By Rick Pearcey
Archaeological finds like this help remind people that what is given in the Bible is not "religious" in the contemporary sense of the word, in which "faith" and spirituality are privatized self-medicative theories to help individuals, groups, communities, and movements of various stripes advance agendas, gain power, and otherwise cope in a heartless world and indifferent cosmos.
Instead what we have is information from the Creator regarding the objective world of fact, reason, history, and evidence.
Holistic, Biblical "faith" is primarily a matter of trust, not epistemology. True enough, trusting information that is given by our true Maker helps unlock further knowledge (see the scientific revolution), but it begins with information rooted in the real world.
Thus, what we have in Old and New Testament history are not mere "stories" (as "believers" of atheistic, academic, or pastoral stripe sometimes like to phrase it) but rather accounts of events that occurred in this world.
This kind of concrete truth -- not private experiences created by drugs, "religious" encounters, a rich imagination, or deeply held personal desires -- is what sets people free to navigate as whole but imperfect beings in a broken world.
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Rick Pearcey is editor and publisher of The Pearcey Report (articles).
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