In Zen there is the idea of koan, which is a sort of riddle or paradox that has no definite logical meaning. The idea of a koan is to stop the "monkey mind" and drop you out of your normal way of thinking and put you into a different mode that can perceive and process information in a novel way, ultimately leading to enlightenment.
In many ways the entire Bible is a koan. It simultaneously makes no sense while also making perfect sense. It can be accepted in-whole and at face-value by faith alone or it can be nit-picked and torn apart by reason.
When I started my journey with the Bible, I came from a point of reason and thus the Bible made little sense. I saw the apparent contradictions and thought I was clever. I imagined the bronze age scribes as they wrote the words and thought why should I care about them or this?
But I persevered on my journey, not all at once. It took many years but as I came back to the Bible I started to see it from a different point of view. I saw the words, yes, but I also saw more. I saw the love of God in the words, and between the words, and in the pages, and in the bindings. I saw the Bible as an infinite journey, inexhaustible for the intelligent and simple alike.
Indeed, in many ways the Bible is easier for the simple. Our own intelligence is often our worst enemy.
So now when I read the Bible I simply read it, accepting it as it comes. I don't dissect the words. I don't run to my thesaurus and look for alternate meanings of words. Instead I listen to my heart. I ask myself, "how does this make me feel?" and I go from there.
In many ways the entire Bible is a koan. It simultaneously makes no sense while also making perfect sense. It can be accepted in-whole and at face-value by faith alone or it can be nit-picked and torn apart by reason.
When I started my journey with the Bible, I came from a point of reason and thus the Bible made little sense. I saw the apparent contradictions and thought I was clever. I imagined the bronze age scribes as they wrote the words and thought why should I care about them or this?
But I persevered on my journey, not all at once. It took many years but as I came back to the Bible I started to see it from a different point of view. I saw the words, yes, but I also saw more. I saw the love of God in the words, and between the words, and in the pages, and in the bindings. I saw the Bible as an infinite journey, inexhaustible for the intelligent and simple alike.
Indeed, in many ways the Bible is easier for the simple. Our own intelligence is often our worst enemy.
So now when I read the Bible I simply read it, accepting it as it comes. I don't dissect the words. I don't run to my thesaurus and look for alternate meanings of words. Instead I listen to my heart. I ask myself, "how does this make me feel?" and I go from there.