Brenda Kay Zylstra’s column “Reading, writing and Revelation” attempts to make what I think is a valid point – that because the Bible is vastly culturally influential in the West, it should therefore not be ignored in the study of the humanities, culture or virtually (according to her) anywhere else. Unfortunately, I think she has missed the mark.

Zylstra cites how many people cannot name the Ten Commandments or Noah’s wife; I’d like to see her data on how many people know five of the first 10 amendments to our Constitution (reasonably as important to the American way of life as the Bible). I doubt the results would be much different.

Zylstra’s problem, though, is not that she wants everyone to learn the Bible. It’s that she makes two very, very mistaken assumptions: first, that the Bible doesn’t already have a sizable seat in the discussions of literature at this University, my former high school and undoubtedly institutions of higher and secondary learning all over the country. Second, she unapologetically smuggles in ideals which are not just academically useful or culturally relevant; she actually argues that we should mandate teaching the Bible in all educational curricula, something we do not do for the Iliad or the Republic, even though those works also seemingly shaped Western culture. She is wrong. What she should have said is that we should make reference to it and teach about it when it is relevant to our historical, cultural, sociological and other pursuits, which, though she finds it hard to accept, isn’t always.

Zylstra ends her column implying that the Bible has insights on “where we are going.” To put it obviously, Zylstra is herself a Christian and a follower of the prophesies, mores and morals, and teachings of the Bible. But I am not. I am interested in the Bible insofar as it teaches me about my society (both the good and the bad); but I am not interested, and she would have me be, in classes in public high schools teaching scripture singularly (or theologically), implying its truth based solely on its prevalence.

Lally Gartel

Junior in LAS, Former IMC employee