Everything about Biblical Studies totally explained
Biblical studies is the academic study of the Judeo-Christian Bible and related texts. For
Christianity, the Bible traditionally comprises the
New Testament and
Old Testament, which together are sometimes called the "Scriptures."
Judaism recognizes as scripture only the
Hebrew Bible, also known as the
Tanakh, an acronym for the
Hebrew names of its divisions:
Torah (Law),
Nevi'im (Prophets) and
Ketuvim (writings). Other texts often examined by biblical scholars include the Jewish
apocrypha, the Jewish
pseudepigrapha, the Christian
apocrypha, the many varieties of ante-Nicene
early Christian literature, and early Jewish literature.
There are two major approaches towards Biblical studies. The first approach studies the Bible as a human creation and is also known as
Biblical criticism; This approach is practiced in the secular academic world. In this approach, Biblical studies can be considered as a sub-field of
religious studies.
The other approach is the religious study of the Bible, where it's assumed that the Bible has a divine origin. This approach is a branch of
theology, and is also known as
Biblical interpretation.
Methodologically and theoretically, the field draws on many disciplines, including
history,
archaeology,
literary criticism,
philology, and increasingly the
social sciences. Practitioners of Biblical Studies don't necessarily have a faith commitment to the texts they study. In fact,
Biblical criticism seems to contradict commitment to the text and is sometimes considered heresy, though some important Jewish scholars in this field are in fact
orthodox .
In Judaism
In
Judaism, especially among the
Orthodox, traditional Bible study entails the study of
Tanakh with medieval and modern
rabbinic commenataries or with
Midrashim.
Jews traditionally study in the home or in institutions like the
yeshiva.
Jewish academic institutions where Bible studies may include less traditional approaches include
Hebrew Union College (
Progressive Judaism), the
Jewish Theological Seminary (
Conservative) and
Yeshiva University (
Modern Orthodox) in the
United States; and all major universities in
Israel, whose
Bible department actually concentrates on
Biblical criticism.
In Christianity
In
Christianity, the theological interpretation of Biblical passages is called
biblical exegesis. Other branches of Bible study aim instead at elucidating the
provenance, authorship, and chronological order of Biblical texts. This is a branch of
philology more than theology, and sometimes comes into conflict with theology. "
Higher criticism" and its findings, including the well known
documentary hypothesis which suggests that the
Bible was compiled from the writings of several different hands, and the work of the
Jesus Seminar, which attempted to cull "inauthentic" sayings of
Jesus from the "authentic" ones contained in the
Gospels, are examples of Biblical studies whose results have been particularly controversial in theology.
Bible Study is the activity in which Christians read and reflect on the Bible individually or, including discussion, in small
groups or base communities.
Additionally,
Biblical Studies is a common
discipline offered in the Bible colleges, Bible institutions or schools and some secular colleges. It centered on the study of the Scriptures as found in the Bible. In the U.S., it isn't listed as an academic discipline following the pursuit of academic studies in normal stream colleges and universities. In Europe, however,
Theology is a faculty in many respectable universities (for example Oxford and Cambridge) although several countries have transferred the training of priests and ministers to their respective churches.
It seems that the discipline of Bible studies in many U.S. institutions is practically the same as theology in more traditional institutions. A distinction should be made, therefore, between
- Biblical studies which concentrate on the Bible and its interpretation, as in Exegesis.
- Biblical studies as an all-around name for minister training.
Presently in the U.S., "Biblical studies" are taught mainly in non-academic schools and institutions under the support of many
Christian denominations and
missionary organizations.
In traditional churches, the training of
priests and ministers includes the study of
theology, which is a wider field incorporating more aspects of religion. Typically this takes place in a university or a
seminary, depending on country and
denomination.
Background
Biblical Studies involve the studies of the Bible and can be studied as a subject for themselves or as a subdivision under
Theology. It is often offered as a postgraduate course in some Christian colleges or Bible institutions as a non-academic study course. In contrast with most divinity schools, seminaries or older theological schools, Biblical Studies doesn't attempt to criticize the Bible as in higher (or
literary criticism) or lower (or
textual criticism) form. In this, it differs markedly from the usual scientific method or from the approach used in this Wikipedia article. However, its content varies but usually covered a wider scope including the following:
Principles of Biblical interpretation
The Bible is the holy scripture for most Christian denominations and its interpretation forms part of the core of each denomination's faith. Therefore, there are very few clear rules accepted by all who consider themselves Christian and making a neutral point of view clarification of principles is most difficult.
Exegesis using the
inductive method is used in understanding the texts in scriptures. Some guides or rules of interpretation have been formulated and are, in some circles known as
Principles of Interpretation, in others as
Hermeneutics. According to the Bible it's the word of God and gives these rules. However, no clear consensus on them exists. Typically a biblical passage may be understood
literally, as meaning exactly what is written.
figuratively, meaning that there's a clear parallel to something else.
allegorically, meaning that the passage is an allegory of something more
In addition, in some denominations, any of these may be either addressed to its historical audience or to mankind in general. All three ways may even be correct simultaneously. According to most denominations, the only way to choose a right interpretation is through use of Holy Spirit, which may be found, depending on denomination, from person's conscience, from tradition or from some combination of them. Typically, old churches stress the use of tradition, while Protestant churches stress the use of personal inspiration. However, most denominations do draw a line somewhere in the literal interpretation, accepting some traditional standpoints.
Hermeneutical exegesis focuses on the origin writer’s sense in relation with the expected audience response. The rule of context applies, and "scriptures interpret scriptures". The ideas and meanings are likely to be in harmony within the language and cultural context. Therefore the rule allow for the meaning to be limited and interpreted within the intent and purpose of the original writers. This interpretative view obviously leads to more focus individual understanding than collective interrelated consensus.
Biblical canon scriptures are accepted by many Christian's as God-inspired. Thus, attention is given to accepting the divine Holy Spirit who is thought to be the original inspiration or Author of all scriptures. However, there are several different doctrines on the nature of the inspiration, ranging from "word" inspiration to context inspiration. Exegesis is different from the traditional method of literary study but approaches it when moving towards religious philosophy.
Hebrew and Greek languages
The study of original languages within the Bible is usually considered an imperative to any correct interpretive work, although a minority of U.S. Christians hold that King James Version is the sole, inspired, true word of God. Most seminaries and Universities, in fact, require their candidates for doctorates in divinity to possess adequate knowledge of these two disciplines. Although Aramaic was the verbal language of the inter- and New Testament period, many schools don't provide the study of this ancient language but leave it to the faculties of Arts. The Septuagint translation of the Old Testament into Greek is also important while trying to understand the religious life of the early church. The New Testament is written in Koine Greek, a form which probably carried Hebrew and Aramaic influences.
Biblical criticism
Biblical criticism is a scientific approach to the study of the Bible, based on the assumption that the Bible is a human creation, rather than divine. Thus while apparent contradictions are interpreted in theology as having deeper or different meaning, they're interpreted in Biblical criticism as originating from the human writers. Prophecies fulfilled after the alleged time of writing are interpreted in Theology as a proof for the divine origin of the text, and in Biblical criticism as a proof that the real time of writing was later than claimed.
According to Jewish tradition, different books of the Bible were written in different times by different people. Biblical criticism extends this idea, and assumes that different parts (even different verses in the same chapter) may have been written in different times by different people, and later edited by other people. Some are based on local traditions, and others have been added to reflect the writer's political of religious agenda. The final editor of the Bible had his own agenda, but couldn't simply omit parts which have become sacred over time, so he made minor changes in order to promote his own agenda .
Biblical criticism uses mostly the following study tools:
Study of the language used in different parts of the Bible. According to the critical approach, this may teach us, for example, about the period at which each part was written, and perhaps about the writers as well.
Comparison of different but similar stories and verses from different parts of the Bible. According to the critical approach, this may teach us, for example, about the identity of the writer, his agenda and how different stories and ideas may have originated from each other.
Comparison of different ancient versions of the same text, such as the Hebrew Bible and the Septuagint (basis of the Old Testament in European languages).
Comparison to ancient myths and to later Midrash.
Archaeology may sometimes also serve as an aiding tool, though there are different approaches among scholars to its use as a scientific tool.Further Information
Get more info on 'Biblical Studies'.
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