Take a Deep Breath... Relax... Think

It is extremely difficult to deal with opposing viewpoints, especially religious viewpoints. And since we are wired as emotional creatures (certain individuals more than others), opposition is even more difficult.

Recently, I came across a blog post that supported the possibility of the idea that the "genealogy" of Genesis 5 was actually derived from the ancient Mesopotamian/Sumerian "king list." If this is true, that would be devastating for those of us who hold to the historicity and "direct conception" of Scriptural inspiration. Right? Unfortunately, at this point in my life I have not taken the time to immerse myself in ancient Mesopotamian history - something that I look forward to studying in the near future. So, for me to try to combat the claims would be foolish. But I am interested in something that the author said:

Obviously, issues like this raise important questions about the Scriptures, not least of which is the concept of “inspiration.” It would seem that those who hold to a very “strong” or “direct” conception of inspiration would have serious problems with this information.

Very interesting. I wonder if he even knows how right he might be. But the interesting thing is that I don't think he should be right. Let me try to explain.

When a claim is made that seems to confront a person's belief that is strongly held, the immediate reaction is often hostility toward the opposition and the claim. We tend to attack the "attack" (or what seems like an attack, although it's not necessarily malicious). In other words, we get emotional and let our emotions govern our responses. This happened most recently on a global scale with the release of The Da Vinci Code (let me be clear at the outset, I am in no way equating the historicity of Mr. Brown's book with the historicity of the "king list". The historical issue regarding the "king list" is a separate issue than I intend to address at the moment). Christians all over the world were making dramatic, emotional moves in response to the "historical" claims of the movie and book: protests with crazy signs, public hunger strikes, etc.

So what should be the response? Let's do a mock confrontation.

Opponent: Jesus was a mere mortal until the bishops at Nicaea voted on his deity!

Defendant: (deep breath... relax... think... be patient... then respond) Why do you say that?

Then we ought to listen to the reasons given and see how they match with reality. Does the claim have support? sufficient support? Are there any mitigating circumstances, presuppositions that affect the facts that we can immediately address and try to "peel back"? Does the claim seem possible (ie. Dan Brown's claim that over 5 million women were burned as witches by the Roman Catholic Church - most historians actually estimate around 30-50 thousand)? And there are many other analytical skills that should be employed in these circumstances. Sadly enough, I don't think that the majority of persons today employ these means of critical analysis. Rather, we tend to get angry, as that hot feeling boils inside of us, and we respond irrationally. I am as guilty of this as the next emotional person. But I am working, by the grace of God, toward the goal of patient, critical, Christ-centered thinking - wisdom.

Back to the original claim regarding the Sumerian "king list." Right now, I can say that I do not have sufficient knowledge in this field to make an accurate criticism, so I will refrain. But I will say that I'm not afraid of this information. The facts about the existence of this list don't seem like a threat to me at the outset of my studies. And I hope to be more familiarized with this information soon, trusting that God will lead me to the Truth.

The bottom line is that "attacks" have arisen throughout the history of Christianity. They're nothing to get flustered about. From "Q" to "J.E.D.P" to "Deutero Isaiah," to the denial of Daniel's authorship of "Daniel," to the denial of apostolic authorship, to the idea that the Torah was in some way dependent upon the "king list," and many other claims, the oppositions have been numerous and difficult to combat. But the historical, traditional, Orthodox Christian beliefs still stand, through the opposition (as to why they stand is another topic that is also intriguing, but I have massive amounts of studying to which I must attend).

So to go back to the issue one more time, here is the important quote again:

Obviously, issues like this raise important questions about the Scriptures, not least of which is the concept of “inspiration.” It would seem that those who hold to a very “strong” or “direct” conception of inspiration would have serious problems with this information.

Again, I think that this is a true statement. But I don't think that it should be true. We can't let the stacked chips threaten us. We must be patient, and think, and listen, and pray, and above all, grow in the face of opposition, trusting that God will protect us and lead us to the Truth, in Christ, to the glory of His Name.