[Draykorinee]

And they made their father drink wine that night. And the first-born went in, and lay with her father; and he knew not when she lay down, nor when she arose.

So in the bible there is date rape and incest, how is that for female empowerment.

The word sodomy comes from the undeniable truth of the Bible, that God sent angels to Sodom to get raped up the bung by a gang of evil doers. Because of that he destroyed every man women and child in the city except for the one that had just offered his virgin daughters to be raped instead because he such a swell guy.

The greatest tool for atheists are the holy scripts, because they're utter batshit crazy, and you have to be batshit crazy to believe it.

 

[The Quintessential Mark]

Yes and it's one of the only things I can place my hope in.

I'm not your traditional Christian who goes to church every Sunday or prays to him every night but I placed my faith in Jesus Christ and I'm a believer.

 

[Dolorian]

Yeah, read it from cover to cover and then read plenty more of it when I was a Roman Catholic.

 

[SayWhatAgain!]

Never heard of it

Is it fiction or non fiction?

Thanks.

 

[Pencil Neck Freak]

The Bible was written in Roman times, and even has a chapter called Romans. It was the Romans who crucified Jesus. This is obvious, but sometimes people forget, Christmas is Jesus Christ's birthday.

/QUOTE]

What are you trying to say with this paragraph? I really don't get the point you're trying to make.

Also Christmas isn't so much Jesus's birthday as much as it's a celebration of the birth of Jesus. Well in traditions it's believed to be but it's hardly something all Christians accept. Like a lot of things within the Roman Catholic Church, Christmas was probably just an old Roman pagan winter festival. When Rome became Christian they simply just decided to adapt it to a Christian one.

And to answer the title yes I have. I grew up within a very Evangelical family. My dad's side of the family are Baptist missionaries and my mom is a Pentecostal lol. Evangelicals in general take the Bible VERY seriously. And I was taught to study the Bible from an early age. Even though I'd say I've read more of the Bible later in life when I worked for a Church. So I do know a decent bit of the Bible.

But I'm not a Christian anymore. I'm more of an agnostic. I don't think the Bible is complete trash or anything. I think it's an important book. I do think there are things to learn from in it too. But I also think taking it literally isn't a good idea.

 

[Reaper]

Yes.

I liked Harry Potter better.

 

[ReekOfAwesomenesss]

I read the book of Mormon couple of years back when a friend and I were trying to hook up with two missionaries from Utah.

 

[Draykorinee]

Christmas is Christians attempts to erase pagan traditions not to celebrate Jesus ' birthday seeing as all the evidence points to a different birth date all together.

 

[Banez]

According to bible, King Solomon had 800 wives and 200 sidewives.

What to learn from bible? God is okay with it if man has more than 1 wife.

 

[Pencil Neck Freak]

Christmas is Christians attempts to erase pagan traditions not to celebrate Jesus ' birthday seeing as all the evidence points to a different birth date all together.

I wouldn't say Christians in present tense use it to erase pagan traditions.... Because those pagan traditions atleast the Roman celebration which Christmas comes from has been erased. :lol IMO it was probably just something Roman Empire/Church did because "well we Christians now so let's make this thing we used to do Christian" lol Than an attempt as Christians to erase pagan rituals.

And to be fair.... What exact evidence is there to go by when Jesus was born? Unless you use the biblical narrative to try make a case. Like it would of been too cold in winter for shepherds to be out at night or something. But there's so many holes in that story that it's really hard to take any of it seriously. Jesus' birth was probably nothing to write home about and could of been literally any time of the year :shrug.

According to bible, King Solomon had 800 wives and 200 sidewives.

What to learn from bible? God is okay with it if man has more than 1 wife.

Ehhhh that's not completely true. While Solomon and several others in the Bible practiced polygamy. Generally it was before Moses or it was King David or Solomon who went against God on this. And Mongomy was definitely more encouraged.

Deuteronomy 17. Has instructions for what the King of Isreal should do and he warned against marrying many wives. See verse 17

14 “When you come to the land that the Lord your God is giving you, and you possess it and dwell in it and then say, ‘I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,’ 15 you may indeed set a king over you whom the Lord your God will choose. One from among your brothers you shall set as king over you. You may not put a foreigner over you, who is not your brother. 16 Only he must not acquire many horses for himself or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to acquire many horses, since the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall never return that way again.’ 17 And he shall not acquire many wives for himself, lest his heart turn away, nor shall he acquire for himself excessive silver and gold.

 

[Draykorinee]

It's almost like the bible is filled with contradictions.

Thou shalt not kill but then ordering the massacre of Amalek.

 

[Crona]

Yes. One of the most violent and aggressively stupid texts I've read.

 

[La Parka]

i've read it

Jesus is kind of a prick. I can see why Judas betrayed him.

 

[skypod]

Have never read a single sentence out of it.

What I don't get, is within the divisions of religions believing in different prophets. In Christianity or Islam, do they believe the other is going to hell? Or would an atheist like me be worse off than either? Whats worse, practicing religion wrong or not bothering?

Just seems like if there is a God he wouldn't leave it up to random geographical shit like "this boy was born in Kentucky therefore 90% chance he'll be a Christian and he'll get into heaven. This other boy born in Islamabad however has no hope". What's the Christian answer to that question?

 

[DesolationRow]

Yes. Features a great deal of superlative and poetic images and missives.

William Shakespeare liberally based myriad lines of dialogue for the characters in his plays on Biblical verses. Though in a play such as Henry VI the author also forms his own Biblical passages and verses.

Was just rereading the Old Testament recently and as always finding the psychotic state of the Hebrews' God rather intriguing in its own right as a depiction of a supernaturally-enforced moral order for this world.

As for Christmas it should be recalled that the struggle between Christian observance of Jesus Christ's birth (which probably occurred in August or September but it is certainly unknown) went both ways, with the Roman pagan holiday festival Natalis Solis Invictus established by Emperor Aurelian on the twenty-fifth of December in 274. This was a most fascinating time period for relations between devout Christians and pagans alike.

 

[rbl85]

The what ?

 

[DesoloutionRow]

I particularly enjoyed the section where Trump descends from the Heavens to lead America.

 

[li/<o]

Never read it my family has. I just can't read a lot I get bored fast. Now this is where Netflix can adapt and make their own bible series i'd love to watch it and give my overall input.

 

[Doc]

Many years ago, I read the Bible, and I haven't quite looked at things the same since.

In the Bible, it mentions real places, real people, etc. It mentions angels coming to people in dreams. Jesus Christ was basically an exorcist. Demon-possessed people would be brought to Jesus, or he would encounter them, and command the demons out. People would be blind or mute, but when the demons left, they could see and talk again. Jesus would also heal physical illnesses, like leprosy.

Many people take the Bible very seriously. They see it written in the Bible, and just assume it's the truth. While I do believe its true, I do wonder what certain parts mean, and rather they were meant symbolically or literally.

I don't know if you've heard of Edgar Cayce, but I have a couple books about him. He was a psychic born in the 1800's. He said he would go into a trance to obtain information on virtually any subject. He said dreams are actually journeys into the spirit world. He said the subconscious is both in the body, and beyond the body, in the soul realms of timelessness. He said Jesus was a soul who gave humans a pattern for their souls to return to Heaven.

The Bible was written in Roman times, and even has a chapter called Romans. It was the Romans who crucified Jesus. This is obvious, but sometimes people forget, Christmas is Jesus Christ's birthday.

Have you ever read the Bible? What are your thoughts on it?

I don't believe in fairy tales.

I also don't understand why people fight wars I over written words in old books?

Religion will end humanity long before climate change will.