The Bible

[stephen55]

I bet you believe in all that bullshit Nostradamus spouted too?

Nostradamus was an incredible guy. He predicted that after his death there would be...earthquakes...floods...wars...political upheavals...comets...

He`s five for five so far. He must have had some kind of mystic abilities!!!

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Nostradamus was an incredible guy. He predicted that after his death there would be...earthquakes...floods...wars...political upheavals...comets...

He`s five for five so far. He must have had some kind of mystic abilities!!!

Really? I too could jot down some nonsensical meandering that are so vague that historians of the future could read them and say I too predicted what was going on in the future. The truth lies in the mind of the reader. Nostradamus is like statistics, you can make the number fit the answer you are looking for.

 

[frostyghost09]

Really? I too could jot down some nonsensical meandering that are so vague that historians of the future could read them and say I too predicted what was going on in the future. The truth lies in the mind of the reader. Nostradamus is like statistics, you can make the number fit the answer you are looking for.

I concur.

 

[Zodia195]

The only thing I like about the King James version of the bible is the fact that it mentions unicorns in it whereas in other versions, it's a goat.

And Stephen I like your comments about predicting natural disasters. I want to laugh but I don't know if you're trying to be funny or not.

 

[AsylumSeeker]

Nostradamus was an incredible guy. He predicted that after his death there would be...earthquakes...floods...wars...political upheavals...comets...

He`s five for five so far. He must have had some kind of mystic abilities!!!

I'm intrigued by history, and the belief is that Nostradamus was predicting events that would happen in his own lifetime. The fact that we are still using his prophecies makes me wonder if we are fools desperate to cling to whatever had been said in the past, giving merit where no merit is due. Just me.

 

[MarlowBunny]

Really? I too could jot down some nonsensical meandering that are so vague that historians of the future could read them and say I too predicted what was going on in the future. The truth lies in the mind of the reader. Nostradamus is like statistics, you can make the number fit the answer you are looking for.

Woooosh!

 

[TE999]

The Bible is a collection of stories from the past that support a belief system, Christianity, and to those who accept said belief system the words are sacred and inviolate. To the rest, it's an interesting story book.

Tales of the gods of the Greeks, Romans, Norse, et al are now looked upon as mythology, yet at one time these gods were worshiped as fervently as 'The One True God' is today. Said gods embodied natural phenomena and human foibles and as such have been eviscerated by science and psychiatry. All that's left is blind faith and a ready answer to anything good or bad "It's God's will."

 

[ishtat]

What if it had been written today?

If it hadn't been written when it was

The oldest parts of the bible stem from the myths which predated it Noah for example seems to be derived from the legend of Gilgamesh and the Sumerian flood epic which date to at least 2800 BC.

Abraham is generally dated between 2200and 1700 BC with Moses if he existed a few hundred years later. A single inscription survives from the reign of David in the 11th 0r 10th century BC. Elijah is generally regarded as a ninth or early eighth century prophet (and killer of priests!). but it is only in 628BC that we have a definite date for one of the bible's books(Deuteronomy the book discovered in the temple in 628 BC). Thus for the first 2400 years the bible was a series of unconnected largely oral traditions.

Judaism, despite what the priests would have us believe was only established firmly as a monotheistic (rather than monolatrous) religion after the return from Babylon under Ezra and Nehemiah and it was about this time that the Jewish bible with one or two exceptions (Daniel and Esther) was completed. It was another 600 years before the New testament canon was established.

Thus, it can reasonably be argued that it took in excess of 3000 years to write the bible as we know it and we have used it for a little more than half that time in its current form. In that context it seems slightly absurd to think of it in "then" and "now" terms

 

[3113]

Judaism, despite what the priests would have us believe was only established firmly as a monotheistic (rather than monolatrous) religion

Ah. Thank you for that word: Monolatrous. I've been looking for it

Once you get that the Jews were monolatrous, a lot of the bible that didn't make sense makes a lot of sense. Like how Cain found other people if Adam & Eve were all there was (other gods made other people; A&E are just the first "Hebrews"), the royal "we" (Christians couldn't understand why god would use the plural for himself in the early parts of the bible--hey, maybe because he wasn't the only god!) or why god would get "jealous" of his people making idols to other gods if there are no other gods? Also if there's a "thou shalt not kill" rule, why is god telling the Hebrews to slaughter all those other people? Well, cause "thou shalt not kill" means don't kill those who belong to your god--but those who belong to other gods are fair game.

Understand this, and you begin to see that most of the bible is simply saying: "our god is cooler and meaner than your god!"

 

[frostyghost09]

Ah. Thank you for that word: Monolatrous. I've been looking for it

Once you get that the Jews were monolatrous, a lot of the bible that didn't make sense makes a lot of sense. Like how Cain found other people if Adam & Eve were all there was (other gods made other people; A&E are just the first "Hebrews"), the royal "we" (Christians couldn't understand why god would use the plural for himself in the early parts of the bible--hey, maybe because he wasn't the only god!) or why god would get "jealous" of his people making idols to other gods if there are no other gods? Also if there's a "thou shalt not kill" rule, why is god telling the Hebrews to slaughter all those other people? Well, cause "thou shalt not kill" means don't kill those who belong to your god--but those who belong to other gods are fair game.

Understand this, and you begin to see that most of the bible is simply saying: "our god is cooler and meaner than your god!"

Monolatrous?

 

[Verdad]

Monolatrous?

Monolatry is worship of just one god, but it doesn’t require a belief he’s the only god.

This was the case with the early religion of Israel. Jahveh was their god, but it didn’t mean to them that gods of other nations weren’t ‘real’ in the same sense.

In fact, according to some scholars, monolatry is not how the story begins, either. Since Jahveh was most of all a warrior god, without credentials in areas like agriculture, Hebrews worshipped other gods alongside him, and apparently for a long time this wasn’t frowned upon. The idea that he should be worshipped exclusively was itself a new turn, followed later by the idea that he was the god.

 

[3113]

Since Jahveh was most of all a warrior god, without credentials in areas like agriculture, Hebrews worshipped other gods alongside him, and apparently for a long time this wasn’t frowned upon. The idea that he should be worshipped exclusively was itself a new turn, followed later by the idea that he was the god.

Well, the Hebrews were nomadic shepherds. Egypt was the big agricultural spot, all farmers who stayed put. It's very telling that in the Cain and Abel story, Cain offers up fruits and grain while Abel offers up a lamb. Abel's gift is considered better than Cain's, the shepherd over the farmer.

 

[stephen55]

And Stephen I like your comments about predicting natural disasters. I want to laugh but I don't know if you're trying to be funny or not.

I forgot to mention...forest fires!...tsunamis!...landslides!...famines!...volcanoes!...

Hey! Seriously! The guy was really great! Why he even predicted that every time the sun goes down, all you have to do is wait a while...and there it is again!

And don't forget what he said about total eclipses of the sun!! (They always will go away. And it works every time!)

The guy makes Edgar Casey look like a piker. Nostradamus...my all time favorite prophet.

Zeb...feeling a breeze over your head again?

 

[Zeb_Carter]

...

Zeb...feeling a breeze over your head again?

Nope, how 'bout you?

 

[AsylumSeeker]

Nope, how 'bout you?

Hi. I know the country you live in has guaranteed you certain rights, at the expense of others. Glad to see you exercising these rights.

And after serving our country for 20 years then I have an equal right to respond that you are an evil fuck. You think you are cute posting cute posts?

Why are you so hateful? Do you think religion is unimportant? Then you will not understand an enemy who uses religion as a motivating force.

You are blind.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Hi. I know the country you live in has guaranteed you certain rights, at the expense of others. Glad to see you exercising these rights.

And after serving our country for 20 years then I have an equal right to respond that you are an evil fuck. You think you are cute posting cute posts?

Why are you so hateful? Do you think religion is unimportant? Then you will not understand an enemy who uses religion as a motivating force.

You are blind.

And you have no IDEA who I am or where I come from. I too, served the same country as you. Not for as many years but I did serve. Now that we got that out of the way.

What the fuck are you talking about? Hateful? Moi? Not at all. Not once in this thread, have I called anyone a name.

As for thinking religion unimportant. Well, religion yes. Faith, no. I have faith in my fellow man, that one day he will wake up and realize that all the killing, all the hoarding, all the gathering of things without intrinsic value was all for naught.

On the contrary, I truly do understand the motivation of those who would want us destroyed. But as those here say, that's a political thread, this is a porn and writing site.

My questions where for the exercise to try and imagine how a book like the bible would be received today. If it got your panties in a wad because you're a thumper I have one questioned for you. How do you reconcile your religious believes and then come here to participate?

Kind of a hypocrite if you ask me.

So take your theories about me and fuck you asshole.