A Question for Christians: Serious Answers Only, Please?

Question

According to most of you who appear as Christians on this board, the bible is the word of God and God is your supreme being/ creator. Most of you claim the Bible as evidence of God's existence, and quote whenever convienient to support your beliefs. You claim the Bible is true, and that one must read the Bible to learn, and to be able to act within the boundaries of, God's plans for humanity. The Bible, however, was written in Hebrew (OT) and Greek (NT). How can any of you claim to be reading the Bible unless you have studied Hebrew or Greek? Not to be facetious, but if I believed that a superior being had written me a letter explaining life and telling me what to do, I would want to read the original and not someone else's agenda driven translation. In short, how can you call yourself a Christian when you haven't bothered to learn the languages in which your sacred texts were written?

To Countrybumpkin: the question has nothing to do with whether your God can understand your language. The question is how you call yourself a follower of him when you lack the energy to study the language in which you claim he expressed his wishes and plans.

JoshK: the Bible is one of the most highly disputed documents of all times. There have been wars fought over its interpretation.

Chris C: I have the highest respect for those of you who have studied the text in the original and compared it to the Vulgate and other forms. My problem is chiefly with those who blindly answer "because the Bible says it's so..." when they have only ever read the King James, or any of the modern Bibles.

Patron 06: which versions are 97.5 or 90, or 97 percent accurate? And is your Bible more or less accurate than the Greek Orthodox?

Moresmoreformore: you believe it is lunacy to question why someone would live their life claiming the 100 percent absolute truth of something they've never actually bothered to read in the original?

Linuxiac: I must be a Muslim or a child molester because I question the failure of Christians to read the sacred texts of their faith, which they claim to be the word of God, in the original, supposedly Godly, language?

Whynotaskdon: again, the issue isn't whether any God could have had his words transcribed in many different languages for ease of consumer use: the question is whether you who claim the Bible is the word of God have ever bothered to try to read it in the language in which your God supposedly set it down.

Kathy6500: I'm happy to concede Aramaic, but the idea that God has put them away for safekeeping makes no sense. In that case, then you should be studying the languages in which the first translations were written, in order to get as close as possible to the source material.

What proof is there that translations are somebody's agenda? The simple editing out of Gospels is evidence of an agenda... On a more serious note, though: wars have been fought and many people killed over whether one should cross oneself with three fingers or four. People have been burned at the stake for having or not having icons. You honestly believe that translations were not influenced by the necessarilly fallible translators?

Many have commented that there is no need to be concerned with the language issue, because the Holy Ghost provides direction as to meaning, or the word transcends translation, etc...

This, however, is directly in opposition to the rather glaringly obvious fact that there are many Christian denominations. Obviously you are not all getting the same information out of the Bible: obviously, if any of you is right, then all but one of you is wrong...

A final thought: I had no desire to be abrasive in my question, and I apologize to any I've offended. I used the word "bothered" because it seems to me that it would be worth the bother to read in it's original something you profess to be the undiluted, accurate words of the creator of the Universe. Many answers have given a false indication of a monolithic Christianity with all adherents receiving the same message from the same text. Quite the opposite, however, is true. Throughout history, people have disagreed VIOLENTLY over what the Bible says: Protestants v. Catholics, Greek Orthodox v. Catholic, Greek Orthodox v. Russian Orthodox, Fundamentalists v. Jehova's Witnesses, etc... To claim that you are all getting the same thing out of the Bible is silly. Offering someone a Korean translation of the Bible is a good way to introduce the overall concept of Christianity, but tell me: what language was that Bible translated into korean FROM? And which denomination had it prepared?

And thank you all for the answers: I sincerely appreciate them all.

Answer 1

The Bible was not only translated but seriously edited and is constantly being re-interpreted. I too find it amazing that otherwise intelligent, educated people suspend any critical thinking when they walk into a fundamentalist religion of any sort. The key is that they go there because it makes them feel good in one way or the other - never mind the details of Truth.

If I believed in a supreme force, I would not expect it to write me any letters. I would expect it to consist of a bunch of "stuff" that I would have the power to mold with my thoughts to the reality that I wanted to manifest in my life, and any thing that might come after that. There are people who think all this is just an illusion!

Where is George Burns when we need him ????

Answer 2

You can't claim the New Testament is 95.5% accurate, because if it was known how accurate it was, that means they know how many mistakes were made, and were able to count them, hence they would have been fixed by now. Besides that, no translation of more than a couple sentences from greek, hebrew, and all the other semite languages can be that accurate translated to english that accurately. A little expirament, have someone write a page in english, someone else translate it to spanish, then someone else translate it back to english. It will not be exactly the same when it's back into english. Languages just don't translate THAT easily, or else there wouldn't be so many. Spanish and English are also a lot closer than Greek and the others, not even taking into consideration the thousands of years time gap between translations. You really have no idea what you're reading when you read an English text of "The Bible" (in quotes because you treat it as if it's one book in one language, no.) Evidence of this fact is the different translations of the English bible, they aren't even 99.5% congruent with each other, so how could they POSSIBLY be that accurate to ancient texts?

I also really like celtic925s answer. I think she's really living toward the basic idea of jesuss teachings, which is really all you can do if that's the direction in life you choose to take.

Answer 3

Yes the OT is in the original Hebrew text and the NT in Greek. The Bible is split up into several sections. The law which is the 1st 5 books, the prophets which are the additonal 34 books which makes up the OT. The first 4 books of the so-called NT are accounts of the Messiah's 3 1/2 years of his ministry and the remainder are admonishments and letters to those that had been translated into the true gospel since Pentecost. I would say that our Creator is running the whole show and tho' there are mistranslations and interpolations these scriptures are the original inspired writings by Moses and the prophets by the power of God to manifest himself, the creation and his purpose thru visions & revelations before the virgin birth of the Messiah. Holy men spake as they were moved by the holy spirit. The Bible is not the word of God for if you read your prophets they say the "word of God" came unto me saying...The word is the creator himself as stated in John 1:1. The scriptures have been mistaken for tradition but they are not traditions as is wildely taught by most belief systems. If you were to reference a Strongs Exhaustive Concordence of the Bible you can see every word in its original Hebrew and Greek meaning.

Answer 4

I don't believe in God because of the Bible. I believe there is a God because of the things in existence. I believe that God is YaHWeH because of the Bible. There are good translations; although, imperfect since the language cannot be translated word for word. Yet, I do look up the original Hebrew and Greek words when I have a chance. I don't believe that learning the languages is imperative to understanding the Bible because where the translations are off, the Holy Spirit can show me. I don't have a word for word literal interpretation of the Bible as my religion. It is only that God is pre-eminent in my life, that I have a relationship with Him through His Son Jesus Christ, and the fulfillment of the law is love of God, others, and self. So, for me to practice my "religion" I need no other knowledge; although, I do search the scriptures, meditate, pray, and study.

Answer 5

That's sort of like asking someone "How can you call yourself a certified Honda technician if you've never bothered to learn Japanese?"

The Bible is a manual for life. You don't need to speak the original language to understand it. A better question would be, "What do you do when uninspired people have translated the Bible incorrectly into English, and how should I know what something really means?"

The answer is the Holy Ghost. That is the whole point of it's mission. Anytime you have a question or concern you can pray and the Lord will send the Holy Ghost to help you find the answer. That is the Holy Ghost's mission, to testify and lead us to truth. If we did not have the Holy Ghost, you are correct, it would be far better to learn the original language, but since we do, those who really want to know truth have an even better way of recieving it than becoming a scholar of ancient languages.

Answer 6

There are actually 24 significantly different versions of the original Bible...and you show good thought to not just see any one of them as either whole or true. The original text was in Aramaic, then translated to other languages...of course the translators had a lot of control of what was to be the final print, and the powers that were had alot of control of those interpretors...you see the connect & the confusions?

The Gnostic Gospels probably have the most researched, and greatest compilation of not only the Bible texts, but also those writings of many other cultures & their books...very much worth your own check out, while adding in your own research...Theology is quite an interesting subject of endeavor.

Answer 7

I am a Christian, I believe in God and Jesus, Satan, Heaven and Hell. However, I think way to much stock is given to a book that is historically proven wrong. Maybe not so much wrong, but translated so poorly. The point is I don't make a move without praying for guidance, I do not cheat people or treat people poorly, I do not steal or lie. I live my life the way God has lead me too. I do not believe the ticket to heaven is not how many Bible verses I can quote in one conversation, I believe that when my judgment day comes, God will look at how I lived and nothing else, I will have to answer to him for the things I have done. Not for the BOOK I did or did not argue over. I agree with you, if you want to preach, then go to the source, the original.

Answer 8

First of all, others have already done that footwork for me. It doesn't make sense for me to translate the original writings again when many others before me have translated and/or checked previous translations. When you study a language in school, do you research somewhere else to make sure your teacher and your textbook are actually correct?

Second, just because the Bible was written in Hebrew and Greek doesn't mean I have to learn that language in order to enjoy eternal life in God's kingdom. That isn't stated anywhere in the Bible ("only Hebrew speaking people can enter heaven").

Third, the term Christian was not a self-proclaimed name from the followers of Jesus. It was a name used by non-believers to refer to the disciples of Jesus.

And last, but not least, why do you insist on questioning the beliefs of others? If you don't belief in Christ, that's okay with me. I'm not persecuting you for your lack of belief in Christ. You live you life the way you choose and I'll live the life Ied by Christ. I'm not hurting you with my beliefs. I'm not pushing my beliefs on you. I will, however, defend my beliefs when they are mocked.

Answer 9

For that very reason is why I use a Strong's concordance every time I read the Bible and I can translate the original language that was used. Most people who are off the milk and onto the meat of Gods word, do the same.

Answer 10

What a completely abrasive approach to a "serious" question. When you are saying things like that people "haven't BOTHERED" to learn the original languages, etc., makes it hard for anyone to take you seriously. Your broad generalizations are way off. For one thing, since you want serious answers, I am a Christian with a Jewish father and I know both religions and speak Hebrew as well as English. I have read both versions of the Bible as well as the Hebrew Torah. I don't believe that what language in which one reads the Word is such an issue, as much as what they receive spiritually from their study. Members of my church recently gave a set of Korean bibles to a joining family and the last thing they felt like doing was accusing us of giving out a false message! They told us that anything that was as close as possible yet in a language they understood, would help them with their understanding of the Word.
There are many translations in many languages. Some of them I don't particularly like for myself, like New Century Version, because it's written for young people and sounds like their kind of language. It is easy for people with limited vocabularies to understand, while they are still learning. The ideal version for me has been King James. While it has a very old fashioned wording, it is enough for me to understand and still feel like I am getting the "real" version.
By saying that these English versions are "someone else's agenda driven translation," you are insulting the legitimate efforts of countless people who for centuries have translated the Word of God for all languages, so that all people interested may be reached. Everyone in life is agenda-driven...Mother Teresa had an agenda; she had ulterior motives: she wanted to believe her life was serving a purpose and helping others. If you want to read the original, go ahead-I have, but honestly it doesn't seem like you've read or desired to believe the Word if you are waging such a trite and abusive argument. You may want to do a little more research before you try to convince anyone of your enlightenment.

Answer 11

Well, many of us believe what we are told and do not do research. Like I believe what is taught about the universe, like it rotates on it axis but I've never really seen it. So to answer your question Christians believe in a greater being, someone by the name of God and his son Jesus and the Holy Spirit. We would actually have to learn the language of Greek and Hebrew to possibly be able to read documents that were written that many, many years ago, and not to mention the fact that those documents are not available for the average joe to go get and read. I know seeing is believing. How about this-We love but we don't see it, we feel it. Its the same way we Chrisitans are and it's states it in the bible-Jesus says by faith and that is untangible, you can't touch faith, but we have it, not all of us of course. Having a relationship with someone I have never met but I believe he exists gives me solace and joy in my heart. It especially came to light to me when I had my children, I knew that there was a greater being than myself because of the creation of a human and how everything is perfectly placed how can you explain that? The automatic Love that comes over you its undescribable. Science is working on cloning humans, pets, etc but they don't have the answers but they'll argue that they do.
One thing that when you are a Christian, the teachings are incredible-God says I am a jealous God, DOn't have any other God's before me, Don't have any Idols, Don't use the name of God in Vain, Keep the Sabbath holy, Honor your father and mother, Don't commit murder or adultry, Do not steal, Don't give false witness against a neighbor, Don't be jealous of your neighbor and the things that he has (wife, cars, house, servants). These are the basics to a christian life, what is wrong with that? OF course we have to love Jesus which is the son of God who gave Moses these commandments. Now if these are wrong then we will pay, but when you worship a loving God you know that it can't possibly be wrong. God Bless you in your search for anwsers.