Should Genesis be taken literally?

 

A broader question could be asked about the authority regarding interpretation of the bible.

You mean that the Earth is 6000 years old and it's been created in six days? Scientific evidence says otherwise. So probably not.

Should Genesis be taken literally?

How could you? I've never heard a good explanation for the completely contradictory order in which things were created between Genesis 1 & 2. There literally is no way they can both be literally correct. Did God create the beasts, see they were good, and then create Adam & Eve? Or did he create just Adam, then create the beasts, then bring them to Adam to see what he would call them?

 

A broader question could be asked about the authority regarding interpretation of the bible.

Great question. Who decides? There are over 9000 versions of Christianity alone, and they aren't the only ones who use Genesis.

You may be surprised at how easily this problem can be solved. Since the Bible is not the word of God but a chronicle of Jewish history, written by Jewish scholars, there is no necessity to take Genesis literally. You may take it as a a way to show God's greatness through poetic means and such an interpretation will in no way contradict Christianity or the concpt of God.

 

The majority of Christian denominations DO NOT take Genesis literally. Catholics don't take it literally, Orthodox Christians do not take it literally, neither do mainline Protestants and a large part of Evangelicals.