Anxieties about the reliability of the Bible will be addressed in the Can we trust the New Testament tour which begins tonight in the Darwin and Adelaide.

The tour, which is run by Bible Society and partners in the various states, is a part of the Live light in 25 words 2012 Bible reading campaign, encouraging Christians to commit to develop a habit of daily Bible reading, beginning in October. The tour sets up the campaign by examining the Bible itself and specifically the reliability of the New Testament.

The speakers on the tour are Greg Clarke from Bible Society, John Dickson from the Centre for Public Christianity (CPX) and Mike Raiter from the Centre for Biblical Preaching in Melbourne. The tour will cross the country in September, with events in the Darwin and Adelaide today, Victoria tomorrow, and Western Australia, Tasmania and Queensland later in September.

“Some Christians really do have some anxiety about the Bible’s reliability,” says historian and author John Dickson. “They’re probably anxious because of the media attention around doubts about the Bible’s reliability. It’s hard not to doubt when there’s a media wall of scepticism; even if it is mostly baseless, it has a psychological effect.”

Similarly, Greg Clarke says, “I think most people’s anxiety comes from not having enough information, and not knowing where to look to find it. We also pay too much attention to the noisy sceptics, who often don’t have the right information either!”

Mike Raiter, who speaks tonight in Darwin, says, “Books like the Da Vinci code have served to undermine our confidence in the reliability of the Bible.”

Raiter  says that even for those Christians who aren’t concerned about the reliability of the New Testament documents, there are still  questions to be answered. “Some Christians have questions which are more about, ‘is the Bible true’? Can we trust that what Matthew, John and Paul wrote is it a true record of what happened? So the bigger issue, I think, for Christians, is – is the Bible true?”

The tour will seek to address the most common questions about the Bible’s accuracy, with a prime one being about changes to the Bible over the years.

Clarke says, “I get asked ‘Didn’t people change the Bible down the centuries?’ This is a pretty easy question to answer: no, they really didn’t.”

Other common questions that Dickson flags are, “Does archaeology support what the Bible says?” and, “Are the gospels really history, or are they more metaphor?”

Raiter adds, “If people believe the Bible is true, they still may be less convinced about its relevance. In churches where there’s less and less of the Bible, there’s a feeling that we can learn more from other books. There’s a growing ignorance about what’s in the Bible.”

As Raiter addresses those gathered in Darwin tonight, he will address questions of reliablity, truth and relevance. Are the New Testament documents reliable?Are  they true (or did Matthew make his gospel up, or was he deluded)? And is what the Bible says relevant for us in the 21^st century?

These topics and more will be addressed as the team of Bible scholars travel around Australia in September, seeking to alleviate any anxiety that Christians – or inquirers into the Christian faith – may have about the trustworthiness of the New Testament.

Tour Schedule

John Dickson, historian and author

Greg Clarke, CEO Bible Society Australia

Mike Raiter, Director, Centre for Biblical Preaching Melbourne

Featured image: sxc.hu