WHEN I WAS IN NEW YORK CITY RECENTLY, I noticed something was missing from my room in the large Midtown hotel where I was staying: There was no Gideon Bible. For over a century the Gideon Society has placed Bibles in hotel rooms in a total of 179 countries around the globe. I always bring along my own Bible when I travel, but I just like the idea that the Gideon volume is there in case anybody wants it.
The next morning, I stopped by the concierge desk to ask why this practice had changed. I was expecting to hear an answer involving multiculturalism and political correctness. But instead, as I began to speak to the two young hotel employees, I saw their eyes widen. "Oh," said one, "we would never want our guests to be without a Bible! In fact, I keep one right here at the desk with me all the time. It's important. It gives me comfort." She speculated that the Bible had been accidentally removed, and several hours later I returned to my room to find a Gideon Bible on the desk.
I was a bit surprised, but very gratified, by that incident. I guess widely publicized, somewhat skeptical views about the Bible have not had the impact I'd expected. Some of these views come from academics. For example, the work of a group of New Testament scholars calls into question the authenticity of many of Christ Jesus' sayings recorded in the canonical Gospels. Some archaeologists claim evidence to prove King David was, at best, a local chieftain, far from the heroic monarch of Biblical narrative. Other skeptical views are prompted by popular fiction. The Da Vinci Code, for example, posits a conspiracy to misrepresent the New Testament's historical account of the life of Christ Jesus and his followers. And indeed, some skepticism is based directly on the teachings of the Bible itself, which in certain passages reinforces patriarchal attitudes toward women, reflects an economy based on slavery, and even advocates the practice of genocide.
