Martin Luther’s answer to Emperor Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire during his “heresy” trial before the Diet of Worms is instructive. “Unless I am convinced by the testimonies of Scripture or by clear reason, I cannot and will not recant,” he declared to the stunned assembly. “It is neither safe nor honorable to violate one’s conscience. Here I stand. I can do no other. So help me God.”
Luther’s words amounted to a theological earthquake that opened deep and wide cracks in the belief that the Church of Rome has final authority, even over scripture, and Western culture has never been the same. It is noteworthy that in his defense Luther appealed to scripture or clear reason despite the many negative—and sometimes intemperate—things he said about human reason on some other occasions.
An exclusivist understanding of the role of scripture is not helpful for a number of reasons. One of these is that none of us can read scripture without being influenced by the circumstances in which we live. Another is that without studying other forms of contemporary knowledge, as well as the whole of scripture, it can be difficult to know how to apply what it says. Still further, the doctrine of “sola scriptura” makes it difficult for denominations to make effective use of the views of their pioneers, be they John Hus, Martin Luther, John Calvin, Thomas Cramner, Count Nicholas Ludwig von Zinzendorf, John Wesley, or Ellen White. A fourth problem is that this doctrine makes it less likely that Christians will learn from religions other than their own. A fifth is that viewing scripture this way can needlessly make Christians appear dogmatic and obscurant.
Applying scripture to our lives is related to but different from reconstructing as accurately as possible what its various passages first meant, something that non-Christian historians and linguists can do equally well. For them the Bible is a cultural classic; however, for those of us who are Christians it is the primary religious canon too.
Some of the ancient Israelites apparently thought that it was a good idea to stone those who break the Sabbath. Most of them probably took it for granted that slavery was morally acceptable. Some of the first Christians seem to have believed that they could drink poison and handle snakes without being harmed. None of us believes these things today because we have learned much in the interlude.
We should let the ancients say what they did without necessarily feeling that we must agree in every detail. If we insist that we must always concur, we might read our own convictions into the ancient texts so as to avoid any uncomfortable difference. Doing this might solve our problems; however, it does so at the risk of distorting the Biblical materials. It is better to let them say what they did and for us to say what we must, always insisting that these maintain a constant and mutually beneficial dialogue with the overarching themes of scripture primary.
