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[Multicolored Lemur]

Fewer in U.S. Now See Bible as Literal Word of God

Coinciding with a general decline in religiosity in the U.S., a record-low 20% of Americans now say they believe the Bible is literally true.

news.gallup.com

From the top, 2 charts and 1 table. Please look at the table.

As of the year 2022,

58% of Christian adults view the Bible as the "Inspired word by God"
25% of Christian adults as "Actual word of God”
16% of Christian adults view Bible as "Ancient book of fables"

* some of that 16% may attend church with their spouse. Or, may know Jesus and God is real from an active prayer life, but from their life experience, also know just how quickly rumors can circulate and get built upon, including those rumors which end up getting written down.

But that 58% is a centrist position and is by far the most common

 

[AgnosticBoy]

@Multicolored Lemur

The 58% stat is a bit tricky because that group falls somewhere between the Bible being literalness vs. the fables and myth camp. If this group accepts any part of the Bible as being literal, like let's say marriage being between opposite sex mates and monogamous, then something saying otherwise would cause a problem.

I mean if the contradictions aren't a problem, then it could also be some of the more far-fetched views that Scooter brought up earlier. And I'm surprised Scooter left out the "magical underwear" doctrine.

A temple garment, also referred to as garments, the garment of the holy priesthood, or Mormon underwear, is a type of underwear worn by adherents of the Latter Day Saint movement...

According to the LDS Church, the temple garments serve a number of purposes. First, the garment provides the member "a constant reminder" of the covenants they made in the temple. Second, the garment "when properly worn ... provides protection against temptation and evil." Wearing the garment is also "an outward expression of an inward commitment" to follow Jesus Christ

- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_garment

 

[Multicolored Lemur]

like let's say marriage being between opposite sex mates and monogamous

Well then, they're not talking about Jacob having 2 wives and 2 concubines!

sorry, I couldn't resist.

Jacob first married older sister Leah, and then he married younger sister Rachel.
His two concubines were the servants Bilhah and Zilpah

This is all described sparsely and dryly in Genesis.

 

[AgnosticBoy]

@Multicolored Lemur

True.

Earlier, I brought up the point about the character of the messenger, Joseph Smith. But now I'm also thinking that Protestants and Catholics would also be skeptical of "modern" day revelations since it is so far removed from the period that the Bible covers. I think the same doubts would happen if someone today claimed to have some divine revelation and tried to make it part of the "Scriptures".

 

[Multicolored Lemur]

marriage

I think in his letter (?) First Corinthians, Paul said it's better not to marry. But that it's better to marry than to burn with desire.

 

[Multicolored Lemur]

Bible Gateway passage: 1 Corinthians 7 - New Living Translation

Instruction on Marriage - Now regarding the questions you asked in your letter. Yes, it is good to abstain from sexual relations. But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband. The husband should fulfill his wife’s...

www.biblegateway.com

8 So I say to those who aren’t married and to widows—it’s better to stay unmarried, just as I am. 9 But if they can’t control themselves, they should go ahead and marry. It’s better to marry than to burn with lust.

— New Living Translation

— — —

The Bible generally just doesn't have advice for modern life, other than maybe accidentally. For example, is there any place in the New Testament which talks about how to incorporate activism and helping others into a full, rich life? I don't think so.

 

[AgnosticBoy]

The Bible generally just doesn't have advice for modern life, other than maybe accidentally. For example, is there any place in the New Testament which talks about how to incorporate activism and helping others into a full, rich life? I don't think so.

AGreed. A lot of it doesn't address specific issues that we'd deal with today, which is why I'd think that Christians should welcome any new divine revelation and consider the Mormon books. But some reason, Christians are stuck on the belief that the Bible canon is closed, and nothing else can be added beyond the Book of Revelation.

I remember some claiming that Urantia was some new revelation that went along with Christianity. Don't hear much talk about it now though.