There is no such thing as a Christian Scientist

There may be many reasons to NOT believe in Christianity (theodicy is a particular good example), but the concept that it's holy book is simply in error in Genesis 1 and 2 is not one of them. The problem for both many atheists and fundamentalist Christians (strange bedfellows, I know), is that they are reading those texts through Modernistic lenses.

Before I became an attorney, I got a degree in ancient history, which included reading a lot of ancient literature and studying ancient cultures. After that education, when I went back to read Genesis, I no longer read it as an attempt to relate strict literal narrative history, but I read it the way an ancient Israelite would have: as a presentation of actual events in the past, but using symbolic, figurative and typological language. And, to a great extent, as a way for the ancient Israelites to describe (yes, I believe they were inspired) God, the universe, and Mankind.

Most Christians worldwide have no problem with this approach, but more and more here in the U.S. a fundamentalist reading of Scripture has come to predominate, insisting that for the Bible to be "True", it must be strictly literal narrative history, and a science book to boot.

Hopefully that helps give some insight into how so many of us fairly intelligent and knowledgeable people can still end up as Christians.

However, I have never been a great apologist or evangelist for the faith. I am pretty good at removing stumbling blocks, as above, but I make no pretensions about being able to provide a purely logical path to God. I don't think that is really possible. But over in the apologetics forum, they get into that a bit more.

That does clear up alot for me. See in my personal life, (which I admit has not been very long) I have always turned away from God, because of the sheer absurdity of some of the things in the first hundred pages in the bible. The major ones being in my first post, the water-rock thing was a MAJOR turn-off for me.

But another reason for my atheism is (and I must admit) foolish pride. I truly from the bottom of my heart (as of now) am not convinced that a God exists. But as a human being, capable of the full range of thoughts and feelings the following of which most of us won't admit to or talk about having, I don't WANT their to be a God, or creation because
A) That would mean I was wrong,
B) That would mean that there is something out there far more powerful than me,
C) The Idea of worshiping someone or something, greatly angers me as I would truly feel "less than" ( hard to describe)
D) I would have to change the kind of person I am..


Yes, I know these are NOT normal thoughts for a 19 year old to be having, but I post them anyway.

That does clear up alot for me. See in my personal life, (which I admit has not been very long) I have always turned away from God, because of the sheer absurdity of some of the things in the first hundred pages in the bible. The major ones being in my first post, the water-rock thing was a MAJOR turn-off for me.