Quote:
Originally Posted by Willravel
Let me put it this way: of all the people I know IRL or in cyberspace, you're probably the most knowledgeable when it comes to all things Judaism, particularly your holy texts. You dedicated years of intense study at institutions of higher learning. You're even a teacher! Isn't it true that there's a lot about your religious texts that you don't know? While you may not be guilty of the kind of slip of spoken about in the OP, like thinking there's some Biblical edict about vaguely erotic vampire fiction, but certainly, even with your truly impressive knowledge, there are still things you have yet to learn or discover, yes? And really, is it fair to expect everyone to get a PhD level education on their religion?
I was a Christian for approximately 14 years and I studied my ass off, and I've studied even more after my de-conversion, but there's still much I don't know about Christianity, it's history, the earlier translations, different theories from different experts. It could take me ten lifetimes to know it all. I know next to nothing about Judaism, Islam, Sikhism, Wicca, Zoroastrianism, Druidism, etc. relative to your average person in that religion.
My long-winded point is maybe you've set the bar too high. Maybe even basic knowledge is sitting the bar too high. Sure, say "That's not actually in the Bible/Torah/Qur'an/etc." when people speak in err, but you're talking about your average person, here, and your average person doesn't take his or her religion seriously. I'm sorry to put it so bluntly, but for most people religion is a back burner kinda thing, an Easter and Christmas (or Chanukkah and Pesach) belief system. They care because their parents pretended to care going back generations.
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Of course there's stuff I don't know yet, Will. There will always be stuff I don't know, no matter how hard I study.
But I'm not saying that everyone should have a rabbi's detailed knowledge of the nuance of certain texts, or how to use them to construct arguments in Jewish Law; nor that they should have a PhD's knowledge of the history and deconstruction of the texts, and how to identify from structure and grammar when a piece dates from, and what the theological agenda at that time were.
And if people don't care about their religion, fine. That's their business. But it seems like there are a lot of people walking around who have read only bits and pieces, and either they think that means that they know everything they need to know about the Bible, or they know they don't and they think they should, so they pretend to have a level of knowledge that they don't actually have.
What I am saying is that people who haven't read the Bible, and/or who have not received some basic critical instruction in how it's supposed to be read and understood-- by one's own religion, at least, if not by others that supposedly share parts of the same texts-- should not presume that they know what's in the Bible, or that they know anything about it, and should not represent themselves as such.
For example, I have read the Quran a little. I read it all through a couple of times, in different translations. All that means is that I have a vague idea about what the Quran is about, and a very basic familiarity with Islam. I don't know Arabic: I haven't read it in the original. I have received no real guidance from any trained Muslim scholar. I haven't read any significant portion of the Hadith, or any supporting works of Muslim theology of text, or even any of the responsa literature of Sharia. Strictly speaking, I know jack about the Quran, and relatively little about Islam, and I will be the first person to say so. If I were to (as I'd like to do) take a course, or a little private instruction from a Muslim scholar, then I might feel comfortable saying I had a little basic knowledge of the Quran and Islam.
All I'm saying is that if one has basic knowledge, then one should recognize that that's what one has. And if one has no knowledge, one should acknowledge that that's what one has.
If one cares about religion/the Bible, then take a course or two. If one doesn't, fine, but one shouldn't kid oneself or anyone else about one's knowledge.