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AlbatrossFlyer wrote:i do not understand how someone can take the english language version of the king james bible as the literal word of god as some people do.

historically, the original texts were written in ancient hebrew and other period languages, then translated into greek & latin and now into contemporary english and other languages. with the amount of serious biblical scholarship comparing the original texts to the king james version identifying the differences which amount to everything from lousy translation skills to literary license to blatant alteration for socio-political reasons, how can anyone make the argument the modern bible is the literal word of god?

CaptainP wrote: I'm getting in over my head here...I usually prefer not to discuss religion or politics. Both discussions lead to bad feelings. Please don't hate me.

Quiet and Shy wrote:

CaptainP wrote: I'm getting in over my head here...I usually prefer not to discuss religion or politics. Both discussions lead to bad feelings. Please don't hate me.

You're my very favorite CaptainP.

CaptainP wrote:

Quiet and Shy wrote:

CaptainP wrote: I'm getting in over my head here...I usually prefer not to discuss religion or politics. Both discussions lead to bad feelings. Please don't hate me.

You're my very favorite CaptainP.

How many other CaptainP's do you know?

Quiet and Shy wrote:
I just don't believe the Bible was ever intended to be the weapon some have chosen to make it. To me, it's just more about how you treat people vs. whether you go to the right church, quote the right scripture, etc.

CaptainP wrote:The Bible is a collection of short stories.
THAT IS NOT SAID IN A DERROGATORY WAY!!!!!

They are stories about ancient people, and many may have been exaggerated, some stories have definately been excluded, but they were thrown together to give people a basis for their faith.

Whatever you believe, FAITH is the most important thing. YOU have to believe it. You don't need other people to share your beliefs, so long as you can hold them in your heart. That's what religion is....the fulfillment of the need for faith.

Nobody can ever know for sure now who wrote what, what is real, what is imagined. It's up to each person to interpret what they think is real about it.

What I have a contention with is many organized religions, which is why I don't belong to any one church. They tell you that you have to believe THIS and only THIS. Any contrary beliefs will make you a sinner....(I AM NOT POINTING THE FINGER AT ANY SECT IN PARTICULAR. THIS IS A GENERALIZATION! Although I could give some very good examples.) I choose not to believe in a God that will cast you to Hell for not bowing down to him at a certain time every week, or will cast you to Hell for eating bacon on the wrong day, or for not believing in a hundred other seemingly random rules. I choose to live a good life, be good to other people, and if that is not good enough, then I guess I WILL go to Hell.



I'm getting in over my head here...I usually prefer not to discuss religion or politics. Both discussions lead to bad feelings. Please don't hate me.

NYCPORT wrote:Okay, I’m going to try and do this without my usual tongue in check sense of humor, but I have this one snippet that almost sums it up for me. I don't know if I heard this once or if I actually made it up.

"The only difference between a cult and a religion is about 2,000 years."

Here are my thoughts. Religion was brought about because it made it much easier to control the uneducated masses. They were told by their leaders that there was a supernatural being that would look after you if you did what "He" told you to do (all the while the leaders were the ones "translating" what "He" wanted you to do.) If you didn't do what he wanted you to do you were in a world of trouble forever!
This also made it a lot easier to explain so called natural phenomenon, like volcanoes, floods, storms, etc.
Moving forward a few thousand years religion was again used to control the masses in a slightly different way, you don't do it the way we do it you will be tortured or killed.
All the while there is no real proof of any of the existence of this Supreme Being.
Throw in the fact that most wars, or regional differences a started because of a difference in religion and I question the good in this even more.
Present times have brought us to a point where the central organizations that run religions are wealthy beyond comprehension, I'm aware of the good these organizations do as well. Sell off the works of the Sistine Chapel and I but that would put a dent in world hunger!
What I see here is a system the starts indoctrinating the next wave of members as children and continues to add to its masses generation after generation after generation. Cult like, huh?
In 5,000 years we have no real proof such a supreme being exists. I don't except answers like "I know he exists in my heart." That's not proof. The Red Sea wasn't parted, it was low tide. There wasn't only one day of oil left in the temple, they made a mistake when they measured, an angel of death didn't kill Ramses first born son, some well timed disease did. You get my point.
Why do I need someone else to tell me how to live my life? I'll figure it out. And if I'm not sure I'll go to one of you, my friends for advice, not someone working off a book I know to be in large part fiction with no proof to dissuade me of my thoughts.
What I see is people looking for answers that can't be answered and people taking advantage of human weakness to "guide" them. To me it's a lot like being a weatherman. It's going to snow today. Ooops, it didn’t snow, you know how the weather is!
God will save you if you do things his way. Well, I know you lived a good life according to Gods teaching but still had a very hard life and experienced a lot of tragedies in your life. God works in strange ways! Sounds very similar to me.
I could go on and on. I think you can get an idea of what I'm trying to say.
Again, you asked, not trying to p*** anyone off.

RAGTOP wrote:

NYCPORT wrote:Okay, I’m going to try and do this without my usual tongue in check sense of humor, but I have this one snippet that almost sums it up for me. I don't know if I heard this once or if I actually made it up.

"The only difference between a cult and a religion is about 2,000 years."

*edited for brevity*

thanks you saved me about 20 minutes worth of typing...

Now, Port, you wanna talk Red Sox and Yankees, that's *religion*, and there may be bloodshed......

tommcat327 wrote:hmmmmmmm

ph4ever wrote:

tommcat327 wrote:hmmmmmmm [/quote

WOW!!!!!

tommcat327 wrote:

ph4ever wrote:

tommcat327 wrote:hmmmmmmm [/quote

WOW!!!!!

i sensed that there was some jesus talk goin on

UAHparrothead wrote:

tommcat327 wrote:

ph4ever wrote:

tommcat327 wrote:hmmmmmmm

WOW!!!!!

i sensed that there was some jesus talk goin on

He's got the radar on

CaptainP wrote:The Bible is a collection of short stories.
THAT IS NOT SAID IN A DERROGATORY WAY!!!!!

They are stories about ancient people, and many may have been exaggerated, some stories have definately been excluded, but they were thrown together to give people a basis for their faith.

Whatever you believe, FAITH is the most important thing. YOU have to believe it. You don't need other people to share your beliefs, so long as you can hold them in your heart. That's what religion is....the fulfillment of the need for faith.

Nobody can ever know for sure now who wrote what, what is real, what is imagined. It's up to each person to interpret what they think is real about it.

What I have a contention with is many organized religions, which is why I don't belong to any one church. They tell you that you have to believe THIS and only THIS. Any contrary beliefs will make you a sinner....(I AM NOT POINTING THE FINGER AT ANY SECT IN PARTICULAR. THIS IS A GENERALIZATION! Although I could give some very good examples.) I choose not to believe in a God that will cast you to Hell for not bowing down to him at a certain time every week, or will cast you to Hell for eating bacon on the wrong day, or for not believing in a hundred other seemingly random rules. I choose to live a good life, be good to other people, and if that is not good enough, then I guess I WILL go to Hell.



I'm getting in over my head here...I usually prefer not to discuss religion or politics. Both discussions lead to bad feelings. Please don't hate me.

AlbatrossFlyer wrote:i do not understand how someone can take the english language version of the king james bible as the literal word of god as some people do.

Soraya wrote:Several years ago I met a friend of a friend that was going to a 'bible' college. He was upset that part of his requirements included learning Hebrew, Latin and Ancient Greek (didn't seem to include Aramaic.)

He said, in all honesty, "If the King's English was good enough for Jesus, it is good enough for me. I don't know why I have to learn the language of heathens."

I thought he was joking...when I realised that he wasn't I almost feel off my chair. My friend then stepped on my foot under the table to keep me from saying something that she would probably have regretted.