Appendix C

The Secular World View

When we examine the biblical text concerning the antediluvian world, we will discuss certain doctrines that are not truly biblical, but are, instead, church traditions and dogmas. But mostly, we will examine pagan roots and influences that subtly affect our biblical world view. There are many assumptions made about the biblical narratives that are born of oral tradition, and not individual study. For example, why do we associate the apple with the tree of knowledge? The Bible does not say what kind of fruit it was. The answer comes from Greek and Norse mythologies. The apples of Hesperides in Greek mythology and the golden apples of Idun in Norse mythology were both the fruits of eternal life. Pagan associations transferred this fruit to the tree of knowledge since in paganism, knowledge is life. It is easier to accept what we are told, than to explore an issue by one's self. But we all have to be theologians to some extent if we are to have a relationship with God. Now let us be noble Bereans (Acts 17:10 & 11) to discern some of these pagan influences.

We are all born pagans and we live in a pagan world. Our language is filled with pagan expressions of which we are wholly unaware. Indeed, even some of our church expressions are pagan in root. The table provides some examples of commonly used words that have pagan origins.

You'll notice that the bulk of these sample terms are in the Greek category. That's because the Romans, who conquered Celtic Brittany, had wholly absorbed the Greek culture as their own. Our English legacy is culturally Greek.

Some people tend to overreact when they discover a pagan element in their lives. Please understand that I am not advocating never using any words that have pagan roots. One would almost never speak, then! But, rather, I am pointing out how pervasive the influence is. This is not a problem. Everything belongs to God and is ours to use for His glory. I am, however, advocating that believers be more thoughtful of their own language. The diverse cultural influences upon our language have bequeathed to us a tongue rich in expression. A Danish believer once told me that she loved learning the English language because there was a greater ability for personal expression [1] .

We are admonished frequently in the Bible to be thoughtful of our speech. "Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak" (James 1:19). "Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? There is more hope of a fool than of him" (Prov. 29:20). "Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight O Yahweh, my strength, and my redeemer" (Psa. 19:14). My encouragement to all is to meditate upon the English language so that our speech expresses what we mean, and is not just thoughtless prattle. Bible translations with high academic standards are thoughtfully translated. As members of the Word made flesh, we, too, should understand the words we use in our speech.

Pagan origins are connecting points to the gospel. John understood this. For example, when he wrote his gospel, he began, "In the beginning was the Word [Logos]" (John 1:1), which was an expression developed by Plato. Plato was defining the "idea" that forms the nucleus of everything. John turned Plato's term into a biblical expression of God. This pagan term is now a theological term. Paul reached the Greeks by quoting one of their pagan poets, Aratus, after he said, "For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, 'For we are also his offspring'".(Acts 17:28). This line comes from the poem Diosemeia, or the Divine Signs.

From Zeus we lead the strain;
He whom mankind ne'er leave unhymned:
of Zeus all public ways,
All haunts of men, are full: and full the sea,
And harbors; and of Zeus all stand in need.
We are his offspring:
And he, ever good and mild to man. [2]

Both John and Paul understood the pagan world and used it as a connecting point to reach people. Paganism influences many ways in which we think. There is a two fold purpose in understanding this. It is one of the chief objectives of this book to point out the pagan world views that frame our every thought. First, seeing history from a biblical world view is part of the process of being "transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Rom. 12:2). But, second, we are also to be salt and light to this lost world. Like John and Paul, we need to know and understand how this world came to be so we can reach out to the lost and touch them where they are. As it is written, "Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit," (Prov. 26:5).

We know the truth. God is the sovereign Lord of all creation. "For the earth is Yahweh's, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein" (Psa. 24:1). All the pagan world belongs to God, and he has allowed the pagan world to develop for his reasons. Christ Jesus is the center of all creation. And, even if the Bible, was not written from the beginning, its truths were given to man in some form or other. All paganism that has lasted, has lasted only because it contains some form of these truths, although corrupted. All truth is God's truth. Having the Bible as our yardstick, we can trace the corruption back to the germ of truth from which it first began. This series follows that path.