With my book on Whisper Ethics safely in the hands of the publisher, I began looking for a new project. Eventually, I decided to read through the entire collection of essays in Progressing Spirit. With one-third of the collection completed, I have come to three conclusions. First, it’s a really impressive collection. With few exceptions, the essays are well-written and inspirational. They cover a wide range of topics and contain many helpful ideas. My second conclusion is that there doesn’t seem to be much support among the many writers for my recent essay entitled “Sadly, The Bible is the Problem.” The Bible seems to be the anchor in one way or another for the faith of most progressive Christians, which led to my third conclusion. My ideas on the subject need further explanation.

Within the last few weeks, there have been several essays on the website concerning the current crisis in the Middle East. While interesting, the one point that has been missed is that the current war between Israel and Hamas as well as the anti-Semitism that has followed from it both have their origin in silly and very dangerous biblical beliefs.

In Genesis 17: 1-8, we learn that God got into the real estate business and gave the land of Israel to the Jewish people. I learned some interesting specifics about this gift from a trip to the Holy Land Lyn and I took five years ago. On our visit to the Temple Mount in the old city of Jerusalem, our guide pointed out the sites where God formed Adam from the dust of the ground and where Abraham prepared to sacrifice Isaac. I wondered where the site of Eve’s first sin was located, which gave birth to the toxic myth of original sin, but I was a good boy and never asked that question. I also remained silent when our guide told us that it was within the sacred grounds of the Temple Mount where God declared Jerusalem to be the eternal capital of Israel. I was wondering if God made such declarations and if he did, why it took so long for him to deliver on his promise. From the end of Solomon’s rule in the tenth century BCE until 1967, close to 3,000 years, Israel has controlled an undivided Jerusalem for less than 200 years.

We were next led to the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in the Muslim world. While we were not allowed to enter either site, we learned all about them. Muslims refer to the Temple Mount as Haram esh-Sharif or the Noble Sanctuary. According to Muslim tradition, Muhammad hopped on a winged mule in Mecca which flew him to Jerusalem. He is believed to have landed on the spot marked by the Dome of the Rock. From there, he took off again and flew to heaven with the angel Gabriel, where he met God and several Old Testament prophets. When these meetings were concluded, he flew home to Mecca. While some Muslim scholars argue this was a spiritual journey, Haram esh-Sharif is seen as sacred ground never-the-less.

Our last stop was the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the holiest site for Christians in the world. Two sites in particular are revered: the chapel which marks where Jesus was crucified, and the chapel commemorating where he was buried and from where the resurrection took place. In sum, it was an interesting tour from which I learned that many years ago God was in the real estate business, that prophets can fly, and that 2,000 years ago, a man physically rose from the dead. It was never explained where that resurrected body ended up. I guess most would answer heaven wherever that may be.

The problem with sacred beliefs is that they become firmly embedded in the identities of those who hold them with makes compromise on disagreements almost impossible to achieve. The result is distrust, hatred, and war.

Not long after the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7th, significant increases in anti-Semitic incidences were reported within the United States and throughout the world. Again, the scourge of anti-Semitism has biblical origins. The problem began with the evangelists spinning the Passion Narrative in such a way as to make “the Jews” responsible for the death of Jesus. The goal was to escape Roman persecution by convincing Roman authorities that Christians were harmless, that Pilate was not responsible for the death of Jesus, and that Rome had nothing to fear from this new religion. Read the story of Jesus before Pilate in John 18: 28 through 19: 16. It didn’t matter that crucifixion was a Roman punishment; that if the Jews had wanted to kill Jesus, stoning was their method. The Bible puts all the blame on “the Jews” for killing Jesus. James Carroll, in Constantine’s Sword, makes a convincing case that this belief has been responsible for 2,000 years of anti-Semitism.

How do such dangerous ideas persist over time? I got an insight on this problem following our tour of the old city in Jerusalem. After visiting the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, we were taken to lunch at a hotel in the new section of the city. That gave me a chance to corner the guide in private. I asked him if he was familiar with what many historians say about Roman policy toward crucifixions. Killing fields were set up outside of a city with crosses already in place. These fields were surrounded by Roman troops whose mission was to prevent family members from removing a dead body from a cross for burial. These bodies were left on crosses for animals to devour. The policy was designed to make crucifixions so horrible they would serve as a deterrent for potential political troublemakers. This policy made it likely Jesus was crucified outside of the city without burial, thus negating the story we learned at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

“Yes, I am familiar with that history,” the guide responded, “and I’m glad you didn’t raise these issues during the tour. Christians on tour want confirmation of New Testament claims. My tip jar would be empty if I suggested it was possible the body of Jesus was left to be consumed by animals.”

The same lack of candor is found in mainline Protestant churches throughout America. In my essay “Sadly, the Bible is the Problem,” the main point I make is that the early church hijacked the message of Jesus. Salvation in heaven as a reward for correct belief replaced Jesus’ focus of bringing in God’s kingdom on earth by Jews loving their neighbor and working to create inclusive communities where wealth was shared and disputes were resolved with nonviolent means. (See Acts 3: 44-47) Understanding this dramatic shift is not rocket science. Every mainline church professional is trained on these issues in seminary. Sadly, rather than challenge their congregations with what they know about the Jesus of history, most clergy decide to feed them the religion of their childhood. Loss of members and reduced revenue are what is at stake. (1)

The dominant picture in the New Testament of salvation in heaven is the one that the vast majority of Christians cling to. Millions and millions of people practice an invented religion with no roots in historical reality. The focus on personal salvation is about me, me, me, which works to stimulate the ego rather than help to transform it. Jesus is worshipped as the second arm of the trinity rather than followed. The result is wars in the Middle East, the climate crisis, Christian nationalism, anti-Semitism, women as second-class citizens, discrimination against people who are seen as different, racism, economic inequality, and a host of other social problems.

The Bible, therefore, is not an insignificant problem, but I’m not ready to throw it in the trash. What I recommend is that we take it from the pulpit and place it in the church library, where it will serve as a reference book. It is the only record we have of the beautiful man who taught us the essence of true religion can be summarized as loving God and loving your neighbor as yourself.

In preparation for writing this essay, I read over my notes on several books by Matthew Fox on Christian mystics. One of the interesting things about these mystics is that they paid little attention to the Bible or Christian belief. Their goal was to encounter the love of God through deep immersion in nature. From these encounters they learned compassion for others, a deep commitment to economic and social justice, and a passion for reconciling with enemies and the practice of nonviolence. Their religion came from the great outdoors God created not the human world of biblical belief.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dr. Rick Herrick (Ph.D., Tulane University), a former tenured university professor and magazine editor, is the author of six published novels and two works of nonfiction. His three latest books are A Christian Foreign Policy, A Man Called Jesus, Jeff’s Journey, and A Second Chance. His musical play, Lighthouse Point, was performed as a fundraiser for the Martha’s Vineyard Museum. Herrick is currently retired, living in Bluffton, SC. He is married with three children and seven grandchildren. You can find him at https://rickherrickauthor.com.

1. For a complete discussion of this sad situation see Jack Good, The Dishonest Church.