Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV)
The above cited quote exhorts believers to study but even in today's world this is quite impossible. There are several challenges that a Christian faces when he/she takes the initiative and decides to delve into the scriptures even further than your typical church Sunday bible study. The first of these challenges is that of translations, and which one you should use for the purpose of studying. In the English language alone there are over 500 translations!
The next hurdle is that of interpretation. Depending on which Christian church you are a member of will determine how you interpret what you read. Unless you approach your bible with an open mind then your interpretation is already biased by your denomination of choice. You must also keep in mind that none of the original texts that comprise the bible exist today and that what you are actually reading are copies of copies.
Another major problem is that the bible is outdated. When studying the bible you must read it while taking into consideration its cultural context and the time period in which it was first written and refers to. Even today it is evident that there are huge cultural differences between the U.S. and the Middle East. Many people read the bible and forget that the events described in its pages supposedly happened from 2 to 5,000 years ago. You simply cannot apply some of the bibles so called moral and legal teachings to the modern world.
Putting your faith aside you will see that by modern standards the bible is chock full of inconsistencies and outright absurdities. There is nothing holy about the Holy Bible. Contrary to what many Christians think about their god it will only take a reading of the O.T. to see what a cruel and vindictive deity they serve.
The laws in the scriptures as allegedly given to Moses whose existence is questionable are cruel and seem communistic. I have always and continue to refer to the biblical god as a dictator. These are just some examples of the insanity that are biblical laws. God was very fond of the death penalty as demonstrated by these texts. In Leviticus chapter 20 it states that you shall be punished with death if you worship other gods, curse your parents, commit adultery ( have sex with someone other than your wife or husband), if you have sex with your step mom, if you have sex with someone of the same sex, if you blaspheme the name of the Lord etc. Don't take my word for it give that chapter a read for yourself.
The bible is and always has been a book of myths and is nothing more than a collection of a cultures paranoid superstitions. This is my opinion and it applies to all of the so called holy books out there.
But the Bible imparts into the reader's mind the pretentious feeling of superiority by stumbling upon special hidden knowledge that only the inspired reader themselves could acquire by seeking absolute truth while being lead by the holy spirit from the utmost superior being in the universe (god, himself). LOL
ReplyDeleteSteven B. can't log in for some reason..DOH!
And it was OK for him to screw a virgin!
ReplyDeleteThat's the thing God could break his own laws anyone else is a sinner and a disobedient one bound for hell for his/her insubordination. LOL
ReplyDeleteHey if Jesus is God and Mary was Jesus' mother impregnated by God doesn't that make God a motherfucker?
ReplyDeleteLooking for an intelligent argument, but a distinct lack of anything remotely resembling that on here.
ReplyDeleteRaz, thanks for sharing your opinion and commenting on my blog. But quite frankly there is no such thing as an intelligent argument when it comes to Christianity or any other religion. It's just so damn difficult to combat faith with reason. In fact the term reasonable faith itself is an oxymoron.
ReplyDeleteOnce again, I find an atheist who doesn't understand God's character and instead of getting to know Him better, the author writes Him off as a maniacal dictator. Nothing new here, folks. Just the same old, tired, boring arguments that all atheists use to try to prove that God is who atheists want Him to be.
ReplyDeleteObviously you know nothing about me and as most theists tend to do make baseless assumptions based on your own biased views about atheists in general. Your Bible speaks of God in the O.T. as if he were a monster.
DeleteHe killed at his will over the most trivial acts of disobedience. If we were not talking about God we would be talking about Hitler, Pol Pot, or Mao and their cruelty. Why is God exempt when the Bible says he was directly responsible for the deaths of men, women, and children or on numerous occasions commanded the Hebrews to carry out these acts for him?