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Curious how do people view religion, as well as wonder should the bible be read literally? Do you read the bible literally??

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Germinator

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Because this is a "Beliefs and Skepticism" forum, just wondering why others think religion is important (or not important) AND am curious how people view the bible

FWIW this is my take on the issue of religion (and the bible),... in a short doodly

 
Germinator said:
Because this is a "Beliefs and Skepticism" forum, just wondering why others think religion is important (or not important) AND am curious how people view the bible

FWIW this is my take on the issue of religion (and the bible),... in a short doodly

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Religion was invented to try to make sense of a crazy world, in eras when science was barely present. This includes Bible stories.

Now we have science and while it can't explain everything, it's made steady progress.
 
Languages don't translate literally. Unless you're reading the Bible in ancient Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic, you arent reading the literal word of God.
 
Sees the bible as no different than the writings of ancient Greek, or Roman, of Hindu, or even Native American mythology, and there are many, many others. The bible is basically Christian mythology.
 
Loulit01 said:
Languages don't translate literally. Unless you're reading the Bible in ancient Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic, you arent reading the literal word of God.
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easy peasy solution: get a Hebrew Greek Interlinear Bible and check for yourself how the Bible was translated. very affordable and wipes away another poor excuse for not obtaining Salvation today.

actually the King James Bible is one of the best translations out there; it has been around 400 years and has changed man a life. available everywhere, including On Line.
 
Rev said:
easy peasy solution: get a Hebrew Greek Interlinear Bible and check for yourself how the Bible was translated. very affordable and wipes away another poor excuse for not obtaining Salvation today.

actually the King James Bible is one of the best translations out there; it has been around 400 years and has changed man a life. available everywhere, including On Line.
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Nice try.
 
I believe in the Bible and in Christ. I also realize that man has made changes to the Bible for their own good. Reference the King James version. Also, imo, there are/were difficulties in translation and meaning. Naturally, those who disregard the Bible also want to refer to the length of time between the writing of books of the Bible and the Disciples. Still, I use the Bible as a guide for my life and believe that the overall messages of the Bible have validity today. I am not one to push my religious beliefs on anyone else. I am one who thanks Jesus and God for each day, my family and my many blessings.

Edited to add:

I am imperfect. I make mistakes each day. I have a bad temper. I am not someone anyone would look at as a role model for Christianity.
 
Germinator said:
Because this is a "Beliefs and Skepticism" forum, just wondering why others think religion is important (or not important) AND am curious how people view the bible

FWIW this is my take on the issue of religion (and the bible),... in a short doodly

Click to expand...

I view the Bible as somewhat crude, low quality mythological fiction. Yes, it has some good parts like where that one dude was swallowed by a fish, and there are some sexy bits as well. In general, however, it lacks cinematic universe potential with bland and boring heroes with yawn-inducing backstories, one-note villains lacking even the slightest complexity, and relatively poor world-building. It has its place as a workable religious tome, but the overly wordy text makes it a sludge to get through, and constant plot points involving forced incest is flat-out creepy. For these reasons I give it a C-. It'll provide a decent ride, sure, but serious religion buyers should shop elsewhere.
 
The Bible is literature. I don’t read any literature literally.
 
Let me first say that I was raised in the Baptist Church and attended a Southern Baptist High School before joining the Church of Christ. My parents had long since stopped going to church because they experienced various hypocrisy like the pastor having an affair. I gave it my all, but ultimately I could not understand things like having to be literally baptized in water to be "saved". I often asked the question to the Elders of the church about physically challenged people who couldn't be submerged in water or how people on other continents would go to Hell because they had never heard the gospel. I was met with crickets. Ultimately I made up my own mind.

So, no I don't believe in religion for my purposes. I think it exists to help people who have hardships get through life. My mother was a staunch Baptist until the day she passed away and if it helped her get through her final days, believing she was heading toward a better place, I'm all for it. I've just moved beyond it and now embrace science and reality
 
Germinator said:
Because this is a "Beliefs and Skepticism" forum, just wondering why others think religion is important (or not important) AND am curious how people view the bible

FWIW this is my take on the issue of religion (and the bible),... in a short doodly

Click to expand...

The bible is fiction.
 
Loulit01 said:
Languages don't translate literally. Unless you're reading the Bible in ancient Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic, you arent reading the literal word of God.
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Even if you read it in the original languages that it was written in, you still aren’t reading the literal word of god.
 
devildavid said:
Even if you read it in the original languages that it was written in, you still aren’t reading the literal word of god.
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Yes, because there is no God, I get that. Some people don't.
 
Germinator said:
Because this is a "Beliefs and Skepticism" forum, just wondering why others think religion is important (or not important) AND am curious how people view the bible

FWIW this is my take on the issue of religion (and the bible),... in a short doodly

Click to expand...


It doesn't really matter how you read it. If you read it literally, and you are even a tiny bit rational, you can't help but see how utterly absurd it is. If you read it symbolically, then it's totally subjective, and not at all useful.

Either way, there's no reason to believe that there's any real truth in it, so reading it either way is a waste of time.
 
Noodlegawd said:
It doesn't really matter how you read it. If you read it literally, and you are even a tiny bit rational, you can't help but see how utterly absurd it is. If you read it symbolically, then it's totally subjective, and not at all useful.

Either way, there's no reason to believe that there's any real truth in it, so reading it either way is a waste of time.
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False dilemma.
 
Mulefoot said:
False dilemma.
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What's false about it?

The way to play the false dilemma game is to establish that the statement you are criticizing was actually set up as a dilemma (mine wasn't), and then to identify another alternative (which you didn't do).
 
Noodlegawd said:
What's false about it?

The way to play the false dilemma game is to establish that the statement you are criticizing was actually set up as a dilemma (mine wasn't), and then to identify another alternative (which you didn't do).
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You identified only two options in how to read the bible, literal and symbolic. There are other options to choose from, including parts of the bible that should be read as symbolic and parts that should be read as literal.
 
Mulefoot said:
You identified only two options in how to read the bible, literal and symbolic. There are other options to choose from, including parts of the bible that should be read as symbolic and parts that should be read as literal.
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I didn't say that my statement had to be applied to the entire bible, as opposed to individual parts. It stands true either way.
 
Noodlegawd said:
I didn't say that my statement had to be applied to the entire bible, as opposed to individual parts. It stands true either way.
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No, you didn't say that.
 
Mulefoot said:
No, you didn't say that.
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I didn't say one way or the other. You just assumed that I meant one thing, instead of the other, rather than both. Speaking of false dilemmas.
 
Noodlegawd said:
I didn't say one way or the other. You just assumed that I meant one thing, instead of the other, rather than both. Speaking of false dilemmas.
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We both know what you meant. And no, even if I were wrong, that wouldn't be a false dilemma. That would be a misunderstanding.

But it wasn't.
 
Mulefoot said:
We both know what you meant. And no, even if I were wrong, that wouldn't be a false dilemma. That would be a misunderstanding.

But it wasn't.
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So you're a mind reader. Got it.
 
Reading the Bible is like reading cards or tossing chicken bones, it's all in the eye of the beholder.

If you don't have faith it's pointless to read it.

Religion and faith are not really the same thing, one is more centered around dogma and traditions, and the other is just a real personal relationship with God.

It's hard for us to understand the meanings of words from thousands of years ago that don't have the same translations they do today. If you are of the faith of the Bible it's important to study it until you find God's plan for you, if you are of another faith, just try and find the same things in your texts.

If you don't believe in God, don't worry about what people who do find in their texts, just live your life and let us live ours.

A lot of people out there spreading false messages, and that normally comes down to two things, money and power, not faith at all, but that is true of both believers and atheists.
 
I'm with Seneca.

“Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by the rulers as useful.” __ Lucius Seneca worked out this truth Circa 50 CE.
 
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