yes shawn,
i'm not disagreeing that people are the problem as far as "dis-harmony" goes. i'm trying to point out that when poeple stand so solidly by the bible, to the point where they're putting others down, then the very document that they are trying to back up looses it's credibility; it fails to be their back bone. i've seen on this board, and in real life people who resort to put downs when trying to prove the relivancey of the bible. this might be able to pass in other debates, but seems ironic here. i'm not trying to say that EVERY christian does this, but i have seen it alot, and i think it takes a slap in the face to realize that one thinks this way, and thus be able to change ones ways and move on and grow. i guess it's a rut that alot of people claiming to be christians get stuck in. maybe it's a phase that many of us go through.shaun:
: You're a Christian? Not to judge you or anything, but Your first paragraph says how much you disagree with the Bible. A Christian believes the Bible to be the word of God and it cannot be wrong.
me:
not true. i was raised a Catholic and in Catholic schools we were actually taught to take the bible figuratively. a "christian" is just that , one who follows Christ. and the catholic religion is based on christianity. i don't disagree whole heartedly with the bible, i just think that many people take it's teachings to extremes, being to pushy that we all conform; a danger i think of taking it to literally.:
i believe that the word of God is universal and does not need to be written down. the spirit of God transcends anything scrawled on paper. that is the danger of putting abstract ideas into writting. it is an attempt to make them solid, unbending, when they are not. as humans we like to have things to have and hold.
shaun:
: Yeah, over the years the Bible has been translated in modern language we can understand. As our language has changed over the years, the Bibles translation has too so we can understand it. The fact the the Bible has been interpreted into thousands of cultures has nothing to do with its relevance. it still says the same thing it always has.
kath:
okay, the bible has most likely maintained alot of the basic original ideas. the bibles original language was not english as i'm sure you know, i'll admit i'm not even sure of the original language, hebrew or something. but languages don't translate literally into one another. there are words and ideas in one language that don't even have a counter part in other languages. "deja vu" for example is a french idea with no english counter part. there is an eskimo tribe that has no word to express "war" as it is unknown to thier culture. languages develop around culture, and what is important in the lives of individual societies. as i am sure that since the bible originated in the middle east, the possibilities of errors based on language differences are probably numerous, as the two cultures vary greatly.
cultures. oh gosh. that's a good example, when white men first came to america, didn't they call the indians heathens, pagans? why were they forced into our beliefs? why was it wrong for them to believe that animals and trees have spirits? how do we know that the same God we speak of in our bible is not the same God present in the spirit of the animals that they hold so sacred? don't we believe that the God in our bible is the God of ALL things? that is what i was told as a child. i guess what i mean is that when so much emphasis is put on literal teachings of the bible, we become less tolerant of people who don't fit the mold. by allowing some flexibility, we can be more inclusive.
to try and emphasise my view point, haven't you met people who go to church, preach of God, and never let you forget that they are christians, and on the other hand, i'm sure you know someone who rarely mentions religion, yet seems to be a friend to everyone? which one is right? or, is one any different than the other?
i am not trying to say that all christians are the "holier than thou" types, and i apologize if i came off this way. however, while reading this board i did notice some of the behavior i sited in my first post and was hoping to make some sense to some of those people.
bye,
kath.
None.
