Practical Hints 2: Reading Scriptures Intelligently
The third idea behind the title is this: that while Scriptures is in some respects like any other human work of literature, it is still "theopneustos", "divinely inspired" -- "Sacred Scriptures". What this means is that, if I should read Scriptures with all of my God-given intelligence as described above, I will still be reading it unintelligently if I forget to regard it as a "place" of encounter with the God has made me intelligent. Or to put it another way: An intelligent reading of Scriptures, precisely because it is "of Scriptures" must also be a reading IN faith.
Now that "Intelligent Reading" of Scriptures has been defined, let us proceed to the reading of a sample passage from a modern translation. Let me take as an example Mk. 1:29-31. In the Jerusalem Bible, the title "Cure of Simon's Mother-In-Law" gives the reader some general idea of the passage's content. Here is the passage:
(29) On leaving the synagogue, he went with James and John straight to the house of Simon and Andrew. (30) Now Simon's mother-in-law had gone to bed with fever and they told him about her straightaway. (31) He went to her, took her by the hand and helped her up. And the fever left her and she began to wait on them.
The intelligent reader, and especially one who has been following the story of Mark's Gospel, will immediately understanding the following:
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1. "He" (vv. 29.31) refers to Jesus of Nazareth, the "Holy One of God" (see 1:24);
2. James and John, Simon and Andrew are the fishermen whom Jesus called to himself (1:16-20) and who have been with him in his work of teaching and healing (1:21-28).
3. The story is the second instance where Jesus heals a particular person: the first was a male demoniac in a synagogue (vv. 21-28), and now, a sick woman in her house.
On closer examination, the intelligent reader would notice that most of the actions in the story about the healing itself (v. 31) are from Jesus ("went in" "took her hand" "helped her up"), and that even the "fever" is personified in that a verb is attributed to it: "the fever left her". Further, the sick woman in the story, after receiving the actions of Jesus, acts in her turn, by waiting on them (=Jesus and companions). The phrase "wait on someone" is another way of saying "serve someone." The intelligent English reader should know this;
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