This week I want to dedicate to the Secular Bible Club. That's right... there are people who still like that book long after it ceased to be "holy" for them. I owe a lot to this club. I owe a better understanding of a collection of ancient writings that seem to have transformed the world. It's why an atheist scholar by the name of Bart Erhman still does what he does. He finds value in helping others understand a library of books that has impacted our culture and our world. Josh Bowen gets excited by digging in the ancient dust as well. Brandon from Mindshift is almost through the Old Testament in his Secular Bible Study Series. His insights have been enlightening but have given me spiritual indigestion. Really! I thought Yahweh was supposed to be a good god? Not anymore. One of my favourite perspectives as of late have been the mythicists: Richard Carrier and David Fitzgerald. The offer a different view than Bart Ehrman does (who embraces a real historic Jesus). After listening to them, it's hard to write off their understanding of a mythical Jesus as easy as Bart Ehrman seems to do.
I have to be honest. The only thing that has kept me interested in the contents of the Bible, have been these men. That's right... last week was Courageous Women's Week... this week will be Insanely Smart Men's Week. I'm not saying that there aren't women who have dived into the Bible and found it lacking. One of the first people who introduced me to a lacking bible was Rachel Held Evans. As of late in the last few years and even the last few weeks, these men have helped me to be informed as to what the Bible could mean even for those who who have left Christianity.
I still have no interest in reading the Bible in my own personal space. There may be a lot of reasons for that, or there may be no reasons. Right now, I just don't want to. I have books galore by people that are a lot closer to my timeline in the cosmos that I want to read.
I will do what I can to be honest and "authentic" this week about who these men were to me and who they are now. My journey of appreciation changes and I still want to express my gratitude for the place they all had helping me along the way. They took me farther than any pastor or Christian apologist ever did.
Day 27: 2023 - "The Beginning of Spring"
Day 27: 2022 - "Had I only known"
