Questions tagged [inerrancy]

The doctrinal position that the Bible is accurate and totally free of error, especially (but not only) as applied to the Bible or the Church.

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From a Fundamentalist standpoint, what does the phrase "Inspired, infallible, inerrant Word of God" mean?

Many denominations teach that the Bible is the "inspired, inerrant, infallible Word of God." Detractors of Christianity, and even some denominations within Christianity, disagree with all or some of ...
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According to those holding that Lazarus was literally raised from the dead, why did Matthew, Mark, and Luke not mention it?

John 11 tells the remarkable story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead: 43 When [Jesus] had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 The man who had died came ...
Nathaniel is protesting's user avatar
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According to those holding that Jesus was literally born of a virgin, why did Paul not mention it?

Matthew and Luke each open with an account of Jesus' miraculous virginal conception and birth. The virgin birth is widely seen as an essential belief in Christianity, being found for example in the ...
Mr. Bultitude's user avatar
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By what mechanism could the Bible be inerrant?

For those who believe in the inerrancy of the Bible (or those who understand the positions of those who do), how can the Bible have this status given all the opportunities for any message delivered by ...
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What is the difference between "infallible" and "inerrant"?

As with many others I know, I believe in both the infallibility and inerrancy of the Bible. But what is the difference between these two important terms? If something has no errors (inerrant), then ...
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Who first distinguished between the inerrancy of the Bible and the inerrancy of the original autographs?

It's common these days among those who believe in the inerrancy* of the Bible to limit the statement to the original manuscripts. For example, the Chicago Statement reads: We affirm that ...
Nathaniel is protesting's user avatar
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When was the Bible formally declared to be inerrant and/or infallible?

Fundamentally*, an inerrant Bible is one without errors and an infallible Bible is one that cannot have errors, as David Stratton pointed out in his answer. As for the Roman Catholic Church, all of ...
El'endia Starman's user avatar
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To what extent should the Apostles' speech be considered infallible?

It is my understanding that all known writings of the Apostles are considered infallible and are Canonical. However, I am unclear as to what extent recorded speech of the Apostles should be ...
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How are emendations to the Masoretic Text viewed within the doctrine of inerrancy?

This was prompted by an answer to another question of mine which quoted a source that noted alternative vocalization of the Masoretic text as an example of liberal tendencies in the NRSV. This ...
Susan's user avatar
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What is the basis for the doctrine of Biblical inerrancy?

Referencing one or more passage of scripture, and any seconday external sources, what is the supportable, Biblical basis for the doctrine of the innerrancy of the Bible?
warren's user avatar
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How can these inconsistencies about Jesus' tomb be explained?

As it was mentioned in this topic, reading the New Testament side by side, one can pick up apparent inconsistencies in the Gospels by various Disciples. As it was suggested that they should be ...
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Spectrum of Interpretation on Great Flood

The Great Flood of Noah is a classic Bible story - and a contentious one. Many would argue that traditional or literal interpretations cannot be squared with modern scientific thinking - others reject ...
Josef Tyler's user avatar
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How can a reasonable faith be placed in the Being that inspired the Bible if it is "inspired" but not "inerrant"?

This question (and two related sub-questions) is directed towards those who believe that the Bible is inspired but not inerrant. I understand inerrant to simply mean "without error". "...
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How should we judge the trustworthiness of a given Bible translation?

Given that both the humans who actually penned the Bible and the later humans who translated it all had free will, the issue of Biblical inerrancy is a tricky one. See also: By what mechanism could ...
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What is the history of the doctrine of inerrancy?

Is there any reason, biblical or otherwise, not to believe that the doctrine of inerrancy is relatively new (past two hundred years). I found the following statement on Wikipedia. "It has in fact ...
Darryl's user avatar
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Apparent Discrepancy in Mark 2:26

There seems to be an apparent discrepancy in Mark 2:26, Jesus is rebuking the Pharisees for complaining that his disciples are picking the heads of grain on the Sabbath: Mark 2:26 26 How he went ...
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How do Christians that do not believe in inerrancy interpret the Bible?

I know there are several Christian traditions that do not claim that scripture is inerrant (and therefore do not interpret everything in the Bible literally). If this is the case, then it seems like a ...
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What are the main differences between the Catholic and Protestant definitions of Biblical inerrancy?

What are the main differences between the Catholic and Protestant definitions of Biblical inerrancy? Please include a summary of both the Catholic and Protestant definitions in the answer.
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9 votes
2 answers
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Does the Chicago Statement meaningfully support a doctrine of Biblical inerrancy?

The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy makes the statements: WE AFFIRM that inspiration, though not conferring omniscience, guaranteed true and trustworthy utterance on all matters of which ...
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8 votes
1 answer
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How did James Orr's view of the inspiration of the Bible differ from B. B. Warfield's?

Two of the intellectual fathers of Christian fundamentalism, and ultimately evangelicalism, were James Orr and B. B. Warfield. Both contributed to The Fundamentals, and are well known for opposing ...
Nathaniel is protesting's user avatar
7 votes
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How do adherents to inerrancy reconcile the fact that some part of the bible were added later?

The story about Jesus forgiving an adulterous women is not in the original copy, but that's the version we most commonly have. So how does that make the Bible inerrant, given that many important parts ...
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How do errantists distinguish the parts of the Bible that are trustworthy from the parts that have errors?

How do errantists, i.e. Christians who reject the doctrine of Biblical inerrancy, distinguish the parts of the Bible that are trustworthy from the parts that have errors? How do they know which parts ...
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6 votes
3 answers
258 views

What would inerrancy imply for Mormons?

Amongst many evangelicals, there is at least a question around inerrancy, such as is expressed by some in the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy. The issues regarding Joseph Smith's translation ...
Affable Geek's user avatar
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Must a Christian accept the Bible to be infallible and/or inerrant? [closed]

Related question: What is the difference between "infallible" and "inerrant"? I have heard lists of requirements to be considered Christian; among those, I find these the most ...
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Why do Protestants accept the inerrancy of the canon, while rejecting other decisions of the Roman Church?

Why do Protestants accept the inerrancy of the current canon of scripture but reject many of the other decisions made by the Roman Church at the time the Bible was being canonized? Take the Council ...
New Wine's user avatar
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509 views

According to biblical inerrantists, are the apostles' recorded speeches in the book of Acts inerrant?

Evangelicals/fundamentalists who believe in biblical inerrancy hold that the Bible is the inspired word of God, and contains no errors.1 This is typically understood to refer to the original ...
Nathaniel is protesting's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
313 views

According to evangelicals, does the use of historical criticism violate the doctrine of inerrancy?

Evangelicals believe that the canonized Scripture is the authoritative and inerrant word of God communicated to the ancient authors under divine inspiration. The 1978-1982 Chicago statement of ...
GratefulDisciple's user avatar
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662 views

According to non-inerrantist Christians, what are the strongest arguments against the inerrancy of the Protestant Bible?

The Protestant Bible consists of 66 books. Some believe this set of books is inerrant. Others do not. Question: According to non-inerrantist Christians, what are the strongest arguments for the belief ...
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5 votes
3 answers
545 views

What does biblical inerrancy imply? [closed]

I was asking this question: How do Christians that do not believe in inerrancy interpret the Bible? when I realized that my definition of inerrancy is probably different from others'. One definition ...
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1 answer
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How would Biblical Inerrantists resolve perceived tensions between 2 Timothy 3:16 and Hebrews 7:18?

2 Timothy 3:16 says: All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness... (NIV) From the perspective of Biblical Inerrancy, how is this ...
Willy Bernard's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
549 views

Who signed the 1982 Chicago Statement on Biblical Hermeneutics?

From the official repository of the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy (ICBI) we can see the list signers for the 1978 Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy out of over 300 who attended ...
GratefulDisciple's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
144 views

Does the JEDP Theory propose that the Scriptures are not inerrant/inspired?

Does the JEDP Theory propose that the Scriptures are not inerrant/inspired?
Sebastian Clinciu's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
479 views

Who developed the doctrine of Biblical Inerrancy first - Catholics or Protestants?

This article on Christian Fundamentalism says that it is developed by Protestants at Princeton University. This Catholic source on Biblical inerrancy says that it has always been with the Catholics. ...
Double U's user avatar
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Bible changed? Example from Arminianism vs Calvinism

From my understanding and through examples in history and my life as well, God allows good and bad things to happen. Although I would always be curious as to why certain things happen, especially when ...
mph85's user avatar
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2 answers
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Is the Bible literally the word of God? [duplicate]

As someone from a Muslim background, I have noted a major distinction between the Quran and the Bible; The Quran is seen by its adherents as the ipsissima verba of God, while (I've heard) the Bible ...
tobeornottobe's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
175 views

How do people who deny Biblical inerrancy understand this argument on inspiration?

This is my own deductive argument for the inerrancy of the scriptures. From what I can tell, people who deny Biblical inerrancy still accept God’s inspiration of the scriptures (as espoused in 2 ...
Luke Hill's user avatar
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3 votes
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Why is Hebrews considered inerrant?

Evangelical Christians (of which I am one) consider the Bible to be inerrant - that is, given directly by God, and without error as original written. If we trust Jesus' words, then the inerrancy of ...
Korosia's user avatar
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Why are there inconsistencies in the New Testament? [closed]

Reading the New Testament side by side, one can pick up inconsistencies in the Gospels by various Disciples. For example, some of them mentioned by this website: MT 1:6-7 The lineage of Jesus is ...
ThePiachu's user avatar
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What are the differences between the CRCNA position on infallibility and the ICBI position on inerrancy?

The International Committee on Biblical Inerrancy has set out two magisterial documents related to an understanding of inerrancy: the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy (1978) and the Chicago ...
Mr. Bultitude's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
485 views

Do a significant number of Biblical scholars presently support inerrancy?

Biblical inerrancy is such a hot topic of debate these days that there is at least one website directly devoted to defending it (DefendingInerrancy.com), and of course many multiple Christian ...
tniles's user avatar
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2 answers
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What are the responses to the "Radical's Critics" argument concerning Genesis 1 and 2?

The Radical's Critics argue that there is a discrepancy between the Genesis 1 account of creation and the Genesis 2 account, and thus proving that the doctrine of inerrancy is false. Has this been ...
user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
183 views

Are there sola scriptura inerrantists who reject sensus unum as a general hermeneutic?

I have noticed that adherers to sola scriptura that defend biblical inerrancy nearly always argue from a sensus unum understanding of scripture as opposed to a sensus plenior understanding of ...
Joseph Hinkle's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
408 views

Doctrine of biblical inerrancy and Pope Benedict XVI questioning the historicity of passage in the Gospel of Matthew?

"In his 2011 book, Pope Benedict XVI, besides repudiating placing blame on the Jewish people, questioned the historicity of the passage found only in the Gospel of Matthew which has the crowd saying, "...
nasraya's user avatar
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2 votes
2 answers
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Do the Adultery Pericope and Mark 16:9-20 disprove the inerrancy of the Bible? [closed]

I have encountered a few instances when Bible critics and Muslims have tried to use the Adultery Pericope (John 7:53-8:11) and the extended ending of the Gospel of Mark (Mark 16:9-20) to disprove the ...
James's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
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What is the Biblical basis for disbelief in the doctrine of Biblical inerrancy?

Not all Christians hold to the view of Biblical inerrancy. For example, whenever there are alleged inconsistencies or alleged scientific errors in the Bible, they consider that the verses in question ...
Jonathan Dahlin's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
376 views

What is truly meant when it is said that Holy Scripture is 'inerrant' according to the Catholic Church?

Granted that further research has been made in collecting a greater amount of old manuscripts of Scripture, certain realizations have been made about the bible that we currently use; there are some ...
Manwe Elder's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
126 views

Is The Bible truly infallible? Is it inerrant without divine inspiration?

My question comes in two parts, the second being a direct result of the first. Is the Bible infallible? I have often heard that it is, but the most conclusive proof that I have heard essentially ...
TheCosmicAspect's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
1k views

Use of single and double quotation marks in Isaiah 7

Isaiah 7:4 (NIV) starts with Say to him, 'Be careful, keep calm and don't be afraid. where the first single quotation mark doesn't seem to have a close pair - even reading much further in the ...
aslan's user avatar
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C.S. Lewis's view of Scripture vs. Chicago Statements on Biblical Inerrancy & Hermeneutics

Background of the question It has been widely recognized that C.S. Lewis's view of Scripture is complicated, situated between two extremes: Late 19th century fundamentalist inerrancy concept which ...
GratefulDisciple's user avatar
0 votes
5 answers
577 views

Why did God allow for the original Biblical manuscripts to be lost to history? And how to reconcile that with Matthew 24:35

It's accepted by most Christians nowadays that only the original documents are inerrant, therefore the modern Bibles are bound to have contradictions because of copyist errors and translation errors. ...
Black Watch's user avatar