Reading the Bible while Anglican
Dr Meg Warner, Principal
Like a number of those who have written for this month’s Messenger, no doubt, I have recently returned from the meeting of General Synod held in Melbourne.
Happily, this most recent General Synod was a good deal calmer than some past Synods. Even so, there remains wariness and a degree of division between representatives from dioceses around the national church, because of the different viewpoints and approaches that they bring towards living their faith. Often at the root of this wariness and division are conflicting viewpoints about how one should, as an Anglican, read the Bible.
It is undoubtedly true that Anglicans across Australia read differently. And there is a range of views even about that. For some Anglicans, there is, and should be, just one approach to reading. Central to this approach are twin convictions that the Scriptures are the Word of God, and that God’s Word speaks with a clear voice that is accessible to all who read and hear.
For other Anglicans, it is acceptable, and even ideal, for Christians to read the Scriptures with a variety of approaches. Central to this set of convictions are understandings that both the Scriptures, and the act of reading them, are contextual. Our Scriptures, while being the Word of God, were physically written at certain times and places, and developing understanding around those times and places can help to deepen our engagement. At the same time, we as readers are so shaped by our contexts that we will inevitably approach the Scriptures from out of our own experience, and appreciation of this, too, can deepen our engagement, and help us to hear what God is saying to us in the place where we are.
This kind of contextual understanding can also open us up to the challenge of hearing when the Scriptures are speaking with multiple voices, that seem to be different from, or even contradictory towards, one another.
Have you ever found yourself thinking about how best to read your Bible? Perhaps you have found yourself disagreeing with Anglican friends, and would like to know why you see things differently. Perhaps you feel that you are not as confident finding your way around the Bible as you think you should be. Perhaps you would like to take a first step in a journey towards better understanding of your faith.
If any one of those things is true, you could consider coming to Wollaston for the day on Thursday 1 October for ‘Bible 101’. This is a day designed to be an absolute first step in thinking about structured or academic approaches to reading your Bible. No prior expertise is required. See the advertisement in the Messenger, or on Wollaston’s website.
If a day at Wollaston is too much, you might like instead to read what a group of highly experienced Anglican Bible Readers from the Church of England have to say about different approaches to reading the Bible. Chapter Thirteen of the Church of England publication Living in Love and Faith offers a terrific introduction to the differing ways in which we read our Bibles around the Anglican Communion. You can access this book online for free at www.churchofengland.org/resources/living-in-love-and-faith/living-love-and-faith-book.
Happy Reading.
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