Loading ...“Bible Not God’s Word, says bishop…”
flockwoodAs I was researching Episcopal views on the Bible, I stumbled upon a headline from the New York Times. It stated “Bible Not God’s Word, Says Bishop Williams.”
A sub-headline said: “Teaching that It is the Word of God Harms the Church, He Declares.”
Here’s the lead: “Attacking the infallibility of the Bible and arraigning those who believe every word printed between its covers, Bishop Charles Williams of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan surprised 500 members of the Young Men’s Christian Association at a mass meeting this afternoon.”
The thing that grabbed my attention, more than the headline, was the date: Sep. 30, 1906.
Debates over scriptural authority were raging 100 years ago. They continue in the church today. But Bishop Williams’ position, heresy in an earlier era, is gaining followers, especially in the Episcopal Church, if polls are to be believed.
The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life asked 474 Episcopalians for their views of the Bible. According to the survey, released in June, 44 percent said the Bible is “not the word of God.”
There are few fundamentalists in the Episcopal Church. Unlike, for example, the Assemblies of God, the Episcopal Church does not declare that the Bible is infallible, free of error from cover to cover. It does, however, require its bishops to take the following oath:
“In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, I, [insert name here] chosen Bishop of the Church in [insert diocese here], solemnly declare that I do believe the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the Word of God, and to contain all things necessary to salvation…”
Bishops are given great freedom to interpret those Scriptures, and to decide (in large measure) which of the Biblical teachings are “necessary to salvation” and which are not. However, the creeds and the prayer book provide guidance and, perhaps, boundaries.
Once again, bishops have great freedom to interpret the meaning of those creeds and covenants, but they cannot reject them altogether, I was told by church leaders I interviewed this week.
The most famous creeds, statements of faith embraced by Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican and many other Protestant churches are the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed.
The Apostle’s Creed, which is included in the Episcopal Church’s baptismal vows, states:
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
April 17th, 2009 at 11:50 am
The Episcopal Church, unlike most churches, is not a church that is largely held together by belief in common ideas. Rather, it is held together by a belief in a common goal — feeding God’s sheep — and a common form of worship through the Book of Common Prayer. Notice that we have a book of common prayer, but not a book of common beliefs. Our church, as I’ve so often said, is a church with a lot of room in it. Our theology does not require a belief in the infallibility of scripture, because we believe that our bishops are, as Frank says, successors to the Apostles. Just as the bishops of the early church chose the books of the New Testament and determined their theological import, bishops today have the same authority.
Frank is correct that Episcopal texts, including the prayer book, are full of references to traditional Christian terminology. The prayer book includes many of the traditional church creeds, and at our communion services, we always recite one of the creeds, generally the Apostles’ Creed, which I, like most Episcopalians, can recite from memory during the service. However, the central tenet of Episcopal theology is that no person is required to profess belief in anything that he or she does not honestly believe. Therefore, in a peculiarly Episcopal manner, we see no inconsistency in reciting these creeds with the understanding that while we may quibble with the details, we are generally in step with the process. And, Bro. Genpo is correct that theology is a process. Most Christians today would be startled by some of the beliefs of early Christians, and I suspect that none of us believes precisely what they believed. The Episcopal Church attempts to marry the traditions of the early church, reflected in our worship, with modern ideas.
April 17th, 2009 at 6:33 pm
It makes little sense to debate whether the Bible is “God’s Word” without agreeing on what that term even means. Can one affirm that the scriptures are a divine gift that reveal truths about God, and yet admit that they are marked with the fingerprints and flaws of human writers? I might say yes, but fundamentalists would strenuously argue otherwise.
I also learned the Apostle’s Creed by heart at an early age, but until now never thought about the fact that it mentions nothing about scripture.
April 18th, 2009 at 12:16 am
“We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.”
-9th Article of Faith
In the end, the scriptures never can be “complete” or have the entire knowledge of God the Father. To think so, in my humble opinion, is limiting what God can share with us. However, it is one thing to think that the Bible is not all there is; it is quite another to think that it is not “God’s word.” Is the Bible perfect? I would say not. Therefore, “we believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly…” and the most important part of the gospel is “…that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved…”
As I’ve said before, ad naseum to some I’m sure, that is the reason that the Bible shows us the correct pattern of how the Father and Son direct their kingdom on earth, but it does not, in and of itself, have power to “save” anyone, only unless one adheres to its principles the best they know how.
April 18th, 2009 at 11:36 am
Jose, your comment that the Apostles’ Creed has no mention of scripture in it reminded me that the creed that we regularly say in our “Rite Two” modern language communion service (with which I have made my peace; I am not a member of the Old Prayer Book Society) does recite that on the third day Christ “rose again in accordance with the scriptures;” this is, of course, the Nicene Creed, rather than the Apostles’ Creed, which as Frank notes, is generally said as part of the baptismal service. So, I stand corrected that the creed I know by heart is the Nicene, rather than the Apostles’, Creed.
April 19th, 2009 at 5:32 pm
Frank’s note about the vow taken by Episcopalian bishops led me to research what we do in The United Methodist Church.
Our Service of Ordination initiates a servant into the clergy order of Elder. It includes the following question:
“Are you persuaded that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments contain all things necessary for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ and are the unique and authoritative standard for the church’s faith and life?”
Newly elected bishops enter office through the Service of Consecration. First mthey are asked to reaffirm their vows of ordination, and then they are asked a series of questions specific to the episcopacy. One of their questions is:
“”Will you guard the faith, order, liturgy, doctrine, and discipline of the Church against all that is contrary to God’s Word?”
Interesting that the first question deals with scripture, but doesn’t call it the Word of God. And the second question mentions the Word of God, but doesn’t indicate whether it means scripture or something else!
As a side note, I was pleased to see that our Book of Discipline strongly recommends that a elder from another Christian community participate in the ordination service and in the laying on of hands. When a close relative of mine was ordained a few years ago the presiding UM bishop was joined by a bishop from one of the African-American Methodist denominations. It’s a wonderful reminder of our commitment to ecumenical concerns and Christian unity.
April 21st, 2009 at 6:55 am
Actually, the Christ rising “according to the scriptures” predates the Nicene creed and is found in ! Corinthians 15:3
April 22nd, 2009 at 5:01 am
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