’t happen. On this view, even impressive evidence to the contrary is beside the point. Rudolf Bultmann is an example of this view. Bultmann defined historical work in such a way that the acceptance of any miracles was excluded. Their fundamental bias, i.e., naturalistic philosophy, is all too often cloaked as “objective history.”



Historical critics believed that they were more objective and that by means of a “neutral” scientific approach they could discover what the Bible really taught. But with the arrival of postmodernism this view seems naive to almost all scholars today. And the record of historical criticism reveals that it did not succeed in agreeing upon “the assured results of scholarship.” Indeed, a dizzying array of viewpoints and perspectives are present in historical criticism today, and many of them are mutually contradictory.



The work of F. C. Baur and Julius Wellhausen threatened the faith of evangelical believers in the nineteenth century. Yet few scholars today embrace the conclusions of F. C. Baur, and the documentary hypothesis of Wellhausen is severely questioned. The “assured results” of scholarship in one generation are often vigorously challenged by the next. Evangelicals, of course, should be open to correction. Perhaps we have misread some parts of the Bible because of our tradition. On the other hand, we need to be critical and savvy and to reject the temptation of embracing the latest fad in scholarship just because it is current.



But we must also be on our guard. Often historical criticism has veered off into unsubstantiated allegations about the accuracy of the Scriptures, and it has routinely approached the Scriptures with an antisupernatural worldview. Historical criticism has not demonstrated the Bible to be false. The Bible, rightly interpreted, has stood the test of time.
2010-11-21 16:50:56 UTC
Do you mean source criticism or form criticism or redaction criticism or.....?





"Moses never wrote the Pentateuch; it was composed by 4 sources"



Yes I know. J, P, D and E.





"Most of the Old Testament historical books' events were made up, or the history was distorted, or the events contradict themselves in their teachings."



Crap. Much of it can be directly verified from Babylonian and Assyrian sources.





"Solomon never wrote Song of Songs or Ecclesiastes"



So what?





"Most of the prophets did not write the books themed about them; people wrote in their name and falsely attributed it to those prophets."



Isaiah had at least three authors, one of which was the historical Isaiah. As to the others, as far as I know the authorship by a single person is not disputed, and since they are not mentioned elsewhere in the Old Testament, there is no reason why the names should be made up.





"The teachings of heaven and hell were ripped off from the Zoroastrians."



It is possible that Judaism has its roots in Zoroastrianism, but again, so what? The truth of a religion is not a function of its family tree.





Even if you find what you hear on your liberal arts course difficult, it is more likely to be accurate than the tripe you hear from "educated" atheists on here. If you have been brought up in a conservative environment it may take you a little while to get over the culture shock, but once form criticism and all the others have said all they have to say, the Bible is still God's revealed word.
2010-11-21 16:47:09 UTC
There isn't any proof of Hebrew slaves in ancient Egypt, the pyramids were built by private contractors. However the Semetic tribes most certainly were influenced by the Egyptian and Mesopotamian cultures. In fact a serious look into religions will point out quite a bit of common themes in the Mediterranean area.
john wondering
2010-11-21 16:42:48 UTC
Most of them haven't even read the bible.



Higher criticism reveals that most of the bible is allegory and myth. According to some biblical critics, Jesus is a mythical figure in the tradition of pagan mythology and almost nothing in all of ancient literature would lead one to believe otherwise. Christianity is a blend of Judaism and Mithraism and anyone wanting to believe Jesus lived and walked as a real live human being must do so despite the evidence, not because of it.
A is for Atheist
2010-11-21 16:40:42 UTC
As a professor of philosophy and religion, I can attest to the fact that everything you said is true.



For more information on the subject, you can go to books.google.com and download "Bible Myths and Their Parallels in Other Religions" by TW Doane, which illustrates how the bible was plagiarized from older religions. This text was used at Harvard Seminary, so priests and other learned clergy are well aware of this fact.
2010-11-21 16:38:46 UTC
Let me also add,



According to Moses, Adam and Eve precede him by at least 2,500 years. I wonder how Moses could remember all that. Maybe...



Moses got his knowledge from the Egyptians because as we know Moses was found by the Egyptians and raised as one of them.



For example Khnum, the Potter God who according to the gods of Egypt created man from dirt. The History and religion of Egypt predate Moses, Moses was raised by the Egyptians. In the Egyptian version their is no such thing as Sin, guess who made that one up?



Moses wanted a piece of the pie, was denied and so broke away forming his own sect. The miracles he learned from the Egyptian Mystery Schools allowed him to influence the ignorant illiterate Egyptian slaves into following him.
?
2016-11-29 04:58:58 UTC
Jason ...you're actually not analyzing your Bible, because of fact in case you have been, you're able to grasp the solutions to those questions. you're actually not turning out to be Spiritually and that's because of fact you're actually not in a Church that facilitates you enhance or you're actually not likely to church. My Husband had the comparable situation after being in a Sunday church for 28 years.We met and that i gave him books and inquiries to look up in Scripture on why he believes the way he does. actual he ought to not discover in the Bible why he believes the way he does. He in basic terms did reason each and every person else did and he in basic terms accompanied the %.. I actual have been in a great style of church homes and in case you desire to enhance, truly enhance in the Lord and can't get adequate religious nutrition to maintain you going for something of your existence and discover that Peace you're searching for I advise you attempt a Bible coaching Church that keeps the Commandments of God Exodus 20..all Ten that are by using ways written on your heart, all your questions would be spoke back for this church makes a speciality of background and why and the place and who's liable for the mess we are in. This Church isn't a sooner or later a week church even however you in basic terms circulate there sooner or later a week except you circulate to the Bible examine on Wed. evening. This Church is a seventh day Adventist Church and you will take all your questions with you and that i'm able to promise you they are going to be spoke back. bear in mind there are wheat and tares{Believers and non-believers in all church homes } and devil is doing his best to clutter all persons up so in case you, by using going to a minimum of one, devil has the foot carry there, circulate to a distinctive till you stumble on out what you're searching for. you need to do your place artwork Jason. no you will do it for you. Your adventure with God will must be very own and not in basic terms informed you by using the internet. by using one question. studying takes slightly time and learn.Please do your area. Love you in Christ ...missleslie
?
2010-11-21 16:47:10 UTC
I get it... we are stupid. But you should tolerate all people of all faiths as well as those who have no faith. Just be a good human while you exist.
Y
2010-11-21 16:39:07 UTC
This is why the Quran was revealed as the criterion to judge the earlier scriptures.
2010-11-21 16:38:50 UTC
Their take is "God did it, your wrong"


This content was originally posted on Y! Answers, a Q&A website that shut down in 2021.
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