The glasses where we look through
How we read the Bible depends on our understanding. We can only see the world, and therefore the Bible, through the lens of our own experience.
The glasses we wear are, so to speak, the summary of various influences. One may desire to understand the Bible “correctly,” but we get in our own way with our experience and assumptions. It also doesn’t help to say that the Bible is “true” or that we are led by God’s Spirit. I agree with all of that, but it doesn’t make us infallible ourselves. We are still standing in our own way. Despite all divine support, our glasses remain “our” glasses.
The claim of some Christians to absoluteness about their own understanding is not only absurd and repulsive, but simply wrong. By this I do not mean that there is no unambiguous truth, but that our own understanding remains “fragmentary” (1 Cor. 13:12). The claim to absolute knowledge remains hidden in God, while we can only hold the secret of faith in a pure conscience (1 Timothy 3:9).
Is the Bible too complicated?
Undoubtedly, I too still project a lot into the text. Therefore, I try to avoid jumping to conclusions and always start from the context when reading the Bible. Many statements about the Bible must then be dropped immediately because the assumptions about the text are not supported by the context. Only when we have the courage to do so, we can let the statements of the Bible speak for themselves again. Only then does a process of differentiation begin, whereby we can – step by step – approach the text and the original message.
Some say the Bible is too complicated. Essentially, it’s about being too complicated ourselves. This is usually not a conscious decision. We carry around ideas and projections of theologies of many generations. Getting rid of these projections is the real challenge. We ourselves are the biggest hurdles to understanding. It is our internalized thoughts, values, ideas and beliefs that get in the way of an “unbiased” reading of the Bible. The Bible is not complicated – we are.
Expand your own horizons
Just as our understanding is guided quite logically by previous experiences and perspectives, so it takes new experiences and perspectives for us to think more independently. How do I come to new experiences and perspectives?
Some may throw away the Bible and Christianity, frustrated by previous experiences. However, there is another way. We just need to give other experiences and points of view a space to develop. By this I don’t mean that we have to approve of previous frustrations, but that we broaden our own horizons.
For example, if you are frustrated with previous doctrines, with your own beliefs, with some assumptions about God and the world, this does not mean that you have to throw the Bible, God or faith overboard. When I realize that my assumptions can no longer be so, or when I see that I no longer fit into other people’s beliefs, then it takes a reorientation.
At that point, I can give myself the freedom to read the Bible anew. Maybe I need to learn to read them with an open mind. This can be difficult. Perhaps it is painful because many Bible passages are tainted with painful or false experiences. Possibly I have internalized many ideas so deeply that it is difficult for me to leave them aside while reading.
It is this pain that shows me where the shoe sticks. If it is so troublesome to read the Bible without bias, it shows me that this is precisely what would be necessary.
Letting go of projections and replacing them with new impressions
If I become aware that I am carrying around countless projections, I can decide that something has to change. But what? Previous experiences and views led to a dead end.
I myself have found my way out of such intellectual and theological dead ends by taking a fresh look at the Bible. Just as I realized that my understanding is fragmented (and, of course, so is other people’s understanding), this realization gave me the courage to simply let the text speak for itself. Little by little I discovered that the Bible is not dogmatic, that people in the Bible are not uptight, that faith is not sectarian, and that the living God makes Himself felt and noticeable primarily through His own works (and not through my efforts and assumptions).
The Bible is not at all as it is often portrayed. It is not a law book. It is not dogmatics. The Bible is not a book that says (not once!) “Believe in Jesus or you are lost forever”. These are all projections that can be safely discarded. However, you have to discover it for yourself. Beliefs are often very deeply anchored. However, if you check, you can tell from your own and new experience. You gain new experiences and new perspectives. One gains independence from other people’s opinions.
It is a little like Jesus’ question to His disciples:
“But you, who do you say I am?”
Mt 16,15
Jesus asks for their very own assessment. You need to think for yourself. He seeks the personal answer, the personal understanding. It is of no use if I only reflect other people’s opinions. We should deal with it ourselves and come to our own answer.
