for the biblical litteralist in your life

I was sitting having coffee after church with three folks who are pressing after God and trying to find how it fits into life. One is in high school, another in college and the third is serving on staff with Intervarsity Ministries on the UCONN campus in Storrs. We had been discussing the the violence, incest, rape, murder, and other things in found in the Old Testament and how we can reconcile an apparent merciful God with these actions.

It boils down to "how can we take the Holy Scriptures so seriously that we don't take them literally". When people forget to realize that the Bible follows literary convention at times it can become a mess.

Case in point; Angels, those cute looking things. Ask many Christians who will call themselves biblically literate will scoff and tell you that angels were terrifying! Most often the first worlds they used were "be not afraid"!"

If took all of Scripture to be word-for-word literally without any figures of speech then artists should be depicting angles as looking as if they were one-eyed, one-handed, one-footed mutilated monsters.

“If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out. And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell"

So, what should we do with this stuff?  I can't give you a text book here but a few simple suggestions to keep you grounded. 
1. The Bible speaks of miracles. Because you cannot explain it does not mean it can't happen. 
2. Read with an underlying trust, not suspicion.
3. Understand that the Bible consists of poetry, history, biography, narrative etc.
4. The Bible was written by many folks over many years and great care was used by God and them to get it down.
5. Let it say what it wants to say, not what you want it to say. If you read the Bible with integrity you will be challenged time and time again.

Now comes a danger but it is easily avoided;
...don't go off the deep end thinking it's just allegorical figures of speech. On the flip side don't be so paranoid that you think you can never understand it! God want's to be understood. If you have a problem ask your pastor or priest, read a commentary. Oh, and how can you be sure they understand?
Ask them what God is doing in their lives and where they are being challenged most. that's a pretty good indicator that they are actively living out a transformative faith