Author: ecircle

Monotheism has been around for a long time. The idea of Monotheism is thought to have started in Egypt in the 14th century. Monotheism is known to be the belief in one God, and is frequently placed with Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
However, the question has been asked if these religions, especially Christianity, are actually Monotheistic or if they could fall into a different category. That category being Henotheism. Henotheism is the worship of a single God, but also the acknowledgement that there could still be other deities out their. This especially comes into question when you look at the Ten Commandments. The very first commandment is “You shall have no other Gods before me.” Know is that a statement of trust in one God, or stating that there could be other Gods, but one is more almighty than the others?
Most people believe that these three religions are Monotheistic, and I don’t disagree with that statement. I, however, think that people are free to believe what they want to. Everything is up to interpretation in my mind, and I think that people should be allowed to believe in whatever they want to when it comes to religious practices.

Slavery was seen as something that was commonly seen in the Bible. So much so, that Christian slaveholders in early America used the Bible as an free-pass to have and hold slaves. But does the Bible actually condone slavery?
There are many parts of the Bible that people have questioned over the years, but I think that one of the biggest arguments is whether slavery was condoned in the Bible, or if it wasn’t. Well, firstly we can say the slavery worked differently that some might think. In the New World, or early America, slaves were generally people who had been taken captive and were forced into slavery. However, in the Bible, slavery could come from many different ways. People who had no money could sell themselves into servitude or they could have even been criminals working in servitude to justify their sentence and appease God. There were, of course, those forced into slavery, but it was not as simple as that most times.
Do I think that the Bible directly condoned slavery? No, I don’t. I think that slavery was an awful that happened in many different cultures and that lead to the spread of it in the future. People like to pick and chose what they want the Bible to say. I think that if a person wants to use the Bible to condone something as serious as slavery, then they should really take a better look at some of the other “rules” the Bible has. 1 Timothy 2:9 states that women shouldn’t braid their hair, own gold, or wear expensive things. Leviticus 19:27 states that a man should not trim his beard, and 19:28 says that a person should not make any cuttings into their flesh, aka, have tattoos. I think the moral of this story is that there are a lot of things in the Bible, but just because they’re in the Bible, doesn’t mean you can twist them to your own standards.

Hello, my name is Ensley Circle. I am from West Lafayette, IN (basically on the campus of Purdue if you know where that is), and am a Theater Major. I chose to take this course this year for a couple of reasons. First, because I was raised Catholic and have been taught about this kind of stuff for a good majority of my life. Second, I find the stories of the Bible so incredibly interesting. And third, I really want to learn more.

To me, the Bible is a collection of writings whether they might be different perspectives or stories. I have always been partial to the Old Testament because I enjoy these stories that have been collected. It is really amazing how people are able to throw themselves into the Bible and find their faith, and I am really looking forward to being able to learn more about the Bible and faith.

When you look up “What is the Bible?” a myriad of things will pop up. I find it really interesting how there are so many sources over something that has varying opinions. I think that if you were to ask a bunch of people on the street “What is the Bible?” you would get many different answers. Some people might say the Wikipedia definition that the Bible is a collection of religious texts, but to others it can be so much more. That is why it is so incredibly interesting.

I would consider Michael W. Holmes to be a very credible source when it comes to biblical studies. As a current professor over the topic at Bethel University, it is clear to see that he is well-sourced in information regarding the subject. Holmes has also acquired and Ph.D. at Princeton Theological Seminary, and M.A. at the Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and a B.A. with the University of California at Santa Barbra. Holmes has many years of professional experience in teaching about biblical studies, and has written many books and chapters in alignment to his studies.

Another great and reliable source for Old Testament information would be Dr. Katherine Dell. In my research over Dell, I have found that she is a professor of Theology and Religious Studies at St. Catherine’s University. Dell has a Ph.D. and has had many publications regarding her work. She is a specialist in Proverbs, Job Ecclesiastes, wisdom literature, creation, ecological readings of texts, and musical interpretations of biblical texts among other things. She is a very respectable scholar, and that is why she is a trusted source in the biblical studies field.

I have found, through this research, that it is very important to do a background check for any source that you use. It might be simple to go online and use the first source you find, but that source is most likely not going to be the most reliable. There are plenty of people in respectable positions that know a lot more on a subject than most, and those are the people who we want to use in our endeavors.