+266 It's when The Bible is taken literally that it becomes a problem, The Bible uses metaphors to help the reader better understand the true message. Like the story of the phoenix, it explains that anyone can rise from their ashes and come out a new and better person. amirite?

by Anonymous 12 years ago

YEAH YOU ARE!!! <3

by Anonymous 13 years ago

So it avoids straightforwardness and literal messages so the reader understands it better? Why can't just be all "So yeah, some people just need to move on and shit, yo."

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Don't ask me to back up the thought processes of people who lived a good 2000 years before me, I don't know why either.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

The concept of a deity was more than likely made to fill in the gaps in their knowledge of the world. I mean, the Bible denies the concept of orbit.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Bitch, we stay still! But where in the bible does it say, "the Earth does not orbit around the sun" or "orbit doesn't exist". I'm not saying you're wrong. I just want to know since I haven't read it.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

1 Chronicles 16:30 "Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved."

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Thanks.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

That's a perfect example of a verse that shouldn't be taken literally.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

What does it mean then? It doesn't appear to be a metaphor for anything.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

It's a metaphor. People may have different ideas about what it is a metaphor for, but it definitely isn't literal.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Can you provide an example?

by Anonymous 12 years ago

When I read that verse, I personally think it means that the world is how God created it, and it will not change from the way God intended it to be.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Well it sorta delves from what the Bible wants a lot.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

God intends everything that happens to happen, even that. It seems confusing, but it's part of His ultimate plan.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

God wants people to obey Him so He decided to allow Satan to mess with Eve's mind and allowed the world to slowly fall into chaos. Why couldn't He just not have allowed the snake to do that? He //is// omnipotent, after all.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Like I said, it's confusing. There are a lot of things God does that we can't truly understand...we //are// human, after all. That's where faith kicks in. As long as you have faith, you can trust in God and accept the Bible. Otherwise, you're just going to go through a ton of Bible verses that you have a problem with.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Well, personally, I don't have faith. If Yahweh (or whatever deity is in control of things) is a good and loving god, I'm sure He/She/They'll let me into whatever afterlife there is. I don't really do anything that could be regarded as bad or despicable, so I'm sure they can forgive not seeing any logic in their backstory.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I wish you would have faith. It's a wonderful thing. It gets you through the hard things in life and fills you with joy.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

tbh I feel better now than when I was Catholic. I don't need to think of explanations of how integration of science and religion works, I don't feel guilty for not seeing LGBT people as subhumans, I turn to science and not religion in times of trouble... I feel great, actually. :D

by Anonymous 12 years ago

cuz stories are more entertaining to read and people listened to the more

by Anonymous 12 years ago

k

by Anonymous 12 years ago

That's why I'm Catholic and not Protestant. I know many who actually believe that the world was made in 7 days. My catholic school said we can choose if we want to believe that or not, just as long as we believe that we are all descendants of adam and eve. Whether or not they were giving life by God breathing on them doesn't matter.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

But they still say life started with two people that were not in Africa?

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Not all Catholics have to believe we are descendants of Adam and Eve. In fact, I may be wrong, but I am pretty sure the Catholic church believes in evolution, which means we can't be from Adam and Eve. (I would know because I went to a Catholic school, and my religion teacher was teaching creationism, and they made her stop doing that.)

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I'm a descendant of my grandpa, and I believe in evolution... What we have to believe is that we are descendants of them. Where or not they were actually the first humans doesn't matter.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

You don't have to.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I gave this a NW and I felt like I should at least tell why. But I'm guessing no one gives a shit :) so if you wanna know, ask.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Why?

by Anonymous 12 years ago

I just feel like people get too hung up over the little stuff. There are so many arguments about literalism, Adam and eve, creation in 7 days, dinosaurs. It just doesn't matter... What matters is knowing that Jesus died so you might live.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4bfl8GAMtQ

by Anonymous 12 years ago

So, in theory, it is all fake. If it is just a big book of metaphors used to teach us life lessons. Why would we believe any of it?

by Anonymous 12 years ago

No, it isn't all fake. For nonbelievers it's a history book with lots of metaphors.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Well I know SOMEONE hasn't read the Bible in depth ;)

by Anonymous 12 years ago

You?

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Guess again!

by Anonymous 12 years ago

Oh, so you're just stupid.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

It also doesn't help when people take one sentence so literally without reading the verses around it. It makes things more confusing when they are taken out of context.

by Anonymous 12 years ago

The Bible needs to always be read in context and with the mindset of the people who wrote it. you wouldn't read a book written in the 1800's and expect the author to be the same as we are now. you have to understand the culture and time period they were in to help you understand the text. and it's really helpful to look at the Greek or Hebrew text since the Old Testament was written in Hebrew and the New Testament was written in Greek. Obviously, it's difficult to perfectly translate it to English, or any other language, and still get the exact same meaning. Greek and Hebrew are much more in depth languages than English is at least, so it's definitely important to check out how it was originally written and what the people during the time would have thought about it. there are different genres in the Bible. Yes, sometimes the writing is metaphorical, but not always. you have to study the text to determine that. one thing that i see as really good evidence for the text being essentially the same as it was when it was written is the fact that there are over 5,600 Greek manuscripts for all or parts of the New Testament.

by Anonymous 12 years ago