The Bible

We began our session with a Biblical Bingo mixer. Intrigued? Ask Lydia for a copy!

After sharing the responses to the bingo, we centered ourselves with Wa,Wa,Wa, Emimimo/Come, O Holy Spirit, Come.

As we introduced ourselves, we shared our favourite Biblical character. Our responses indicated the richness of the Bible. Biblical references are all around us in advertising and everyday language. Lydia invited us to take note in our journals everytime we hear a biblical saying. It indicates the extent of biblical influence in our society.

Marcus Borg addressed us by way of a dvd, and we began our discussions.

We addressed the question "Can the Bible be divinely inspired and not literal?"

We agreed with Borg that the Bible can be divinely inspired through the filter of history and culture. The Bible is "more than literal". We take the Bible very seriously, and it is our source of identity as a Christian community.

Borg presents us with a historical, metaphorical and sacramental view of the Bible.

Historical Product

• Produced by humans who were inspired by God


• It documents how they saw their life with God.

Metaphorical

• A metaphor compares something without using the word "like". The Bible is full of figurative language for describing God and events.


• Metaphorical language invites us into the truth of a story. Whether or not an event actually happened is irrelevant. The truth represented in the story is the main point.

Sacramental

• A sacrament is the physical expression of faith. It is the way the Church expresses a spiritual truth. Baptism and Communion are ways that we put our faith into something we can see, feel, taste, and touch.


• The Bible is sacramental by its ability to be the vehicle or vessel through which the Spirit speaks to us.

We were introduced to the spiritual practice of Lectio divina. While we sat quietly and meditated, Lydia slowly read Luke 8:22-25 to us three times. Between each reading she was silent for a few minutes. We were to watch for a word or phrase that stood out for us. After the reading, we shared our thoughts in our small discussion groups and then with the entire group.

Lectio divina can be practiced by ourselves, too.

We also shared with each other the scripture passages that spoke to us.

In closing, we said The Prayer of Jesus.

Preparation for next week:

Read Chapter 4 God: The Heart of Reality

During the next week, we are invited to follow the instructions offered by Marcus Borg on page 73, when he quotes Frederick Buechner:

"Listen to your life. Listen to what happens to you because it is through what happens to you that God speaks. It's in language that's not always easy to decipher, but it's there powerfully, memorably, unforgettably."

DeniseW is investigating where interested individuals might purchase a labyrinth or get one made.