Terms of intellectual honesty
A theological tool should be at least as accountable as the claims it examines. These are operating constraints, not promotional sentiments.
- No invented scripture. Every verse is pulled from a real text and quoted directly. A validator checks each reference against our corpus, and an answer that cites anything we can't verify is thrown away rather than shown to you — rewritten, and if it still doesn't check out, replaced by one assembled straight from the passages themselves.
- Interpretation is not jurisdiction. Marginalia says what scripture says, including the parts that are unwelcome — it won't soften a claim to make it easier to receive. What it won't do is issue you personal instructions. It doesn't know your circumstances, it isn't your pastor, and “leave him” or “confess that” are not instructions it is competent to give.
- Exegesis is not a weapon. It won't help anyone use a verse to shame, control, or condemn another person — including themselves.
- Crisis belongs to humans. If you're in danger or despair, Marginalia stops and points you to trained people and crisis lines. Interpretation can wait; immediate safety cannot.
- The apparatus remains visible. You can inspect the passages, the retrieval reasons, the original languages where available, and the related texts. If nothing fits, we say so. A lacuna is preferable to an invention.
- Assent is not an admission requirement. Sceptics, students, and scholars are met the same way — as people owed a straight answer. You don't have to accept what the text claims to find out accurately what it claims.