a rant

In Romans class today, the professor asked a question about what an Old Testament reference meant in Romans 2, and one of my fellow students daringly raised his hand and gave an answer that pertained to a Jewish response to Christ. The professor proceeded to mock him—“Stop thinking about lollipops”—and the class smirked. Later, while working in the coffee shop, I heard some fellow students making fun of the kid. It really irked me, and here’s why: there is a sense of arrogance that is erected when people come to understand the Bible better. That arrogance becomes a certain type of pride, and the result is a condescending outlook on those who do not have the same knowledge. Yet it also works this way: we become intelligent, and we have our perspectives and interpretations, and we mock those who do not hold to the same views as being unintelligent. When studying Paul’s letters, a certain type of humility needs to be embraced, because we do not know Paul nor what he was thinking, and chances are our interpretations are flawed and imperfect. To mock someone because they do not make the same connection as you is ridiculous and prideful. Taking the student’s stance, I can see how he got to the conclusion he did, and his conclusion is valid if Paul were performing a Jewish technique called Midrash on the text. I agree with the professor on this one, but I respect the other student’s interpretation, because it is valid. I’m not really sure where this is going. I do a lot of study in Paul and the New Testament, and I am convinced that most of the time I have things wrong, and I am a firm believer that pride in intellectualism, especially with the Bible, is just as sinful as misplaced Jewish zeal for the Law.