(I am posting this partially corrected translation as is. Time permitting, I will improve its readability.)
I have studied and taught the Bible for a few decades and I hold a passion for history, particularly Christian history. I've approached it from multiple perspectives and the more I studied, the more I realised that I didn't know, that I'd also been influenced by my environment and culture, and that I'd been wrong on so many things. Over time, the presumption of my younger years, when I thought it was my call to set others on the right path, has abated. I've gradually come to hold a deeper respect and appreciation for others' Christianity, however different it may seem from mine. While I once labelled others by theological criteria, or the church they belonged to, I've learned over time that Jesus is much more accommodating than I. In fact, I have often seen Him help, heal, answer prayers and miraculously manifest Himself in the lives of so many Christians, which I did not even consider such.
On the other hand, it is also true that among those who affirm to be Christian, there are many who, though apparently religious, don't know the very thing they claim to believe in. To some, in fact, Christianity is only a cultural heritage, an ethnic or national identity into which they were born. Others, instead, while not considering themselves religious, have perceived the essence of Christianity and have embraced it. There are also an ever-growing number of people who do seek for answers, but looks at Christianity suspiciously. They may sense that there is something significant about it, but are afraid to get near it for a number of reasons - first among these, the dark side of religion, its pride, arrogance and intolerance.
In spite of the great Christian luminaries, who’ve made remarkable contributions to human welfare, history tells us also of men who, arrogating the privilege to act in the name of God, committed unspeakable crimes – often with the pretext of stamping out heresy. Even today the label "heretic", so used and abused in the past becomes a favourite for grading the competition, someone else's Christianity. How easily we forget that Jesus himself was accused of heresy and sentenced to death for blasphemy - that the Apostle Paul was also accused of heresy, and that the first Christians were a hated Jewish sect, also considered heretical. The vicious cycle continues and many enthusiasts of a particular brand of Christianity adopt this same anti-heretical stance against their competitors. Undoubtedly they do it in good conscience, believing that it is even for God's honour, for integrity's sake, to preserve sound doctrine and, especially, to protect those who could otherwise be led astray into heresy.
So Christianity appears irreversibly divided, and the continual bickering amongst its many factions, creates scepticism about them all. All the same, a single united Christianity wouldn't necessarily be better, but perhaps even worse. I'll address this further along, though briefly, in a separate appendix.
In this scenario, is to be considered the fact that nobody sees God in exactly the same way as another. To varying degree, we all have a personal understanding of Him and no matter how much one learns about it, the differences do not disappear. As such, none of us are ever completely sure of each and every aspect of our brand of Christianity. Naturally, there is confidence in some aspects of it, unless we made that choice the same as buying an insurance policy, or a lottery ticket – it may have cost a little, but we hope it protects from trouble, or maybe even bring good luck in the end. Honestly, I don't think this is the case with most believers. I believe, instead, that their choice towards the Christian faith is based on something concrete, and that there has been an encounter in which Jesus has manifested himself in some tangible way. There is, therefore, a strong confidence in Him, but for the rest, most people tend to rely on less dependable means, such as the traditions into which they were born, or whatever Christianity is closest or more culturally accessible to them.
None of us are exempt from perceiving Christianity through the filters of our own particular experience and culture. On my part, I can only credit a prolonged exposure to different people and cultures, for helping me to expand my perspective a bit. I don't think, however, that I'll ever be free of my upbringing, or come to understand anything perfectly, at least not in this life. All I can do here is progress gradually, but I am convinced that that is the whole point of it – that in the faith journey, it doesn't matter at which point of the road we are in, but simply that we are moving and growing. The apostle Paul said that when he was a child he understood as a child and spoke as a child, but that when he became a man, he put aside childish things [1]. In my opinion, this putting aside of childish things, denotes a crucial development process that never ends. If we are willing to learn and put aside old worn-out mindsets, then we will make progress. Each year we will then look back satisfied, albeit with a bit of embarrassment for looking back and recognizing how childish we were before.
Fully aware of this never-ending process, I thank God for helping me overcome some of my preconceived ideas, and opening my eyes to things that were before me all the while, but was unable to distinguish. I feel lighter, now, and everything appears so much clearer and simpler than ever before. I know, for a fact, that it will be even clearer tomorrow, but I don’t wait to understand it all perfectly before writing about it, as that will never happen. I have, thus, decided to share what I've gathered so far about the book we will study, the Bible, well aware that mine is a limited view.
Consequently, whatever analysis and assessment of scripture included in this course, though I may have presented it enthusiastically and with a tone of definiteness, it is nonetheless a work in progress, still imperfect and subject to improvement. On the other hand I invite you not to discard it simply because of its temporariness, nor for any elements that may seem contrary to previously held ideas. I invite you, instead, to try it without reservations and let it work for a while. Only this way one can prove whether it is valid, needs improvement, or must simply to be discarded.
What prompted me to work on this has been the desire to enable just about anyone to approach the Bible by themselves, with just a few introductory pages. Often, the more “official” Bible courses are either not free or offered by those whose intent is to convert the new student to their particular brand of Christianity. Although this is natural and to be expected, nonetheless the pressure to comply with a particular agenda, does discourage those who would wish to remain free of it. Theological courses also promote the idea that nobody can understand the Bible unless they are taught by an approved, academically qualified teacher. This is why I chose the title "The Simple Religion" and the subtitle "The Do-It-Yourself of Bible Study." It is not to declare independence from Christian institutions, nor to promote the idea of Christianity as a do-it-yourself religion. On the contrary, Christianity is the religion where Jesus has already done it all and where our part is, by comparison, minimal. Even so, that small part is so often misrepresented, that it does appear so terribly complex. This prevents many from even trying. My intent is to demystify the apparent complexity of the Christian faith - to also separate it from cultural and historical preconceived ideas, and put its comprehension and experience within anyone's grasp. I am convinced that it is not hard for anyone to understand the Bible, and God's plan for humanity - it only takes a few tools, a few instructions, and it can be done, even alone.
I dedicate this method to anyone who's interested, but especially to those who are uncertain of Christianity, as they see it - to those who seek for truth, but are wary of market proposals – to Christians who feel rejected, who have questions about aspects of their faith, but cannot find adequate answers - to those who, seeing incompatibilities between what they know about Jesus and the institutions who claim to represent Him, can neither separate the two, nor combine them – to those who, while believing and searching for answers in the Bible, have given up on it, because of the difficulty at understanding a book of other times and cultures. I dedicate this "Do-It-Yourself" to all of you, hoping that it will simplify things, give you the tools to find the answers you seek and, most of all help you to know the One who gave us the Book.
1. First Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians 13:11
