I would add, that the old testament has been interpreted allegorically since before Christianity, since in the Roman Empire, Jews that were civilised had some difficulty accepting the rather nonsensical elements of the archaic books.
This sort of makes sense. The bible is a collection of books that are very different in style, so it makes sense that some are understood poetically, or allegorically, while others are quite literal.
So these seemingly silly elements of the bible were literally never understood literally by Christians, until the reformation, at least.
So while it may seem like modern Christians are trying to reinterpret the bible to avoid contradictions, that are caused by the idiocy of the ancient and medieval people, the reality is literally the exact opposite.
I would add, that the old testament has been interpreted allegorically since before Christianity, since in the Roman Empire, Jews that were civilised had some difficulty accepting the rather nonsensical elements of the archaic books.
This sort of makes sense. The bible is a collection of books that are very different in style, so it makes sense that some are understood poetically, or allegorically, while others are quite literal.
So these seemingly silly elements of the bible were literally never understood literally by Christians, until the reformation, at least.
So while it may seem like modern Christians are trying to reinterpret the bible to avoid contradictions, that are caused by the idiocy of the ancient and medieval people, the reality is literally the exact opposite.