I saw this statement today. Is there any truth in it?

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It depends on whether you consider literal truth verses metaphorical truth. I even think metaphorical truth of the Bible is quite arguable. Literal truth is complete rubbish. There are over 500 contradictions mentioned by scholars more knowledgeable than I.

But we all know there are two DIFFERENT Creation Myths. In each Creation myth, there are statements that are false. There was not light before the Sun and there was no Earth before the Sun consolidated in the centre of the Solar Disc. The Sun was necessary for the Earth to form from dust, pebbles, rocks, and boulders. As accretioon increased in each planet, it had to have the gravitational effects of the Sun's mass for planetary orbits. And the gradually aggregating planets like Earth as it pulled in dust cloud debris to crash, or near miss causing orbits of debris resulting from the effects of orbital velocity. All required the Sun to have its powerful gravity. So the Genesis sequence of events make no sense.

If one says it is just a faerie tale allegory with some arcane meaning for God, then it is not strictly false...I suppose. Literalism is totally irrational.

The New Testament Gospels depict a Jesus who is special, and sent from God, with special miraculous powers, but NOT GOD. Even Paul who invented Arianism before Bishop Arius believed that Jesus was a created being (who proceeded from the father or God) but subordinate to God. The Jesus God did not arise from cultural apotheosis sometime in the late 2nd Century or early 3rd Century CE. It was this apotheosis of Jesus into a New God that caused the Pagan Roman Christians to distance themselves from the Jews and even blame the Jews for the crucifixion. Yet the Gospels clearly show it was the Romans who executed Jesus for political crimes of treason, insurrection, or claim to be the rightful Hasmonean King of Palestine/Israel.

I will not bore you with the very long list of literal contradictions in the Bible unless someone wants them.

Amergin

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Militant Agnostic: I don't know, and neither do you. There is no evidence of God so belief is optional.

The Bible says that the Bible is God's true word, then we only need faith to believe the Bible and by extension to believe in God.


I saw this statement today. Is there any truth in it?

Well it reminds me of an old song..

"Give me that old time religion.."

I don't recall ever singing it though.

Oh here it is on youtube!:

YouTube - Mahalia Jackson - Give Me That Old Time Religion

I can get into it!

You know a few times I've attended some good ole churches and when I left the service I felt pretty good!

- Art

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"it benefits us to be thoughtful, not of the glory of our minds, but rather, above all else, of the glory of God."
- Johannes Kepler

If the Bible is in all honesty "God's true word," then the statement is true, in my opinion.

The trouble seems to be that the Bible is - instead of the word of God, the words of many different men, all of whom had an agenda.

This also raises the problem of precisely which God, the one mentioned by Jesus.... or the other one?


Peace, Love, & Light

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"An object is perceived, or not perceived, according as the mind is, or is not, tinged with the colour of the object. "
Patanjali - Sutra 4:17

Baha'is believe that we must investigate truth for ourselves, without preconceptions, and that it is the same unique God who is both the Author of revelation and the Creator of our reality. Further, we believe that the universe and all creatures and forces within it have been created by a single supernatural Being. Such designations as God, Allah, Yahweh, and Brahma all refer to the One Divine Being, Whose nature is unknowable and inaccessible to humankind. We learn about God through His Messengers, who teach and guide humanity. Therefore, all major religions come from the One God.

When Bahá'ís say that the various religions are one, we do not mean that all the creeds and organizations are the same. Rather, we believe God has revealed Himself through a succession of Divine Messengers, Whose purpose is to guide and educate humankind.

These revelations are expressions of a single unfolding Divine purpose, "the changeless Faith of God, eternal in the past, eternal in the future."

The Most Holy Book of the Bahá'í Faith is the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, the book of laws written by Bahá’u’lláh. It is part of a large body of scriptures (~100 volumes) authored by Him and cover a wide range of topics (e.g., laws and principles for personal conduct and the governance of society, mystical writings dealing with the progress of the soul and its journey towards God).

But, in answer to the question, Bahá’ís also recognize the Bible, the Qur’an, and the holy texts of the world’s other revealed religions as being divinely inspired. They are not written by individuals simply expressing their own individual human agendas (in our belief). --Steve--

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That which the Lord hath ordained as the sovereign remedy and mightiest instrument for the healing of all the world is the union of all its peoples in one universal Cause, one common Faith
(Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 255)

If there is a God (or Gods), and if there is/are "word(s) of God(s)", then I think good science books have an important value along with religious scriptures and philosophical essays. This is not to denigrate religious scripture or philosophy in any way since I feel they have a role to play as well. Science books can tell us what is and how it works, but they don't establish what should or should not be done-- that's more the role of religion and philosophy.

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"The further the spiritual evolution of mankind advances, the more certain it seems to me that the path to genuine religiosity does not lie through the fear of life, and the fear of death, and blind faith, but through striving after rational knowledge."-- Einstein

Gods word is Jesus, because he spoke on behalf of God from KNOWING and not perception
To KNOW is to have the expereince whereas Perception is the best guess - after reading scripture
One is an absolute known and one is belief
This is why theology will not lead to God whereas the practice will

Love all as yourself is all the guidance that is required and all we need do is have faith and be willing
You dont need an IQ and that would harldly be loving would it
Only those with a Uni Degree get to heaven - Nice God eh !

Jesus was the first to truely understand GOD through expereince - He saw John forgiving others - baptism and saw the beauty in that LOVE
That lifted him to Revelation
The rest follows and the sotries of the Bible about Jesus are his trvels through thinking until he had "cleansed his mind" of false ideas

Jesus is not special - He is the same as all of us - except he has awoken completely from the dream of death.
He learnt the lesson perfectly and now stands at the end to guide us all home

God is LOVE is a factual statement and is complete
Love in its true sense holds no conditions - Love simply LOVES
It is thus not a Love of this world as Love of this world is pretty much always conditional - ie in marriage i will love you if ....................... you behave etc etc - This is not Love, its a bargain.


So "In the beginning was God and the Word of God - means God and his Son (Jesus simply represents the Son ship - US when we awaken or better, come to sane thinking)

I have said it before and I will say it again - Jesus used the Bible to make points - He did NOT teach the Bible
He brought a new Law, He brought a NEW TESTAMENT
He brought the age Love and forgivness

Perhaps its easier to think of it like this


"In the beginning was God and his Bible"

Who was the Bible for ?
If there was only God and a book how could you have a book about men and women etc

Makes no sense so sorry but the Bible has some truths - mainly from Jesus and some parts from others who had the experience of Revelation but it cetainly is NOT the Word of God

as a born again believer I believe the Bible to be the Word of God, I believed in God before I started reading the Bible so whether that statement is exactly true I dont know, It might be for some people.