Is It Okay to Read a Book Like Any Other Book?

In some ways, it's not like any other book. But I think that's also an assumption. Is it appropriate to read it that way? Or is it okay to understand how Matthew is unique among the Gospels? It means reading it from the point of view where we are not the center of meaning, which is flawed. We can't do it perfectly all the time, but we're trying to get into that ancient moment.