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I am not always the author of my life.
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G-ds Word Copyrighted

Thu Jan 19, 2012 1:19 PM EST
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By PonGoad
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BECAUSE...after personally experiencing what the 'Facts of Life' really are about and what I was taught as a child about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I turned away from Christianity, religion, and God - details of my experiences are unimportant. In all of the Bible stories I listened to as a child and sermons I heard as an adult, the message was very clear that God would ultimately protect you if you believe in him and do what is right, that you have a Guardian Angel watching over you, and you are cradled in his loving hands. Approximately ten years after my life-destroying experiences, I realized I was in limbo about what I believed about the Triune God and decided to do some intensive Bible study on my own, as much as I could without the interference of individual Christian religious doctrines and my own ingrained dogma.

During the course of my studies, I decided I wanted to have some Bible Study software I could use when I was offline. What I found out was that in order to obtain the Bible version I used to read, I had to pay extra for it and was limited to versions that I had to read and read and re-read... before I could get to the meat of what was being said. I also found out that there are copyright's on GOD's WORD and this got me to thinking...

 

~~~~~If the scriptures are the true WORD of GOD, who has the right to copyright the Bible?~~~~~

 

If the Bible is God's true Word and the interpretations are true to it, in my opinion there should be no copyright. Yes, publishers should cover their costs of manufacturing Bibles and interpreters deserve to be paid for their work of translating the scrolls and creating a compilation of the verses into the Biblical Books that create the Bible, but copyright? One version says you are not permitted to copy more than 500 verses at one time with other stipulations. Another says 1000 verses.

"New International Version (NIV)" Copyright Information (http://www.biblegateway.com/versions/New-International-Version-NIV-Bible/).

"New King James Version" Copyright Information (http://www.biblegateway.com/versions/New-King-James-Version-NKJV-Bible/)

____________________________________________________________________________________

If I saw a budding Christian who...

..........does not have money to spare (Bibles are expensive - not everyone has a way to get a free Bible)

..........no web access

..........no transportation

..........lives miles and miles from the nearest church

and the only way I could pass the written WORD to him or her was to print or write it out, I am not permitted to because there is a limit on how much of GOD's WORD is allowed to be passed on without, the not said but implied, paying for it.

____________________________________________________________________________________

The above, imaginary example may be extreme and the publisher might send the popular version of the Bible to this imaginary person, but the points that hit me like a lead balloon when I saw the copyright info and the frustration I am having in obtaining software without having to pay extra for the Bible version I am used to, were this...

..........Copyright permissions are copyright permissions no matter how much it is downplayed.

..........Separation of Church and State is still being upheld by the Supreme Court. My experience in trying to purchase the software I was looking for was more of a profit-loss setting than a setting to assist believers in coming closer to GOD. An internet search turned up a Bible software site where if you downloaded and installed their software (which I did), you were constantly being bombarded with advertisements to purchase premium content whenever you clicked on any link in the software including the popular version of the Bible used in Christian churches today. As a matter of fact, in searching for Bible Study software, not one of the free versions of any software included the "NIV" version and if it had the "NJKV" it had "Strong Numbers" instead of all of the text, which was very unreadable. I could not find any affordable, media-enriched "NIV" version Bible study software anywhere to work with my 64-bit OS.

..........Why do we have so many different versions of the Bible within Christianity? I am not talking about Bibles created in different languages or student Bibles, I am talking about the Bibles sold to every-day Christians in the United States of America in English. GOD's WORD is GOD's WORD. If the Bible stays in a version, people will get used to it as it is passed down generation to generation as our Jewish ancestors did before the Biblical text was written. I can understand going from the older versions to the popular version that is used today, but what is the purpose of all of the new revisions and versions? Were the interpretations, then, not correct? Who decided this? Why, in this day and age, do we need another interpretation of the Bible?

 

~~~~~Am I, all of a sudden, going to find out, if I read a new version of the Bible, that some of the beliefs I have lived by most of my life have been incorrect based on the Bible versions I was raised on?~~~~~

 

It occurred to me that one of the main reasons why we have all of these new versions popping up might be profit. Christianity IS a big money-maker insofar as religious materials are concerned, at least, it seemed so to me. I used to be a habitual visitor of a Christian book store when my adult children were kids and the price of everything was high then. I have noticed, after looking at prices on various religious websites, that the price of religious materials is still high. If you want to get the full benefit out of a Bible study or the readings and liturgy of your church service, you want to have the version your pastor is using as it is easier to follow. So what do you do? If you can afford it, you go out and buy a new Bible, hymnal, catechism, not to mention, software to go along with it. Come to think of it, even if you can't afford it, you may try to purchase these things for the 'Glory of GOD'.

..........What does this say about corporate Christian institutions and doctrine? - It says to me 'Since I cannot afford to pay for a Bible, I can only learn what the Bible says by what doctrine is preached from the pulpit, word-of-mouth or just my own thoughts. (Not everyone is comfortable in asking for a freebie.)

..........What about the doctrine that is preached that we are supposed to spread GOD's WORD? Are the teachings of today limiting evangelism to verbal spreading of the WORD only? If I could not afford to buy a Bible for the above mentioned person in my example, I would find a way to get a copy to him or her. The publishers would probably sue me all over the place, but...

..........How would GOD react? Did he say to put limitations on how much of his WORD was to be given to believers or non-believers? Who holds the copyright to the GOD-inspired WORD? In my opinion, "I AM".

______________________

This article "G-ds Word Copyrighted" is an opinion that was authored and written by ©PonGoad 2012.  All Rights Reserved based on personal experiences, thoughts and studies. PonGoad does not work for nor represent any religious organization whatsoever. PonGoad is just an average US citizen trying to find answers to the whys of life.

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PonGoad

How will the Bible be interpreted now in the US with the reversals of male-female roles? How, if the woman is the bread winner and responsible for the welfare of her family can our religious leaders justify the teachings of the condescending role of women taught in the Bible?

Will the new versions of the scripture reinterpret and change the meaning of the verses that talk about roles?

  • 1 vote
Reply#1 - Thu Jan 19, 2012 1:29 PM EST
Mateo-660030

in my opinion there should be no copyright.

and it's just an opinion. but since the Bible is the most available book on the planet, most of your arguments aren't all that valid. nor is it an absolute statement, either: the KJV, for instance, has no copyright.

One version says you are not permitted to copy more than 500 verses at one time with other stipulations. Another says 1000 verses.

you do realize that's pretty generous for copyrighted material, don't you? 1,000 verses is pretty much a license to reprint the entire Gospel of John, almost all of Acts, and virtually all of the New Testament books.

Why do we have so many different versions of the Bible within Christianity?

the Bible just happens to be the most popular book that's translated into English, and translations have been ongoing for centuries back when English was almost a different language translated from languages that are no longer spoken in the same form. why are there so many versions of the Aeneid, the Illiad and the Odyssey? it has more to do with a book being from antiquity than anything else. there are minority languages that have not been so fortunate, where the native speakers could only wish they had as much translation diversity as is available in English.

    Reply#2 - Thu Jan 19, 2012 2:48 PM EST
    PonGoad

    Mateo-660030

    Yes, my article is just an opinion (indicated in my tags) and written because of the confusions, frustrations, and questions I have felt when attempting to re-establish my roots with God - it is not a statement.

    The KJV version has no copyright, true, but unless you have been raised with this version, it is very difficult to understand at times; hence, my reason for mentioning the NIV & NKJV as copyrighted which are the closest to our modern day language and the versions most widely used today. Yes, 500 or 1000 verses is generous. As a believer in God, though, I do not believe Jesus's definition of evangelism meant to just verbally evangelize or was meant to limit only part of His inspired written Word to pass on.

    If I am looking at the Bible as a book of antiquity, there is no confusion with copyrights and what the Bible says. Since I am a Christian and am attempting to live as per God's Word, I will question any differences I realize in each version of a Bible if I see it, whether copyrighted or not. If these meanings gradually change with each new version because of word interpretations (words are covered under copyright) and which version of the Bible is being reinterpreted, I would then start to question the validity of what I learned in the first place and wonder if I have I been living to the glory of God.

    The other point I made in my article and the main reason why this article came into being was because I am wondering how the new interpretations of the Bible, not published yet, are going to address the roles of men and women. The NIV, NKJV, and olders versions of the Bible of Paul's ministry portray women in a role that is subservient to men. In today's world many women are financially supporting and being responsible for the well-being of her family instead of the man and are head of the household.

    Thank you for clearing up some of my questions about various versions of the Bible and antiquity. My concern is more towards any new copyrighted versions that may be published:

    "Am I, all of a sudden, going to find out, if I read a new version of the Bible, that some of the beliefs I have lived by most of my life have been incorrect based on the Bible versions I was raised on?"

    As a Christian trying to find answers...my thoughts and questions...PonGoad

    • 1 vote
    #2.1 - Thu Jan 19, 2012 5:04 PM EST
    Mateo-660030

    I do not believe Jesus's definition of evangelism meant to just verbally evangelize or was meant to limit only part of His inspired written Word to pass on.

    why do you say that? at the time that Jesus gave the Great Comission, none of the New Testament books had even been written yet. the early church out of necessity didn't have the dependence to the written word that we have today. they may not have had copyright restrictions, but they didn't have any method of transference better than oral or hand transmission either. it hasn't been necessary for every believer in history to have their own personal copy of the entire scripture canon (even some of the ante-Nicene fathers didn't have a copy of every book we have today), in fact, that's a luxury of the last few centuries that we take for granted.

    also, one thing i forgot to mention before: while I can understand the initial objection to the concept of copyrighting sacred scripture, remember that a copyright is the only way to control distribution, so it's even more important if you're trying to make a work more accessible. it would be naive to publish a book with no copyright expecting to be able to continue to distribute it for free, because if you don't protect the rights yourself, someone unscrupulous could secure the copyright and then restrict you from any free distribution of it.

    finally, there are plenty of excellent resources online today, there's really no need to look for software to purchase unless you're an academic or cleric. sites like biblegateway.com will let you read the entire NIV, as well as practically every other English language version.

    I am wondering how the new interpretations of the Bible, not published yet, are going to address the roles of men and women. The NIV, NKJV, and olders versions of the Bible of Paul's ministry portray women in a role that is subservient to men.

    you seem to be hovering between translation and interpretation. the cultural customs of the original text are immutable, changing that would be revisionism, not faithful translation. while believers today can and do re-interpret Biblical teachings for today's culture, looking for textual support where there is none is eisegetical, not exegetical, interpretation.

    • 1 vote
    #2.2 - Thu Jan 19, 2012 7:19 PM EST
    PonGoad

    Mateo-660030

    Our society today uses the Bible as a tool to spread the Word of God. Emphasis has been given from pastors to read the Bible. Even though the New Testament books were not written at the time of the Great Commission, I do not feel it means that we are not to use all of this tool in our evangelism today.

    Insofar as copyright is concerned, I wholeheartedly agree with copyright as a rule and that it should be in place. It struck me as an oxymoron with evangelism when I first realized there were copyrights on some versions of God's Word. I think I will always have an objection to the sacred Word being copyrighted even though I know copyright is a must in our society today.

    I was looking for Bible study software because seven months out of the year I am off-line and wanted an aid in studying the Bible during this period of time. I am also working during the times churches in my area offer services or Bible study classes for that seven-month period. I had interactive Bible study software that really worked for me before, but it will not install on my new 64-bit system.

    Thanks for giving me insight into some of the areas I didn't think about. Looking forward to talking to you again.

    PonGoad

    • 1 vote
    #2.3 - Thu Jan 19, 2012 8:39 PM EST
    Reply
    jameseg

    It occurred to me that one of the main reasons why we have all of these new versions popping up might be profit.

    I agree with the above quote from your article, PonGoad.

    However, I think there are also many people who produce new versions out of a sincere desire to make the Bible more easily read and/or provide a more accurate translation. Since this costs much, they need to charge for the costs of production. Copyrights also help prevent someone from reproducing one's work with slight alterations that make it misleading.

    Since I only read and write in English I have never read the Bible in its original languages of Aramaic, Hebrew, and Greek. But looking at a few different translations helps me.

    Fortunately, there are many churches, denominations, missionaries, organizations like the Gideosn, etc., that give Bibles and New Testaments away free of charge. Libraries and free online resources provide much helpful information on helping one live a Christian life.

    Personally, I benefit from prayerfully reading modern translations of the New Testament gospels and the writings of Paul in the New Testament. But I think there are good people in various faiths.

    Seeking to "be good and do good" as Buddha is credited with stating many centuries ago seems to be a great way to live. And Jesus' urging to love even one's enemies seems to take this to a higher level.

    • 2 votes
    Reply#3 - Fri Jan 27, 2012 1:41 AM EST
    PonGoad

    Hi jameseg

    You bring out some good points about translations. It just seems to me that so many new version in a fairly short period of time that are pretty close to each other seems redundant.

    Thanks for reading my article.

    • 2 votes
    #3.1 - Fri Jan 27, 2012 1:59 AM EST
    jameseg

    so many new version in a fairly short period of time that are pretty close to each other seems redundant.

    I agree, PonGoad.

    • 2 votes
    #3.2 - Fri Jan 27, 2012 12:43 PM EST
    Reply
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