I've always wondered this....plz answer!?

Question

Ok, I go to a Catholic school and all through last yr I had a Bible study course where we basically just looked at the Bible in depth and stuff..a lot of it was rly eye opening & I really enjoyed the class....but this is something I've always always wondered, and plz don't get mad at me but.....obviously I missed something during that class...

How do we know that the Bible is real? How do we know that ppl didn't just write it and its filled with a bunch of like stories written by wise people? I probably sound really stupid asking this but just how do we know its actually important? How is different from other literature from way back in time (like Beowulf) or mythology?

*Every time I ask a question regarding religion, ppl get all mean and make me feel really stupid. Please don't do it, I mean seriously I'm asking this question because I don't know, not to be ridiculed! THANKSSSS!*

Answer 1

Treat it like you would any piece of literature and find what you can of truth in the allegories, not the specific claims.

That way, you'll know that although something like Joseph's technicolor dreamcoat was actually a mistranslation for "a coat with long sleeves" the point is that his dad gave him a special gift. If you speak more than one language you know how inadequate a translation is so you make allowances for the gaps.

I will not tell you what to believe but I will say that there's about as much truth in the bible as in any great work of literature that has survived over the centuries.

Answer 2

As Catholics we believe that the Bible is inspired because the Church teaches that the Bible is inspired. We believe that the Church has this kind of authority because we believe in Jesus, we believe Jesus established the Church, and we believe the Church has this kind of authority because it is the body of Christ and the pillar and foundation of truth.

And yes the bible was written by many different people (it didn't fall from the sky!) people who were wise and who were inspired by God. The bible is inspired - but that does not mean that all parts of it should be taken literally or interpreted in the same way (Catholics can believe in evolution, for example).

How do we know how to interpret the Bible? Once again, as Catholics we look to the Church for the proper intepretation. This might sound really authoritarian, especially in this society where everyone's personal opinion is paramount. But what is the result of letting every person interpret the Bible according to his or her own opinions? You'll end up with a different interpretation for every person. That is why there are so many different Protestant churches each relying on "the bible alone" but each with wildly different theologies. Texts, including the Bible, cannot interpret themselves. You need an outside authority or community to interpret the text. The real question is what authority do we rely on to interpret the Bible? We rely on the Church since the Church has been around since the beginning, and because the Church predates the Bible. The Church gave us the Bible (at least the New Testament). The Church, under the inspiration of God, discerned what books belonged in the New Testament and which didn't (like the gnostic gospels). Seems natural that the Church should be the final authority in the interpretation of scripture.

Answer 3

This is NOT a stupid question. Do not feel bad for asking!

When dealing with ANY ancient document (or copy thereof), the rules for confirming it's authenticity are always the same. It doesn't matter if you are examining the Bible, or the Koran, or the Iliad, or Beowulf, or the letters of Caeser Augustus. An ancient story is an ancient story! A document is a document!

There are several tests: external and internal.

External:
1. Is this an original manuscript? Are original manuscripts available?
2. In the absense of original MSS, how old are the oldest available copies?
3. If there are different sources of MSS available, whether "originals" or "copies", how do they compare? Are there telling differences in the narratives, or are they comparable?
4. Are there other narratives (manuscripts) from the same time period/geographical area available, to provide comparisons between documents?
5. Does the narrative agree with known historical facts of the time/region?
6. How was the information in this MSS preserved? Copied? Translated? Who did that work?

Internal:
1. Is the document consistent in it's narrative of the events?
2. What is known of the author, his character and life?
3. How able is the author to tell the truth of these events? How close was he to the action he describes?
4. Are historical "markers" (if any given in the MSS) accurate for the time period?
5. What is the author's interest in recording this material?

This is really enough of a start. I think you will find studying any of these questions a real challenge.

Answer 4

The Bible unlike the oher books you menioned is inspired by God and like a boss tells his secretary to take a letter God did essentially the same thing he had some 40 people over 1600 years to write the Bible and if you look back all those thousands of prophesies written centuries in advance came true exactly how and when it was prophesied they would some are happening today and some are yet to happen in the future the biblical record is so acurate that archeologist use it when looking for lost cities and the medical areas it touches on are just now being realized how accurate they are even on scientific matters for example in Job 26 :7 it talks about the earth hanging on nothing the popular idea of the day was that the earth was supported on the back of two elephants standing on a turtle or that a man named atlas was holding the earth on his shoulders or that in vs 10 it describes the circle of the earth centuries beore that was discovered people thought the earth was flat and if you sailed far enough you would fall off it was not untill 1492 that columbus sailed to the new world and didnt fall off the event horizon that they began to think differently then there is the dietary laws on disease mgt centuries before the invention of the microscope and I could go on gor weeks but i think you get the point hope this helps always available to answer scriptural questions Gorbalizer

Answer 5

You don't sound stupid to me. I hope I can give you an answer that likewise does not sound stupid and that can help on your journey to what you believe. And don't assume that you missed something. A lot of organized studies and institutions who follow the Bible simply assume that it is true. They never give people the information they need to know that it is true.

First of all, I accept the Bible on faith. I believe that it is the inspired word of God written down faithfully by men of God's choosing.

Secondly, I believe that the Bible is supported by historical data. What is written in the Bible has been confirmed historically.

Thirdly, fulfilled prophecy. What the Bible predicted to come true did time after time, and what has not yet been fulfilled, will be.

Fourth, I have prayed about the Bible and have been given answers. I have not heard a voice that has said 'this is true.' But, I have, in ways that I have difficulty explaining, felt or sensed or otherwise known that I have been answered by God.

Pray about the Bible, study it, and see what you come up with. I have no doubt that if you open mindedly study and consider the Bible, and open your heart to God, the truth of God's word will be proclaimed to you in such a way that you will have no doubt.

God bless you

Answer 6

The Bible is a book -- written by men trying to find a way to make people behave in certain ways. It holds "truths" for some people, and for others, it is just another piece of fiction. Other "sacred" books were also written for similar reasons. These stories started first orally, by telling stories, before they were finally written down -- if a group of ten people are told the same story all at the same time, and then asked to write it -- what happens? You might get 10 different stories.

As well, a lot of these religions were creating their stories around the same time -- which is why you see glimmers of one religion in another.

People want to believe in something -- and that's their right -- but to tell other people that they are wrong if they don't believe "Their Truth" (the Bible..... or whatever sacred book is being promoted) is not. Don't feel bad for thinking. That is how one learns. It doesn't mean you have to lose your faith -- it just means that you are intelligent and are searching for answers. That's a good thing.

Daniel Quinn's "Ishmael," "The Story of B," and "My Ishmael" alll look deeply at the history of religious and societal beliefs, and they are boarded around story... if you are curious, or want to know more, you might want to search them out -- they are good just for the story -- but also for the historical context.

Answer 7

The main reason modern people can have faith in the authenticity of the Bible is the huge number of Bible prophecies which have already been fulfilled to the letter, in Jesus Christ.

All of the good and major figures in the Old Testament prefigure Jesus Christ in some way.

The Old Testament prophets, particularly Isaiah, describe Jesus Christ accurately, and explain from which blood line he will come, the town in which he'll be born, the historical date of his birth, that he would be born of a virgin, that he would be a great prophet like Moses, that one like Elijah would precede him, that he would be rejected by his own people, that he would be pierced for our transgressions, that he would be crucified and rise again from the dead, and much, much more.

Many of these prophecies were written 500 to 1000 years before Jesus walked the earth, yet all (over 200) were fulfilled to the letter in Christ, many in a period of just a few days.

No book written by humans could accomplish this. No human seer could foresee all of the various people and events.

Such exquisite timing and accuracy is a sure sign of the hand of God.

This, plus the other things that God has revealed through his son, through the apostles, and through his church, provide us with all the evidence we need to say "Amen" to the truly God-inspired nature of the Holy Bible.

Answer 8

1st of all, it is a valid and meaningful question that many of the brightest minds of humanity have asked, and 2nd, don't listen to the negative stuff that people say, here or elsewhere, only the positive.
About the question, your teacher should have made it clear that the Bible is part of the Catholic and the larger Christian tradition, which means that it has been passed down through the generations of Catholics and other Christians, starting from the writers of the Bible themselves.
Catholicism also teaches that the same force that created the Bible, albeit through humans, enables us to know that the Bible is the work of God through the apostles, if only we have the faith.
That force is the Holy Spirit, the "Divine Inspiration" of the writers of the Bible.

Just skimming through the other answers here, Nick of Tyme's article explains it best.

Answer 9

Unlike the Beowulf you mention, the Bible, be it may be written by just wise men people, Isa, Psa, Mark Luke john, all written by individuals, yes, but there is ONE DIFFERENCE it was written over a very long period of time, and the underlying spiritual context and content are the same throughout all the ages. There is a golden thread which weaves it way throughout all human commentary and it stills come through thousands of years later with the message of God as Love.

You question is a great question. You must understand, that in the Catholic religion you take the Bible as the absolute word, we in other religions take the "inspired WORD of the Bible, therefore we can accept that there will be human flaws in it, and throughout it and still gleam God's divine message to mankind and ourselves.

Answer 10

Ok let me take a stab at this. The old testament has been used in the Jewish religion as the word of God for centuries. The books were written by prophets of God. The new testament was written by followers of Jesus. Also there are historical writings that mention some of the people in the bible such as the writings of Josephus. He was the historian during the time of Jesus. Granted Jesus is only a passing mention in his history but he wrote a lot about john the baptist. I found a lot of his writing on line but it will take me a year to read all of it probably just like it took me a year to read the bible.