Psychoactive Substances

[FaithT]

I belong to a book board where someone asked poster to name the most messed up book they’ve read. One guy wrote the Bible and described it as being written by middle eastern men on psychoactive substances. Has anyone ever heard this before? My faith is stronger than it used to be but reading things like this shake me a bit. Could it be true?

 

[Gregory Thompson]

That's a thing in the new age movement, so it's a happy lie.

 

[HTacianas]

I belong to a book board where someone asked poster to name the most messed up book they’ve read. One guy wrote the Bible and described it as being written by middle eastern men on psychoactive substances. Has anyone ever heard this before? My faith is stronger than it used to be but reading things like this shake me a bit. Could it be true?

Actually, psychoactive substances are specifically condemned in the bible.

Rev 9:21

And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

The word translated as sorceries is the Greek pharmakeia, meaning literally drugs. Some groups at the time would use hallucinogenic drugs to put themselves into a trance and "speak for the gods".

Parts of the bible are written in prophetic language that uses imagery to convey the meaning. One of the most difficult books is the Revelation because of the language the writer uses. But once you understand the language you'll find that it is much too coherent to have been written by someone under the influence of drugs.

 

[Petros2015]

Has anyone ever heard this before?

I've heard there are (or were) a lot of magic mushrooms on Patmos island where Revelations was written.
And I've heard that Jesus is secret code for a magic mushroom

The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross - Wikipedia.

Allegro argued that Jesus never existed as a historical figure and was a mythological creation of early Christians under the influence of psychoactive mushroom extracts such as psilocybin.

But most of those things I think were written by people on psychedelic substances.

The book was written in the 70's, go figure lol.

Pretty sure Jesus ain't a mushroom.

Philip Jenkins writes that Allegro was an eccentric scholar who relied on texts that did not exist in quite the form he was citing them, and calls the Sacred Mushroom and the Cross "possibly the single most ludicrous book on Jesus scholarship by a qualified academic".

Truly, this was a man ahead of his time *rotfl*. He'd probably be considered an amateur today.

 

[Daniel9v9]

To suggest that the Bible was written by people who used psychoactive substances betrays a serious ignorance about the body of texts and their history. It's simply a ridiculous statement! Notions like that shouldn't be taken seriously at all.

The Bible has a growing wealth of historical and archaeological records, and a myriad of testimonies, so to suggest things like mass hallucination is not only anti-scientific but illogical and a blatant disregard for history.

This is actually the Bible's strength — it records for us events that didn't merely occur in a person's heart or mind, but objectively in the open for everyone to see. Peter puts this very plainly in 2 Peter 1:16 when he says: "For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty."

And Paul says the same in Acts 26:26, where he explains that the work of God didn't happen out of sight, but publically: "For the king knows about these things, and to him I speak boldly. For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done in a corner."

Or we can think of Luke, who diligently recorded the history, saying in Luke 1:1-4: "Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught."

In a word, we could only entertain the idea of the Bible being a result of psychoactive substances providing it was written by one person and without any historical records, but that's not the case. God works in history, through many people, and in many ages. He walked and talked among us in the person of Jesus Christ, and He bled and died for our sins, and was raised for us, that we may be raised with Him.

 

[FaithT]

To suggest that the Bible was written by people who used psychoactive substances betrays a serious ignorance about the body of texts and their history. It's simply a ridiculous statement! Notions like that shouldn't be taken seriously at all.

The Bible has a growing wealth of historical and archaeological records, and a myriad of testimonies, so to suggest things like mass hallucination is not only anti-scientific but illogical and a blatant disregard for history.

This is actually the Bible's strength — it records for us events that didn't merely occur in a person's heart or mind, but objectively in the open for everyone to see. Peter puts this very plainly in 2 Peter 1:16 when he says: "For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty."

And Paul says the same in Acts 26:26, where he explains that the work of God didn't happen out of sight, but publically: "For the king knows about these things, and to him I speak boldly. For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done in a corner."

Or we can think of Luke, who diligently recorded the history, saying in Luke 1:1-4: "Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught."

In a word, we could only entertain the idea of the Bible being a result of psychoactive substances providing it was written by one person and without any historical records, but that's not the case. God works in history, through many people, and in many ages. He walked and talked among us in the person of Jesus Christ, and He bled and died for our sins, and was raised for us, that we may be raised with Him.

Thank you so much…again.

 

[Gregory Thompson]

You might find it interesting that the greek word for witchcraft is the same word we derived the word pharmaceuticals from. (Galatians 5:20, Revelation 9:21, Revelation 19:23) Thus accusing the bible writers of being high on shrooms is like saying all of Christianity is based on witchcraft, and there is no god. Basically.

Hope that helps.

 

[FaithT]

You might find it interesting that the greek word for witchcraft is the same word we derived the word pharmaceuticals from. (Galatians 5:20, Revelation 9:21, Revelation 19:23) Thus accusing the bible writers of being high on shrooms is like saying all of Christianity is based on witchcraft, and there is no god. Basically.

Hope that helps.

Is that what YOU believe?

 

[Gregory Thompson]

Is that what YOU believe?

There are bunch of statements in there, which one were you referring to?

 

[FaithT]

There are bunch of statements in there, which one were you referring to?

<<<<Thus accusing the bible writers of being high on shrooms is like saying all of Christianity is based on witchcraft, and there is no god. Basically.>>>>

That.

 

[Gregory Thompson]

<<<<Thus accusing the bible writers of being high on shrooms is like saying all of Christianity is based on witchcraft, and there is no god. Basically.>>>>

That.

Obviously not. I posted this to be helpful, it means those who say the prophets were shamans on shrooms, are mocking Christianity.

 

[FaithT]

Obviously not. I posted this to be helpful, it means those who say the prophets were shamans on shrooms, are mocking Christianity.

Oh, ok

 

[ViaCrucis]

I belong to a book board where someone asked poster to name the most messed up book they’ve read. One guy wrote the Bible and described it as being written by middle eastern men on psychoactive substances. Has anyone ever heard this before? My faith is stronger than it used to be but reading things like this shake me a bit. Could it be true?

You can rest assured that this individual doesn't have a clue what they're talking about. And I'm not just saying that to defend Scripture against scurrilous accusations; it's not a view that even honest and educated skeptics would make.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[FaithT]

You can rest assured that this individual doesn't have a clue what they're talking about. And I'm not just saying that to defend Scripture against scurrilous accusations; it's not a view that even honest and educated skeptics would make.

-CryptoLutheran

Thanks!