Is the creation story in Geneses a literal or figurative story?

[busterdog]

Sorry to say this, but I think this shows that you're just reflecting the idea that somehow a story is "less truthful" than something that is factual. That represents contemporary scientism, not the status of the truth that the story represents.

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Who by? Any really serious historians take it as an accurate account? Sounds more like the kind of nonsense I used to read from the likes of Hal Lindsay than anything else...

Is a story about the idea of living forever as good as living forever?

I am as into the spirit of what a writer says as the next guy.

But, isn't the whole point here a distinction between life and death?

How do we decide where to stop being metaphorical/spiritualizing and where to start taking things literally? Common sense and even "serious historians" have never done a great job with such things.

 

[Assyrian]

If it is just a story, no. Or if it is an actual history of people living forever in the past (except that they didn't did they?) then it is not really that much use, to us anyway.

But is the story contains the promise that God will give us eternal life, that he has promised a redeemer who in the story 'steps on the snake's head'. If the story points us to a tree that really does brings us life where our saviour hanged on a tree redeemed us from the curse by becoming a curse for us. The story tells us what went wrong how we can live forever, in story form.

It is not a choice between living forever and a story about living forever. Being metaphorical doesn't mean it is not describing reality, just that the reality described is not identical with a literal interpretation of the story.

 

[artybloke]

It is not a choice between living forever and a story about living forever. Being metaphorical doesn't mean it is not describing reality, just that the reality described is not identical with a literal interpretation of the story.

Quoted for truth. A story conveys real truth about the real world; it just does it in a fictional format. Does Jesus' story of Dives & Lazarus have to be factually accurate in order to tell us something about life after death?

 

[FilledwiththeLight]

Regaurding the recent comment "they found Noah's Ark", check again.

It was speculated from satellite maps and now it concluded it is a naturally mad feature.

That is why there arent scientists right now going to the site and cataloging it.

Get your facts straight before you post them.

 

[Scotishfury09]

I'm confused. Who said they found Noah's ark?