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| Hermione's View | |||||||
| I consider myself to be acceptant of most religions. I feel that there is no 'false' religion. The only religions I do not agree with are those whose rules require harming or killing others for the sake of the religion. However, because this paper is written from a Christian viewpoint, I will respond from the standpoint of my Lutheran faith. | |||||||
| I do not claim to know everything about the Bible. While I am a confirmed Lutheran, I have not spent much time studying the Bible. This does not mean I am completely ignorant of the things that are said in it; it simply means that I cannot give specific verses for my reasons. | |||||||
| I would like to say that I certainly hope that this elder's children, if he/she has any, are not reading the Bible. It certainly does not pass the test. In fact, it fails on many points. | |||||||
| 1. Depending on the meaning of 'promoted', the Bible as most people would like to think of it certainly would fail this test except for the fact that the qualifying factor is 'unbiblical'. If 'promoted' is intended to mean 'mentioned', the Bible mentions many things that most would like to think of as unbiblical, including prostitution, polygamy, and murder. | |||||||
| 2. I do not know enough about the Bible to say whether it meets this qualification. However, this statement is bigotry. To say that something is 'unacceptable' because it mentions a supernatural power other than God of the Bible is, in my opinion, certainly not something that Jesus would have done. Jesus was not a bigot. | |||||||
| 3. This statement is very broad, and while I do not know of any specific parts of the Bible that mention these things, the statement is so broad it would disqualify almost any book. For example, any book that mentions Merlin would be disqualified. | |||||||
| 4. Again, 'unbiblical'. What exactly does this mean? If it means 'immoral', than the Bible would certainly fail this test. The mere mention of prostitution could cause children, who have wonderful imaginations, to have all kinds of immoral thoughts. | |||||||
| 5. The entire Song of Solomon fails this. | |||||||
| 6. The entire book of Revelations fails this if not taught properly because the images it presents can be frightening. In addition, many battles were fought at God's command when his people were coming to the promised land. Violence is inherent in a battle. | |||||||
| 7. 'Questionable' could have many meanings in this context. It could mean 'difficult to understand'. The language of the Bible is often difficult to understand, especially when units that are nonstandard today are used. | |||||||
| 8. Again, 'questionable'. In this context, it could mean 'able to be asked questions'. Obviously, characters in a book cannot be asked questions by the reader. Also, the meaning of 'unchristlike' is unclear. If it is intended to mean 'not like Christ', the Bible presents several people who, while they may be good role models, are not like Christ. For example, Able was a model of how we should live. He was not like Christ, though, because he was not the Son of God. | |||||||
| As for the 'wisdom' mentioned, unless this elder is claiming to be a prophet, his/her wisdom does not come from God and therefore is 'earthly, unspiritual,and of the devil'. Of course, it could be argued that since we are all God's creations, all things in are life are God's, including our wisdom. This would make the wisdom of both this elder and J. K. Rowling the wisdom of God. | |||||||
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