The Bible: A Book Full of Stories

Paul’s letters are written using the abstract thought of the Greek language which has strongly influenced Western culture. The Hebrew of the Old Testament is written in story. The theology of the Hebrew Bible and of Jesus is every bit as profound as that of Paul, but it is communicated in a very different way. The preface outlines the methodology, which approaches the source text in a way that ignores the influence of existing translations and interpretations. The result is that new light is thrown on the ancient texts, bringing to life a Jesus with emotion, compassion, love and anger, and respect for women. The readings from John’s gospel show a writer who subtly points to a Jesus whose teaching was being obscured by the developing hierarchy and patriarchy of the early church. The second part is of a more-demanding nature. It struggles with the apparent conflict between Christian doctrine and the rationality of the present age, and the contradiction inherent in the doctrine of the dual nature of Jesus Christ as both God and man. It comes to the conclusion that these conflicts lose significance if we read the Bible as story. There are footnotes giving sources for those wishing to read further.