Creationism.

[gravyrug]

Don't you mean "the history of the early" Catholic "church"?

No, I mean the Christian church before it was organized into the Catholic church. Or, more accurately, the Christian movement, and all its widely varied beliefs in different places.

 

[John Doe]

My all time favorite is the "God created fossils to test our faith" line. I always have to resist the urge to ask them if they realize that they basically called their Lord a troll.

Dinosaurs wrote the Bible to test our faith in science.

 

[fair_warning]

Yes - let me say this right. I believe the bible is the way God wants it. The things in the bible happened. (Yes Jonah was in the belly of a whale) Hey if you could do anything you wanted why not. lol Do I believe every little thing the same way. NO! Do I think he would be pleased that sometimes I want to be a submissive little slut. No. I do think though that he realizes I am human. He definately knows I am not perfect. He knows the exact number of hairs on my head. He knows my faults. He loves me anyway.

I think people view God as someone that is mean and vengeful. A pastor helped me see this. He equated it to a boat. He said most people see God as someone who is trying to push people out of the boat in a severe storm. In actuality, He is on the boat rushing to pull people in.

Believing this has made me at least try to be a better person. Like I said another time on a poll about the afterlife - what does it hurt.

I do wonder what criteria you use when deciding what to take literally, what to ascribe to myth, allegory, poorly recorded history or just plain fiction.

To be selective about the veracity and purpose of what is contained in the bible seems to me to make the whole ‘word of god’ thing a bit dodgy. A bit like a religious smorgasbord – you pick the bits you like and leave the rest.

Have you ever considered spending more time studying and examining the history of the bible as a collection of texts. How it came to be in its current form? The political and religious forces that produced the book as you read it today? If you do, you will learn that waaaay more human than divine intervention has gone into producing the bible as you know it.

However, if believing in the bible makes you want to be a better person then yes, I guess that’s not a bad thing.

Personally, I don’t believe in a ‘god’ – but this lack of belief has never stopped me from trying to be the best person I can be.

 

[eyer]

No, I mean the Christian church before it was organized into the Catholic church. Or, more accurately, the Christian movement, and all its widely varied beliefs in different places.

Could you post some of the titles of all these books you mentioned, then, that are about the church before 325?

 

[hogjack]

Prophetic words of your holy book can not come true. The reason being that your god never imagined having to deal with a master such as myself.

You are a speck of dust upon a speck of dust, Weezard. Delusions of grandeur, even in jest, reveal you know that to be the case.

God's Word has come true, is true, and will be true whether the specks of dust (you, me and everyone) want it to be the case. We can witness it, try to understand it and use our meager cognitive capabilities to comprehend the Glory.

But in the End the truth is what it is... Instead of fighting it you have a chance to bask in the Glow. But millions of people forsake God.

 

[tactful]

I do wonder what criteria you use when deciding what to take literally, what to ascribe to myth, allegory, poorly recorded history or just plain fiction.

To be selective about the veracity and purpose of what is contained in the bible seems to me to make the whole ‘word of god’ thing a bit dodgy. A bit like a religious smorgasbord – you pick the bits you like and leave the rest.

Have you ever considered spending more time studying and examining the history of the bible as a collection of texts. How it came to be in its current form? The political and religious forces that produced the book as you read it today? If you do, you will learn that waaaay more human than divine intervention has gone into producing the bible as you know it.

However, if believing in the bible makes you want to be a better person then yes, I guess that’s not a bad thing.

Personally, I don’t believe in a ‘god’ – but this lack of belief has never stopped me from trying to be the best person I can be.

You're being too logical, stop now, or you'll get a time out.

 

[Tryharder62]

Lots of 'em. Including several about the history of the early Christian church. I doubt most fundamentalist believers would like those very much.

Do you have Josh McDowell's ( I think I am getting his last name right) More than a Carpenter. Interesting information.

 

[Tryharder62]

The Bible also says that a worm made Jonah wish he was dead.

Jonah was trying to do his own thing. "The great fish" was used to save Jonah from drowning. The little worm was sent to make Jonah uncomfortable by making the vine that provided his shade from the heat die. The discomfort was meant to save Jonah's spiritual life. You are so right.

 

[CHNOPS]

The things that you're liable
To read in the Bible
Ain't necessarily so.

 

[Recidiva]

Jonah was trying to do his own thing. "The great fish" was used to save Jonah from drowning. The little worm was sent to make Jonah uncomfortable by making the vine that provided his shade from the heat die. The discomfort was meant to save Jonah's spiritual life. You are so right.

Okay, here's one of my questions. Jepthah's daughter (Judges) was sacrificed to the glory of God and God did not stay his hand, though he stayed Abraham's hand in the sacrifice of Isaac.

So apparently women aren't worth materializing a sacrificial goat.

How am I to feel about that...spiritually?

 

[phrodeau]

Jonah was trying to do his own thing. "The great fish" was used to save Jonah from drowning. The little worm was sent to make Jonah uncomfortable by making the vine that provided his shade from the heat die. The discomfort was meant to save Jonah's spiritual life. You are so right.

Do you think that the book of Jonah is an accurate history or a parable?

 

[Recidiva]

Why does God allow Crack Babies? Science provides a real answer to how crack babies come about, but God is silent on the subject other than the "mysterious ways" stuff that isn't as satisfying as a motivation.

 

[Sean]

And the bible doesn't say a thing about space shuttles. WTF is up with that?

 

[Recidiva]

And the bible doesn't say a thing about space shuttles. WTF is up with that?

Some sort of heads up would be nice.

Nothing about birth control either. Odd.

You know that Jesus himself didn't write down a word. You'd think if he thought it was that important...

 

[phrodeau]

And the bible doesn't say a thing about space shuttles. WTF is up with that?

The Challenger explosion is predicted in Islamic texts. How can that be?

http://worldwide-magog-dominance.blogspot.com/2007/11/space-shuttle-challenger-disaster.html

 

[Peregrinator]

Some sort of heads up would be nice.

Nothing about birth control either. Odd.

You know that Jesus himself didn't write down a word. You'd think if he thought it was that important...

He probably chiseled some stuff into the sides of cabinets.

 

[Sean]

Some sort of heads up would be nice.

Nothing about birth control either. Odd.

You know that Jesus himself didn't write down a word. You'd think if he thought it was that important...

Considering that Mark, the first of the synoptic gospels, was written at least forty years after Jesus' death, one has to wonder what took so long. Surely you'd want news like that out as fast as possible? FFS, they had a Michael Jackson book out about twenty minutes after he died.

 

[Recidiva]

He probably chiseled some stuff into the sides of cabinets.

I honor Jesus. Awesome guy. But not as the Son of God. He was very cool though. Those cabinets would be worth a lot. Trigger manufacture in 3...2...1...

 

[Recidiva]

Considering that Mark, the first of the synoptic gospels, was written at least forty years after Jesus' death, one has to wonder what took so long. Surely you'd want news like that out as fast as possible? FFS, they had a Michael Jackson book out about twenty minutes after he died.

I wouldn't have known anyway. Not allowed in synagogues for being ritually unclean and not worth a goat.

 

[Tryharder62]

I do wonder what criteria you use when deciding what to take literally, what to ascribe to myth, allegory, poorly recorded history or just plain fiction.

To be selective about the veracity and purpose of what is contained in the bible seems to me to make the whole ‘word of god’ thing a bit dodgy. A bit like a religious smorgasbord – you pick the bits you like and leave the rest.

Have you ever considered spending more time studying and examining the history of the bible as a collection of texts. How it came to be in its current form? The political and religious forces that produced the book as you read it today? If you do, you will learn that waaaay more human than divine intervention has gone into producing the bible as you know it.

However, if believing in the bible makes you want to be a better person then yes, I guess that’s not a bad thing.

Personally, I don’t believe in a ‘god’ – but this lack of belief has never stopped me from trying to be the best person I can be.

I actually have studied that and know that a group of men who I feel were inspired by God looked into the authenticity of the books of the bible. That the Catholic church includes books Protestants don't. The books that were left out of the bible could not be proved and authenticated. That does not mean insite can not be gained from some of them.

I must not have been clear enough. I think everything about the bible is literal and true. I don't pick and choose. However I am not going to say that I am perfect. I sin for want of a better word. I would be a hypocrit to say that I don't.

The God I chose to believe in didn't make us all robots. We have free will. I definately believe that people who don't believe in god can be very good people even better than I. We get to choose what we believe. That is what I think is remarkable. It is even nicer to be able to share your beliefs whatever they are.

 

[phrodeau]

Some sort of heads up would be nice.

Nothing about birth control either. Odd.

You know that Jesus himself didn't write down a word. You'd think if he thought it was that important...

In John 8, Jesus does some writing, but it's in the sand and nobody recorded what he wrote.

 

[KRCummings]

The emphasis was on preaching to the masses for quite some time. It's why some books are written well after the fact. Exceptions would be Paul's letters and such.
It would have been pointless to write everything down for people who couldn't read.

 

[Recidiva]

In John 8, Jesus does some writing, but it's in the sand and nobody recorded what he wrote.

"please...don't...kill people in my na-"

Damn. Wind.

 

[kbate]

Some sort of heads up would be nice.

Nothing about birth control either. Odd.

You know that Jesus himself didn't write down a word. You'd think if he thought it was that important...

It is still under debate whether Jesus could read and write.

 

[kbate]

In John 8, Jesus does some writing, but it's in the sand and nobody recorded what he wrote.

Way to wiki!