Last week, in the Circle, a few men with large signs proclaimed hellfire on the majority of students on campus. This misuse of the Bible inspired one student from the crowd to lead several of his peers to the other side of the Circle for a “prayer of unity.”
Before praying, he acknowledged some of the things the other men were yelling about, including “homosexuality,” were indeed “sins.”
Though the manner in which the beliefs were expressed was completely different, the same beliefs were at the center of their ideas; these ideas find root in certain assumptions about a certain ancient text.
Even today, some evangelicals in the South interpret the Bible as if it were written to modern people. This literal interpretation raises difficult questions and difficult consequences.
That is not to say the issues I take here are representative of all evangelicals, but these problems seem to be linked to a certain belief, making it important to talk about in more specific terms.
One of these consequences, as spoken in both gatherings in the Circle, is the mistreatment of those in the LGBTQ community.
As humans learn more about gender, sexuality and the gray areas within those categories, it is undeniable that society at large has marginalized many because of the way they were born. Fortunately, our nation has been making strides to rectify these injustices, such as marriage equality and protection under Title IX.
Unfortunately, the literalist interpretation opposes this progress. Subscribers of this theology want gay rights to be repealed and replaced by a more theocratic set of laws.
Though the literalists have not been successful in their attempts to fully revert to previous laws, many LGBTQ people still face abuse within churches, especially as teenagers. This abuse has contributed to alarming rates of depression and suicide among gay people within these groups.
It is time for literalists to rethink the Bible to end these damages.
There are a few keys in moving past the old ideas about the Bible, which are at the heart of the wrongs being committed by churches today.
The first and most important step that must be taken is the ability to think of the Bible independently. Within the tradition of biblical literalism, many are taught to not question the Bible from childhood.
There is no way to correctly evaluate the errors in the logic or outcomes of a philosophy without the ability to criticize it. For our religious landscape to move forward, it must accept independent thought. This may include members disagreeing with the authors of some books and trading in antiquated commands for the good of others.
People must understand what the Bible is: an ancient collection of books about God from many different people. Some of these stories are barbaric, raw and contradictory to one another.
Other stories inspire people to make the world a better place.
When we understand that the stories in the Bible are examples of how God moves societies and individuals toward justice and compassion, instead of literal rules to be followed by modern people, we are compelled to seek out justice for those oppressed in our own era.
This set of ideals was at the heart of the message of Jesus in the Gospels: set aside the rules and divisions of the past in order to love your neighbor as yourself. We are all compelled to follow his example.
Daniel Payne is a freshman integrated marketing communications major from Collierville, Tennessee.
