Scripture and Religion Interpretation - Essay Example

Scripture Interpretation Scripture Interpretation Scriptures and religion have faced a lot of misinterpretation because individuals often take the text too literally. This approach often provides a flawed meaning because the scriptures are not in their original language, and have been interpreted numerous times on the basis of the society present at the time which the interpretation was made. Literally interpreting biblical terms is also associated with many flaws and has received criticism because some of the text from the bible does not make any sense when taken literally, for example, literal interpretation of Job 41 suggests that the edge of the sea is guarded by great sea monsters. In addition, verses like Job 9:6 suggest that the earth is flat which has already been proven to be incorrect. Hence, this illustrates that scriptures can be better understood by culmination of processes which involve understanding the history of interpretation of the bible as well as the times during which the interpretation was made. This paper will illustrate the history of scriptures and how they were written and interpreted over the years. In addition, there will also be an assessment on the different views that are taken by different religions and how the interpretations vary. Authors such as Karen Armstrong (2007) suggest that interpreting texts too literally is dangerous for society and has led to the rise of religious extremists in different beliefs. Armstrong (2007), states that there is a large amount of criticism by atheists accusing Christianity of many unethical acts whilst extremists that perform acts of terror quote the Quran. Historically there was no orthodoxy in the scripture from the beginning was never written in a monolithic voice, hence making it impossible to interpret literally. For example, the Quran is written in the form of parables as it is the only which can be used to describe God and likewise Jesus in the bible was such a significant figure that it was impossible to describe him with a single definition. This shows that the scriptures were never meant to be interpreted literally, as many individuals can create contrasting arguments both using scriptures in the bible. An example, of this is the argument for and against slavery. Slave owners were capable of providing a well supported argument using texts from the bible whilst slaves could use the same bible to oppose slavery. This point illustrates the issue of interpretation in the bible, in addition, the book was written by numerous authors who were all using the voice of God and at times did not have full knowledge on the actual message being conveyed by the spirit like in the case of Paul, who wrote his scriptures assuming the second coming of God will be during his time. In addition, scriptures from the Bible were written in different languages than there are total and the comprising of these texts as a book in English took numerous years and involved several individuals. The Koran is one book which is more advanced in this aspect, however, even this book is not written in literal terms. The scriptures in the bible have a long history and evolved over the years. The first texts were written in the 8th century B.C.E even then the bible had not been comprised as a complete book. Even with the Torah, scriptural orthodoxy was not attained until the 2nd century. Rabbi Joshua is quoted to have contested a voice from heaven stating “it is not in heaven”, meaning that the Torah is subjected to human interpretation and there is nobody who can question’s own interpretation of the scriptures. The compilation of the books was only carried out around the 2nd century in the Common Era. In addition, the texts were not intended to be in the form of a single scripture, this was something that was done exclusively by people. The scriptures were originally written in three languages which were Aramaic, Hebrew and Greek. Hence, the understanding of the message of these scriptures required translation into different languages. However, this can be problematic today in addition to the fact that scripture is intended to address problems in a particular time which may affect interpretation today. In this aspect, the Koran differs and the interpretation is different as the original language of the scriptures is used that was given to Mohammed in the 7th century. The Koran is considered different to other texts in this aspect. One of the main differences among the interpretation of scriptures is the view of Jesus Christ which varies excessively. One of the main factors is that the New Testament was edited at a time when Jesus had become an essential aspect in the lives of all people with the Christian faith and as mentioned above, he was almost impossible to describe in just one meaning. The thesis of Jesus the Zealot is based on the premise that Jesus was a lowly peasant in Nazareth who was illiterate, however, had the intent of overthrowing the Roman governor in Palestine and claiming the thrown as King of the Israelites (Aslan, 2013). The image of Jesus as a Zealot contradicts the spiritual giant that is presented in the Christian religious doctrine. The texts of Jesus Christ have also been altered through the years and the depiction which Jesus has been given by fathers of the Church is that of a complex God/man which is very obscure and has been widely contested by numerous scholars. Jesus has been interpreted to be a man who has received the holy spirit by scholars who use the Gospel of Mark to support their ideologies whilst those who use the Gospel of John such as the school of Alexandria have interpreted Jesus as the flesh form of the divine Logos. These interpretations have all played a role in the alterations in teachings and understanding of Jesus Christ. The teachings have also affected the different religions such as Islam or sectors within the Christian faith and as illustrated by Armstrong (2007), the issue almost impossible to conclude as there is a body of evidence that can be presented supporting each argument. References Amstrong, K. (2007). What is sacred text? Scared. Audio Armstrong, K. (2008). The Bible: A Biography. Grove Press. Aslan, R. (2013). Zealot: The life and times of Jesus of Nazareth. Random House LLC. Zealot: The life and times of Jesus of Nazareth. (2013). Huff Post. Video Read More