Reading the Bible Again For the First
Time: Taking the Bible Seriously But
Not Literally by Marcus J. Borg
Seriously But Not Literally
Reading the Bible Again for the First Time is Marcus Borgs follow-up to
Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time. Like his earlier book, this one is
written for lay people whose faith has been frustrated by their
misapprehension that fundamentalisms claim to be the one true faith is
valid. Borg, a professor of religion at Oregon State University, describes
an alternative to fundamentalists so-called literal readings of scripture.
(He believes that such literal-factual readings do not live up to that
description, and that the limitations of such readings have alienated many
people who would otherwise remain part of the church.) Borg calls his
alternative historical-metaphorical reading, a way of taking the Bible
seriously without taking it literally. Reading the Bible begins with a history
of recent conflicts regarding biblical interpretation. Borg navigates the
minefields of his subject with sensitivity and precision, explaining, for
example, the important distinction between evangelical and

fundamentalist readings of the Bible. He then offers historical-
metaphorical readings of some key texts from both the Hebrew Bible and
the New Testament. Throughout, Borg writes with calm assurance and
respect for those who would disagree with him. Reading the Bible is a
credible guide to the project it names. It is a faithful exercise of reason,
undertaken to help Christians hear more clearly the many voices
recorded in the Bible. --Michael Joseph Gross
Personal Review: Reading the Bible Again For the First Time:
Taking the Bible Seriously But Not Literally by Marcus J. Borg
Borg has written an easy-to-read survey of the Hebrew Bible and New
Testament to illustrate how his historical-metaphorical approach works.
The information one finds out about the books of the Bible is not new to
readers familiar with other products of historical criticism. What interested
this reader more was Borg's efforts at the beginning and end of the book to
hold on to the concept of the Bible as holy and authoritative.
Borg's preferred audience seems to be the group of mainline Christians
who don't believe in literal interpretation of the Bible but aren't sure just
how the concepts of "Word of God" and "biblical authority" apply to a
nonliteralist reading of the Bible. Borg's answer to this dilemma is, first of
all, to affirm the reality of religious experience and God that lies behind the
Bible. "To see the Bible as a human product does not in any way deny the
reality of God. Indeed, one of the central premises of this book is that God
is real and can be experienced. ... I am convinced that the Bible, like
sacred literature generally, originates in such experiences." (p. 22)
Christians, says Borg, should be in dialogue with the Bible as part of who
they are, for, "This continuing conversation is definitive and constitutive of
Christian identity." (p. 30) Behind this dialogue is a firm conviction that God
exists and makes possible human experiences of the divine. Even though
expressions of those experiences are entirely human, they nevertheless
represent genuine experiences reflecting a direct knowledge of God. The
Bible is to be honored as genuine expressions of experiences of divinity.
Borg concludes that this points to an ongoing relationship with God
expressing a covenant relationship based on genuine knowledge of God.
Thus Borg sees the Bible as a very human document that Christians
should hold on to for its expressions of direct experiences with God. Yet
Borg does not absolutize the Bible or Christianity in holding on to the
authority of the Bible, for he sees himself as a "nonexclusivistic Christian"
who affirms "the validity of all the enduring religious traditions." (p. x)
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