Re: the Bible (or any religious text), I always thought of it this way (assume for the moment that the book is, at the very least, divinely inspired):
Scenario 1: The original meaning has been corrupted by human error. Why then trust the book?
Scenario 2: The book is the literal word of God (or whoever/whatever). Why then is it so damn confusing and ambiguous?
I think the Bible even quotes Jesus as saying something along the lines of "Most people won't believe in what I'm telling you." Could it be the way he was telling it (or not telling it, as the case may be?).
I also question the idea of pure faith. Think of it this way: if I was around in 33 AD, and I saw Jesus die on the cross and then I saw him walking around a few days later, nail holes in his hands, you know what? I'd probably accept anything he told me. Heck, even if I just saw him raise Lazarus from the dead, or perform any other sort of miracle (that I could be reasonably certain was not merely a fancy parlor trick), I'd be inclined to believe. In 2012, though, all I have are several variations of a book, and the testimonials of millions of people who each see the matter in a slightly (and sometimes radically) different way.
I really don't mean to focus on Christianity. I really have similar questions about other religions. But being raised Catholic, and living my whole life in two towns in which Christianity is by far the dominant religion, it's the one I tend to be the most familiar with. Plus, it seems to be the one everyone here is generally focusing on, so...
(BTW, James, those 8 hours of your life were well spent, imo. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your comments; actually, this whole thread is quite interesting, for various reasons...)
Scenario 1: The original meaning has been corrupted by human error. Why then trust the book?
Scenario 2: The book is the literal word of God (or whoever/whatever). Why then is it so damn confusing and ambiguous?
I think the Bible even quotes Jesus as saying something along the lines of "Most people won't believe in what I'm telling you." Could it be the way he was telling it (or not telling it, as the case may be?).
I also question the idea of pure faith. Think of it this way: if I was around in 33 AD, and I saw Jesus die on the cross and then I saw him walking around a few days later, nail holes in his hands, you know what? I'd probably accept anything he told me. Heck, even if I just saw him raise Lazarus from the dead, or perform any other sort of miracle (that I could be reasonably certain was not merely a fancy parlor trick), I'd be inclined to believe. In 2012, though, all I have are several variations of a book, and the testimonials of millions of people who each see the matter in a slightly (and sometimes radically) different way.
I really don't mean to focus on Christianity. I really have similar questions about other religions. But being raised Catholic, and living my whole life in two towns in which Christianity is by far the dominant religion, it's the one I tend to be the most familiar with. Plus, it seems to be the one everyone here is generally focusing on, so...
(BTW, James, those 8 hours of your life were well spent, imo. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your comments; actually, this whole thread is quite interesting, for various reasons...)
Quote:In Jr. High School, I would take a gummi bear, squeeze its ears into points so it looked like Yoda, and then I would say to it "Eat you, I will!". And of course then I would it eat.