Why shouldn't you place blind faith in your human clergy and their interpretation of the bible?

Question

Someone asked a good question but removed it as I clicked sumbit:

This is easy. Blind faith is not required. The faith of children is not blind but pure from all those distractions. The only "blind" is the you can't actually see God nor were you around when Jesus walked the earth.

The blind faith that church preaches is submission to the authority of the clergy which is cow-poop to me.

Now don't get me wrong, we all have roles to play, such as pastors, teachers, etc. but all roles are equal.

You are also correct in that there are a lot of translational errors at times. Some deliberate and some not.

The King James bible for instance was translated from an erroneous source, but it was the best they had at the time. Modern translations have better sources to work from. Another thing about KJV and others is that they are translated according to doctrine.

So those who believe in hell or the trinity will pick up translations like the bible because the words chosen in the translations matches the doctrine. Also it adds, quite deliberately, a verse about the trinity.

So you correct. Do not blindly follow the words in the bible as it is taught from another. Read it, pray, and let God's Holy Spirit guide you. You'll find that most of the time there are others who are doing the same as you (me for example) and you can compare notes.

If you like doing a little digging you can read about the council of nicea. That will explain why the bible is what it is in it's current form and where some of the traditions/doctrines/etc. come from.

I'm not saying that preachers and teachers don't know anything, but you seriously need to study the word on your own so you won't be fooled.

This is intended for christians and in general anyone who has faith in a supreme being that has an established organization.

The original question was by a christian.

Answer 1

You're absolutely right. We need to put our faith in God and He will send the Holy Spirit to guide us. God would not have given us the capacity to think and reason if He did not want us to use it. There are tons of books on the Bible and lots of websites and all the history of how the Bible was put together is there if you take the time to search for it. For me, something as important as the eternity of my soul is worth the extra effort to study instead of just blindly following another human's interpretation.

Answer 2

I totally agree with you. You should place your total faith in God but not your clergy. They are human and err. Every Christian is promised the Holy Spirit to guide them into all truths. Teachers are nice but our bottom line teachings should be done by our own studies and not just blindly believing another Christian. You're right, too, about the King James Bible. It isn't the most accurate translation but it was the best they could do at the time. Sometimes things pop out at me when I read the KJV more so than the other versions. It seems God blesses me sometimes with some really great insight through that version.

Answer 3

This is why John 14:12 is not a reality today and why II Tim 3:1-5 is.

Act 17:11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

Receive it gladly, but check it out.

You are absolutely right regarding translations too. Even the translations that are from better sources are translated according to doctrine.

Answer 4

The Christian church was initially controlled by the Late Roman Empire, and many things have been supported to furbish the power of authorities (including the burning to death of children and scholars during the Inquisition). You are right to be skeptical.

But I suggest taking this openess further. Unless indoctrinated with their parents, children do not believe in any god, much less a god with specific names. If you are like most people, you will stop reading here because my questions are uncomfortable. How do you know that a god exists (aside from personal feelings), and that all religions weren't made to control people in the way that clergy and reformers (including Martin Luther) originally controlled their followers? Not all faiths have such a violent history as Christianity (look up Buddhism and Shinto).

And seeing that faith is not based on evidence (nothing to distinguish one person's "faith" from another), how is faith not blind by definition?

Asking the hard questions gets you everywhere. But feel free to dodge, as so many others have done.

Answer 5

No,we should not place blind faith in Pastors,Teachers,Prophets etc....Our faith is in the Word of God,alone..This does not mean that we are not to be in subjection to the governing authority,that God has soverienly placed over us in the local church..We should also be in submission one to another,as members of the Body of Christ,for correction and encouragement.

"Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and EXAMINED the SCRIPTURES every day to see if what PAUL said was TRUE."
(Acts 17:11)

Answer 6

No, you should not follow blindly any religion, but first understand that Jesus died for your sins and if you are born again the Holy Spirit will enter into your heart and teach you and give you understanding the thing of God, but there is an old path like Jeremiah 6:16 "This is what the LORD says:
"Stand at the crossroads and look;
ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it,
and you will find rest for your souls."

Answer 7

I pounded out an answer as well, only to find Georgia shut it down.
I agree with you on some of what you've said.
The only time to use blind faith is when there's something you do not understand. I'll believe it is true, knowing that eventually the understanding will come. Put another way, I know that my understanding does not make something true or not.
Prove all things, right?

Answer 8

This is also beneficial for the pastor/guru/shaykh/whatever. When there is a standard of conduct and an environment where they are questioned and held accountable, that religious leader is going to be more transparent and honest and is far less likely to convince him/herself that they hold the One Truth.

Answer 9

same thing happened to me, I still wonder why she erased it, it was a good question. I have found that even tho there is much contradiction with the bibles, and religions for that matter, it is up to each individual to find their own truth. Take the truth of everyone you hear, and everything you read and find your own truth, use your own intuition, not someone elses.

Answer 10

The original KJV of the Bible is in fact the closest translation to the original texts. Check out Rev 11 and you will see that scripture predicted its creation in 1611 - 1260 years after papal decree to supress the Word from the common man. Love in Christ, ~J~