Seems like an important document, at the very least, but dont know enough history/religious context to parse thru all the layers of propaganda or whatever.
Any tips? Maybe even a youtube channel?
Was Jesus a socialist?
Just like...read it. If you're already a socialist you'll be reading from a socialist perspective and look further into stuff you feel like.
Just read and take what you like, it’s what everyone is doing. I feel Old Testament is more like historical
documentmythos, New Testament is kinda funI mean, there's not really any particular technique to it, you just read it with a very critical eye. Skip all the boring shit like who begets who and whatever the fuck, you can even start with the New Testament if you like, though I think reading Genesis and Exodus at the very least is worth it since they're pretty good. You can look up the historical context for each book to get more more insight into why/when they were written and the material conditions that gave birth to them. The Bible is like 50/50 between some of the most life-affirming and genuinely great writings you can come across, and some of the worst, most disgusting, most reactionary things you'd have the displeasure of reading, but ultimately I still think it's worth giving it a try, if only because it's such an important document that is central to so much of culture and history. Look into Liberation Theology afterwards and own conservative Christians with the true word of our Lord and Savior and based proto-communist Jesus Christ :jesus-cleanse:
Just read it through the lens of reality: the Bible is a work of fiction.
The actual theological stuff based upon the historical material reality of the period the chapters in the book were written does need extensive anthropological, historical, and linguistic background on their respective periods to parse the colloquialisms and analogies of the time, but save that stuff for after you actually read through the damn thing.
the Bible is a work of fiction
I get this as a baseline take, but the Bible is more than a work of fiction. It's also historical document cataloging the social and legal customs of the Jewish people and then early Christian church. There are sections that can be interpreted as mythology as well if you are not a believer.
The Bible is closer to a work like the Odyssey with the added dimensions of also being a political and religious document. It was frequently translated to fit whatever institution benefited from it at that time.
but save that stuff for after you actually read through the damn thing.
I think knowing the context from the beginning is critical to getting anything out of the bible. There is a lot of the old testament that is extremely fucking weird if you read it without any background.
There's a reason Judaism puts so much emphasis on learning Hebrew and why many Christian sects require their priests / pastors to learn Greek. I'm not saying learning those languages is needed for reading the bible itself, just that it definitely helps.
American protestants often have a belief that "god made sure everything translated right". In my opinion that's just an excuse for intellectual laziness, but I think that view has made it's way into secular culture some too because of how hard they push it. I got screamed at by an evangelical once when I told him his far-right translation of the bible was trash lol
New International Version Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
New Living Translation I’ll say it again—it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!”
English Standard Version Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
Berean Study Bible Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
Berean Literal Bible And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God."
King James Bible And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
New King James Version And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
New American Standard Bible And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
Class war now -Jesus of Nazareth 32AD
I'd recommend picking up an Oxford Annotated Bible to read with. It's pretty much the gold standard for a more academic view of what's going on in the Bible. It presents a ton of useful context.
with an eye toward what material conditions motivated the priests and editors involved to write what they did
/r/RadicalChristianity is a moderately active sub on :reddit-logo: with a decently fleshed-out sidebar
Hi, former catholic turned agnostic pagan.
I'd look up the different bible translations used by secular theologians. They treat the bible as a historical artifact instead of divinely inspired. There are a lot of footnotes on cultural context and also disputed translations. Some of those translations also include a lot of apocrypha.
You can find those on Amazon or other bookstores. They'll have 3-4 star average reviews because fundamentalists will review bomb them for not catering to their personal denomination. Those reviews are worth reading for the white :cope:.
Check out anything that uses the NRSV translation, that's one of the academic standards. The two ones I see recommended the most are the New Oxford Annotated Bible and HarperCollins Study Bible. I have a copy of NOAB that I pick up instead of going to mass whenever I get a flair-up of leftover catholic guilt.
There are a couple companion books I’d recommend:
- “Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism” (Liberal Protestant frame of reference)
- “Isaac Asimov’s guide to the Bible”
- “Who wrote the Bible?” By Richard Eliot Friedman (He has very good lectures, they are about 1 hour long though.) Jewish Perspective, so no New Testament
- “God’s Secretaries” (This is about the historical and literary context of the King James Version)
The Bible has alot of great stuff about economic justice and the like, but I would caution reading as a leftist to the point where you turn Christ into something he is not.
I would read The New Testament first as I believe the rest of the Bible should firstly be interpreted through God's revelation through Christ, but maybe that is just me.
Also the idea that you have to read The Bible 100% literally is a rather modern invention, so bear that in mind.
the main thing is to make an effort to be critical and put what you're reading in a proper historical context. so much of right wing christian culture war bullshit is only very tenuously related to the bible to begin with, and what little connection it has often relies on ahistorical nonsense or projecting modern politics onto the past in ways that distort everything
Well there are Christian socialists and Christian communists, so it can be read from a leftist perspective. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_socialism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_communism
