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The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

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Guessing its is a wording issue. A common Christian stance is that a person's time on earth should not be determined by other men.

Which is badly worded. They're fine with men extending another life on earth (they're just implementing God's will), just not shortening it (that wasn't God's will).

Kinda like how winning teams give "thanks to God and our Lord saviour Jesus Christ," but somehow losing teams never blame them.
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

Which is badly worded. They're fine with men extending another life on earth (they're just implementing God's will), just not shortening it (that wasn't God's will).

Kinda like how winning teams give "thanks to God and our Lord saviour Jesus Christ," but somehow losing teams never blame them.

Better said based on Christianity...a person's time should not be limited by other men. Indeed you never hear anyone use Christian philosophy in defense of the death penalty. Yet, Christians are typically fine with folks extending one's life. The golden rule and all. And the outcomes of that policy have influenced many to extend others lives.
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

Better said based on Christianity...a person's time should not be limited by other men. Indeed you never hear anyone use Christian philosophy in defense of the death penalty. Yet, Christians are typically fine with folks extending one's life. The golden rule and all. And the outcomes of that policy have influenced many to extend others lives.

Exodus Chapter 21
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

Folks in the Christian community fall on both sides of the death penalty issue, and I think most of them recognize that where you land on the issue isn't one of the central tenets of faith. On the one hand you have verses, like in Exodus 21, that talk about putting someone to death. On the other hand, you have a number of instances, like Cain and Abel, David and Uriah, and Saul/Paul where the death penalty isn't carried out on someone either causing death directly or indirectly and God seems fine with the situation. To me it's one of those issues where a reasonable truth seeking Christian can land on either side.
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

I'm off the abortion topic this was posted under, but I don't understand this line of thinking at all. If there is a god, it is pretty clear to me that it does not give a crap if humans live or die. If it is all determined by god, then why bother with modern medicine? Or why bother exercising or eating healthy? If you got cancer, god must want you to die, so why bother getting treatment?

He does care, he has given us the abilities to extend human life through medicine. We are being good stewards of God's gifts by taking care of our bodies. When we get ill, we want to get better to live as long as possible to enjoy our family and friends here on earth before we die and get to the awesomeness of Heaven.
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

He does care, he has given us the abilities to extend human life through medicine. We are being good stewards of God's gifts by taking care of our bodies. When we get ill, we want to get better to live as long as possible to enjoy our family and friends here on earth before we die and get to the awesomeness of Heaven.
If life here is merely "great" when compared with the awesomeness of heaven, why should we endeavor so hard to delay the inevitable? Makes no sense.

It's also quite interesting how much better God got at giving us better medicine - and coincidentally just at the time humans were getting good at science, too. What are the odds?
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

It's also quite interesting how much better God got at giving us better medicine - and coincidentally just at the time humans were getting good at science, too. What are the odds?

Just don't tell the Russian Orthodox church. They opposed treatment of venereal diseases because that was opposing His will. If you got sick for doing what you weren't supposed to you were supposed to suffer and die. Presumably the contemporary sweethearts opposed HIV medication for the same reason. And that's leaving aside pregnancy as the punishment of women for doing the wild thang.
 
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Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

Regarding capital punishment...

Exodus Chapter 21

Jesus changed quite a lot. Didn't He?

He did smite the tree on the side of the road.

Not sure where you're coming from, but...maybe put another way: Romans 7:6

'But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law; so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.'
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

Just don't tell the Russian Orthodox church. They opposed treatment of venereal diseases because that was opposing His will. If you got sick for doing what you weren't supposed to you were supposed to suffer and die. Presumably the contemporary sweethearts opposed HIV mediciation for the same reason. And that's leaving aside pregnancy as the punishment of women for doing the wild thang.
Raise your hands everyone if you endorse the Russian Orthodox church's views on things.
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

Zwingli was certainly an interesting person and I like some things about him.

If you haven't read Diarmaid MacCulloch's "The Reformation," I recommend it. Thorough and fascinating study of the development of Protestant thought.
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

If you haven't read Diarmaid MacCulloch's "The Reformation," I recommend it. Thorough and fascinating study of the development of Protestant thought.
Sounds like an interesting read. I'll keep it in mind for the future, though my available reading time has shrunk drastically now that I've got two little ones underfoot!
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

Sounds like an interesting read. I'll keep it in mind for the future, though my available reading time has shrunk drastically now that I've got two little ones underfoot!

I'm cheating: I listened to it on my 3 hour-per day commute. I've listened to both MacCulloch's Reformation and his Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years and now I'm listening to Tim Beal's Biblical Literacy: The Essential Bible Stories Everyone Needs to Know. The last is a lot like Bill Moyers' PBS series Genesis: A Living Conversation, with some context and some discussion questions that would work well in a group reading format. I'd love to lead a class on "The Bible for Atheists" someday; I'm dismayed that such a huge foundational portion for all the rest of western literature is dying out among intellectuals.
 
Re: The Bible: Real, Fiction, or somewhere in between?

I'm cheating: I listened to it on my 3 hour-per day commute. I've listened to both MacCulloch's Reformation and his Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years and now I'm listening to Tim Beal's Biblical Literacy: The Essential Bible Stories Everyone Needs to Know. The last is a lot like Bill Moyers' PBS series Genesis: A Living Conversation, with some context and some discussion questions that would work well in a group reading format. I'd love to lead a class on "The Bible for Atheists" someday; I'm dismayed that such a huge foundational portion for all the rest of western literature is dying out among intellectuals.
"The Bible for Athiests" is a class I'd attend.
 
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