• About Ralph Friedly

Ralph Friedly

Tag Archives: Biblical literacy

Biblical Literacy

13 Wednesday Jul 2016

Posted by ralphfriedly in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Biblical literacy

No one in the English-speaking world can be considered literate without a basic knowledge of the Bible . . .our knowledge of Judaism and Christianity needs to be more detailed than that of other great religions, if only because of the historical accident that has embedded the Bible in our thought and language.
–E.D. Hirsch, Jr,, Joseph Kett, James Trefil,
The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy

Bible

The authors’ claim is true. The Bible is firmly embedded not only in our thought and language but also in our literature. Our everyday conversation is rich with common phrases that we may not realize have a Biblical origin. How often do we say or hear others recite phrases like “the writing on the wall”, “my brother’s keeper”, “beating swords into plowshares”, “cast the first stone”, “like a lamb to the slaughter”, living off “the fat of the land”, “Baptism by fire”, a real “Garden of Eden” or “forbidden fruit”. And certainly we have all heard of someone being referred to as a “Jezebel”, a “Judas”, a “good Samaritan”, a “doubting Thomas”, having the “patience of Job”, “as old as Methuselah”, a “scapegoat”, the “salt of the earth”, “antedeluvian”, a “prodigal son” or a “philistine” – all Biblical references. And we have heard battles or wars described as between “David and Goliath”, an”Armageddon”, “fight the good fight” or an “Apocalypse” – again, all from the Bible.

Biblical references and themes in literature abound – Cain and Abel, Noah and the ark, the Tower of Babel, Jonah and the whale, the wisdom of Solomon, the suffering of Job, David and Bathsheba, Alpha and Omega, the eye of the needle, killing the fatted calf, the strength of Samson (and the disappearance of that strength when his hair was shorn). All of these are referred to in countless works of literature, including many of the plays of Shakespeare.

According to Guinness World Records, the Bible is the best selling book of all time with over 5 billion copies sold and distributed. And expanding on the fact that 91 percent of American households already own a Bible, with the average household owning four, a New Yorker article several years ago noted that the Bible continues to the the best selling book of the year – yes, every year, selling on the average about 25 million copies annually.

Since there are millions of Bibles in American homes and the Bible continues to be the number one best seller, it certainly must be the favorite book of Americans. Indeed it is. In a 2014 Harris poll, it still ranks as America’s favorite book, ahead of “Gone with the Wind” and the Harry Potter series (it’s Donald Trump’s favorite as well, right ahead of “The Art of the Deal”!). The Bible also ranks high on many lists of “books to take if stranded on a desert island”.

But I think that in spite of its sales and ownership figures, the Bible’s “favorite” status in statistics and lists is somewhat gratuitous and misleading because people are not reading it much anymore. Reading and learning about the Bible are not the same as owning one. Survey after survey show readership down even among Christian church-goers. Presently only 37 percent of Americans report reading the Bible once a week or more. Recent surveys indicated that 60 percent can’t name more than five of the ten commandments. Twelve percent think that Joan of Arc was Noah’s wife and almost 50 percent of high school seniors think that Sodom and Gomorrah were a married couple. According to 82 percent of Americans, “God helps those who helps themselves” is a Bible verse. Many think that the Sermon on the Mount was preached by Billy Graham. And fewer than half of all adults can name the four gospels.

In addition, children are increasingly unfamiliar with the Bible and the personalities and stories that used to be standard fare for children’s reading. Many of us developed of our “Biblical literacy” reading and hearing Bible stories as children at home, in Sunday school classes.or other religious instruction. But children are not reading Bible stories like they have in the past because they are simply not popular anymore. With the explosion of a huge variety of children’s literature in recent decades, there is certainly vastly more quality literature to choose from for children than there was when I was young. And Bible stories themselves are often deemed too graphic and violent to be chosen for children’s reading by many of today’s more discerning parents.

And because for centuries the Bible has permeated our lives as a historical document and as a work of literature and as noted above, Biblical references and allusions abound in world literature, I fear that as knowledge of the Bible declines, many readers do not recognize the references and illustrations from the “good book” and thus limit and restrict their literary experience.

Two of my favorite anecdotes, while getting a chuckle from many listeners, will elicit only blank stares from some. One story features Mark Twain (or General Sherman or Oscar Wilde, depending on the story’s real origin) being stranded at a big city hotel at which a Methodist ministers’ convention was being held and describing himself feeling like “a lion in a den of Daniels”. Another concerns a teacher assigning the children to sketch their rendition of Joseph, Mary and the Christ child’s “flight into Egypt”. Instead of the typical picture of Joseph leading a donkey carrying Mary and the child, one little boy had drawn an airplane with four people in the cockpit and the little student , when asked by the teacher about the fourth person, pointed out that it was “Pontius, the pilot”. Obviously one needs sufficient Bible background to “get” these stories.

$_57

I still remember  all of the stories in my “Hurlbut’s Story of the Bible” bought for me by my mother in 1954. This special book, now reproduced conveniently for reading on the internet by the Baldwin Project, related the major stories in the Bible in a realistic and entertaining manner. Although there are many efforts today to increase knowledge of the Bible, it seems that the rapidly increasing popularity of social media and other electronic diversions guarantee that the very opposite will occur and that people will come to know even less about the Bible than they do today, further eroding their full understanding and enjoyment of so much discourse and literature containing Biblical allusions and references.

 

All Posts

  • On Turning Eighty June 18, 2022
  • The Blood of Children and the Tears of Parents June 8, 2022
  • Growing Up in the Pillar of Fire: A Memoir February 6, 2022
  • The Medicare Advantage Scam December 21, 2021
  • Yet Another Rant December 7, 2021
  • Majority Rule? Think Again – Why a Minority Rules America November 27, 2021
  • The United States of Incrementalism November 27, 2021
  • Short Story November 24, 2021
  • The Troublesome Challenge of Choice November 6, 2021
  • Down Memory Lane July 31, 2021
  • Face It July 24, 2021
  • Elder Statesmen July 20, 2021
  • Vermont Again June 15, 2021
  • A Way with Words: The Devious and Devastating Genius of Frank Luntz… and More January 14, 2020
  • Wooster High September 11, 2019
  • Vermont Redux August 6, 2019
  • Oh Please, Come On Now July 3, 2019
  • The Trump Whisperer June 15, 2019
  • Still Ranting June 8, 2019
  • Connections March 21, 2019
  • Rant February 9, 2019
  • “White Poison” November 1, 2018
  • What We’ve Lost October 12, 2018
  • The Vote: “Cornerstone of Our Democracy” September 26, 2018
  • Justice and Accountability  September 25, 2018
  • 6 November 2018 August 31, 2018
  • Flying August 11, 2018
  • On the Minus Side of Dying: Musings on End of Life May 23, 2018
  • Sanctimonious Hypocrisy May 9, 2018
  • Foresight in 2020 May 6, 2018
  • Black Ice April 24, 2018
  • Why We Drink April 22, 2018
  • Reasons for Seasons March 20, 2018
  • Fitness Frustration: Pet Peeves at the Gym January 18, 2018
  • They Are Missed December 23, 2017
  • Hollow Patriotism: Honoring the Troops December 21, 2017
  • Interstate of Mind: Reflections on Highways and the Trucking Industry December 7, 2017
  • The Real Problem With Taxes in America November 8, 2017
  • From Chaos to Clarity: My Undergraduate Education September 11, 2017
  • Should Ken’s Thoughts About Gender Offend Her? August 25, 2017
  • Simple Solution to a Perennial Problem: Raise the Fuel Tax August 25, 2017
  • Rx for a Sick Democratic Party July 5, 2017
  • Well, Trump Voters… June 19, 2017
  • Home Sweet Home June 11, 2017
  • Summer 1957 May 2, 2017
  • The Backwards Hat April 24, 2017
  • Sears, Roebuck and Company March 3, 2017
  • “Shared Values” February 25, 2017
  • Thank You, Trump Voters: Amateur Hour and Executive Disorder in the White House February 16, 2017
  • The Sounds of Music February 14, 2017
  • Is This a Conversation? February 13, 2017
  • My Hank Williams Movie February 10, 2017
  • The NFL and I January 23, 2017
  • Election Reflection II December 24, 2016
  • Election Reflection November 11, 2016
  • “Cat’s in the Cradle” Comes True? November 11, 2016
  • Daylight Saving Time….Why? November 5, 2016
  • When I Fell in Love with Country Music November 4, 2016
  • Obit for Obamacare October 8, 2016
  • Irwin Elementary School 1965-1968 August 23, 2016
  • Micro and Macro: Ruminations on Life and the Cosmos July 25, 2016
  • Rotten Apple July 13, 2016
  • Biblical Literacy July 13, 2016
  • Self-Driving Car? Really? Why? July 7, 2016
  • We Shall Over-comb July 4, 2016
  • Stressful Life Events July 4, 2016
  • Why? I’ll Tell You Why July 3, 2016
  • Generational Generics May 15, 2016
  • Let’s Change the U.S. Constitution April 18, 2016
  • Economics 101 April 18, 2016
  • Talk to Your Doctor About… April 12, 2016
  • Tractors April 7, 2016
  • The Noxious Cloud of Republican Orthodoxy April 7, 2016
  • A To-Do List for our Broken Congress January 20, 2015
  • Quitting Smoking: A Mindful Experience December 6, 2014
  • My World of Work November 8, 2014
  • Golden Rules for Living November 7, 2014
  • Tennis Anyone? September 10, 2014
  • Mirror, Mirror, on the Car August 30, 2014
  • Making Time July 23, 2014
  • Massachusetts Driving Rules July 23, 2014
  • Retirement July 18, 2014
  • Mount Evans by Motorcycle July 18, 2014
  • The Kite Contest July 14, 2014
  • More than Transportation July 7, 2014
  • Books that Influenced My Life July 1, 2014
  • The Death Penalty June 25, 2014
  • Dear Dad, June 14, 2014
  • Is There a Right Wing Conspiracy? June 10, 2014
  • Living in Vermont June 10, 2014
  • What Is a Billion? June 9, 2014
  • How to Become a Liberal May 29, 2014
  • Barbara My Sweet Sister May 29, 2014
  • A Winter Drive May 13, 2014
  • Dear President Obama, May 12, 2014
  • Ida Marie Friedly May 11, 2014
  • My Son and I May 8, 2014
  • Miracle on Monomoy May 6, 2014
  • Nicknames May 5, 2014

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • Ralph Friedly
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Ralph Friedly
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...