LEVELS OF UNDERSTANDING THE BIBLE, CONT.

Each book of the Bible may be understood in various ways. Each book of the Bible may be understood on various levels as well, such as, childhood stories and lessons(Sunday school,etc.); adulthood and Old Age. Certainly if one has devoted much of his entire life to a stu;dy and reading of the Bible in an intelligent way or manner, as objectively as possible and/or as personally as possible independently of any 'official' doctrine,creed, beliefe, or sect or church, upon reaching the 'senior' level, that is 'old age' etc. the conclusions and isnihts may be quite different than when one first started out ofn the PATH OF BIBLE READING! which is apt to be most sporadic for most people who even attempt such-most people are too lazy to do this and allow or prefeer others to 'spoon-feed' the BIBLE to them! in small doses, like 'bitter medicine' or teaspoons of honey or syrup and so are manipulated by various preachers, ministers, priests, monks, rabbis, sects,factions, and 'believers' in various ways and for various reasons/purposes-all of which promise such things as : 'salvation' 'life after death', 'life in Heaven or Paradise' or 'resurrection', etc.

THE SEVEN LEVELS OF UNDERSTANDING THE BIBLE

There are several levels of understanding the Bible, starting with the first one, which is the literal reading of the Bible,sometimes done Chapter by Chapter or Verse by Verse, and seldom done by single BOOK. Moreover, there is the 'pick and choose' method of BIBLE READING, much like Sunday School or Church Service routines. Some persons attempt to read a single verse on a daily basis as both a means of obtaining inspiration as well as comfort and some understanding, sometimes on which to model their individual behaviours, which attempts generally fail for a great number of reasons. I will not mention in this topic section the other levels at which the BIBLE can be understood and studied but will cover them in future topics.

LEVELS OF BIBLE UNDERSTANDING & READING

Nearly everyone will agree that the BIBLE, which is a collection of various writings now largely considered by most as being ONE BOOK,can be read on a completely LITERAL LEVEL OF UNDERSTANDING, that is, word for word, in whatever language can read and understand,etc. along with this level there is also the assumption and consideration that the LITERAL LEVEL OR FUNDAMENTAL WORDING OF THE BIBLE IS GOD'S WORD. This has led to various persons and groups, sects, cults, and religions to take extreme positions and stances in this regard, demanding usually, that no deviation from the written text be allowed and that such is not open to alternative interpretations or understandings,etc. Thus, a rigid conception of BIBLICAL SCRIPTURE has been followed by many and so their understanding is also limited.

THE BIBLE IN MY PERSONAL LIFE

The BIBLE was and is one of the important books in my life and remains a source of certain inspiration and reference to this day. I encountered the Bible first through Bible stories mostly from a book my late cousin, Becky, had on the farm when we all lived in Cornish and that book had many 'classical' pictures of Biblical scenes,probably by Italian artists,etc. The stories of King David appealed to me as did a few others, like the Great Flood,etc. People also talked more about the Bible than is done nowadays and most were far more familiar with it than is easy to describe for many reasons. I started reading the actual Bible when i was around six or seven. My Welch Uncle by marriage, who was also a Mason and a Shriner, had a 'Masonic Bible' which to me did not seem any different than any other Bible except that it had the Masonic Emblem on the title page if I recall correctly. TWO BOOKS interested me more than the others: GENESIS & REVELATIONS and for a while I was expounding the 'end of the world', the 'end of the earth' and a lot of the things contained in the last book in the CANON. This led to discussion with classmates at that age and since we all went to the same Sunday School, seemed not out of the ordinary. Since that early time, I have examined many things concerning the Bible, even taking a course in college entitled,THE BIBLE AS LITERATURE which many fundamentalists find fault with, disagree with, and consider somewhat nefarious or secular,etc. I will attempt to discuss certain things about the BIBLE as well as my experiences among 'Christian' of all sizes, shapes, doctrines, and practices. Part of my family was Protestant(father's side) and Catholic(on my mother's side). Consequently, I never really accepted either side of things as the ultimate truth or correct religion,etc. and have even tried to adopt a 'scientific',sometimes 'agnostic','atheistic' & materialistic' attitude or position or argument. In fact, I have had many interesting discussions with various religious advocates, ministers, believers,etc. and have questioned them wholeheartedly, sometimes to the point of keeping them off balance and so forth. More aon this another time.

THE BIBLE

The BIBLE is actually a collection of books that has had profound influence on mankind in various ways. Many consider it to be the literal word of GOD while others take less rigid and most differing approaches to its study, reading, use, and application(if any) to life and society. History is rich in aspects of BIBLICAL LORE and CONTROVERSY. The fascination with this book, which has its origins in the Middle East, continues to influence many, even those who do not believe it in, revile it, and attempt to deconstruct it in a number of ways, so it is hard to maintain both a sensible and appreciative attitude in considering any and probably all things contained that wonderful collection of books named THE BIBLE.