Biblical Wisdom (and why it sucks)

[armruiz45]

I have been in an open dialogue with a group of Evangelical Christians for the past year. They invited me to study the Bible with them and I said yes. (I figured, why not? Free Bible classes, I might as well see how they read it). So far we've read with surprisingly deep analysis all of Luke and Acts.

Here is my point: While I've read the entire Bible over my lifetime, the majority when I was younger and still religious, only now have I noticed a distinct lack of practical wisdom actually in the Bible.

In my experience, I've always had to couch my criticisms of the Bible in caveats like, "but it's a decent guide to life, if you know where to look" or "there is some useful wisdom in there."

Only now have I realized that the wisdom in the Bible is primitive, vague and largely common sense (A testament to human moral progress?). Nowadays it would hardly be considered insightful wisdom, rather a trite one-liner. Consider the Golden Rule and passages like, "Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man gains understanding" (Prov. 3:13) or "Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise" (Prov. 19:20) or even "the mouth of the righteous man utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks what is just" (Psalm 37:30). I think criticising biblical wisdom should become a new talking point. We should be citing the developments in wisdom that humanity has acquired since the Bible was written. The more recent wisdom I list down below is just stuff that I could think of on the spot.

Wisdom nowadays would consist of stuff like:

Dissolving the ego because the self is an illusion and it leads us to take things too personally. And understanding how the ego reveals it's self in human interaction can specifically show us where we can improve on our humility and acceptance of others.

Recognizing we have little control over our lives so we ought to learn about what thoughts and opinions are inhibited or molded by our environment, like friend groups and the media.

The importance of learning about meaning and from where we derive it (e.g. experience, socialization, education and word semantics).

Connectivity is everything, understanding that we are part of families, which are part of communities, which are part of nations, which is part of the global community. This breaks down conceptual barriers between cultures.

Emotions influence every moment of our lives, learn to control and focus them or they will control you.

Engaging strange and different perspectives helps to understand why people think the ways they do. It also limits our ignorance of other cultures so that we may be less bigoted.

The importance of understanding the world through scientific study to decrease our reliance on faith and fear. So that we may become comfortable with doubt and uncertainty (because doubt and uncertainty is the only way humanity has had moral and technological progress).

The impact of positive or negative relationships on a person's well-being. How optimizing equality and honesty in a relationship can turn it around.





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[CrucifyCindy]

Wisdom nowadays would consist of stuff like:

Dissolving the ego because the self is an illusion and it leads us to take things too personally. And understanding how the ego reveals it's self in human interaction can specifically show us where we can improve on our humility and acceptance of others.

Recognizing we have little control over our lives so we ought to learn about what thoughts and opinions are inhibited or molded by our environment, like friend groups and the media.

The importance of learning about meaning and from where we derive it (e.g. experience, socialization, education and word semantics).

Connectivity is everything, understanding that we are part of families, which are part of communities, which are part of nations, which is part of the global community. This breaks down conceptual barriers between cultures.

Emotions influence every moment of our lives, learn to control and focus them or they will control you.

Engaging strange and different perspectives helps to understand why people think the ways they do. It also limits our ignorance of other cultures so that we may be less bigoted.

The importance of understanding the world through scientific study to decrease our reliance on faith and fear. So that we may become comfortable with doubt and uncertainty (because doubt and uncertainty is the only way humanity has had moral and technological progress).

The impact of positive or negative relationships on a person's well-being. How optimizing equality and honesty in a relationship can turn it around.

I think "wisdom" is just a matter of personal taste or preference  because the examples you gave of "modern wisdom" seem to me like trite New Age woo. And mama don't like New Age woo.

[ApostateLois]

Christians, or a great many of them anyway, don't like that sort of analysis of their holy book, and they dislike anything that smacks of introspection. "Be nice to others if you want them to be nice to you" is the sort of thing you'd teach a toddler, repeating it until it sticks in their tiny brains, rather than to adults who want a bit more in the way of practical, day-to-day guidance on how to get along with nasty bosses, sketchy co-workers, and so on. It is simplistic and childish, but to Christians, it is the highest form of wisdom just because it comes from the Bible and Jesus supposedly said it.

Same thing with "turn the other cheek." Everyone knows this doesn't work. Telling children to ignore the bullies on the playground and they'll go away has NEVER worked at any time in the history of schooling, and it certainly doesn't often work in the adult world, either. So why do Christians think it will work in their lives? Only one reason: it's in the Bible. Lots of what is in the Bible is pure hogwash, but Christians can't be convinced of this. Slap the word "holy" on a book in big, gold letters and people lose all sense of reason.

[Baruch]

Turn the other cheek ... could refer to embarrassing an attacker ... forcing the latter striking one hand with palm forward (equality of the victim), vs striking with the other hand earlier with palm backward (inferiority of the victim) ... assuming the attacker is using the same hand.  But really, nobody knows what was meant, because we lack the context.

ArmRuiz - In any case, there are plenty of things to read.  And many of them promote foolishness if wisdom has gone stale for you.  The other things you are saying, have more to do with Eastern wisdom.

[CrucifyCindy]

As far a Biblical wisdom goes I find the Book of  Ecclesiastes and the Book of Job some of the more insightful books ever written. Especially  Ecclesiastes, the theme of which can be summed up as...Life is a bitch and then you die. Now that is wisdom.

[Munch]

As far a Biblical wisdom goes I find the Book of  Ecclesiastes and the Book of Job some of the more insightful books ever written. Especially  Ecclesiastes, the theme of which can be summed up as...Life is a bitch and then you die. Now that is wisdom.

I've always interpreted the book of job as even when you find happiness, some higher power can come and fuck you over, and your expected to be subservient to the one who took it away.

[Baruch]

Munch - I agree, except I reject the book's conclusion.  G-d as bully, fails to impress me.

[aitm]

christianity for the most part recognizes about 7 verses throughout the entire OT, the rest is considered allegorical or some crap like that, then the majority of the NT is considered somewhat possible with about 40 verses considered to be pure legit. Thats one hell of a religion there.

[Baruch]

Christianity isn't Biblical (but don't tell the Protestants) .. it is institutional plus Medieval.  Islam is much more Biblical (and institutional).  And modern Judaism is almost secular.

[CrucifyCindy]

I've always interpreted the book of job as even when you find happiness, some higher power can come and fuck you over, and your expected to be subservient to the one who took it away.

That's the way I pretty much interpret too. In the book God refuse to give Job an straight answer as to why Job had to suffer. The only answer God gives is "I am God and I can do whatever I want and you can't question me"

[CrucifyCindy]

Munch - I agree, except I reject the book's conclusion.  G-d as bully, fails to impress me.

I think that is what the Book of Job is trying to teach...God is a bully. At the very beginning God sets the whole thing up, it was God who brought up testing Job in the first place and in the end God provides no real answer other that God can't be questioned (and that's after God does a whole lot of bragging about killing sea serpents and such)

[Baruch]

The original book, the arguments of Job's friends ... is one of the great works of "pagan" wisdom literature.  Probably Mesopotamian in nature, though the Egyptians also wondered why life sucked too.  The preface and afterword ... are the Jewish additions.  And damn poor ones at that.  Jewish people did eventually come up with their own answer to theodicy ... read more Talmud ;-)  Also "The Trial Of God" by Elie Wiesel is definitive.  But then the rabbis are more cheeky than any Christian or Muslim would dare.

[ApostateLois]

Pretty much all of the Bible was ripped off from other religions and traditions. I doubt there's a single original thought in the entire thing.