Telling the Stories of Scripture

Historically the Bible has been told as a story. The Scriptures are the story of God and His relationship to creation and have been told as such throughout Jewish and even much of Christian history. Even within the Scriptures, storytelling has a powerful role. However, recently the importance of telling the stories of Scripture has been overlooked. The ability of the story of Scripture to affect people’s lives is too powerful to ignore. Telling Scripture as a story can evoke a deep and lasting transformation of the community of faith.

Story influences worldview

All communities have a worldview. All individuals have a worldview. A worldview is how people understand the world or what gives all phenomena around them an orientation (Wolters, 2). It can be analogized to the glasses that they look at the world through. However, everything—self, others, world, god, work – is seen through these glasses that cannot be removed. Although most people cannot articulate their worldview, it is how they answer the questions, “Who am I, how did I get here and why?” “What is wrong with the world?” “Is change possible and how?” For example, believing that people evolved from mud and are here to eat, drink, and be merry is a simplified example of worldview. Another simplified example might be that all of the world’s major problems, such as disease, crime, communication, famine, war, will be resolved by technology.

However, worldview does not stay deep inside of us, instead, it affects our beliefs, our values, and ultimately our actions. In 1997, B.J. van der Walt developed a “cultural onion” showing how culture’s many layers, like an onion, can be peeled down eventually to a core of worldview. Beliefs and values are the second layer of the onion and are based directly on worldview. Institutions, the third layer, are based on worldview and beliefs and values. Actions, the fourth layer, are based on all preceding layers. In other words, everything in a person’s life and culture is based on her or his worldview. For example, let’s look at a potential cultural onion issue of first century Jews. Assume Jewish people saw the world divided into two kinds of people: the blessed Jews and the wretched Gentiles. Because their beliefs and values are based on this worldview, they valued Jewish people and scorned Gentiles. They believed that Jews would mostly act in an honorable way and Gentiles were incapable of doing good. Their institutions, such as family, education, and transportation were set up in such a way as to separate Jews from Gentiles. Their actions followed suite; they attacked or avoided Gentiles and loved Jews. While a somewhat simplistic rendering, it shows how everything in life is based on worldview.

Most people join the community of faith with a broken worldview. We do not have a biblical understanding of who we are, who God is, and what gives this life and world meaning. As a result of our broken worldview, we also have broken beliefs, values, and actions. Although Christ penetrates deep into who we are as people, all the way to the core of our worldview, He often works through others in our community to be His agent of healing (Ephesians 1-4). However, as a Christian community we have not often been getting deep inside to worldview. George Barna writes

“The vast majority of Christians do not behave differently because they do not think differently, and they do not think differently because we have never trained them, equipped them, or held them accountable to do so. For years we have been exposing Christians to scattered, random bits of biblical knowledge through our church services and Christian education classes. They hear a principle here and read a truth there, then nod their head in approval and feel momentarily satisfied over receiving this new insight into their faith. But within the space of just a few hours that principle or truth is lost in the busyness and complexity of their lives. They could not capture that insight and own it because they have never been given sufficient context and method that would enable them to analyze, categorize, and utilize the principle or truth.”

Another possible explanation for why the “scattered, random bits” on Sunday do not evoke permanent change in Christians’ thought processes is because these bits only affect actions or beliefs – they do not challenge the worldview of these redeemed people. They are not confronted with the alternative worldview of the Bible. In order for people’s beliefs and actions to be deeply changed, their worldviews need to be changed. Jesus did not just admonish his Jewish audiences beliefs by saying Samaritans can be nice people too. He addressed the underlying worldview: who is my neighbor (Luke 10)? By transforming people’s worldviews, their beliefs, values, and actions will likewise be “taken captive for Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).

In order to bring deep healing, we need to get at the source of the brokenness, at the source of the worldview. Just as with leukemia, healing the other sicknesses such as pneumonia will not heal the disease. Instead treatment needs to go to the source, the very bone marrow needs to be transplanted to heal the leukemia. N.T. Wright argues that one of the sources of worldview are the stories people tell themselves and each other (38). Scholars refer to humans as homo narrans because of their innate need to tell stories (Nielle). When stories are constructed to organize the experiences people have, these stories shape and reinforce their worldviews (Koki, 1). Not only do our own stories shape our worldview, but others’ stories are also powerful in reaching inside of who we are. First, stories engage us. They are immensely interesting and hold our attention (Koki, 2). Second, stories address the whole of human experience: emotion, thought, feeling, heart, head, action, imagination (Chronological Bible Storying). Third, empirical evidence shows that stories have a strong impact on judgments and understanding (Rughase). Also, cognitive research shows that memorable information is more like to be effective, and stories are very memorable (Haghirian and Chini, 6). Fourth, the use of stories in all cultures through all of history shows their power to affect humans. Finally, stories are used in all areas of the Bible to illicit change within people (c.f. Nehemiah’s leadership, Jesus’ parables, and Paul in Athens).

Because worldview is shaped and reinforced by telling stories, one of the most powerful ways to challenge and transform the worldviews of the community of faith will be by telling the stories of Scripture. When the community hears and tells stories that are different than their own interpretations for experiences, they will wrestle with the truths in God’s living word and in time change their understanding to match His (Chronological Bible Storying). Jesus’ stories would often challenge His audience’s worldview. For example, when He tells a story about a man who has been seriously injured lying on the side of the road He calls into question the Jewish understanding of piety and who qualifies as a neighbor. The most pious of the community are unable to carry out simple care and the most “un-neighborly” are the religious leaders. Instead, the social outcast or enemy provides care. Jesus allowed His listeners to draw their own conclusions in telling a story that seriously challenged their worldview (Luke 10).

The overall story of the Bible and the individual stories all provide a God-honoring holistic worldview for people. For example, the creation account and the story of Job tell the story of a God, who created, loves, respects, and upholds this world, including human beings. The stories of Noah and Abraham are about a world that has turned its back on its Creator, but is being pursued by Him nonetheless. The Kings and the Prophets are heart-wrenching accounts of a jilted Lover who never stops seeking those He loves and is willing to take any measures to bring them back to Himself. The Gospels tell of the true measures He was willing to go. Within these broad-stroke stories are all the small stories that make them up; like Hosea acting out God’s desperation by taking Gomer the prostitute as his wife, or Jesus crying over the city of Jerusalem. Scripture stories tell the community of faith about the character of God, about where this world and its meaning comes from, about who humans are and what their purpose is on this earth, and about what happens after it all. These are stories that shape worldview. As the community of faith hears these stories, their worldviews will be impacted by the truth being presented to them.

Another Biblical example of how story can challenge worldview and so affect beliefs and actions is when Peter is presented with a vision of animals in a large sheet (Acts 10). Although Jesus already told him two years earlier that it is not what goes into a man, but what comes out that makes him unclean (Mark 7:15), Peter’s worldview has not yet changed. Now he is given a vision, a story, that makes it clear. “Kill and eat these animals.” God is telling him that this world is not divided into clean and unclean, whether they are discussing animals or people. Now that Peter has this story, he visits the Gentile Cornelius, agrees with Paul bringing the gospel to the Gentiles, and tells his story to the other Jewish believers, thus challenging their worldviews (Acts 11, 15). The transforming of worldview initiated by a “new” story soon affects beliefs, institutions, and actions. Peter had a new worldview, so he no longer believed in the separation of Jews and Gentiles, he wanted the church to be inclusive, and he acted by going to Cornelius’ house.

Stories creating community

In addition to the important work of transforming worldviews, stories also preserve people’s connection to history and to each other (CISA). Stories are never known or told in isolation, they inherently involve a group, a community. In the television series Friends, the stories the group shares are very important (Series 5). When five of them go to London, but the character Phoebe isn’t able to, she cannot stand to listen to the London stories, because it makes her feel like an outsider. Stories are shared by a group of people and often stories define the group. An acquaintance of mine recently said, “You can’t really become friends with someone, until you’ve shared an experience with them.” It’s these shared experiences that provide the basis for friendship and community. When the story of Scripture is told, it becomes the shared experience of the people listening—their history. They are now connected to each other and the church through history by these shared stories. Similar to the process in which a person feels a part of their family by “knowing how Grandpa and Grandma met,” or “this is what it was like when you were born,” people feel a part of God’s family by knowing how the church began or what happened when Jesus was born.

Stories reinforcing values

Stories can also be used to convey and reinforce the values of a group of people (Dunnery). By telling the stories of Scripture, the community of faith learns the values of the biblical community. For example, from the stories of David, the community learns about the value of being a people after God’s own heart. They can hear about when he crept up to his enemy Saul in the cave and only cut the hem from his coat instead of killing him showing his trust in God’s timing or when he repented of his sin of adultery with Bathsheba and murder of Uriah. When the story of Ruth gleaning from the fields is told, the community learns the value of providing for the poor. When the story of Peter having a dream about animals in a bed sheet and going to the Greek Cornelius’ house, we learn the value of embracing diversity. Telling these stories connects the community “to what was most essential about being [them], what was most essential to them as a people, and that rooting allow[s] them to develop positions and make choices that clearly aligned with the values that they hold” (Korton).

Stories allowing meaningful faith conclusions

Finally, storytelling Scripture allows people to have a deep faith in God’s love. By hearing about God’s love as a story, the listeners are allowed to draw their own conclusions and people will trust their own conclusions more than others (Simmons). Stories allow for different interpretations or different understandings, so people do not feel manipulated, but can take time to come to their own conclusions (Wright, 77). Once people hear a story and begin to take it as their own, they will have faith in the story that will outlast logical arguments. Simmons writes, “Faith needs a story to sustain it – a meaningful story that inspires belief in you and renews hope that your ideas, do indeed, offer what you promise.”

Here is an illustration of the difference between hearing a belief statement and hearing a story. Larry might tell Tara “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.” Tara must then decide whether or not she believes this statement. Or Larry might tell Tara the story of Joseph. Through hearing the story, Tara might continue to think about the story and conclude that God loved Joseph, was with him through all the hard things in his life, and had an amazing plan for saving his family and ruling Egypt all in one. Maybe another time Tara hears the story of Jacob and might conclude again that God had amazing plans for Jacob, but Jacob often seemed to sabotage them by trying to do his own thing. Over time and by thinking through these stories, Tara comes to the conclusions that God loves people and has amazing plans for their lives. She will now believe these conclusions much deeper than if she had just decided to believe the statement that “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.”

Storytelling Scripture in the community of faith can be a powerful tool. It will evoke deep change in the worldviews of the community and so result in transforming their beliefs, values, and actions. Storytelling will allow Scripture to become deeply rooted in people’s hearts as they accept these stories as their own and allow them to form their identity as individuals and as a people.

 

Works Cited

Barna, George, The Second Coming of the Church, Waco: Word, 1998.

Chronological Bible Storying, A Description of Chronological Bible Storying with Missiological Considerations, 29 Oct. 2003.

The CISA Storytelling Festivals and Symposia 2003-2004: Building Cultural Bridges, CISA: California Indian Storytelling Association. 19 Oct. 2003.

Dunnery, Steve, Alicia Korten: Core Value Stories. Introduction by Steve Denning, Smithsonian Associates. 21 Oct. 2003.

Friends, “Series 5” Warner Bros. Television: 1998.

Haghirian, Parissa, and Tina Claudia Chini, Storytelling: Transferring Tacit Corporate Knowledge in Different Cultures. European Academy of Management. 13 Sept. 2003.

Koki, Steven, Storytelling: The Heart and Soul of Education, PREFL Briefing Paper, Nov. 1998. 13 Sept. 2003.

Korten, Alicia, Stories & Values, Smithsonian Associates. 21 Oct. 2003.

Nielle, Caren, Storytelling for Peace, International Storytelling Center. 22 Oct. 2003.

Rughase, O. G. (2002), “Linking Content to Process,” in A. S. Huff, M. Jenkings, Mapping Strategic Knowledge, Sage Publications, London.

Simmons, Anne, The Six Stories You Need to Know How to Tell, excerpt from The Story Factor: Inspiration, Influence, and Persuasion Through Storytelling. International Storytelling Center. 22 Oct. 2003

van der Walt, B. J. (1997), “Afrocentric or Eurocentric? Our task in a multicultural South Africa”, Potchefstroom University, South Africa; Institute for Reformational Studies

Wolters, Albert M. (1985), Creation Regained: Biblical Basics for a Reformational Worldview.

Wright, Nicholas Thomas, The New Testament and The People of God. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press (1992).