Lighthouse Renewal Center ã 2003
SCRIPTURE TAKES A BEATING
Homer was a very intelligent oyster who
lived at the bottom of the sea. He founded a school for other oysters to
teach them the ways and wisdom of the sea. One day he heard through the
waters the words “New York City,” and a few other words. Homer thought
about it for a long time, wrote a number of papers about New York City and
finally decided to teach a course entitled: “Life in New York City.”
Let’s face it—what does an oyster
whose whole life was spent living at the bottom of the sea know about life in
New York City? It is a totally
different world.
Scholars of Sacred Scripture get their
first-hand information about the Kingdom of God from the Holy Spirit in the
Bible. They listen to the One Who knows the truth personally.
Scripture is approached with awe and wonder and with a delicate scalpel to
reveal the hidden wisdom contained in the original text. Their findings
enhance our appreciation of scripture.
There are also secular-minded scholars
who trump scripture with their own earth-bound opinions, which, like Homer, the
oyster, they dub “scholarship.” Seldom do we hear them say “Sacred
Scripture.” The claims of Jesus are denied, watered down, and ridiculed.
Or, with peacock feather pride, and in a CYA maneuver, they insist Jesus did not
say what scripture says. Hence, they are correct!
In the early Church the outstanding
scriptural scholars were saints. These men, immersed in intimate prayer
and in the scriptures, encountered the kingdom of God, spoke intimately with the
Lord and were led by the Holy Spirit, Who gifted them with wisdom, knowledge,
and understanding. The Gifts of the Holy Spirit led them to insights
that are totally inaccessible to human wisdom. Up to the present time,
holy men and women have resonated with them.
Waving a diploma as a symbol of
scholarship and authority does not make a person a scholar of sacred scripture.
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Feb. 05