22 LISTENER SEPTEMBER 7 2019
I
n many ways, we seem to be
losing the art of scripture in the
modern world. Instead of read-
ing it to achieve transformation,
we use it to confirm our own
views – either that our religion
is right and that of our enemies
wrong, or, in the case of sceptics, that reli-
gion is unworthy of serious
consideration.
Too many believers and
non-believers alike now
read these sacred texts in
a doggedly literal manner
that is quite different
from the more inventive
and mystical approach
of premodern spiritual-
ity. Because its creation
myths do not concur with
recent scientific discover-
ies, militant atheists have
condemned the Bible as a
pack of lies, whereas Chris-
tian fundamentalists have
developed a Creation sci-
ence, claiming the book
of Genesis is scientifically
sound in every detail.
Jihadis cite passages from
the Quran to support their
acts of criminal terrorism.
Religious Zionists quote “proof texts” to
assert their claim to the holy land and jus-
tify their enmity towards the Palestinians.
Sikhs have been assassinated for applying
modern textual criticism to the Guru Granth
Sahib [the principal scripture of Sikhism],
and others quote their scriptures to assert
Sikh distinctiveness in a way that contra-
dicts Guru Nanak’s original vision.
Not surprisingly, all this has given scrip-
ture a bad name. Our logos-driven mentalityalso makes it difficult for people to think
in terms of conventional mythos and this
makes scripture highly problematic. Many
would be in tacit agreement with the char-
acter in Mrs Humphry Ward’s novel Robert
Elsmere: “If the Gospels are not true in fact,
as history, I cannot see how they are true at
all, or of any value.”Scripture is an art form designed to
achieve the individual’s moral and spiritual
transformation and, if it does not inspire
ethical or altruistic behaviour, it remains
incomplete. The “art” of science is quite dif-
ferent, because it is morally neutral. In fact,
that’s one of the reasons for its success. Sci-
ence can say nothing about what we should
do or why we should do it. It cannot and
does not prescribe or even suggest how its
discoveries should be applied. Science andscripture, therefore, are chalk and cheese
and to apply the disciplines of one to the
other can lead only to confusion.
Scripture was always heard in the context
of ritual, which dramatised it and enabled
participants to embody it. Music, a prod-
uct of the brain’s right hemisphere, stilled
the analytical thinking of the left side and
gave participants intima-
tions of a more mysterious
dimension of reality that
transcended their mun-
dane experience. It evoked
attitudes of wonder, respect
and reverence for the
cosmos and other humans.
Without this liturgical con-
text, an essential dimension
of scripture is missing.
Contemplating scripture
outside a ritualised setting
is like reading the lyrics of
an aria. In India and China,
elaborate ceremonial ritual
gave an emotional and sen-
sory dimension to the dry
ritual science of the Brah-
manas [ancient Indian texts
with commentaries on the
hymns of the four Vedas]
and the Classic of Rites [a
collection of texts describ-
ing the social forms, administration and
ceremonial rites of the Zhou dynasty]. Ritual
also evoked ethical attitudes of wonder,
respect and reverence for the cosmos and
other humans. When Ezra introduced his
torah to the people of Judah, he human-
ised it, making its novelty less disturbing,
by introducing them to the ritual of Suk-
koth. Without the domestic rites designed
by the rabbis to replace the magnificent
temple liturgy, the abstruse spirituality ofTHE LOST ART
Instead of being transformative, as in the
past, scripture is now being used to confirm
our own views as the right ones, says author
Karen Armstrong in this book extract.
GE
TY
IM
AG
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RELIGION