Learning to read is one of the greatest gifts that a young child could ever receive. The acquiring of that simple skill awakens one's conscience to unimaginable worlds of reality and possibility. And so it was for me. As a child, I read many interesting books, but one of my favourite childhood memories was the gift of my own very first Bible. My mind and heart were captivated by the amazing things that happened in the lives of such people as Noah, Moses, David, Esther, and Daniel, and of course, the life of Jesus.
Because of these stories, while still in my teens, I determined that the best investment of my life would be to study the relevance of the sacred scriptures for our lives today. This interest led me first to university and then to seminary to prepare for Christian ministry. In seminary, I learned a lot about the historical foundations of the Christian faith in the sacred text of our heritage. I found myself constantly impressed with the unity of thought that pervaded the Bible despite its many contributors over a span of 1,500 years. It seemed every story and instruction, often in not so subtle ways, pointed to the fulfillment of one great theme.
Over the years, I have read the Bible through many times, not merely for the purpose of church ministry but also for my own intellectual, emotional and spiritual enrichment. Recently, for example, I found myself spellbound once again by the story of Joseph (encompassing chapters 37 to 50 of Genesis).
The story itself is so human, so very much like many of our own stories. In a family of many sons and a daughter, Joseph is his father's favourite. Early on, he tells his family about certain dreams that allude to his own future fame. Being intensely jealous, his brothers seize an opportunity to get rid of him by selling him to foreign merchants while telling their father he had been killed by a wild animal.
As time passes however, despite false allegations which land him in prison, Joseph rises to regal honour and authority in Egypt through his supernatural ability to interpret dreams. It is by this means that Joseph predicts and ultimately prepares the land for its seven-year famine. Through the famine Joseph's brothers are literally brought to their knees before him just as his childhood dreams had predicted. In the end, he has the power to punish them but mercifully forgives them and saves their lives.
Of course, this is more than an enthralling true human story. Two thousand years later, another person of stellar character and supernatural ability is likewise sold and sacrificed by his own people but ends up becoming the means of salvation for all who are willing to bow before him. And many of us believe that the conclusion of that story is yet to be realized.
It is this supernatural quality of the Bible that has made it the world's best eller for hundreds of years. The Indian writer, Vishal Mangalwadi, has written about the phenomenal influence of the Bible on western civilization in his recent publication, The Book That Made Your World. But in a strange twist of irony, western nations have largely forgotten about this dynamic factor in the enviable quality of life they have come to enjoy.
One can't help but conclude that one of the greatest travesties of our times is the obvious and serious neglect for what we have always, rather axiomatically, regarded as the Holy Scriptures.
