How can the Bible be the word of God?

Question

How can it be taken literally when the Council of Nicaea in 325 chose what texts would be used so as to create a uniform religion (and no, this isn't just a 'Dan Brown theory' but a historically documented event)? Also as it contains many major inconsistences as well as claiming the world is nowhere near as old as it actually is?

A note to all those saying it sounds like I haven't read the bible, you are mistaken. I have read it several times. It is a good yarn.

Answer 1

Simple: The bible is a reflection of early culture, psychology of desert people and government maneuvering in the Late Roman Empire.

The universe is much larger than the original authors suspected. I might be convinced by a book that was fourteen billion years old, filled with lots of information about the universe and never inconsistent. But seeing as religions are products of human beings, that's not going to happen.

Answer 2

You are right, the council of Nicaea decided what to keep and what to throw out. I don't believe you can take the Bible literally. I am also a strong Christian. It has inconsistencies, and mistakes because it was written by men, inspired by God, but still written by men. This is why I study the Bible, to find the truth within the text.

I don't believe any Christian, or anyone for that matter, should be a blind sheep following wherever the crowd takes them. Whatever you believe is right, as long as it gives you peace and you are okay with it at the moment of death (oh, and your belief was not harming others).

After intense reading and soul searching I think it all comes down to how you treated others. You are not self-serving and it all falls into place. For me, when I am trying to save an ill foster kitten, I am praying. And when I am comforting an upset student, I am praying then too. So the Bible is just a small part of the whole.

Answer 3

Again, "You do err, not knowing the scriptures."

The Bible doesn't claim to be the Word of God. Jesus is called the Word of God in John 1. People, especially in the Old Testament, are said to have received the Word of God.

The Bible contains portions of the Word of God. There are passages in the Bible that specifically aren't from God (read 1 Corinthians 7) and others scattered all over the Old Testament that talk about the Word of God coming to some prophet, and those words aren't recorded in our Bible. So there are "words of God" that aren't in the Bible.

So you're right that the Bible isn't technically the "word of God" but that's no surprise to those of us who study it.

With respect to inconsistencies that it contains, you didn't cite any so I can't reply to anything specifically, but there are fewer inconsistencies and inaccuracies in the Bible than are commonly believed. Again, if you don't really study it for yourself but just read what others say, you wouldn't know this.

On the other hand, the Bible never claims to be infallible, so your argument that it might be fallible doesn't really contradict the Bible.

As to whether or not the Bible can be taken literally, why would you not treat it like any other book? When we read a book we interpret some books as literal history, others as fiction, some as allegory, and some as pure fantasy. Do the same thing when reading the Bible. If it is claiming to report history, then interpret it literally. If Jesus is telling a parable, interpret it figuratively. Etc.

The fact that the compilation of books that make up the Bible was determined by the Council of Nicea has no impact on whether or not we should read literal portions of the Bible literally.

The Bible doesn't say how old the world is, nor can it be clearly determined by doing things like backtracking through genealogies. So you can't say the Bible claims the world is nowhere as old as it actually is (neither has science settled in on a number... the world has gotten billions of years older over the last 40 years).

Answer 4

I think that though there is more to the story of the Bible than what we have now, that does not void out the books that were allowed into the text we have. I also know that some professors are teaching more theory than fact in class these days however you must know how to distinguish opinion or story vr's fact. It does notsound like you have read the Bible before but most people haven't. Once you read it for yourself you get your own experience from it and I think most get something other than traditional christian ideas from it. The Bible is a conbination of life stories historical events proven to be real with the latest rersearch done by historians. I think you should look into these idea of yurs in more depth if you really care about this debate. Truth will come to you if you are ready or not...

Answer 5

According to "GotQuestions.org"...

Constantine (and the Council of Nicea, for that matter) had virtually nothing to do with the forming of the canon [the Bible as it exists today]. It was not even discussed at Nicea. The council that formed an undisputed decision on the canon took place at Carthage in 397 (60 years after Constantine's death). However, long before Constantine, 21 books were acknowledged by all Christians (the 4 Gospels, Acts, 13 Paul, 1 Peter, 1 John, Revelation). There were 10 disputed books (Hebrews, James, 2 Peter, 2-3 John, Jude, Ps-Barnabas, Hermas, Didache, Gospel of Hebrews) and several that most all considered heretical (Gospels of Peter, Thomas, Matthaias, Acts of Andrew, John, etc.)

Now... as to the question, WHO determined what the canon should be... refer to the first site below.

As to how the Bible can truly be God's word, refer to the second citation below.

This website is great for this sort of research.... very scholarly. I do hope you are ACTUALLY INTERESTED in finding out the answers to these questions and not simply using your question to attack Christianity. Thanks for your interest and hope these sites will help.

Answer 6

An external God is an imaginary friend for adults and another boogey man for children."In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In the word was life; and the life was the light of men." We live in a story God created to pass eternity. God is a fantasy writer! As characters in God's story we are part of god in a holographic way where each part contains the whole because the whole contains each part. Why do bad things happen to good people? It advances the plot. Why does science make new discoveries all the time? To fill in the holes in the internal logic of the story. Time? Just a way to keep the "pages" in order.

Ewige Blumenkraft!

Answer 7

Thank you . Yes the Gospel of the nazirenes is the Original New Testament. I encourage all sincere seekers of truth to read it. Google gospelofthenazirenes.com And the Bhagavad Gita as it is By Bhaktivedanta Prabhuada- totally astounding. You see there is a pocket dictionary and a full sized. The Vedas would be considered Full sized. Meaning it has way more information about God than any other scripture. But you have to read the pure translation How do we know it is pure. Because it is in a pure disciplic lineage passed down all the way fro lord Krishna Himself. That is how He says it must be taken. Not translated by mundane scholars. It must be done by a saint in the succession. to read on line srimadbhagavatam.org/... totally enlivening and enlightening.

Answer 8

Even your smart council isn't above God . God rules everything . He can manipulate and arrange things exactly the way He wants them. He had men write in the bible , through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in them , just what He wanted in there and that is why it is the Word of God. It lives and it is unlike any other book ever written. If you would have the Holy Spirit living on the inside of you , you would know ,what I am talking about.

Answer 9

the bible should not be treated as a literal documentation of history. it is a collection of early Jewish laws, literature like poetry, sayings, prophecy, songs. it is also a collection of accounts and narratives by the first church. to the Christians, it is God's word because it documents the origin of monotheism. it advocates that god created man and there is only one god. The nicean council just institutionalise the faith to maintain power and control but failed to anticipate that there will come a time a systematic and scientific approach on interpreting the bible will be invented by man himself.

Answer 10

The bible can be the word of God by being the word of God. If you don't believe it is then study it in view of today's events. Study the old testament in the light of the new testament. Find out for yourself. Accept the challenge. Don't just sit there and talk about inconsistencies and councils. Prove it to yourself.