“The Bible may be the most revered book in America, but it’s also one of the most misquoted. Politicians, motivational speakers, coaches – all types of people – quote passages that actually have no place in the Bible . . .”
These words appear in John Blake’s recent post on the CNN Belief blog. The following quotes are among those he listed as being wrongly attributed to the Bible:
- God helps those who help themselves.
- Spare the rod, spoil the child.
- God works in mysterious ways.
- Cleanliness is next to Godliness.
- This, too, shall pass.
So What?
Depending on where one gets one’s statistics, somewhere between 1 in 10 and 3 in 10 Americans has ever read the entire Bible. A much smaller percentage has achieved a significant degree of biblical literacy. Blake’s account of a misattribution by “NFL legend Mike Ditka” suggests that many will assume it is from the Bible if the speaker asserts that it is. Provided that the trend in recent decades toward lower levels of biblical literacy continues, it is reasonable to think that almost any religious sounding saying attributed to the Bible will receive a similar response from most people.
- What phrases have you heard people mistakenly claim as being of biblical origin?
- What implications does the low level of biblical literacy have for congregations in general? in worship? in Christian education/discipleship?