Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site duke.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!unc!mcnc!duke!nlt From: nlt@duke.UUCP (N. L. Tinkham) Newsgroups: net.religion Subject: Re: Biblical Christianity Message-ID: <4828@duke.UUCP> Date: Wed, 26-Sep-84 15:50:37 EDT Article-I.D.: duke.4828 Posted: Wed Sep 26 15:50:37 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 27-Sep-84 05:26:14 EDT Organization: Duke University Lines: 32 [John Nelson] >> I agree with you here [on the existence of christians before the NT], >> except that the only record of what you will call "the essential >> doctrines" of being a Christian were communicated to us through that >> book. [Charley Wingate] > What about the teachings of the Church? I don't mean the RC church, > either; I mean all the writings and teachings of the Churchs throughout > christian history. The Episcopal Church, for one, recognizes the > Apostle's Creed and the Nicene Creed as being equal in merit to the > scriptures. It seems to me that this is how fundamentalism got its > start, with the notion that any man could, in total isolation, read the Bible > and be able to interpret it absolutely correctly. ---------------------------------- As an Episcopalian (and as a student of theology, for that matter), I agree with Charley Wingate's statements about the value of the teachings of the Church, and I agree that the interpretation of the Bible by individuals in isolation is a "fundamental" (sorry!) aspect of Fundamentalism. But I think the claim that the Apostles' and Nicene Creeds are viewed as equal in merit to the Scriptures is a bit strong. Even among Episcopalians I hear terms like "inspired" and "the Word of God" used for the Bible but not for the creeds. What they mean by those terms (or what I would mean by them) isn't clear; theories such as dictation or "verbal inspiration" are not popular in Anglican theology. But there does seem to be a special status, however difficult to define, given to the Bible which sets it apart from other writings of the apostles or church fathers. N. L. Tinkham duke!nlt