Jon Estes wrote:Why would the cleansing of the Temple be debatable? It would seem the debate would not be on the event but on the veracity of scripture.
When Christian theology (using this term to speak to how I am reading the term religion) comes to the point where open discussion on scripture being not true is acceptable and even desired - it will soon die.
No Jon, you are missing the point I am hoping to make. There are events in the Bible that are parables and some that are stories told to make a point that the author may have never intended to be historical accounts. There is little doubt as I currently understand it that the intention of the author is that the cleansing of the temple was an actual event in the life of Jesus. But when human beings, pastors or denominations, decide something can’t even be discussed/debated, then they’ve put human authority above the scriptures.
If down the road someone could show a good Biblical reasoned argument that the events of the cleansing of the temple are different than I thought, proved from previously not understood facts, Biblical exegesis, etc., I shouldn’t decide that I’d not even look at such information because the current view “isn’t debatable.”
If we are really willing to grow in our faith than none of us should think that our answers are always right. I’ve changed my mind about a lot of theology over the last 20 years and I’m pretty thankful I don’t understand the Bible the way I did when I was 20, 30, or even 40.