I have been struggling recently with the concept of Biblical truth. I grew up in a VERY protestant household and went to a very modern (non-denominational) church. My parents firmly believe the Earth is 6,000 years old, the Bible is literal truth and that it is infallible, and evolution cannot possibly be true.
I went the majority of my life believing the validity of these beliefs and others inherent in the Protestant religion. I first began to doubt them, however, in 9th grade. I joined my high school Lincoln-Douglas debate team, which is steeped in philosophy and is based on debating ethical issues. This forced me to research and even defend point of views I had never considered possible.
My journey of doubt only continued when I came to college. I left my little rural town in Oklahoma and faced people from different religions, cultures, and world views. BIC definitely perpetuated the doubt I was feeling, not necessarily in Protestantism, but in the adamant beliefs my parents held.
So I began to try and reconcile Protestant believes with "worldy" beliefs.
My freshman year I revisited many places in the Bible, explored scientific theories and talked to some mentors about issues like evolution, and, while I now believe I can reconcile believing in evolution and being a Christian, the most life-changing conclusion I came to was that NO ONE KNOWS. I don't know if evolution is true, and I probably never will. I don't know if stories like the creation story are meant to be a literal truth or a spiritual truth. I just don't know. That uncertainty is frustrating, but just when I thought I was starting to figure things out, I got confused again.
Most recently I have been trying to reconcile different Christian faiths. I have been struggling most especially with the differences between Catholicism and Protestantism. At first, I was confused that so many people believed in a faith that didn't seem to line up with the Bible (for example, I never understood where the Biblical backing for purgatory came from). But then I researched some of the differences (such as a belief in purgatory and infant baptism) and I can see where some scriptures can be interpreted to support these beliefs. I think this confusion is what Hays means when he says, "appeals to Scripture are suspect for at least two reasons: the Bible itself contains diverse points of view, and diverse interpretive methods can yield diverse readings of any given text."
In conclusion to this blog post, I don't really have a conclusion. I feel like there are no definitive answers (otherwise two large groups made up of very very intelligent scholars/experts would have reached an understanding between Catholicism and Protestantism after the first few hundreds years). This is frustrating. I just want an ANSWER, like a true/false question. The statement is either true or false; the belief is either true or false. I don't want an essay question where I am supposed to fill in my own answers and opinions. Most importantly, I don't want to get the answer wrong. It would be the worst essay failure EVER.
