:: getting out the deck chairs ::
This should be fun.
You avoided the question…
which account is true?
Der Kommissar: Obviously we disagree about whether or not the Bible contains contradictions. I’m curious though, do you think the government should be officially supporting one or the other of us? Do you think Congress or a state legislature should issue a proclamation saying “The Bible Is Filled With Contradictions, So All You Good Citizens Out There Need to Take it With a Big Grain of Salt”?
And you just disregard John: “he said, ‘It is finished:’ and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.”
And just because I have come to different conclusions than you in my study of the Bible does not mean I have a dishonest heart.
As far as Congress goes (I assume we’re talking U.S. here) there’s a “constitutional” problem:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment
of religion . . . .”
The challenge is to make the U.S. into the Christian country it was intended to be without offending this Amendment. Perhaps a Constitutional Amendment is necessary.
Certainly, it seems that an Amendment is necessary to make clear that murder of unborn children is not protected by the Constitution.
Oh, yeah … this is definitely going to be fun.
I’ve just been reading the May June 2001 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review (don’t knock it; it’s a great mag and the best part are the letters from fanatics cancelling their subscriptions when some article disagrees with their firmly held assumptions).
There is an article by Uzi Avner about standing stones (in Hebrew massebah) set up as shrines. More of these can be found in the Negev/ Sinai than in the rest of the Middle East (and N/S is 1 percent of the ME). What does the Bible say about such things?
“You shall not make idols for yourselves, or set up for yourselves carved images or massebah, or place figured stones in your land to worship upom, for I the Lord am your God.” - Leviticus 26:1 (see also Deut 7:5, 16:21-22, 1 Kings 14:22, etc)
But also…
“Early in the morning, Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set ip up as a massebah and pured oil on the top of it.” - Genesis 28_18-19.
“(Joshua) took a great stone and set it up at the foot of the oak in the sacred precinct of the Lord…” Joshua 24:25-27.
“In that day, there shall be an altar to the Lord inside the land of Egypt and a massebah to the Lord at its border. They shall serve as a symbol and reminder of the Lord of Hosts in the land of Egypt, so that when they cry out to the Lord against oppressors, He will send them a savior…” -Isaiah 19:19-20.
Leaving us between a masseboth and a hard place.
uh, Jacob poured water, rather than pured water.
::plops down in deck chair::
I brought the chips and dip and the beer. Seems like it’s been a while since we had an entertaining get-together like this. Couldn’t have picked a nicer day for it.
Accursed smileys. Does the Bible say anything about “Thou shalt preview?”
Let me get this straight: The founders of this country intended for it to be a Christian nation, and all we need to do to carry out their wishes is repeal that part of the Constitution where they said they didn’t want this country to be a Christian nation?
I suppose there really isn’t any point in discussing Biblical contradictions with you, is there?
Do you honestly believe that the framers of the Constitution intended that document to protect the “right” to murder unborn children?
Just like the BIBLE, the Constitution should be read with an open mind and an honest heart.
Mmmmm…no, you know what, I started this thread, and I don’t feel like going off on a tangent about abortion. There have been plenty of threads about abortion; this ain’t one of them
Do you honestly believe that the framers of the Constitution intended for this country to be a “Christian nation”, and their putting in a guarantee of religious liberty for all (not just “all Christians”), and their forbidding religious establishments and religious tests for public office, and their leaving out of the Constitution any mention of the Bible or of God or of Christianity, and their doing everything but putting the words “THIS IS NOT A CHRISTIAN NATION–THIS IS A FREE COUNTRY” in flaming letters six inches high in the Preamble was just some sort of oversight?
John 2:12 says “And he who doth not preview shall be struck down”
Genesis 6:21 says “have faith in thou convictions. He whom preview hath no faith and shall not be entered into the kingdom of God”
Well, that does it. I’m converted.
Well, shucks, dude, I always read the Bible with an open heart. Take, for example, this passage, from Exodus 21:22-25:
My open heart reads this as stating pretty clearly that the life of the unborn is not equal to the life of the mother, since the punishment for killing a fetus clearly is nowhere near as harsh as that for killing the mother.
And let’s not have any of that “oh, but that’s way back in Exodus” nonsense, unless you’re willing to drop the rest of Exodus, which includes the ten commandments.
Just wanted to add that most of the “contradictions” listed in this thread (as well as many others) are explained at this URL:
http://www.ugcs.caltech.edu/~werdna/contradictions/cindex.html
Now, MEBuckner (can I call you “Bucky?”), don’t get me wrong. I’m disgusted by the National Day of Our God Kicks Your God’s Ass too.
I just don’t think (to borrow a sig) one can reason someone out of a position he did not achieve through reason. It annoys the pig.
I can’t believe no one has said this:
Don’t…turn around. Der Kommissar’s in town 
Anyhoo…as a woman who has grown up studying the Bible and trying to be a good, non judgemental, open minded Christian, I have witnessed many puzzling things in the Bible and have even heard my pastor say “that’s a stumper”.
In the end, I don’t worry myself with them, mainly because I’m not claiming to be an insideout Bible scholar. I worry myself with projecting a positive image to my friends and family, making choices based on the morals I’ve learned from my religious background and taking comfort in a lot of things that I’ve read in the scripture.
I worry a lot…more than I should. And every once in a while I find peace in the verse that speaks of God watching over even the sparrows in the field…so of course he’s taking care of me. The poetry of the Psalms is beautiful, and I ALWAYS get goosebumps at Easter when the angel says “Why do you look for the living among the dead?” I feel like cheering!
Bickering for days on end about whether we should take bribes or not doesn’t make everything in the Bible a lie.
just my two cents.
jarbaby
I’m just gonna be a lurker on this thread, because I don’t know enough about religion or bible verses to contribute, but I’m enjoying myself tremendously. As someone who has an inherent distrust of organized religion, this is fun. My only contribution thus far will be a quote by Dennis Miller: