Biblical Interpretation and Judicial Activism
May 27, 2008
I left this as a comment at another blog. But it's amusing, so I'll repeat it here:
People read the Bible literally when it allows them to confirm their bigotries and they ignore it when it prevents them from doing something fun.
You all do know the Bible says it's a sin to loan money for interest, right? It's also a sin to be a glutton. Gluttons are viewed as drunks.
Yet churches welcome obese bankers while either a) not allowing gays or b) saying, "We love the sinner [that's you, gays], but hate the sin [that's you, again, gays]."
What's up with that?
I could go on, listing all of the things the Bible says are sins but that people just ignore. But I've proven my case. No need to prove it a dozen times more.
When churches start telling obese bankers to stop loaning money for interest and to stop eating so much cheesecake, we can have a serious debate about biblical interpretation. Until then, well, there's nothing to debate. "Christians" pick and choose what's a sin based on their cultural values.
In that sense, their methods are much mirror images of "judicial activists." Reach a conclusion, and then find something in the Bible/Constitution/Ether to support it. When text compels a contrary conclusion, ignore the text.
(Except sex. Christians - even "Christians" - all agree that sex before marriage is a sin - even though everyone wants to have sex. So this is against their self-interest. Of course, it doesn't stop 'em from having it. And once you're married, all of that pre-martial sex becomes a mulligan. "Hey, I'm married now. So lots of sex for me. And for all of that sex before marriage? Well, it's forgiven, right?" Where as the homosexual is always a sinner, because sex with someone of the same sex is always a sin. So the gays don't get that mulligan.)
P.S. As this is a post about a biblical theme, if you're a women, you are not allowed to comment. Sorry, but rules are rules: "Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence." (I Tim 2:11:12) (emphasis added).