Don't hate me but wouldn't be better to live by the bible than the waving of the next found information. Golden rule friend of sinners and tax collector's

Million dollar question: are women equal to men?

Most unlikely.

From the account, it seems a woman was being stoned for adultery, which was THE LAW.

Had Jesus interfered, he would almost certainly have joined her, for blasphemy.

Live by the bible? Which one, and according to whose interpretation? Yours?

Even Christians cannot agree on which translation is the “right one” Nor can the hundreds of sects agree on which interpretation of the bible is the right one.

For millions of followers, each of the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) is highly legalistic. IE salvation is about following a bewildering set of rules.----Is salvation gained through faith alone? Or as James said " Faith without works is dead" ( James 2: 14:26)

On top of all that, each sect and each individual decides on the focus their faith will take.-----Some give witness to their faith by proselytising. (apparently oblivious to how arrogant and patronising they seem)---- Some are content to try to live the apostolate (IE to be like an apostle AS THEY UNDERTSTAND IT) Yet others spend their lives telling anyone who will listen what they (and therefore god) are against---- Westboro Baptists come to mind as an extreme example.

Catholics and others say Jesus fulfilled the law. Paul interpreted that as meaning they were exempt from most of the 613 commandments which make up Mosaic Law.
Crucially, this meant gentiles could join followers of “The Way”.*** They were not required to observe dietary rules nor did the men need to be circumcised. Terrific!

—However, to this day, many literalists insist on cherry picking the Torah to justify their bigotry. EG Even though Jesus said nothing about homosexuality, literalists insist on quoting Leviticus to justify their homophobia :(Leviticus 18 and 20. Look it up)

To Finish: When I was a gossoon, I was taught by nuns. One day our nun said " Hands up all those who want to go to heaven" I did not raise my hand. She said “Little Cranky, don’t you want to go to heaven?”. I said" Not if that mob are going" :innocent:

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14 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without [[a]ttps://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James%202%3A14-26&version=NKJV#fen-NKJV-30312a)]your works, and I will show you my faith by [b]my works. 19 You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! 20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is [c]dead? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? 22 Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made [d]perfect? 23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was [e]accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. 24 You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.

25 Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?

26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

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***members of dozens of sects who followed the teachings of Jesus (as they saw them) referred to their religion as “The Way”. The sect which won by becoming the state religion was not known universally as ’ Christianity’ until the fourth century.

That group of saintly individuals proved that their version of Jesus’ teaching was THE ONLY RIGHT ONE by the simple expedient of murdering anyone who disagreed and burning all of their books. This practice was continued with gay abandon until the sixteenth century.

There is no doubt in my mind that many christians would burn heretics, gays and atheists alive if they could.

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You can’t even judge the devil though.

But in today’s time if we lived by do unto others as you would have them do to you. Wouldn’t that make a perfect world than having a dog eat world but yet we haven’t figured this out yet.

You know how many women supported jesus and church in the beginning.

You do know that in the bible jesus promised to return VERY soon? He implied months or weeks, not centuries.

He implied at the end of the age.

Of course I can.

Based on the bible the devil tells the truth, and has killed 10 people, while your god has lied and has easily murdered over two million people. And that does not count the great flood, many millions more.

There, I just judged the devil. And threw in your imaginary sky friend because your god is capable of being judged, and should be every day.

You really need to read the bible.

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@God30

Take heed for your own sake.

This an atheist forum. Most of our members are former believers, with the majority being former christians

Most of have read the bible and have a better knowledge than most of the Christians who come here. If you had a realistic idea of the numbers you would need to posses a high degree of hubris to even think about proselytising here.

Even though most christians I run across have a very poor knowledge of their bible, they know virtually nothing about the history of their faith. Most here have a reasonable broad knowledge, with a few being at graduate level, imo.

Stay and keep spouting the same old drivel and you will be handed your head.

“Don’t hate you”? What a childish thing to say. Why on earth would I hate you? Because we disagree? I think you may have been hanging around a certain kind of believer for far too long. :face_with_monocle:

Can you rephrase that into something that isn’t gibberish?

@Grinseed; I am off for a walk myself. Heading over to the school where I will copy a contract offer I have received from a new company. Then it’s off to a coffee shop to peruse its contents and decide if I want to quit my current job, that has not been paying me and currently owes me $3,000, for a new job in a new city with a raise in pay. Hmmmm? I have to quit my current contract. But then, the company is already in violation of the contract for not paying me. … But they are going to blame the Corona Virus and special circumstances. Damn… I am going to have a labor board issue I am sure… Anyway… that’s my plan for the day. My walk is 2 hours along a river path. It’s a beautiful day and I am off… You have a great day as well…

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I don’t hate you and there is no reason to hate your statement. Your question is “ why wouldn’t it be better to live by the Bible?” My answer is Life has no street signs other then the ones you place. It’s a bad summary and I skipped the philosophical premises to make rational framework. But that’s my answer…1,000,000 year book or your mind. Don’t hate me either, you asked AN ATHEIST this question, so you get a atheist answer. Bye.

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Several times. My fav: Matthew 16:28 “Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.” (KJV)

For first century followers of The Way, Jesus’ return was imminent.

When Jesus didn’t turn up, Christianty became just another failed millenarian movement. The early church fathers were acutely aware of that. Consequently, . the Second Coming was changed to some vague indeterminate time in the future and quietly dropped. Stayed that way until after the Protestant Reformation.

Since the Reformation, some of the very minor sects, such as Seventh Day Adventists and JW’s have been making predictions based on their interpretation of The Book Of Revelations. Because Jesus keeps stubbornly refusing to return, the dates have to be revised from time to time, with a fresh interpretation.

(must be hard for Jesus, what with not existing and all)

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Lots. In fact when Paul changed the rules and allowed gentiles, large numbers of women and slaves joined. Not hard to see why. The new religion promised a wonderful life after death to replace ‘the vale of tears’ which which was their lot in this life .

Of course the misogynist Paul made it hard for women from the start.(see quotes below which are attributed to Paul)

I’ve also read that Peter was jealous of Mary Magdalene, and started the lie that she was a prostitute. That lie set the position of women as inferior in the church from that day to this. (with some exceptions).—

Timothy 2:12 " But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.[1][2]"

Also Corinthians 14:32:35 "And the spirits of prophets are subject to the prophets, 33 for God is a God not of disorder but of peace.

(As in all the churches of the saints, 34 women should be silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be subordinate, as the law also says. 35 If there is anything they desire to know, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.[[a] "(1Cor 14:32-35 NRSVUE - (and the spirits of prophets are - Bible Gateway)]

In my lifetime, women were obliged to cover their head in church. Even today most christian churches still do not allow female priests.

You mean the bible that endorses slavery, ethnic cleansing, sex trafficking female prisoners of war, stoning for adultery, or for unruly children, condemns gay people as abominations etc etc?

No I think the bible contains some pretty vile and pernicious ideas, and is so contradictory an objective reading of it is impossible. Morality is a part of the human condition, if patriarchal bronze age Bedouin societies had hit on perfect morality, and this was reflected in books being cobbled together subjectively centuries later in a single religious tome, then why has our moral worldview been evolving ever since? The entire planet would still be adhering to the barbarity of Mosaic law that the bible claims Jesus endorsed.

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Both concepts predate the bible and the christian religion, and the era when Jesus is purported to have lived, and by some considerable time.

Why should we believe that passage, and not Exodus 21?

If a deity with limitless power and knowledge existed, then idea the bible is a moral guide inspired by it for us is fucking risible, given it rips off the ignorant, bigoted, misogynistic racist views of bronze age middle eastern patriarchal Bedouin culture.

Ooh ohhh ooohhhhh :wave:…adding “abortion by husband and priest” IF and only IF the husband thinks or feels that wifey cheated (this may occur to him while he’s banging one of his many wives or sex slaves)

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I have to remind myself that, frequently this board attracts a very certain kind of religious apologetic to come here and post. And that some of the religious apologist guest we see here in no way represents the vast majority.

Your title makes no sense.

I think you tried to fit to many ideas in too few words.

I would have to guess at what you are trying to say, so I am not compelled to offer a rebuttal, because my rebuttal would be: “shooting darts with a blindfold on.”

Take the time to write out a coherent message and I would be happy to respond.

I can offer this question back: do you have any actual: testable, repeatable, physical evidence for your god idea?