Bible quiz

[Onlinedad]

I am just so awed!

It must be great to be YOU!

Looking in the mirror every morning and thinking "I am so smart and all knowing. There is no God, but if there were, he would consult me very often"

It must be wonderful being so far above all of us mere imbeciles!

-Doc

I am interested in the thought process that if someone was to believe that a voice inside his/her head told them to kill his/her child now days, that they would be put into a mental hospital (or prison) ... However, putting full faith into a book that does encourage such behavior is acceptable.

 

[Islander]

I am just so awed!

It must be great to be YOU!

Looking in the mirror every morning and thinking "I am so smart and all knowing. There is no God, but if there were, he would consult me very often"

It must be wonderful being so far above all of us mere imbeciles!

-Doc

That's three posts by you, directed at me, that are simply insults. Each makes assumptions that are incorrect. Please read my posts before you reply next time. I didn't claim there was no God.

I know you are a smart guy, Doc. You can do better.

 

[father-of-three]

Some people here are Christians and some are not Christians.
Now that we know this, let's move on....

 

[Bighouse Doc]

That's three posts by you, directed at me, that are simply insults. Each makes assumptions that are incorrect. Please read my posts before you reply next time. I didn't claim there was no God.

I know you are a smart guy, Doc. You can do better.

You lay into us Christians calling us basically ignorant neanderthals. And in a most condescending way no less.

Now you have the cheek to say I am insulting you?

I've had my fill of this tread too. Father of Three is right! I'm moving on.

-Doc

 

[Islander]

You lay into us Christians calling us basically ignorant neanderthals. And in a most condescending way no less.

Now you have the cheek to say I am insulting you?

I've had my fill of this tread too. Father of Three is right! I'm moving on.

-Doc

Doc,

I made statements that I believe. I never called anyone names. I did my best to state why I thought intelligent people believed what I believe are unbelievable things...and that is conscious or unconscious suspension of disbelief.

I made statements of fact; the Bible WAS written by iron and bronze age men who knew almost nothing about how the world works. We know approximately when the texts were written. We know the cultures that wrote them to some degree. This is not open to argument. Any biblical scholar knows this, and anyone who is willing to look objectively know this. Those who think otherwise are basing their opinion on something OTHER than reality and evidence. I did not state an opinion of whether or not the writing was inspired by God.

For the record, I NEVER said belief in the Bible implied a lack of intelligence, but you chose to take it that way.

You have no answer to my posts but indignation. No rebuttal. No dispute. Just anger and resignation. I think your response is an excellent example of the difference between how each of us thinks.

 

[nogods]

Most of my Jewish friends say that the old testament (they don't call it that but I refer to it that way for convenience) was written by several competing authors, and that the early Jewish leaders had the foresight to incorporate the competing versions into one book rather than divide the tribes. Thus, they can deal with the contradictions as contradictions without diluting their faith in the message. To them the contradictions are a reality, but it is the message of their holy book that is important.

Most of my Christian friends try to explain away the contradictions in both old and new testament. It is as if they can't accept the reality of the limitations of written works. Unless they can weave every phrase in the bible into a singular consistent presentation, it loses its significance for them.

the old saying "Jews believe, Christians preach" seems most applicable.

 

[Islander]

Most of my Jewish friends say that the old testament (they don't call it that but I refer to it that way for convenience) was written by several competing authors, and that the early Jewish leaders had the foresight to incorporate the competing versions into one book rather than divide the tribes. Thus, they can deal with the contradictions as contradictions without diluting their faith in the message. To them the contradictions are a reality, but it is the message of their holy book that is important.

Most of my Christian friends try to explain away the contradictions in both old and new testament. It is as if they can't accept the reality of the limitations of written works. Unless they can weave every phrase in the bible into a singular consistent presentation, it loses its significance for them.

the old saying "Jews believe, Christians preach" seems most applicable.

I think that lately I've seen a move toward trying to defend the Bible as (1) a literal text and (2) perfectly inspired and (more importantly) somehow perfectly translated over all millennia. I think this change is being pushed by popular TV preachers to some degree, and by "intelligent design" camps. To defend intelligent design in the context of the Bible, you have to start quoting science, and thus relating events in the Bible to scientific theory.

Many of my Christian friends believe that the message of Christ is what is important (as do I), and the claim that all the events in the Bible are all literal is silly and (as we see every time it is tried) certainly not defendable through science. The wise Christian knows that belief through FAITH is the only way one can seriously believe. My extremely devout wife knows and says this. She is a fundamental Baptist and a true believer (and follower) of Christ's tenants and has been all her life. My best friend says "I believe because I choose to believe", words well spoken.

But I agree that the literalists have been more visible lately. Of course these literalists do not actually "believe" themselves, based on their actions. They don't stone their children for backtalk. Most "work" on the Sabbath and don't execute others for doing so. They don't kill people for cursing God. They don't execute people for adultery. They don't keep slaves. They don't let people beat their slaves within an inch of their lives without punishment. They don't punish a rapist of a virgin by making him pay the father 50 shekels and marry the rape victim. They don't silence their women in church, etc., etc. Either iron and bronze age men were simply codifying rules from their own culture when they wrote this in the Bible, or all these things are COMMANDED by the one and only God the Father, the same God that is one of the "co-equal, co-eternal three-as-one Trinity".

Some Christians will argue that ALL those things went away when Christ came, (others not) but even they will not do as Christ said in the new testament, sell all they have, and devote their lives to preaching the word. They don't really "believe" in the same sense that we recognize the word. I think that the outrage I see people express when someone questions that belief probably comes from the fact that it makes them recognize their own lack of faith.