Lately, I find my mind wandering repeatedly down a path questioning what life is about or if it is about any specific thing at all. When I look at the myriad of peoples and lifestyles that exist I cannot see a common thread of purpose that ties us all together by which a solitary meaning of life could be identified. I think about the vastness of the Universe and realize the sophomoric belief that something this huge could be created in its entirety by an all-powerful entity, his son and a pigeon, as described in the bible, the greatest fictional novel that was ever written. I was taught from early childhood that what was contained in the bible was to be followed without question because it was the word of god. If we could overcome the fear of questioning that “holy book” and the nonsense that is contained in it, I believe that we could better ourselves and our lives here on Planet Earth.
For one thing, it is not the word of god. If it were, man could not have changed the wording and thus the meaning of the text to support something that he believed in that differed from the original writings. For example the concept of slavery was addressed and approved in the bible. I do not believe, at all, that a supposedly all-loving god would condone the enslavement of one human being by another. It is pure stupidity to think that he would. This and many other errors that have been discovered over the Millennia’s since the book was published disprove that the bible is the word of god.
The statement that god inspired the writers of the bible and told them what to write is proof that the book is fraudulent. If god inspired the writers, he placed ideas in their minds which contained all that they needed to know about what they were writing. He did not hold lectures in which he discussed his ideas and which would lead to differing interpretations by those in the lectures. No, by the admission of the writer’s, he inspired them, or placed the knowledge of what he wanted written, directly into their mind, which leaves no room for error. Why then were there errors in the texts and, why are there hundreds of bibles published today that differ from each other while all claim to be the word of god?
The original bible and all the re-writes that were written by various sects/groups to support their differing beliefs from the original, all negate the statement that the bible is the word of god. It is nothing more than an effort by the religious right groups of the day to give credence to their harsh, unbending, callous interpretations of who god was and what he expected us to do in order to lead a moral life by hating anything and everything that was different or contained a modicum of pleasure. I refuse to be intimidated by these unkind, unholy charlatans into following their self-serving desires and their unquenchable need to be the ones in control. Their unbending attitude and total unwillingness to work with others to reach a common ground, is a large part of the unhappiness and hopelessness in the world today. While they have a right to their opinion, that’s all they have the right to. They do not have a right to impose their opinion or religious beliefs on me just as I do not have the right to impose mine on them. Freedom of Religion means one has the right to practice their religion within their religious communities made up of like-minded individuals, freely and without fear of persecution. It does not give anyone or any group or any religion the right to make their beliefs the only beliefs in the land.
If you don’t like gays and think we are an abomination, then keep us out of your church. If you think abortion is wrong, don’t have one and ban them for members of your church. But keep your simple-minded, unreasonable beliefs off of my back and out of my life. I don’t need them, want them or appreciate them. I can live my life just fine without your “help”. Chew on that.
me, myself & aye, yii, yii 
When Genesis was written, The Greeks were beginning to tell of Apollos’ flight across the sky in a flaming chariot. The Egyptians were worshipping the sun as Ra, deifying it. The Mesopotamians referred to the sun as “Shamosh” and called it the god of justice. Genesis, however, calls the sun “a light in the expanse of the heavens” and views it as a thing, one created by God. That the Bible does not follow the naiveté of those ancient religions is often overlooked, since modern man is much more knowledgeable in the mechanics of nature. We take for granted that someone touching an infectious person or a corpse should practice good hygiene and wash thoroughly in running water before proceeding to anything else, but this “discovery” has only been a medical reality for 150 years. The book of Leviticus, though, requires this same procedure. One cannot find ideas as arcane as blood-letting or consuming ram’s horn for fertility, or all the other mythical cures for ills that were thought to be science in those days. The Bible is not a science book. It does not focus on scientific facts about the creation, but where it mentions those things, it is accurate in its representation. This is exactly what we’d expect if the Bible had its origin in the One who created the universe and its scientific laws.
Keep up the good blogging! Much appreciated..
Thanks for the kind words. I’m sorry it took so long to get back to you, but my partner was in the hospital for 8 days and just got home on Tuesday, the 17th. He’s come back well from his ordeal and tonight was the first time I opened my site to see what was going on. And there you were! Welcome and I hope I can get back to writing and discussing religion and politics which are rapidly coming too close to one another for the country’s own good.
If you read my bio on the site you know I’m gay. My blogs mostly anti-Religious Right and their hold on the Republican Party by which they attempt to force their harsh beliefs on everyone who doesn’t adhere to the same irrational thoughts as they do.
Do you have a blog that I could visit and read something about you and your beliefs? Your writings indicate that you are a balanced, calm type of person who isn’t hesitant to question a differing idea or belief and can do so without anger or an “in my face” attitude. If you would care to IM and discuss religion and how it has affected your life and happiness (or lack thereof) I would like to send you an email and you could respond in kind. If you would rather not, I’ll only send the one email to the address that shows on your Reply to my blog, “The Bible is NOT the Word of God. If you say NO, I won’t bother you further.
Again, it is good to meet you and I hope we can have a chat or more in the near future. Thanks, jimbet01.
I didnt understand the concluding part of your article, could you please explain it more?
All that I am saying is that in America we have freedom of religion. That means every American citizen has the right to practice his/her belief within the confines of their religious community. If you believe that homosexuals are a serious affront to God then keep them out of your church. The same can be said for abortion. If you believe it to be a major sin then hold the members of your religion, who choose to believe like-minded on the subject, to the strict standard you hold against abortion. What you cannot do is make your beliefs the only ones allowed, trumping all others. What the Religious Right is attempting to do is to say that their beliefs are the only true beliefs and therefore must be the ones that define the moral code. This is nothing more than hubris because no one set of beliefs can be proven. That’s why they are beliefs and not truths.
Appreciate it for all your efforts that you have put in this. Very interesting information. “Things have never been more like the way they are today in history.” by Dwight D Eisenhower.
Thank you. Please come back again and maybe we can cuss and discuss some Religion and Politics. I like soft topics. But seriously, please come back and stay awhile. All are welcome.