Fiction in the Bible: Any fruits of HCE?

[BayCityRickL]

There are several threads about or containing discussions of historical critical exegesis (HCE).

I haven’t been able to follow the trail of HCE beyond its claims that various and perhaps many parts of the Bible are not historical, and are therefore thought to be “fiction.”

Is there anyone who has claimed that this has opened a new era of knowledge about the Bible? such that we now have much greater insight into scripture?

Is there “anything there” in HCE that would make us better Catholics? something that we’ve overlooked in scripture? How can we be serious Catholics if we are to believe now that the Bible is just a bunch of wishful thinking or interesting stories? And, are there any ideas why God would have spoken to us in the genre of “interesting fiction.”

 

[TOME]

I think the use of HC actually stregthens ones position when challenged that the Bible is actually a work of fiction and not history.

I say this because using this tool of study when studying both the scriptures and non scriptural works that is contemporay works of history. I think every scholar in this field would tell you that the ancient authors of history had a completely different approach to history than we do today.

Our modern understanding of history attempts to know as closely as possible what exactly took place using historical evidence to create what historian would consider an authentic record as possible. But from studies we know in ancient times this was not the approach. They never let the facts get in the way of good propoganda or story.Another way of saying it is we try to take a photograph they tried to paint a protrait.

So in using HC and knowing from HC the approach to history those of biblical times used then I think we should be quite comfortable when thing that appear in the Bible cannot be authenticated by the modern historical approach.

One other note, while there is history contained in the bible, that is not the reason for the Bible itself. The Bible is a History of Salvation, that is God’s activity in Human History to bring about our redemption. However, as Dei Verbum clearly states God uses Human Instruments in this Salvation History, which includes the methods and style of the ancient writers, who as I stated above never let facts get in the way of telling their story - but the difference is the truth of this story is guided by the Holy Spirit.