The Bible as a Cultural Icon by Jennifer Sayers

October 2, 2024

If your knowledge of the Bible is limited to “that book priests use to exorcise demons on TV,” you are not alone. What was once deemed as sacred text is now more likely to be found propping up furniture than on a bedstand. Its pages are just as likely to be used as rolling papers as they are to be read. How does something once deemed a sacred object even to non-believers fall so far? Let’s find out!

In the beginning, there was… no book. That’s right. In the beginning of Christianity, the only sacred texts for the newly emerging faith were Jewish sacred texts.[1] Christians did not have what we know today as a “Bible.” This wasn’t necessarily to keep the texts away from the people so much as a practicality. Books as we know them didn’t exist. All texts were written by hand on scrolls or codices.[2] Not only were writings in any language uncommon but those capable of reading them were few and far between. Most of the population was illiterate.[3]

The lack of access to official sacred texts meant that the newly rising Christian churches had to make their own or share the limited quantities made available through congregation planters like Paul.[4] Each congregation would have their selection of writings, which the limited quantity of literate people, would read from and worship from.[5]^,[6]

By the time Constantine came around to declaring Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire in 325CE,[7] there were so many contradictory texts it was just plain confusing.[8]^,[9] While some Biblical books. Particularly the Gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke, were more prevalent than others, the selection of 27 books we refer to as the New Testament, the “sacred text” we know as the Holy Bible, wasn’t born until 25 years after the Council of Nicea.[10] It should probably be noted that to a large extent, by “best” I mean the texts that aligned the best with what a small council of white men felt supported their best interests to maintain order and current tradition.[11]^,[12]

The sacred book was worshipped and glorified, and only to a few individuals. As religious leaders spoke Latin, it was the language used in the exorcisms they performed. Due to the elevated status of religious leaders who were believed to be closer to God, the language was iconically transferred to celestial beings and demons. Notice the word “icon.” It means symbolically. A symbol, when misinterpreted by enough people, can acquire new meaning.

Along came Martin Luther with the crazy idea that those attending religious services should be able to hear the Bible in their language so they can understand it.[13] To make a long story short, the Guttenberg printing press allowed for mass production of the Bible.[14] It was likely the only book a household ever owned and would be passed down from generation to generation. Therefore, it was well taken of.

The cherished possession of a home Bible made the journey across the pond, in the hands of devout Protestants, to the United States where trained religious leaders were few and far between, as well as highly susceptible to disease and starvation.[15] The Bible became the most readily available means of religious training. It was the law of the land for the new world of religious freedom, under the interpretation of… you guessed it… more white privileged men.[16]

Printing presses came to the United States and the Bible became the top-selling, highest-grossing, most prolific book of all time. Published in over 704 languages. Distributed by missionaries, evangelists, and booksellers all over the world. Available in print or as an eBook. Also available in Manga, Emoji, Pidgin English, Cockeny, Zombie, or even Klingon for your reading or perusing pleasure.[17]

According to Worldmetrics.org, the average American household now has 4.4 Bibles. That’s more Bibles than family members. I assume the 5^th one was split to make the couch it is holding up even. Over 100 million Bibles are sold or given away each year. 88% of US households own at least one Bible and in 2019, 123 million Bible apps were downloaded. However, only about 16% of US adults read the Bible daily while 23% never read the Bible at all.[18] Truly this proliferation of this sacred text has been in the eyes of many reduced to nothing more than a cultural icon.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Ayres, Robert U. “The Protestant Reformation and the Rise of ‘Economic Man.’” In On Capitalism and Inequality, by Robert U. Ayres. 2020. Cham: Springer International Publishing, n.d. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39651-0_3.

Beal, Timothy. The Rise and Fall of the Bible. New York: Mariner Books, 2012.

Du Mez, Kristin Kobes. Jesus and John Wayne : How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation. New York: Liveright Publishing Corporation, 2020.         

Ehrman, Bart D. The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings. New York: Oxford University Press, 2016.

Eser, Alexander. “Key Bible Reading Statistics: Insights into American Reading Habits.” Worldmetrics.org. Published July 23, 2024. https://worldmetrics.org/bible-reading-statistics/

Gutacker, Paul J. The Old Faith in a New Nation: American Protestants and the Christian Past. US: Oxford University Press, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780197639146.001.0001.

The Editors. “9 Alternative Bible Translations to Spice Up Your Devotional Life.” ChurchPop. September 29, 2014. https://www.churchpop.com/9-offbeat-translations-bible/#:~:text=The%20Bible%20is%20the%20holy%20Word%20of%20God.%20But%20unless

Watson, Francis. “Critical Reflections on the Role of the Canon in New Testament Scholarship.” New Testament Studies 70, no. 1 (January 2024): 111–24. doi:10.1017/s0028688523000176.

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[1] Timothy Beal, The Rise and Fall of the Bible (New York: Mariner Books, 2012), 22.

[2] Bart D. Ehrman, The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings (New York: Oxford University Press, 2016), 21.

[3] Beal, The Rise and Fall of the Bible, 99

[4] Ehrman, The New Testament, 12.

[5] Ehrman, The New Testament, 23.

[6] Beal, The Rise and Fall of the Bible, 108,116.

[7] Ehrman, The New Testament, 489.

[8] Ehrman, The New Testament, 24.

[9] Francis Watson, “Critical Reflections on the Role of the Canon in New Testament Scholarship,” New Testament Studies 70, no. 1 (January 2024): 117-119. doi:10.1017/s0028688523000176.

[10] Ehrman, The New Testament, 14.

[11] Watson, “Critical Reflections,” 117.

[12] Beal, The Rise and Fall of the Bible, 7.

[13] Robert U. Ayres, “The Protestant Reformation and the Rise of ‘Economic Man,’” In On Capitalism and Inequality, (Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2020), 21-22. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39651-0_3.

[14]  Beal, The Rise and Fall of the Bible, 116.

[15] Paul J. Gutacker, The Old Faith in a New Nation: American Protestants and the Christian Past. (US: Oxford University Press, 2023), https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780197639146.001.0001.

[16] Kristin Kobes Du Mez, Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation (New York: Liveright Publishing Corporation, 2020), 6-11.         

[17] The Editors, “9 Alternative Bible Translations to Spice Up Your Devotional Life,” ChurchPop, September 29, 2014. https://www.churchpop.com/9-offbeat-translations-bible/#:~:text=The%20Bible%20is%20the%20holy%20Word%20of%20God.%20But%20unless.

[18] Alexander Eser, “Key Bible Reading Statistics: Insights into American Reading Habits,” Worldmetrics.org, Published July 23, 2024, https://worldmetrics.org/bible-reading-statistics/.