Nevermind the details...

[ebia]

Christianity today is as different from person to person as the clothes we wear. If you sat 100 Christians down and asked them to name some of the big issues that they feel need to be addressed in Americas governing, you would most likely hear about Homosexuality and Abortion. So initially you would think, "These guys are pretty much on the same page here." But this is where the similarities end.

Assuming that Christianity is right, why does that necessarly mean it has to be so simplistic that 100 different Christians articulate the same answer to every question? If Christianity really does represent the truth about God, his creation, us and the relationships between them it ought to be expected to be at least as complex as each of those.

What would each of them say? Odds are they would be wearing at least one Cotton/Polyester blend article of clothing and none of them would be able to give you the same answer.

And? Some of those answers would be better than others as people are at different positions on understanding that particular question and (like many questions) there is more than one distinct, valid, approach to answering it. The bible is not a set of commands, but a story, and the Torah forms a particular part of that story. If you want a set of decontextualised statements and commands you might be happier with the Koran.

These are several of the reasons I have a problem with the Bible in general. Everyone says that the Bible is timeless and can be applied to all our lives but that of course is untrue. And although "God is unchanging," is a popular sentiment that is preached from countless pulpits every Sunday, it is proven false by the Bible in several places.

Scripture is timeless in the way a narrative with important truths to tell is timeless, or the way a pronouncement of something that has changed the world forever is timeless, not in the sense your statement implies- the actual narrative of the bible is thoroughly narrative and therefore imbedded in time.

Go read the bible - as you pan back from any individual command you find that it's embedded in story and cannot be understood apart from that story.

 

[brinny]

I've been searching around for some answers so that I might change my views on Christianity as a whole. Currently I am agnostic but I feel like there is a good chance that a "God" exists. The problem I run into is Christianity. Unfortunately it would seem that the Bible and even Christianity as a whole is a creation of man that while based on the older religion Judaism, is still as out in left field as any cult or other major world religion.

My case for this.

Christianity today is as different from person to person as the clothes we wear. If you sat 100 Christians down and asked them to name some of the big issues that they feel need to be addressed in Americas governing, you would most likely hear about Homosexuality and Abortion. So initially you would think, "These guys are pretty much on the same page here." But this is where the similarities end.

If you then ask the same 100 Christians, "How do you feel about Leviticus 19:19?" You would probably have to read it to them first.

"Do not mate two different kinds of animals. Do not plant your field with two different kinds of seed. Do not wear clothing woven from two different kinds of thread. NLT"

What would each of them say? Odds are they would be wearing at least one Cotton/Polyester blend article of clothing and none of them would be able to give you the same answer.

Or how about this one?

How much do you think I could charge for my daughter? I love her so much but things are tight right now due to the economic crisis and I think I need to sell her as a slave.

The aforementioned 100 would probably all be appalled and yet Exodus 21:7 clearly outlines the requirements for such a sale.

Also I bought my friends daughter and I liked her so much I decided to marry her. She is great and all but when I was at the beach this weekend I met a wonderful woman named Mary. I decided to marry her as well. Just to make sure I was right with God I read up on it in my bible and found Exodus 21:10-11 that says

10 “If a man who has married a slave wife takes another wife for himself, he must not neglect the rights of the first wife to food, clothing, and sexual intimacy. 11 If he fails in any of these three obligations, she may leave as a free woman without making any payment."

So I guess my question here would be, Is it okay for me to have sex with both of them at the same time? Or should I separate our sexual encounters? I think the easiest way would just be to have sex with them at the same time without allowing them to touch each other because that would be borderline homosexual but the Bible is slightly vague on the sexual aspect of a man and his wives.

Another thing that I have become slightly worried about is women who are on their period. How do I tell if they are so I can avoid, not only touching them, but also touching anything they have touched? I have tried asking all my female co-workers but that seems to be very offensive to them for some reason.

Anyway Leviticus 15:19-24 says “Whenever a woman has her menstrual period, she will be ceremonially unclean for seven days. Anyone who touches her during that time will be unclean until evening. Anything on which the woman lies or sits during the time of her period will be unclean. If any of you touch her bed, you must wash your clothes and bathe yourself in water, and you will remain unclean until evening. If you touch any object she has sat on, you must wash your clothes and bathe yourself in water, and you will remain unclean until evening. This includes her bed or any other object she has sat on; you will be unclean until evening if you touch it. If a man has sexual intercourse with her and her blood touches him, her menstrual impurity will be transmitted to him. He will remain unclean for seven days, and any bed on which he lies will be unclean."

These are several of the reasons I have a problem with the Bible in general. Everyone says that the Bible is timeless and can be applied to all our lives but that of course is untrue. And although "God is unchanging," is a popular sentiment that is preached from countless pulpits every Sunday, it is proven false by the Bible in several places.

If anyone can shed some light on these aspects of the Bible and give me some real answers based in reality and not wishful thinking or skewing of the Bible to make is say what they want I would really appreciate it.

Thanks in advance.

You seek fallible man, a finite being? The "Source" is the living God, not "man."

Are you serious? :o

 

[Van]

Hi Fatalalgorithm, yes views on the applicablity of the Old Covenant vary. Does this provide a basis for rejecting Christianity? Do the laws given governing how to live under the Old Covenant apply today, or does the New Covenant supersede the Old Covenant. And if it does, they why are you finding fault with Christianity because of the Old Covenant? You seem to suggest since God's attributes are unchanging, He is not allowed to replace the Old Covenant with a superior Covenant, even though that is what scripture says He did.

May God Bless

 

[PerrySB]

I was raised and educated in Christian schools and then rejected the whole thing because of arguments along the lines that many skeptics have presented. The reality and purity of Christianity came to me once I fully realized first of all that there must be a creator and began to find out who he is. That will only come from a relationship with Jesus Christ and submitting your life to him. From that point the Holy Spirit will then begin to enlighten you to Gods will for your life. If you can get a grip on that concept all the rest just becomes commentary and means very little. The Bible is filled with wisdom and a message to us of a God that loves us and wishes to draw us to him. When I study the Bible or anything else for that matter I ask the Lord what he wants to teach me. I’m one that loves science, and to me science cries out creation and a creator.