From the New Testament, we learn that Jesus’s favorite mode of teaching was through fiction; he taught parables. Although the characters and events may not be historical, few Christians question the truth in the messages.
Despite comfort with parables, some Christians become unsettled thinking about elements of the Bible as being non-historical. Biblical scholar Ben Spackman points out that this hesitancy is inherited from Enlightenment thinking, which regarded revelation as truth and truth as scientific or historical fact. This thinking, Ben points out, causes many readers to jettison common sense and plain readings of the scriptural text.
Often times when reading scripture, the assumption is made that the text is either literal or figurative, but these two categories are insufficient to describe the different genres of scriptures.
It would be more helpful to approach the Bible as if it were a library that contained books of many different genres instead of being all the
Amanda Brown, Guest Podcaster
same type of writing. No Christian would presume to label all scripture as a parable. Likewise, all scripture should not be labeled as history. The Bible contains books of satire, law codes, poetry, parables, myth, conquest narratives, and prophetic revelation among other things.
The type of “thing” or genre of a given book is indicated by genre markers. For instance, Americans can tell a book is a fairy tale if it begins with “Once upon a time.” Genre markers in the Bible can be identified similarly by biblical scholars familiar with the culture.
Readers should also keep in mind that ancient Israelites approached the use of history in scripture differently than modern authors. Historical accuracy is actually a modern concept. Biblical writers often fashioned history to teach a higher purpose. If some of the historical details were fudged, then that was regarded as acceptable if done to make a point.
Join Amanda Brown as she interviews biblical scholar Ben Spackman about the different genres of literature found in the Bible.
Extra Resources:
Episode 45 Transcript
Upcoming Presentation: "Truth, Scripture, and Interpretation: Some Precursors to Understanding Genesis
Links to Resources Mentioned in Podcast
Why Bible Translations Differ: a Guide for the Perplexed
Benjamin the Scribe on Genre (Blog Post)
LDS Perspectives Podcast
Episode 45: Genre in the Bible with Ben Spackman
(Released July 19, 2017)
This is not a verbatim transcript.
Some wording and grammar has been modified for clarity.
Amanda Brown: Hi, Ben.
Ben Spackman: Hello.
Amanda Brown: Can you tell me a little bit about yourself and what you’re studying?
Ben Spackman: Sure. It’s kind of a long story. I graduated from BYU in Near Eastern studies a long time ago and promptly went off to the University of Chicago where I did what’s called comparative semitics, which is a heavy language focus on the ancient Near East. I studied a little bit of history, a little bit of linguistics, but mostly I studied Hebrew and Arabic, Aramaic, Acadian, and other dead languages that people really haven’t heard of that are behind the Old Testament and the various cultures connected with it.
I am now doing American religious history and Mormon studies, and my focus is actually kind of the same. When I was at Chicago, I focused on the book of Genesis, and my interest at Claremont has really been on the conflict between science and religion, specifically between interpretations of Genesis and evolution.
Amanda Brown: Could you tell us a little bit about our topic today?
Ben Spackman: I’ve spent a lot of time teaching the Bible in various forms. I’ve done New Testament and Old Testament. I’ve taught a class on the book of Genesis twice. One of the things that we always have to talk about is distinguishing different kinds of things within the Bible. A lot of times Mormons approach the Bible and indeed all scripture as if it’s ...
