Bible Literary Criticism Higher Criticism

Bible Literary Criticism: Higher Criticism great deal of controversy currently exists regarding the idea of higher criticism related to the texts of the Old Testament. "Higher Criticism" related to the Pentateuch can be defined as the "skeptical crusade against the Bible, particularly the first five books of the Old Testament" which tends to reduce the Old Testament to the lower level of a "purely human book" (Anderson, 43).

Proponents of this criticism traditionally have attacked the Pentateuch for a variety of reasons; some based their criticisms on the assumption that the Mosaic Era was barbarous in nature (Anderson, 43). This assumption however has since been founded as baseless and false, due largely to the ignorance of such critics (Anderson, 44). Anderson argues that critics know nothing of the true typology of Scripture and are thus generally ignorant of the language in which Christian doctrine is taught (Anderson, 258).

Higher" is generally considered an academic term that is used as a mechanisms to convey a technicality. Higher criticism encompasses a branch of theology often referred to as "Biblical criticism" whose purpose is to evaluate, study and interpret the contents, manuscripts, origins and purposes of various parts of the Bible (Hague, n.d.). Higher Criticism examines not primarily the text of the bible, but rather its historic origins, the dates involves and the authorship of various books of the Bible (Hague, n.d.).

From an objective standpoint, any literary work is worthy of objective skepticism, analysis and criticism. This is especially important for works that are considered realism or non-fiction. The great debate over the Bible is whether or not the book validly represents realisms, idealisms or fallacies. The Pentateuch is considered an anonymous work, though the first five books do reveal some indication that Moses wrote part of the text.

The aim of higher criticism has been stated as the determination of the exact "date, authorship, composition and/or unity of the literary works of the Old Testament" (Ross, 1; from Malick, 1996). There is no direct evidence as yet at this point in time that can prove who exactly authored the Bible and at one time, though many conjectures have been made regarding this information. Critics of Higher Criticism would claim that since the Bible is unique and supernatural in nature, any effort to define such principles is invalid.

Higher criticism seeks to interpret the Old Testament in a manner that avoids dogmatic theology. It attempt to apply scientific and historical principles to the bible, the same principles that might be applied to works more secular in nature. Among the factors considered related to higher criticism include linguistic examination and archaeological records. One primary concern of higher criticism is to ascertain the authenticity of record presented in the Old testament.

The problem with Higher Criticism however, is that it does not take into account the unique nature of the Bible, nor the fact that the book itself is religious and sacred, rather than secular in nature. Applying principles of secularism to the Bible is the exact opposite of what logic would dictate.

Higher criticism is thought to have developed out of the Rationalism of Spinoza (1670) which stated the following: (1) all truth must stand before the bar of reason, because only reason is universal in time and common to all humanity, (2) as such the Bible's claim of special revelation and inspiration is repudiated, (3) therefore, not all of the Bible can measure up to the demands of reason (Source: Malick, 1996).

This rationale reflected an attempt to uncover the true main source documents that resulted in the Pentateuch, assuming someone other than Moses might have been the other. Wellhausen in 1875 identified four sources behind Genesis which he called J, E, D and P, which became known as the Graf-Wellhausen Hypothesis (Malick, 1996). The Graf-Wellhausen Hypothesis supports the following: The Yahwist's narrative or "J" from the German Jahwey; Driver believed that this section was written in 850 BC in the southern kingdom (Malick, 1996).

This section is considered personal and biographical in nature, and included theological reflection (Malick, 1996) The Elohist's Narrative ("E"). This was assumed to be written in 750 BC in the northern kingdom, and is considered much more objective in nature and less reflective or theological (Malick, 1996). The Deuteronomist's document ("D"), which was believed written under Hilkiah for reform (Malick, 1996). It was believed that the Deuteronomic school "reworked Joshua to Kings" (Malick, 1996). The priestly document ("P") which deals primarily with issues of genealogies and ritual or cult in Genesis through numbers (Malick, 1996).

Higher criticism is also most notably associated with French scholar Jean Astruc, whose work in the mid 18th century focused on finding the source of the Pentateuch (AllRefer, 2004). German scholars Johann Salomo Semler (1725-91) continued this research, followed by Johan Gottfied Eichhorn, Ferdinand Christian Baur and Julius Wellhausen. The question of validity related to higher criticism is valid. To proponents of higher criticism, nature and history is a "product of forces within and in process of development" (Reeve, 2004).

Since the beginning of time critics of the Pentateuch have attempted to prove that there is and could not be any supernatural interference in the natural course of events, and no injection of power from outside of that which is real palpable (Reeves, 2004). Higher Criticism can be considered a valuable asset to Biblical science. Its research could in theory shed light on the Scriptures. Higher Criticism involves the study of the literary structure of various aspects of the Bible, particularly in this case the Pentateuch.

In contemporary times Higher Criticism is often identified with "attacks upon the Bible and supernatural character of the Holy Scriptures" (Hague, n.d.). This is because study of the Scriptures involves someone to have a mind open to scholarly debate as well as the supernatural idealisms of faith and belief in God (Hague, n.d.). As one researcher quotes, "for without faith no one can explain the Holy Scriptures, and without scholarship no one can investigate historic origins" (Hague, n.d.).

Higher Criticism may be considered in a positive light as it urges the layman to question the origin and authors of the Pentateuch. It requires believers and non-believers to step up to the pate with both reverence and a scholarly outlook and examine the documents of the Pentateuch with objective cynicism. Even the most perfect literary work should be examined from an objective viewpoint. Higher criticism also encourages discourse of the works of the Pentateuch. Higher Criticism does not however, take into consideration the strength of spiritual revelation and reverence.

Believers of the Pentateuch are less likely to support an inquiry into the historical foundations of the work. Secular standards are necessarily applied to analysis when higher criticism is considered. Yet the Bible in and of itself is not a secular work, rather it is a highly spiritual one. For believers, the philosophic background to the.