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Thankfully, there is a lot of love and, as the Bible says,
love covers a multitude of sins (I Peter 4:8).
There has been reconciliation between the family members and all is well
but there are delicate and hurt feelings on all sides. I suggested to this person that she might
want to read the Bible for herself. So few
Christians do, after all. Rob and his
mother were oblivious to what translation of the Bible they read and both were
raised in the church. I’ve had many
Christian friends who have never successfully read through the Bible although
most claim they have tried. Tried and
failed because it’s too hard and some of the parts of the Bible are so boring.
So this person and I will be reading through the Bible,
cover-to-cover, in 90 days, give or take.
I say “give or take” because we’re allowing a little space to maybe read
it in four or five months rather than three but I had reasons for wanting to do
it in less, rather than more, time.
One, there are parts of the Bible that are tedious to read
even when you believe each and every word is a direct inspiration from
God. But when you do not believe this or
hold any skepticism about this, these sections become unbearable. Faith in what you are reading can be a strong
enough reason “why” to keep you reading when you are suffering through these
sections. Where there is no faith,
however, it becomes easier to bog down in “Why am I doing this again?”
Two, reading quickly allows for making connections where
none would have been made otherwise. If
you read something in January and then, in October, read something else, you
may not remember what you read in January well enough to make the synaptic
connections that come with critical and intelligent thinking. However, when you are reading only through
March (or April), it is easier to remember that bit you read in January and the
recollection can be better related with the more recent reading.
Three, I’ve read through the Bible in three months’ time
before and I was not aware that now it is “a thing” complete with special Bibles and programs in churches and . . . well, you know, it apparently is oh
so trendy. That isn’t really the reason for
me to suggest it, however. Frankly,
having done it before, I remember really enjoying the experience. Also, I don’t really want to spend an entire
year reading the Bible. When another person
I knew and I decided to study Catholicism, I read through a Catholic Bible in
six months’ time and that was mostly because I was 1) doing it with her and I
loved her enough to read the Bible again and 2) I was curious about Catholicism
in general and wanted to read the “Apochryphal” books. It was an interesting experience but it didn’t
result in my eagerly picking up the Bible again when I was done.
My hope in reading the Bible this time is to help someone
for whom I care a great deal to come to terms with a few things about her own
faith (or lack thereof) and her family’s beliefs. Perhaps she can see how expressions of faith,
made by sincere believers, are meant to be a mitzvah, a blessing, a gift. After all, sharing something you love with
someone you love should be considered an act of love.
Feeling safe is important and, for this person, reading the
Bible with her family members wouldn’t be an option because they would feel
compelled to help her “see the light” and read the Bible the same way as they,
believing as they do and interpreting it through their faith rather than having
an openness for discovery beyond doctrine and familiar teachings.
Not that she is completely oblivious of church teachings
because her family sent her to a Christian school and her step-father
occasionally preaches. They are
Methodist and I am not. We won’t be
studying the text. We won’t even be
interpreting the text. The purpose is to
just read it, to become familiar with it. If she wants to take it deeper, we can always
do that later but, for now, a quick read through is all either of us is
interested in doing.
As for the translation, the family’s church officially uses
the Revised Standard but I recommended the New International which I feel is
easier to not only understand but to appreciate. And that is all she wants to do, to break
through the feeling that she’s having other people’s faith shoved down her
throat. If I can help her build some
bridges, that would be an honor for me.
And who knows? Maybe
by the time we finish reading the Bible everyone involved will figure out how
to use the filter and mute features in facebook because a lot of this drama could easily be avoided if everyone showed a little compassion and
consideration. But that's how I interpret the Golden Rule. Treat others as you would be treated. Sometimes this means saying nothing. Sometimes this means speaking out. Never does it suggest that you should say what you want to say, knowing that the other person not only does not want to hear it but does not need to hear it. And therein lies the problem because sometimes people think they know what someone else needs and feel justified in doing what they do. But I'll write more about that in another post, I'm sure.
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