Is the Bible Intolerant? Sexist? Oppressive? Homophobic? Outdated? Irrelevant?

by Amy Orr-Ewing

Why bother with the Bible? Of all the books in the world, the Bible sticks out like a sore thumb. For some, it's uniquely and divinely inspired, and thus the only authoritative source of truth. For others, it's a quaint relic from a bygone era that offers personal comfort to some but little more to anyone else. For still others, the Bible is a tool of sexist oppression, or a reactionary account of a violent God, or an arrogant detractor of other holy books, or even an indecipherable mess. But the Bible has withstood such criticism over the centuries, and as Amy Orr-Ewing shows, it bears surprising relevance to this generation. Facing contemporary critics square-on, with refreshing honesty and wit, Is the Bible Intolerant? will help you understand the Bible and the world it inhabits today. Bring your questions about the Bible, read with an open mind, and discover for yourself just how relevant--But how good--the Good Book can be.

Genres: Religion, Christian, Christianity, Faith, Nonfiction, Theology

143 pages, Paperback

First published February 10, 2006

About the author

Dr Amy Orr-Ewing is the Co-Director of The Oxford Centre of Christian Apologetics, and speaks around the world on how the Christian faith answers the deepest questions of life.

Reviews

[Alex Hume · Rating 3 out of 5]

A difficult book to evaluate, since its value is highly dependent on the reader. It is written with the tone and language of being directed at a seeker, but I find it increasingly difficult to find authentic seekers and (among the few I find) those who would be willing to read Christian literature. I don't think non-seekers would be willing to consider the material.

Despite that, the book is an excellent resource both for the seeker who will read, and for the Christian looking to begin equipping him- or herself to respond to these commonly raised objections.

The two major advantages of the book are its length (only 121 pages excluding bibliography and notes) and the independent chapters, the longest of which spans 15 pages. These allow you to encourage a reader to examine the portion relevant to his or her question, which can easily be done in one sitting, without them feeling obligation to read the rest.

Chapters 2-4 (total 31 pages) build upon each other in turn and flow logically, although they can each be read comfortably on their own.

The chapter "Isn't the Bible Sexist?" (Chapter 7) is particularly well done, and may carry more credibility on the topic than other works as it is written by a woman.

Christians should note that this book is more broad than deep, and will likely only serve as a starting point for conversations on the topic.

Overall, the book is very well done and intelligently communicates responses to the difficult questions of the Bible, acting as a solid primer for anyone, regardless of current faith status.

[Jaime Kes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a must read for modern-day Christians! If you have questions about the validity of the Bible... is the Bible sexist?..... why did God allow so much killing in the Old Testament?.... is the Bible homophobic?..... and on and on, this is a great resource. I love this book and have bought several copies for friends.

[Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very small, but in a few pages she really gets to the heart of modern excuses people have about the Bible.

[Brianne LaBorde · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written from a Christian intellectual, Orr-Ewing answers some of the stereotypical claims against Christianity. This book is short and concise, however it is broad in its various topics. As I’ve previously studied many of these topics, it was nice to have a short review.

Especially in our postmodern society where labels are easily thrown around and points of view discredited based on the label, I believe it’s even more important to know what you believe and why. After a conversation this week where someone claimed my views were “intolerant,” I was even more encouraged to delve into this book.

The chapter about sexism is extremely well done, and I was even more proud to call myself a Christian after reading it. I would recommend to anyone wanting answers for themselves or aid in defending the faith.

[Mayle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall this book was okay. I liked the format of answering a different question about the Bible each chapter because I thought that made it very easy to follow. In a few chapters Orr-Ewing did that thing a lot of apologetics do where they argue the basis or assumptions of the question instead of actually answering it and I felt like they were questions that did have good answers based off other books I’ve read or things I’ve studied. I thought the title and cover were a little misleading because the book really only spends the second to last two chapters on those questions. I would say this is a good book if you’ve never studied why the Bible is relevant, but you could glean the same information in a more understandable way through a few podcasts.

[Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

The title of this book is a little misleading. I was expecting a thorough treatment of popular divisive subjects such as: slavery, racism, segregation, homiphobia, Patriarchy, gender wage-gap, social justice. Instead, Chapter 7 addresses sexism and chapter 8 discusses homosexuality. The rest of the book is a lite-apologetic for the reliability of the Bible as God's Word covering topics such as: interpretation, knowledge, reliability, and the development of the Canon. The last chapter describing the conversion of her family to the Lord is very sweet.

[Nathan]

A digestible read on some hard-to-digest issues. Great for reference. Orr-Ewing is closely affiliated with Ravi Zacharias, knows her stuff, and presents it all in a balanced (yet convincing) way.



Brings up interesting discussion for Christians and non-Christians alike. Recommended.

[Mike · Rating 1 out of 5]

A very poor defense of the Bible by an uncredentialed author published by a monied evangelical interest group. The bibliography for Chapter 10, "How We Can Know" is especially effusive - it doesn't have a single entry. Apparently Miss Amy is too naive to realize that Muslims, Scientologists, Mormons, and every other sect uses the same technique for "knowing" truth.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book! Simple, thorough treatment of some of the most frequent questions/objections people bring up regarding the Bible. Great for one's own study or for giving to a friend with questions.

[Karen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got nothing out of this book that I did not already know and it just did not ring with me at all.

[Lee Button · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always learn something new from each book on apologetics. I appreciated Amy's presentation on Islam. It was very helpful.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are a Christian believer than you have probably been asked multiple questions, at some point or another, about the Bible in regards to sex, war, relevancy, tolerance, etc. In this book Amy Orr-Ewing has answered some of the most common questions asked about the Bible. She does so with compassion while remaining unmoved from the truth of scripture. This book would be great for the unbeliever who is curious why Christians still believe in the Bible despite all of these questions. It is also a good book for those who are already believers, who need a better understanding of why they believe what they believe and how to answer these questions when they are asked. It is a quick read without too much difficult vocabulary so that most people will be able to understand what she is portraying. I highly recommend this book, I will be adding it to my personal library so I can read it again and be able to highlight and write in it.

[Ron W. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a basic book of apologetics defending the stance of the Bible throughout its history. Orr-Ewing examines various perspectives such as oppression, homophobia, racism, and sexism and places these arguments squarely against Biblical scripture to highlight incidences where the Bible does not really hold such perspectives. One such example presented is the presence of women around Jesus, a single rabbi, which was very rare at the time. Jesus went against the cultural grain to emphasise acceptance rather than social displacement and exclusion. It's not a bad read overall for a lay audience.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amy Orr-Ewing does a great job of touching on some of the hot topics of our day and showing how the Bible is not out date, irrelevant, and intolerant. She is a great defender of the faith.

[Arvid Birgersson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Författaren lyckas i väldigt korta kapitel förklara en hel del viktiga och svåra frågor på ett väldigt enkelt, men enda grundligt sätt. En bok jag verkligen kan rekommendera!

[Kameron Nettleton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-written, clear, and logical. A gentle voice whispering in a wilderness of "takes" and rage and general lack of discourse.