Scripture has played a profound role in shaping human civilization for thousands of years. Yet in our modern world, many people view religious texts as outdated relics or sources of division. In "The Lost Art of Scripture," renowned religious scholar Karen Armstrong takes readers on an illuminating journey through the history of scripture across cultures and faiths. She argues that we have lost touch with the original purpose and power of these sacred texts.
Armstrong contends that scripture was never meant to be read literally or used as a weapon against others. Rather, it was intended to be experienced as a transformative art form that nurtures compassion and provides insight into the human condition. By exploring how scripture developed and evolved across different traditions, Armstrong aims to recover its lost essence and demonstrate its continued relevance in our lives today.
The Origins of Scripture in Ancient Civilizations
The story of scripture begins in the ancient civilizations of the Near East and Asia. Around 5,000 years ago in Mesopotamia, the harsh realities of agrarian life led to the development of founding myths to explain human suffering. The tale of Adam and Eve being cast out of paradise was not about a literal fruit or snake, but rather an allegory for the economic oppression of peasants by elites.
About 3,000 years ago, a pivotal moment occurred when Israelite peasants fled oppressive city-states into the desert. Facing certain death, they attributed their survival to the just god Yahweh. This experience inspired them to create an egalitarian society based on social justice - the exact opposite of the hierarchical city-states they had fled. Their cultural memory of this exile and the principles it instilled would later form the basis for the first books of the Hebrew Bible.
Meanwhile in India, nomadic Aryan tribes were developing their own spiritual traditions as they settled in the Punjab region around 1500 BCE. Their scripture, known as the Rig Veda, reflected their harsh worldview of conflict and danger. But it also offered a path to transcendence through ritual actions (karma) and the concept of rta - the cosmic order that united all elements of the universe.
In China, the first scripture emerged around 3,000 years ago after the Zhou clan overthrew the Shang dynasty. The Zhou claimed the "Mandate of Heaven," arguing that the Shang had lost divine favor due to corruption. This introduced ethics into Chinese religion and led to the development of the Five Classics - a set of texts used to train bureaucrats in proper governance and ritual.
Across these early civilizations, we see how scripture arose as a way for people to make sense of their world and forge a communal identity in the face of hardship and upheaval. The texts were fluid, constantly updated and reinterpreted to address the concerns of each era. They were also deeply tied to physical rituals that helped people internalize the teachings on a deeper level.
The Evolution of Scripture in the Axial Age
From around 800-200 BCE, a pivotal period known as the Axial Age saw the emergence of major philosophical and religious movements across Eurasia. This era of social and political turmoil prompted deep questioning about the nature of existence and ethics.
In China, Confucius responded to the chaos of the Warring States period by founding an influential academy to train princes in ethical governance. His teachings, compiled in the Analects, emphasized kindness, transcendence of ego, and devotion to ritual as the path to social harmony. Later Confucian thinkers like Mencius further developed these ideas, arguing that humans could cultivate divine virtues through practice.
In India, rapid urbanization was disrupting traditional ways of life. New scriptures like the Upanishads offered comfort by teaching that the human self was divine and inseparable from universal reality. But some, like Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha), rejected urban life entirely. Through meditation practices centered on universal love, the Buddha achieved enlightenment and liberation from the cycle of rebirth. His teachings spread rapidly, offering a serene way to cope with life's inevitable suffering.
Meanwhile in Israel, the destruction of the Temple and exile to Babylon forced major changes in Jewish practice. Without their central place of worship, the exiles had to rely on memory and reinterpretation of their traditions. This led to the development of the Torah as a standardized scripture that could preserve Jewish identity even in diaspora. The rise of rabbinic Judaism saw ongoing debates and new interpretations to keep the ancient texts relevant to changing times.
Jesus emerged in this context of Roman imperial domination, offering a radical message of egalitarianism and non-violence to the oppressed. While his followers didn't witness his execution, they became convinced he would return to establish God's kingdom on earth. As Christianity spread, fierce debates arose about Jesus' nature - was he human or divine? Different schools of thought developed in the Eastern and Western churches.
These examples show how ancient scriptures evolved to help people forge communal identities and find meaning amidst social upheaval. The texts remained fluid, with ongoing reinterpretation to address the needs of each era. Physical rituals and practices were seen as essential for truly internalizing the teachings.
The Rise and Spread of Islam
The next major development in the history of scripture came with the founding of Islam in the 7th century CE. While meditating in a cave, the merchant Muhammad received revelations from Allah that would form the basis of the Quran. His message emphasized surrendering the ego to join in communal religious experience. The word "Islam" itself means "surrender."
Muhammad's poetic recitations resonated with the Arabs' love of poetry. After fleeing hostile forces in Mecca, he established a community of followers in Medina. By the time of his death in 632 CE, Muhammad had united much of Arabia under the banner of Islam.
The new faith spread rapidly for several reasons:
- Muslim armies went on the offensive to preserve peace for the faithful.
- Islam's inclusive vision offered a more uplifting alternative to other Middle Eastern religions.
- It emphasized the political well-being of society as a sacred duty.
Within 25 years of Muhammad's death, Muslims controlled a vast empire including Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine and Egypt. But this swift expansion created new challenges - there was nothing in the Quran about how to govern an empire. Scholars began collecting sayings attributed to Muhammad (hadith) to help guide jurisprudence and statecraft.
As with other scriptures, interpretation of hadith depended heavily on the perspective of individual scholars. Some used it to justify military expansion, reinterpreting the concept of jihad. But overall, early Islam maintained an ethos of inclusivity, viewing Jews and Christians as fellow "People of the Book" who would also attain salvation.
The rapid spread of Islam brought it into contact (and often conflict) with other faith traditions. This cross-pollination of ideas would shape the evolution of scripture across cultures in the centuries to come.
Mysticism and Reinterpretation Across Traditions
As established religions became more rigid and dogmatic over time, mystical movements arose offering a more direct, experiential connection with the divine. This trend manifested differently across various traditions:
In Islam, Sufism developed as a reaction against the view that only certain theologians could interpret the Quran. Sufis sought to understand Muhammad's revelatory experience through meditation, chanting, and bodily practices. Poets like Rumi made Sufi teachings accessible to the masses through evocative verse.
Jewish mysticism found expression in Kabbalah, which emerged in 13th century Spain and France. Kabbalists sought to experience God through the symbols and hidden meanings in scripture, going beyond literal interpretation.
Even in India, known for its contemplative traditions, new movements arose emphasizing physical communion with the divine. Sikhism, founded in the 15th century, echoed familiar themes of universal love and the inherent sorrow of human life.
Interestingly, Christian Europe largely resisted this mystical trend. Influenced by Muslim Spain's emphasis on rationality, theologians like Thomas Aquinas sought to reconcile Christian scripture with Aristotelian logic. This set the stage for later conflicts between faith and reason in Western thought.
These mystical movements shared some common threads:
- Emphasis on direct spiritual experience over dogma
- Belief that divine revelation was ongoing, not confined to the past
- Use of poetry, music, and physical practices to access higher states
- Appeal across social classes, democratizing access to spiritual insight
By offering new ways to engage with scripture, mystics kept religious traditions vital and relevant. Their influence would continue to shape faith practices for centuries to come.
The Protestant Reformation and Its Aftermath
The 16th century brought momentous changes to Christianity with Martin Luther's Protestant Reformation. Luther's core argument - that scripture alone was sufficient for communion with God, without need for Church mediation - was revolutionary. It coincided with the spread of printing technology, making Bibles more widely accessible.
Initially, Luther's message seemed to democratize scriptural interpretation. But when peasants began quoting scripture to challenge authority, Luther backtracked, insisting only educated elites could properly interpret the Bible. Nevertheless, the idea that individuals could engage directly with scripture took hold.
This shift had far-reaching consequences:
- It splintered Christian unity in Europe, leading to decades of religious wars.
- The Catholic Church reacted by further restricting scriptural interpretation to experts, stifling scholarship.
- Trauma from religious conflicts convinced many that interfaith differences were irreconcilable.
- This paved the way for secular rationalism as an alternative source of truth and meaning.
French philosopher René Descartes epitomized this turn toward reason, arguing that God's existence could be proven through logic alone, without recourse to scripture. This marked a profound shift in Western thought.
The emphasis on empirical evidence and rationality spread beyond Europe through colonialism, disrupting traditional ways of engaging with scripture around the world. In India, for instance, the British imposed the label "Hinduism" on a diverse array of devotional practices, forcing them into a European framework of religion.
These developments set the stage for modern fundamentalism - a reaction against secularism that clings to literal interpretations of scripture as a bulwark against change. Understanding this history helps explain the roots of many contemporary religious conflicts.
Scripture in the Modern World
The Enlightenment's emphasis on reason and empirical evidence posed significant challenges to traditional faith. Some responded by doubling down on literal interpretations of scripture, giving rise to fundamentalist movements. In America, Protestant Evangelicalism gained popularity in the mid-19th century, embracing the very elements Enlightenment philosophers rejected: miracles, signs, and ecstatic physicality.
Meanwhile, many Europeans lost faith altogether. Nietzsche famously declared the "death of God" as rationalism eroded belief in the supernatural. This loss of a transcendent frame of reference contributed to the unprecedented violence of the 20th century.
Colonialism further complicated matters by imposing European concepts of religion on other cultures. In India, the British label of "Hinduism" artificially unified diverse traditions, entangling religion with nationalist politics. This contributed to the rise of Hindu fundamentalism and sectarian violence.
Similarly, most Muslims found themselves under European colonial rule or Western-backed dictatorships by the early 20th century. This humiliation drove some toward conservative theologies that seemed to offer certainty in uncertain times. However, other Muslim thinkers continued engaging creatively with scripture to address modern challenges.
These examples illustrate how literal or rigid interpretations of scripture often arise in response to perceived threats - whether from secularism, colonialism, or rapid social change. When communities feel under attack, they may cling more tightly to scripture as a source of identity and certainty.
Reclaiming the Art of Scripture
Armstrong argues that we have lost touch with the original purpose of scripture as an art form meant to inspire compassion and insight. She sees several key problems with how scripture is often approached today:
Literal interpretation: Taking poetic, metaphorical texts as factual accounts misses their deeper meanings.
Using scripture as a weapon: Selectively quoting texts to attack others goes against the core message of compassion in most traditions.
Divorcing text from practice: Scripture was meant to be experienced through ritual, not just read intellectually.
Treating scripture as fixed and unchanging: Traditionally, interpretation evolved to address new contexts.
Elevating one tradition over others: This breeds intolerance and misses the common threads across faiths.
To reclaim the transformative power of scripture, Armstrong suggests:
Approaching texts with openness and creativity rather than dogmatism.
Engaging in contemplative practices to internalize teachings experientially.
Focusing on core ethical principles like compassion rather than getting lost in doctrinal debates.
Studying how scripture has been interpreted differently across time and cultures.
Looking for common ground between traditions instead of emphasizing differences.
Using scripture as a tool for self-reflection and moral growth rather than judging others.
By recovering these lost arts of scriptural engagement, Armstrong believes we can tap into their wisdom to address contemporary challenges. Scripture can once again become a source of inspiration, comfort, and ethical guidance - not in opposition to reason and science, but as a complementary way of exploring the human condition.
Conclusion
"The Lost Art of Scripture" takes readers on an epic journey through the history of humanity's engagement with sacred texts. From ancient Mesopotamia to the modern world, Armstrong shows how scripture has evolved to address the needs and questions of each era. She argues convincingly that we have lost touch with the original intention of these writings as transformative art forms meant to cultivate compassion and insight.
By tracing scripture's development across cultures, Armstrong reveals several key themes:
Scripture arose as a way for people to make sense of suffering and forge communal identities in times of upheaval.
Sacred texts were traditionally fluid, constantly reinterpreted to remain relevant to changing contexts.
Physical rituals and practices were seen as essential for internalizing scriptural teachings.
Mystical movements periodically arose to offer more direct spiritual experiences when religions became overly dogmatic.
The Enlightenment's emphasis on reason and empirical evidence profoundly challenged traditional ways of engaging with scripture.
Colonialism disrupted indigenous spiritual traditions by imposing European frameworks of religion.
Fundamentalist movements often emerge as a reaction to perceived threats, clinging to literal interpretations of scripture.
Armstrong contends that recovering the "lost art" of scripture - approaching texts with creativity, openness, and a focus on ethical principles - could help address many contemporary challenges. By moving beyond literalism and sectarianism, scripture can once again become a source of wisdom and compassion to guide us through turbulent times.
Ultimately, "The Lost Art of Scripture" is a passionate argument for the continued relevance of these ancient texts. Armstrong demonstrates that when engaged with properly, scripture offers profound insights into the human condition that complement, rather than conflict with, modern rational inquiry. Her sweeping historical analysis provides crucial context for understanding today's religious landscape and charts a path toward more fruitful interfaith dialogue.
For readers of all backgrounds - religious, secular, or somewhere in between - this book offers a fresh perspective on humanity's perennial search for meaning and transcendence. It is a powerful reminder that the wisdom of the ages remains available to us, if only we learn once again how to access it.
Key Takeaways:
Scripture originally developed as a way for ancient peoples to make sense of suffering and forge communal identities in times of upheaval.
Sacred texts were traditionally fluid, constantly reinterpreted to address the needs and questions of each era.
Physical rituals and practices were seen as essential for truly internalizing scriptural teachings, not just intellectual study.
Mystical movements periodically arose across traditions to offer more direct spiritual experiences when established religions became overly rigid.
The Enlightenment's emphasis on reason and empirical evidence posed significant challenges to traditional ways of engaging with scripture.
European colonialism disrupted indigenous spiritual traditions around the world by imposing Western concepts of religion.
Fundamentalist movements often emerge as a reaction to perceived threats, clinging to literal interpretations of scripture as a source of certainty.
Approaching scripture with openness, creativity, and a focus on core ethical principles can help recover its transformative power.
Finding common ground between traditions, rather than emphasizing differences, can promote interfaith understanding.
Scripture can complement, rather than conflict with, modern rational inquiry as a tool for exploring the human condition.
Reflection Questions:
How has your own understanding of and engagement with scripture (if any) changed over time?
What role do you think scripture can or should play in modern secular societies?
How might Armstrong's ideas about recovering the "art" of scripture be applied in practice?
What are the challenges and opportunities in promoting more open, creative interpretations of scripture within established religious institutions?
How can people from different faith backgrounds (or no faith background) engage in productive dialogue about scriptural teachings?
What lessons can be drawn from the history of scriptural interpretation to address contemporary religious conflicts?
How might a renewed engagement with scripture as an art form complement scientific and philosophical approaches to understanding the human condition?
What practices or approaches have you found helpful in deriving meaning or insight from sacred texts, whether from your own tradition or others?
How can educational systems better equip people to engage critically and creatively with scripture and religious ideas?
What role might scripture play in addressing global challenges like climate change, inequality, or threats to democracy?
By pondering these questions and exploring the rich history Armstrong lays out, readers can gain new perspectives on humanity's longstanding engagement with sacred texts. Whether one is deeply religious, secular, or somewhere in between, "The Lost Art of Scripture" offers valuable insights into our shared cultural heritage and the perennial human search for meaning and transcendence.