READING THE BIBLE WHOLE IN A CULTURE OF DIVIDED HEARTS RAYMOND C. VAN LEEUWEN The authority of Scripture has become a seemingly intractable problem. The solution to this problem is not to be sought simply in better theological analysis or in assertions that the Bible is God’s Word. The problem of the Bible is the problem of humanity in rebellion, opposed to the Word and Spirit, alienated from God in Christ, confused about good and evil, and needing conversion and fundamental reorientation to the Way of life. It is also the problem of a church accommodated to the cultural categories of the world around it and without adequate theories of how literary artworks, including the Bible, represent reality and communicate their meaning. Thus, we cannot make our discussion merely a matter of the Bible and theology—for the issues that concern us are inextricably entwined with the great and complex problems of culture and society worldwide and locally, of persons, families, groups, institutions, and nature in all their mutual relations. “Ask not for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee.” Our discussions need to be engaged with the world in which we live and self-aware of the sort of people we are—all in relation to God (Rom 11:36). Saint Augustine divided the world into those who were citizens of the “City of God” and those who gave their allegiance to the “Earthly City.” My concern is that the citizens of God’s City have divided loyalties, give allegiance to two kingdoms, and are walking under the opposed powers of Spirit and Flesh, God and Mammon. The dividing line between the world (in the negative sense) and the church is not simply between us and them; the conflict between spiritual forces runs right through the heart of every believer, and our very bodies are battlegrounds for the rule of Christ as opposed to darkness. The problem is not merely individual; it affects our corporate existence in Christian organizations and public institutions of all sorts. It affects Christian action in the public spheres of life. The problem of the Bible is the problem of the church, which is in disarray, often in conflict with biblical principles, 1 and with more than 33,820 “denominations” and paradenominations worldwide. 2 We are far from the reality