The Bible’s New Testament: The Book of Titus – What Must Be Taught to Various Groups

Posted on December 9, 2013 by virgowriter

I’m part of a very dedicated department at Temple University, and in our meetings every semester, one of the issues we return to often is ensuring that what we are teaching our students in the classroom meets our department mandate and also what is serving the students—is this useful to them? In the ten years I’ve been in the department, our content has evolved but the core of what we teach remains mostly intact—we believe as we always have that students benefit by learning how to write at the college level, regardless of the major they pursue.

But not every school stresses the same skills and perhaps this is why students who transfer in often get confused: how come one teacher tells me to do this while you’re telling me this? Shouldn’t writing be writing? Should all students be told the same thing?

In Titus, Paul is writing a letter for Titus, who is being dispatched to Crete to straighten out the mess that has engulfed the church there. Aside from outlining his general mandate—appointing Elders/overseers who are “good”, Paul includes a breakdown of what must be taught to different groups.

Predictably (and unfortunately) these groups are divided by gender and freedom: men, women, and slaves.

As opposed to merely telling men, women, and slave owners to be “good,” Paul makes clear that each group receives a distinct set of instructions. Older men are to be “temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love, and endurance” (2:2). Older women are to “reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to too much wine, but to teach what is good.” Doing this allows the women to then train younger women to fall in line: be good wives, mothers and “to be self-controlled and pure, to busy at home, to be kind, and (naturally) be subject to their husbands” (2:3-5).

So why do women get a longer list? Both lists have their positive qualities, yet why must women be the ones who remain passive, obedient, the ones who teach the next generation? Isn’t this a bit hypocritical, seeing as how this gender is unworthy of spreading any teaching of the faith outside the home?

Although I can appreciate the spirit of these directions—wanting people to find a way to be better people in the home and by extension in their community, I don’t get the continued appreciation and condoning of slavery. Again, slaves are to be encouraged to obey their masters, not steal from them, to show that they can be trusted in order to put on a good show of Christian faith. Why should they? Well, according to Paul, they will be awarded by God in heaven (2:2:12-13).

I understand that slavery was “accepted” back then, but there are plenty of things that were acceptable in this era for which Christianity leaders did not abide. Why condone this? And if condone is too strong of a word, why make matters worse by trying to make slaves feel good about their condition? This seems far too cruel.

When it comes to my writing students, I appreciate the confusion they sometimes feel. I don’t know what to say other than everyone approaches writing a little differently but here’s why this approach works. But at least I’m in a position to move them in a positive directions rather than allowing what they’ve been taught to fester.

Next up: Philemon—finally Paul stands up for slaves.

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The #Bible’s New Testament: 2 Timothy – All Scripture is Useful for Teaching (I Guess It Only Matters What Lesson It’s Teaching)

Posted on December 6, 2013 by virgowriter

Help me Obi-wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope.

This is one of Princess Leia’s most memorable lines of dialogue from Star Wars, in part because it’s the first line Luke hears from her. As such, it prompts him to take action, seek out this Obi-Wan, and eventually follow Kenobi to Alderaan in search of his destiny. If you’re the only one to help, you must rise to the occasion, right?

I’ve felt this very same impulse anytime I’m at a Pride parade and the predictable bunch of protesters is serving up their hate-filled denunciation of homosexuality.  The Bible says us homosexuals are evil, sinning, going to hell, etc., right? Ugh. Certainly I’m not the only one capable of engaging with these misguided people. Yet most—understandably—want to shout these people down, not parse through their faulty logic, explaining how they are misusing this book they claim to know so well.  I feel especially emboldened now that I’m almost done reading the Bible. Though, to be fair, I doubt that many of these people have any interest on hearing anyone else’s take on the good book.

In 2 Timothy, Paul says basically the same thing to Timothy—you’re my only hope; everyone else has deserted me (1:14-15). You must carry the message for me.

Among the many challenges Timothy will encounter include stupid, foolish arguments (2:23), presumably espousing or defending incorrect or distorted beliefs. He should avoid these.

But how to engage with the people who spout off this nonsense? Paul suggests that all scripture is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting (3:16), and he should be prepared to use it. Why should Timothy be extra prepared for this particular task? Paul suggests that there will come a time—soon, most likely—when “men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths” (4:3-4).

So apparently, people will stop following the example God and Jesus set and instead create their own version, one that suits their interests, believing only what they want to believe, not what has been put down. Sounds just like the groups who routinely protest gay events with their distorted version of the Bible by their side.

One day, I hope to actually engage with them and walk them through their points—to which they are so steadfast they would likely be incapable of rational conversation. Still, there’s a chance for change, right? Why are they so afraid of the very book they claim to embrace?

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The #Bible’s New Testament: 1 Timothy – The Law Is Good (If Used Properly)

Posted on December 4, 2013 by virgowriter

The best way to sharpen your writing skills—especially in the context of a writing class—is to write. What you write for class, however, includes more than just stories.  In my fiction classes, I have students submit multiple responses to exercises as well as a 1-2 page critique of every other student’s workshop story. I typically have 20 students, so the workload is tough.  The last chunk of writing—the critiques (especially given how they fall at the end of the semester, when everyone’s story gets workshopped)—give students the biggest headaches.  Several of them complain.  After all, they often mention, we discuss the stories, why do we have to write-up our reactions.  It helps you articulate your points better, I tell them, which in turn helps you see similar issues in your work. Plus, I tell them, if this were not a firm rule in place, as experience has shown, a good portion of the class would not read the peer’s work—which affects the class and impacts the feedback writer’s need to improve.

If this rule were not in place with your best interests, I would not assign it, I tell them. And it’s usually not the “good” students who need these type of rules—they would do the work regardless.  No, it’s really to encourage the ones who like to take shorts cuts.

The idea that people who aim lower than others need encouragement has been around for a while, and this idea is part of what inspires Paul’s detailed instructions in 1 Timothy. And this set of instructions is packed with dos and don’ts.

Sensing the end of his days, Paul lays out for Timothy (one of his most trusted and only remaining friends) a series of instructions with which he will get the town of Ephesus back in line.

Along with instructions of prayer and criteria for overseers and deacons, Paul mentions that the Law is good if used properly (1:8). Apparently, some people have been taking liberties with how they present (and perhaps enforce) God’s law.

Paul clarifies: The law is mainly there to help the lost: the lawbreakers and the rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and “irreligious’; for those who kill their parents, for murderers, adulterers, perverts, slave traders (so slavery IS bad!!), liars, and perjurers… and the best part: whatever else is contrary to God’s sound doctrine (1:9-10).

So basically anyone who does not follow God’s law is bad and someone who needs it most. I get the point—I think—that the people who need help are the ones to whom you give help.  Here, the help is god’s law, his extended hand. But by this list, the people who are sinful are the one who commit acts Christianity deems sinful—as opposed to something that is illegal. You almost then don’t need anything after this point in the list, as everything following sinful has been covered, not to mention reasserted with the last part.

So how is forcing a person to abandon their way of life and pursue what YOU think is good positive?

But wait, there’s more.  In his instructions, he makes clear how subservient women are to remain.  They are to dress modestly (no specific criteria provided) and with no ornamentation (9-10). They also need to be silent when she learns and show NO authority over men—the context appears to deal with being in church (11); however, one can easily see how this could be taken out of context and applied to women in ALL situations. They are also forbidden to teach, presumably related to spreading God’s instructions (1:13). Have no fear for these women, however, for Paul makes it clear: childbearing will save them (1:15)

If one were to suggest that everything that is written in the Bible should be adhered to—such as anti-homosexuality stances—this section doesn’t bode well for jewelry stores or future treatment of women.

Along the same lines, Paul presents the qualifications for both Overseers and deacons, all of whom should be “good.” One of these good qualities means having ONLY one wife (2).  So apparently polygamy is allowed, just not for important people in the church.

You’d think that if polygamy were frowned upon by the church, Paul would say so.

But he doesn’t; instead, he then focuses on Timothy, who should train himself spiritually (much like an athlete would train physically).  Why get in such strong mental shape? He needs to watch out for those who mis-portray Christian teachings.  Apparently, some have been forbidding marriage between two people as well as eating certain foods (4:3). Looks like some people had been paying too close attention to the Old Testament. According to Paul, these people should not be enacting such restrictions (even if the Old Testament says to).  Paul wants to make clear: everything God created is good (4:4).

It seems that at this point in Christianity, based perhaps on Jesus’ influence, that the church had moved beyond all those harsh dos and don’ts in the Old Testament, so why do people still reference these old laws when the New Testament says they should not longer be follow? If they didn’t, gay people would have an easier time gaining acceptance in society.

And perhaps everything God created should be free, for here surfaces one of the most famous lines I had no idea was actually in the Bible: The love of money is the root of all evils (6:10).

If that were true (and I think it’s fair to see the truth in the expression), you’d think the church would not feel the need to keep asking for it in the form of tithes. But, then again, could they rely on the charity of others to put that money to (mostly) good use? Perhaps if 100% of money collected went to treat the poor, etc., people would be more inclined to give? Is it sad to say that most people require stern direction in order to perform something worthwhile?

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