Skip to content
Advertisement
The Bible's Influence

The Bible's Influence

A Special Report prepared by The Washington Times Advocacy Department.

Recent Stories

The Bible's Influence: The Bible as Literature

There are many angles that can be pursued when thinking about the Bible as literature, but two bedrock questions underlie any discussion of the subject. Those two questions are why we should read the Bible as literature and how we should read it. These are the two questions that I have set before me in this article.

The Bible's Influence: The Bible and America History

Every school that teaches American history must teach the Bible's central role. Easily said; but experience suggests that many of today's classes in English and U.S. history are stuck somewhere between useless and harmful.

"Turn! Turn! Turn!" by the Byrds (written in the 1950s by folksinger Pete Seeger)

The Bible's Influence in American Music

Lowell Mason, Pete Seeger, and Lady Gaga created music in vastly different eras and styles, but they hold one thing in common. Listeners cannot fully understand their music without knowing the Bible.

The Bible's Influence: Influence of the Bible in Art

The influence of the Bible in works of Art has changed dramatically depending upon the time period, place, or culture that it is created in. In the early Christian church, believers used specific signs such as the anchor or the fish to identify themselves as Christians. For example, the cross could be traced in the dirt of the ground by the toe of a believer to identify himself to another believer in the times of Roman persecution.

The Bible's Influence: The Bible as Theatre

The Bible is a hot property these days. Russell Crowe's film Noah took in $360 million at the worldwide box office, and Christian Bale debuts as a big-budget Moses in Exodus this month. On television, the miniseries The Bible drew the largest cable audience for all of 2013.

The Bible's Influence: The Bible and Written Literacy

The desire to read the Bible is a powerful motivation for learning to read and write. At the same time, the desire that others might be equipped to read the Bible is a powerful motivation for Bible translators and others to develop literacy programs that empower people with new skills.

The Bible's Influence: The Bible as Cultural Influence

Every year two million visitors file past the famed Liberty Bell in Philadelphia. As they look at the cracked bell, they read these words: "Proclaim LIBERTY throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof." The inscription comes from the Bible (Leviticus 25:10).

The Bible's Influence: The Influence of the Bible on Women

Women of the Bible — some respectfully devout, some of ill repute, others in between — exhibited valor and inspiration not only to those at the time of the writing, but have continued to be an inspiration even today. Women in the Bible were strong and sought out justice and were held in high regard. They accomplished great things.

The Bible's Influence: The Bible and Flourishing

The late professor Angus Maddison made some interesting observations in looking over what has happened to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita over the last 2,000 years. North America has been spectacularly successful economically for the average person, followed by Europe.

The Bible's Influence: Making comeback at Ivy Leagues

The Bible was once highly valued in the curriculum of the first universities founded in America. Harvard's original motto which can be seen in the front room on the third floor of the Harvard Club in New York was "Veritas pro Christo et pro eclessia" (Truth for Christ and the Church).

The Bible's Influence: What Professors Say Students Need To Know About Bible

Bible Literacy Project released Bible Literacy Report II a study of what university English professors believed incoming students needed to know about the Bible to be successful in college. The John Templeton Foundation funded this report. The following is from the Executive Summary with some quotations from the Report.

The Bible's Influence: Introducing Bible literacy course

The role of the school board in public education in the United States is wide-ranging. While routine duties include setting policies, adopting budgets and hiring staff, the most critical role of the local school board is to make decisions about curriculum and to incorporate their community's viewpoint of what students should know into courses and textbook selection.

The Bible's Influence: How should the Bible be taught in Church

he kerygma and the didache provided the core teaching and laid the foundation for the formation of the New Testament canon, which would not be complete for over 100 years after this teaching was delivered to the churchesin 362 A.D. by Bishop Athanasius of Alexandria.

The Bible's Influence: A call for the Church to reengage with the Bible

All times are historic and momentous. All eras filled with grand stories and discoveries, with tales of heroic acts, huge tragedies and amazing wonders. Ours is such a time as well. For Christians, the Bible is supposed to guide the way we understand our histories and sustain our hopes for the future.

The Bible's Influence: The American Bible Society and Reaching the Unreached

In 1816, James Madison was president of the United States, Indiana became the 19th state and American Bible Society was founded. Not many aspects of life today look as they did at that time in history. Most things from 1816 have become forgotten treasures of a history long gone. But not the Bible.