Religious Questions Part II

I wish that reporters who do not have any training or aptitude for religion would not blog or write about it. Continuing in yesterday's blog here is a question that Keller wants to ask Bachman:

You have said that watching the film series “How Should We Then Live?” by the evangelist Francis Schaeffer was a life-altering event for you. That series stresses the “inerrancy” — the literal truth — of the Bible. Do you believe the Bible consists of literal truths, or that it is to be taken more metaphorically?

This is blatant equivocation. He is using the word “literal” in two different ways at once. And he does not understand “inerrancy.”

Inerrancy is the idea that the Bible as written in the original manuscripts is without error. It has nothing to do with the method of interpretation of any particular scripture as to whether it is poetry, proverb, or prose. You can believe in inerrancy, as I do not BTW, and advocate a metaphorical interpretation of scripture, depending on context. In fact dominionists (a position that Keller seems to want to tar and feather every Christian politician with, at least the Republican ones,) often do not use a literal hermeneutic. Dominionists are often preterists who view the book of Revelation as not a literal vision, but a symbolic vision, as I do myself, although I am not a full preterist. 

Keller's question is unanswerable because it contains false assumptions. I believe the Bible is accurate and truthful, but I have no problem with the Bible sometimes using metaphor, simile, and poetry to make its point. These two issues are not related. Keller should get educated on religious matters or stick to other topics.

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As I thought Keller has an agenda. This quote shows how he thinks about religion:

If a candidate for president said he believed that space aliens dwell among us, would that affect your willingness to vote for him? Personally, I might not disqualify him out of hand; one out of three Americans believe we have had Visitors and, hey, who knows? But I would certainly want to ask a few questions. Like, where does he get his information? Does he talk to the aliens? Do they have an economic plan?

Yet when it comes to the religious beliefs of our would-be presidents, we are a little squeamish about probing too aggressively.

Comparing belief in the Bible to belief in space aliens shows his true thoughts, the elimination of religion and religious people from the public square.