He cites the author of the Gospel of Luke as a classic example of rewriting the Bible. This process amounts to Banana's effort to rewrite the Bible, albeit on an interpretive level.
His point of departure is that the subject of homosexuality must be considered in the context of the Hebrew sexual customs. Walter Wink concludes by saying that “the bottom line is simply that the Bible has no sexual ethics.
Conclusion
In legal courts, the Bible is also used for witnesses to speak under oath. The Christian practice of referring to the ancient Hebrew and Aramaic writings in the Bible as the "Old Testament" and the early Christian documents as the "New Testament" will be followed in this thesis.
Inspiration of the Bible
All these questions point to the nature of the Bible as we have it today and its authority. Despite the need to agree on these assumptions, the inspiration of Scripture has been a bone of contention in the theological arena.
Types of Inspiration of the Bible
Given the complications that arise in determining how the Bible is inspired, as well as what is inspired, the words or authors of scripture, it is necessary to look at several models of inspiration presented by some theologians. These models of inspiration developed as a result of the vague and limited nature of the Bible's own testimony about inspiration.
Luther and Calvin are known to be the Reformation advocates of the position of strict verbal inspiration. Inspiration only became significant after the authority of the text was established and received by the Christian church.
The advantage of this model is that it makes it possible for one to accept that the Word of God, mixed with the erring words of men and women, still speaks authoritatively, because it speaks from the depth of authentic human experience. What one can say about this model is that it works without worrying about infallibility or infallibility.
On the other hand, inspiration will not be extended to the entirety of the Bible. Rather, the author of Scripture is seen as a theologian who speaks on behalf of the community and to the community.
Conclusion
The purpose of the preceding chapter has been to establish the issues involved in the way in which the Bible is considered to be inspired, and how it is therefore used in many parts of the world as authoritative. The way the Bible became what it is today took many years.
The Old Testament Canon
Various factors came into play in considering what would be included in the Bible and what would be eliminated. It can also mean a group of books within the Bible such as 'prophetic canon' or 'the Gospel canon'.
It is crucial to note that the process of canonization involved special considerations regarding the writings at hand. They were also chosen based on their contribution to the preservation of the nation and the worship of Jehovah.92 These three things were important in the process of determining the books that the Jews would use in their religious activities.
It should be noted that the book of Deuteronomy contains some chapters that were not written by Moses as claimed. In light of the above, it is reasonable to suggest that Josiah and his contemporaries attributed these chapters to Moses during the canonization process, basing their decisions on the explicit statements of Deuteronomy that Moses was its author (5. 4: 44-5 ).
The most likely possibility is that the authority of such a great founder of the religion and nation of Israel was needed to induce the king and his people to reform their beliefs and practices. This means that the fixation of the five books of the Pentateuch as the sacred canon of the Torah marks the second phase of the process, which began in 621 BC. with the recognition that the Book of Moses had been divinely inspired.
The closure of the canon in Palestinian Judaism must therefore be considered within the context of an abundance of literature in circulation. This may have led to the acceptance of the Psalms into the Old Testament canon.
It is suggested that some books were used in certain cult centers more than others. This means they appealed to local residents more than non-users.
The Mishnah (one of the most authoritative documents of Rabbinic Judaism) from the second century after the death of Christ. This points to the fact that the conclusion of the canon may not have taken place in Jamnia.
The era of Jesus Christ was characterized by the use of the Hebrew canon as mentioned above. However, the canon of the early church and all the New Testament writers was the LXX.
The death and scattering of these disciples who were with Jesus meant that everything that happened in Jesus' time would be lost. Several works of impostors were in circulation, such as the Acts of Peter and the Apocalypse of Peter.
Sanders, "The Literature and Canon of the New Testament" in Matthew Black (ed), Peake's Commentary on the Bible, (London: Routledge, 1990) p.680. He deserves the honor of making known to us the first canon of the New Testament.
From the discussion above, we can argue that Marcion forced the church to decide on the question of what to include in the canon of the New Testament. He believes that God's revelation after the closure of the New Testament canon should also be considered and included in the current biblical canon. 131.
According to Raymond Brown and Raymond Collins, most of the works of the New Testament were addressed to specific Christian communities, and the history and significance of the community involved had much to do with the preservation and even with the ultimate acceptance of these works135. He notes that the concept of inspiration was not originally decisive for the canonicity of the New Testament.
There are two schools of thought regarding the date of writing of the book of Acts. The argument that people became interested in Paul's letters after the publication of the book of Acts sounds plausible especially when considering those communities that had not seen Paul in person.
An example is the Epistle of Barnabas, which Clement of Alexandria treated as Scripture. He also challenged the authenticity of the Apocalypse of Peter, the Doctrine of the Apostles and the Gospel of the Hebrews.
Different communities upheld some books as canonical, which were not considered as such by the other community even though most of the books were commonly accepted as canonical.
Beare suggests that they used Tatian's Diatessaron almost exclusively in place of the four Gospels that became. However, some scholars believe that the Syriac list of around 400 AD places the four Gospels in place of the Diatessaron and omits 3 Corinthians.
Canonisation and Council of Churches
This means that the debate was finally closed with the Eastern and Western churches using the same twenty-seven books of the New Testament canon. The Council of Trent (1545-63) is another Council that helps to understand the contribution of Church Councils to the canonization of the New Testament.
Church Fathers Views on the Canon of Scripture
A few examples can help us understand their contribution to the growth of the Canon of Scripture. Among the books he completely rejected were the Apocalypse of Peter, the Apocalypse of Barnabas, the so-called Doctrine of the Apostles, and the Gospel according to the Hebrews.
Canon within the Canon
There are also divergent theologies in the New Testament works of about the same period, giving rise to the idea of a 'canon within a canon'. At first glance, the above reference from Romans would seem to suggest that Christ is the fulfillment of the law.
Recent Reactions to the Problem of the Canon
Theissen provides an example of the above fact in his celebrated work, The Social Setting of Pauline Christianity. The other scholar who questions the validity of the New Testament canon is L.
Conclusion
There was a paradigm shift in the center of power as it moved from the Church to civil society. In fact, Enlightenment thinkers often came into conflict with the Church.
The Challenge of Feminist Theology
The treatment of women in the Bible suggests that men and women were treated separately because of this patriarchal system. On the other hand, it can be said that patriarchy was also overcome in the legislation of the Old Testament.
Elizabeth Schussler Fiorenza is an example of a liberal feminist who also takes the Bible seriously.
For her, it is not only the Bible itself that must be thrown away, but all of both Judaism and Christianity are so corrupted by patriarchalism that it is irrevocable.189 Feminists in this category suggest that the Bible and Christianity can no longer speak to or for Women . It is the Bible, and the Bible alone, that holds the real hope for women's liberation.
Anti-Women Texts
The subordination of women was further entrenched by the church leaders, who made statements based on the biblical texts that feminists struggle with. Rosemary Radford Ruether lists church leaders whose perception of women further entrenched the subordination of women.
Thomas Aquinas on women
She maintains that although Augustine concedes women's redeemability and her participation in the image of God, Augustine says that this is overbalanced by her bodily representation of an inferior, sin-prone self, hence she possesses the image of God only secondarily.194 So ' A presentation and understanding of women tended to further subordinate and alienate them from their male counterparts. Aquinas therefore concludes by saying that the subordination of women by men is part of the natural order of creation by God.196 However, the situation in most developed and developed countries has proven that this biological understanding is wrong.
Martin Luther on Women
Males naturally excel in the higher mind; women have less rational capacity and are less capable of moral self-control. There are women who are more capable than men and occupy senior positions in civil society.
Calvinism on women
Feminist theologians challenge the way in which the Bible seems to exclude women from salvation history. The biggest challenge from feminist theologians came in the call for the ordination of women.
Ordination of Women and the Bible
This negative attitude towards the ordination of women also came from the thirty-nine articles of faith of the Church of England. On the other hand, there were also those who supported the ordination of women through the use of the Bible.
God and the Oppressed People
Although the majority of feminist theologians agree that various aspects of the Bible should be set aside and rejected because of their oppressive nature, they still find the liberating thread in the Bible. Divine intercession of the oppressed also appears to be the key to Jesus' ministry in the synoptic tradition.
A Critique of Dominant Systems of Power
The spirit of the supreme Lord is upon me because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and deliverance from darkness for the captives, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn219.
The Vision of the Reign of God
The subjects he deals with are baptism, unity, and who inherits the promise to Abraham, not office and equality. The text, the context, and the entire epistle have nothing to do with the issue of headship and office in the Church.”223 For Michael Harper, male headship was created by God.
Critique of Ideology or of Religion
Feminist theologians have realized that the Bible and Christianity have very little room to allow them to realize their goals, and they have turned to some heresies that have ordained women as priests. In the second century there were three major heresies, all of which eventually ordained women to the priesthood.
Marcion and Other Gnostics On women
It is known that Mary Daly, as a post-Christian theologian, saw no possibility of achieving the total liberation of women in Christianity and through the use of the Bible. Any Scripture passage where Paul connects with the God of the Old Testament, he spoke out.
Montanist Heresy on Women
Church Fathers and the Ordination of Women
He referred to a situation where women were ordained as 'wicked and sacrilegious, a perversion of the message of the Holy Spirit, in fact the whole thing is diabolical and a teaching of the unclean spirit'.232 He referred to the Old Testament looked at and concluded, 'nowhere did a woman serve as priestess'.233 He also says that since the Old is fulfilled in the New, there can be no female priests. To be fair to them, their general teaching on sexuality was consistent with that of the New Testament and was revolutionary for those days.
Feminist Hermeneutics
This is the second challenge to the Bible that has recently emerged. Below are some of the examples referenced by those inclined to homosexuality in their defense of the Bible.
Conclusion
To this end, there is a need to review the Bible and reinterpret it in the context of the emerging challenges. It is clear from the above that there must be a constant change in our interpretation of the Bible, which will be dictated by the constant changes in today's realities.
Anglican Church Offices and Groups
The fieldwork attracted responses from a variety of people representing a wide range of groups and positions in the Church of England. As for the offices found in the Anglican Church, they are universal and documented in the Acts and Constitution of the Church.
They marry those who want to marry, as well as baptize those who want to be baptized.
The duties of the vicar general are to perform all the spiritual and temporal functions of the bishop, except such as may be excluded by the fundamental declarations, constitution, canon or laws of this province or the laws or other binding decisions of the diocesan synod. . In particular, he can convene and preside at the Diocesan Synod, but may not announce the laws passed there or other binding decisions, which are without effect, until they have been announced by the Synod of Bishops or by the Archbishop himself254.
David Sceats maintains that 'being a deacon is a kind of preparation period before someone becomes a Priest.'256 The most important difference between these two orders is that a priest may preside at celebrations of the Lord's Supper, and pronounce the liturgical absolution and blessing over the congregation, while deacons may not.
They also consult with the bishop about the appointment by the bishop of a priest who will be appointed to work in that parish258. Above all, they are the people who ensure that there is order in the Church and that Church property is properly managed.
According to Act 14.10 (ix), of the Acts of the Diocese of Mashonaland (now Harare), one of the duties of churchwardens is.
However, members of this group are also committed to serving the church through fundraising and prayer ministry. They come together for the purpose of serving Christ in many ways, such as fundraising, repairs, and maintenance of church property.
Members of this group are identified by the uniform they wear, which consists of a white blouse with a blue collar and a black skirt. Although this group's constitution does not specify that only white women can become members, it has been dominated by white women and it has maintained Western principles.
Other Groups
This is simply a man in theological seminary training to become a priest in the Anglican Church. This research therefore drew people from different congregations, but represents all of the above groups of people found in the Anglican Church in the city of Harare.
Research Findings
Twenty-three people agree with the idea that the Bible is bi-authored. On the other hand, the majority of respondents in this survey agree with the view that the Bible has a double author.
Conclusion
On the other hand, only five out of thirty-three people support the view that the Bible needs to be rewritten. According to Aaron Chikomo, rewriting the Bible is not a problem as it will help select useful and important books for worship to meet current needs.
Introduction
Research Findings
A good example is that given by the Bishop of the Diocese of Harare, Nolbert Kunonga, who says that 'The Bible is inspired by God in the form of the message and not the words which are from a man who is fallible.'315 .
According to the results in Table 3, there seems to be almost an equal number of respondents who believe that the Bible is the truth and those who say that it is not the truth. Kunonga, on the reasons why he believes the Bible cannot be considered 'the truth' in its entirety.
For some respondents to say that the Bible has some inconsistencies and contradictions is the same as saying that it is not inspired. Good reasons are given to support the reason why they agree with the view that there are some inconsistencies and contradictions in the Bible.
The same trend of a large difference between the theologically informed and the theologically uninformed is clearly evident in the explanations given for the claim that there are not two Gods in the Bible. His proposition is that the Bible has the same God who wills good and evil.
It is also a true observation that any talk of coming up with a universal Bible that gives a universal card is also impossible given the plethora of human cultures found in the world. Therefore, any attempt to use this as a basis for seeking rewriting of the Bible in the Anglican Church, in the city of Harare, appears to be weak.
However, it is also important to note that there are some women who are against the ordination of women. From the explanations given, it is clear that ordinary women have no problem with men leading them in worship in a certain capacity.
Only three respondents think it is a good idea to remove the Bible from Jewish culture. According to Simbarashe Basvi, an ordination training seminarian, there is no need to remove the Bible from Jewish culture.
This is a theologically based position that simply means that the Bible must be applied to the local culture. He says that there are no neutral beings.332 It is a stretch to say that the Bible, even if it were written in Africa, would show some African culture in it.
Conclusion
Most of the laity in the Anglican Diocese of Harare in the city of Harare are not theologically informed; therefore their answers are from a position of faith. This is the basis on which Anglicans in the city of Harare oppose the rewriting of the Bible.
Introduction
Given this background, the findings of this research show that the Anglican Church in the city of Harare does not encourage a critical reading of the Bible. It is also clear from this research that issues of sexuality are not easily discussed in the Anglican Church in the City of Harare.
