Bridge of Reason

  I have recently, for teaching purposes, been drawing on the familiar Reasoning From the Scriptures book. The idea is a simple one, not especially novel, and other groups have something similar. The title comes from Acts 17:2,3, 'According to Paul's custom he went inside to them, and...he reasoned with them from the Scriptures.' The thinking is they follow the example of Jesus and his apostles. 'In answer to questions, Jesus quoted scriptures and at times used appropriate illustrations...' So, a sort of doorstep systematic theology then. They go on: 'Instead of providing a broad, general coverage of each subject, Reasoning From the Scriptures focuses primary attention on questions that are currently being asked by many people.' Note those words, ’currently being asked by many people.’ I have stepped back and taken an overview of the book, from A to W (notably, there is no Z for Zion) and asked myself, have they achieved what they set out to do? What ...

  In our latest Watch Tower Wednesday on the Facebook page we saw the Watch Tower Society teaches , 'The New World Translation is based on up-to-date scholarly research and the most reliable ancient manuscripts. 'Unlike paraphrased translations, the New World Translation renders words literally as long as doing so does not result in awkward wording or hide the thought of the original writings. Translations that paraphrase the Bible’s original text may insert human opinions or omit important details.' This is a big issue with Jehovah's Witnesses, who confidently believe they are bringing the very best translation today to our homes. How would you respond to such claims? Is the NWT superior to other translations? On the Facebook page Bavesh Roger observed , ‘... the NWT actually paraphrases words to fit their teachings. For example, Dr. Bowman correctly points out the paraphrasing of the Greek word " pneuma " in the NWT which has been paraphrased as ...

Bible translations abound in our day and age, along with thematic Bibles for men, for women, for teenagers, children, parents, for armchair archaeologists and coffee shop philosophers, for people 'who really want to go on with God,' to those special Christians among us who seem to have God sitting on their shoulder and chatting away all the live-long day. The list seems endless and as long as there is a niche market and money to be made they'll keep coming I imagine. Then there are the paraphrase Bibles, useful in their way, but surely not for the pulpit (but oh, we've seen it done). It is hard to get people to understand that they are supposed to come to the Bible, not the other way around. They are meant to sit under the teaching of the Bible, the Bible is not meant to bend itself out of shape to suit their preferences or play to their ignorance. Any good Bible translation will speak to your heart and there is no need for your Bible to talk down to you. The P...

In his Theological Word Book of the Bible (an essential on every Bible scholar’s shelf) Alan Richardson points out: ‘The knowledge of God is not reached by abstract speculation as in Gk. philosophy, but in the actual everyday business of living, or social relationships and of current historical events. God is not known by thinking out ideas about him, but by seeking and doing his will as made known to us by prophetic men and by our own consciousness of right and wrong. (cf. John 7:17 , James.1:27, 1 John 4:7 .,f 12)’ He cites in particular Jeremiah 22:15-16 , ”Did not your father eat and drink and do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Is not this to know me?’ declares the LORD.” The error upon error of the Watchtower Society is mainly the product of their having sought God in books. This arises from the laudable 19th century preoccupation with universal education and the peculiarly American preo...

The official Bible of the Mormon Church is the Authorised Version or, as it is known in America, the King James Bible, or Version (KJV). Its not so much that Mormons are 'King James Only' exponents, as that this was the Bible in whose style Joseph Smith wrote the Book of Mormon. This being the case, it is the continued use of the KJV that lends some authenticity to the Book of Mormon, the latter sounding like the former and, therefore, seeming a continuation of it. Put the Book of Mormon next to a modern translation, even one as conservative as the New American Standard, and Smith's magnus opus loses something of its gloss. See for yourself. Here is a familiar text from Matthew's gospel as it appears in the Book of Mormon (yes, God himself was plagiarised by Smith):

A few years ago a friend of mine gave me an ornament he had made in the shape of the name of God. It must have been about eight inches long, three inches high and perhaps half an inch deep.The idea was that it should sit on the mantle piece, ready for when Jehovah’s Witnesses visit, in the hope that it would be the first thing they would spot on entering our sitting room. What a conversation starter! How could they now claim that we do not know or use “the Name”? Well, it worked – after a fashion. The Witnesses calling on me that summer were charming people and we got along just fine. One of them was intrigued by the name of God sitting above the fire, and we discussed its origins and purpose. I explained that it served as a reminder of the God we serve and as a witness to the fact that we know Him by name. His wonder at the idea that I, a “born-again” Christian, should both know and use the name of God turned to astonishment when, saying that I knew how precious it might be to him, ...