The Complicated Bible

So this guy named David Plotz from Slate has been blogging about the Bible (actually just the Old Testament) and has compiled his thoughts into a book. Here's a video explaining how he got started:

I think this is a really wonderful idea in a lot of ways. Instead of dismissing the Bible for the stories that are so difficult, Plotz appreciates it (although this hasn't led him to believe in God).

Christianity Today did an interview with Plotz, which you can read here. He makes a couple of great points. For one, it really does no justice to the Bible to treat it as a bunch of moral maxims. An even better point, in my opinion, was this one:

"The joy and the richness of the Book come from fighting with it, and we should look at people like Abraham, Gideon, Job, and Jonah. Their questioning, difficulty, contentiousness, and argumentation are the moments that should inspire."

Personally, I have found the Bible far more rewarding as I struggle with it, rather than treat it with a false reverence that comes more from cultural conditioning than from taking the Bible seriously.

I'm seriously considering buying Plotz's book, just to see what kind of "irreverent" comments he has to make.