is blog The Bible

How many times have you heard “This book will change your life”?  It might be a book about nutrition or exercise or relationships or investment.  It might be a book about an inspiring person who overcame impossible odds.  It might even be a novel, a fictional account of people so real that we can apply their lives to our own.

I am not sure if I have ever read such a book.  I have read a number of books and lurking in my conscious and subconscious mind are the accumulation of a bunch of lessons and ideas that have help shaped who I am.  But one single book?  

The Bible is often referred to as the single most influential book of all-time.  I have no idea.  When I googled influential books the top hit was for computer programmers.  Not much help there.  Anyway, I am going to decide (my blog, my rules) that the Bible is the most influential book.  But, even if we were able to determine that it was the most influential book on some kind of scientific poll, I wonder how many people have actually studied it or even read it.  That goes for believers as well as non-believers.   So with Easter fast approaching I am going to reread (after 20 years) the four gospels of the New Testament, but this time I will study them a bit more carefully and write about what I learn.

Before I begin, I am going to make a couple of rules for myself and anybody else that wants to participate.  I am assuming that many people believe the text without question and have been influenced in their belief either by family upbringing, church attendance, or a spiritual insight.  I am not going to question that.  At the same time, I approach the book as a total non-believer so obviously I, too, will have a bias.  I will try to rein that in.  While I will question the believability of certain passages, my main intent is to see what we can learn from reading this book.   

So, rule one:  Keep an open mind.  Rule two:  discuss the book and its topics while trying to avoid an attack on another’s point of view.  

Just for the record, I am using a paperback version called Good News, New Testament which is a more modern translation of the Bible. I am not sure if it is the best text available, but I got it for $2 at the Salvation Army (they offered it for free but I insisted).  It has line drawings, various headings, a decent font size, and more familiar language all of which makes it easier to read.

I will start tomorrow.