=-=-=-=-=-=- You and the Bible on a deserted Island-=-=-=-=-=-=-=?

Question

Imagine that there's a shipwreck, and ten survivors are washed ashore on a deserted island. All of them have complete amnesia, but they retain the ability to read. The only book they have is the Bible (let's say it's the NIV). For the next five years, they study the Bible and use it as the basis for a religion they develop (which they call "Biblianity"). How similar would their doctrines (and worship services) be to what we'd find in your own church among your Christian brothers and sisters?

Or, in the alternative, is it perhaps more likely that they'd spot the same contradictions, inconsistencies, and outright horrors that I did, and simply reject the Bible out of hand?

Answer 1

Monty Python says this far better than I could:

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Shoe follower: He has given us... his shoe!
Arthur: The shoe is the sign. Let us follow his example.
Spike: What?
Arthur: Let us, like him, hold up one shoe and let the other be upon our foot, for this is his sign, that all who follow him shall do likewise.
Eddie: Yes.
Shoe Follower: No, no, no. The shoe is...
Youth: No.
Shoe Follower: ...a sign that we must gather shoes together in abundance.
Girl: Cast off...
Spike: Aye. What?
Girl: ...the shoes! Follow the Gourd!
Shoe Follower: No! Let us gather shoes together!
Frank: Yes.
Shoe Follower: Let me!
Elsie: Oh, get off!
Youth: No, no! It is a sign that, like him, we must think not of the things of the body, but of the face and head!
Shoe Follower: Give me your shoe!
Youth: Get off!
Girl: Follow the Gourd! The Holy Gourd of Jerusalem!
Follower: The Gourd!
Harry: Hold up the sandal, as he has commanded us!
Arthur: It is a shoe! It is a shoe!
Harry: It's a sandal!
Arthur: No, it isn't!
Girl: Cast it away!
Arthur: Put it on!
Youth: And clear off!
Shoe Follower: Take the shoes and follow him!
Girl: Come,...
Frank: Yes!
Girl: ...all ye who call yourself Gourdenes!
Spike: Stop! Stop! Stop, I say! Stop! Let us-- let us pray. Yea, he cometh to us, like the seed to the grain... [realizes no-one is paying any attention to him, wanders off]

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Put short from that: I think 10 people reading the Bible would each take different things out of it and that when they realized those things conflicted, they wouldn't be able to get along, obviously, and would miss what real, good messages are contained within. I think it'd be a microcosm of today.

Answer 2

Very interesting scenario:

All of the current denominations of Christianity are predicated by theologians who have access to the original Hebrew, Greek, and Arabic of the source texts. If the founding members of a religion had only a NIV translation, and no prior knowledge of the Bible, and, presumably, there were no annotations, it would seem to be a very different religion indeed!

Without the cumulative prejudices of two thousand years of sectarian theology, the weight of certain books and passages over others would rely solely upon your hypothetical islanders' pre-existing moral priorities. Many formulaic precepts such as 'the five steps to become saved' would be very difficult to reconstruct!

In the 18th and 19th centuries, black slaves in America were slowly Christianised, and they often chose to emphasie the Old Testament, since they could relate more to the bondage of the Israelites than to the wry metaphysics of the Synoptic Gospels and Pauline epistles. To some extent this influence has persisted even into the modern AME and so-called 'Black Baptist' chuches.

I tend to think that islanders such as you describe would focus more on the very beginning and very end of the Bible, ie, the Garden of Eden, the Fall, and the Revelation of St John. The atmosphere would be ripe for an apocalyptic, survivalist cult! A charismatic leader would emerge from the group, who would further put his own spin on the Bible.

Thus, the period before theologians would begin appointing themselves as True Arbiters of the faith would be a very short one!

Answer 3

Each of the 10 would come up with their own interpretation. About half would reject it, and about half would believe it. The ones that believe it would be concerned about those that don't and would be constantly striking up attempts to convince the others why they should believe. The ones that don't believe might despair on being on a desert island, while the ones that do believe will actually be pretty content "knowing" that there is a master plan and that they "are going" to a better place.

Answer 4

They'd think it's a lovely novel, and quote from it from time to time at supper over the fish. They'd suggest the writer got the Nobel prize. The women would surreptitiously have a crush on the writer, while the men would debate on how much money he must have done.

Answer 5

in my personal opione, it might be a little different. you see, people have a different way of looking at certain things, if that one person who has the bible and knows how to read, but is an astheist, than what good will that do, he will not prech the good words of god, rather the devil. the same for churches even the same religion will tech it in somewhat of a different manner. so it feel that theire daily lives will be much different from the way that we teach tje bible, and base our lives upon it. they might start a new civilization, if the nver leave!

Answer 6

I would think they would do as history shows any group to do. Some would try to follow a literal sense of it, some would interpret to fit a more modern time-frame, and others would reject it and (most likely) try and take a practical approach to their situation. In the end you'd most likely find a handful at the 'bible altar' and most trying to kill something to chew on until they saw a plane.

Answer 7

I don't usually deal with "what ifs".

I am very sorry to hear about the misfortune you've experienced with the Bible and that you have rejected the Words of God, which can only be understood by those to whom God has given His Holy Spirit:

Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. - 1 Corinthians 2:13-15 kjv.

Answer 8

probably not because lots of the Christian Church today was built for a long long time with Lots and LOTS of people.

Also, Christianity doesn't have Bible sandwiches. I'm pretty sure Biblianity would. actually, they would probably reject the whole "don't kill" thing after they first became cannibals....

Answer 9

Catholics believe in the lesson's taught and what we think God thinks is right (a.k.a God didn't outwright say to buy things buy He did say to not steal) so we pick up those little hints while most protestents go by EXACTTLY what the bible says. No room for interperation.

Answer 10

Of course, it would be different, but they would be happy surviving off the land. Would they not? Instead of grieving for somebody to help them, they would be adapting. Coexisting. And maybe when they got rescued, it would set a fine example.