‘Yes’, also, I’d say, if we’re talking about ‘special purpose’ Bibles that target this market segment or that market segment of Christians, and then add all sorts of things – commentary and such (that might not be beneficial) – to the Word of God.
Quoting from Beal (pp. 76-78):
So let me say it again: Bible publishers are selling down the sacred capital of the Bible, inundating the market with a bewildering array of new editions and versions in an ever-growing array of new editions and versions in an ever-growing variety of translations, layouts, and material forms. To the point that you could be forgiven if, standing in the Bible section of your local bookstore, you were to cry out in despair, “Where is the Bible?” As publishers lean ever harder away from preservation and toward popularization, the Bible is losing its set-apartness. It is being washed away in a market flood of biblical proportions.
Contrast this situation with how the more narrowly defined sacred capital of scriptures in other religious traditions is accumulated and preserved. A good example from Judaism is the Sefer Torah, a Torah scroll that is meticulously hand-copied according to strict scribal regulations on particular kinds of parchment made from kosher animals. Lovingly housed in the
aron kodesh, or holy ark, in the synagogue or temple, veiled by an embroidered curtain, and adorned with a crown, breastplate, and bells, it is taken out and carried through the congregation to be reverently touched and kissed by members before it is read by a cantor who uses a little hand-shaped pointer called a
yad (“hand”) so that her or his finger doesn’t touch its parchment. Through these various highly regulated methods of production, care, and use, the Sefer Torah accumulates sacred capital as the center of Jewish religious belief and practice.
Similarly, in Eastern Orthodox churches, the four Gospels of the New Testament are set apart in a separate book, the Gospel Book. Made and decorated according to elaborate specifications, it is believed to be an icon of Christ and is treated with great reverence during the Divine Liturgy as well as in other liturgies. During the prayer of consecration for a new bishop, for example, the Gospel Book is opened and placed, face-down, on the back of his neck. When he dies, he will be buried with it resting on his chest.
In both of these examples, we can see how a scripture’s sacred capital resides in a particular, highly regulated and carefully preserved combination of
word, thing, and
idea. Sacred capital resides not only in the words on the page, the literary content, but also in the thing itself, made a certain way with certain materials, and in the idea of it, the shared perception of it. The various ritual practices and beliefs that surround it are forms of stewardship that build and maintain that trinity of word-thing-idea. If one element of that triad loses meaning, the whole thing suffers a loss of sacred capital. Within such a closely regulated religious context of belief and practice, it would be difficult to convert sacred capital into economic capital.
In the biblical consumerism of American popular culture, by contrast, sacred capital resides in an idea that is being attached to a wider and wider variety of words and things, with no regulations other than the free market and the consciences of bible publishers and consumers.
This situation is analogous to the phenomenon of “brand dilution.” The cultural icon of the Bible is similar to a brand. It enjoys wide cultural appreciation akin to brand recognition. Brand recognition is a measure of the value that potential consumers perceive in a brand – how much trust they have in its value. When a brand has high value or “brand equity,” a company may want to extend it into other areas and products. It may want to use a strong brand as a vehicle for new or modified products or services. For example, Nike or Puma moves into clothing. Or Honda moves into chain saws. Or Sony moves into moviemaking. That’s brand extension. But how far can you extend a brand? How many different products can you attach to a brand before it begins to lose its meaning? That’s brand dilution.
One major difference between the Bible and a brand is that the Bible is now owned or controlled by a company or institution. It can’t be trademarked or copyrighted (although proprietary translations can be). No one can restrict its extensions in the consumer world. The only check on what new and modified products get attached to it is the market. Its “brand extension,” if you will, is a matter of consumer vote. And so the extension continues ad infinitum, to the point of absolute brand dilution. Biblical liquidation.
