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The Bible
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 2009-05-27 9:41 AM |
Elite  3683      Whispering Pines, North Carolina |  Subject: The BibleI want to hear viewpoints on the Bible. For you, is it the Word of God or was it written by men? Does it contain errors? Did the church "add and delete" to it as they saw fit? I am Christian, but don't believe that I must go to church or accept the bible as the Word of God. Don't get me wrong, I think the bible does have some historical relevance, but I also believe that it was written by men, that it contains errors, and that the Church has had a say as to what is in the current version. Am I a blasphemer? (don't answer that, b/c I don't really care what you think.  ) |
| 2009-05-27 9:46 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
Pro 4612 MA | Subject: RE: The Bible I went to a Christian school. The Bible, to me, is a study subject. I read it, I studied it, but it doesn't have a spiritual effect on me. I think it's kind of like history. |
| 2009-05-27 9:48 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
Champion 11989 Philly 'burbs | Subject: RE: The Bible This is the only one I can answer clearly and concisely: Did the church "add and delete" to it as they saw fit? YES. |
| 2009-05-27 9:52 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
Elite 3371 | Subject: RE: The Bible For you, is it the Word of God or was it written by men? Men. Does it contain errors? Yes. Did the church "add and delete" to it as they saw fit? Yes. |
| 2009-05-27 9:53 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
Master 1485 | Subject: RE: The Bible No comment on the OP questions. However, I predict that this thread is going to get ugly! |
| 2009-05-27 10:01 AM in reply to: #2175351 |
| Philadelphia, south of New York and north of DC | Subject: RE: The Bible mrbbrad - Did the church "add and delete" to it as they saw fit? YES. I agree with you there, Breen. The canon of scripture that came to be known as the Bible (the Book) was decided upon by a counsel of Catholic Bishops in the fourth century. Some books of the Bible were later removed during the Reformation, and so there are today at least two versions of the Bible, not to mention various translations. The Bible is the inspired word of God. Authoritative interpretation of the Bible rests with the living Magisterium, the hierarchy of Bishops, that Jesus established when he established the Church. Edited by dontracy 2009-05-27 10:02 AM |
| 2009-05-27 10:04 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
Giver 18427 | Subject: RE: The Bible For you, is it the Word of God or was it written by men? Yes. It's both. Does it contain errors? Ever play "telephone"? Just the fact that it has been translated and translated and translated again would at least suggest that maybe, possibly, something may have been lost in translation. Just look at the myriad versions today and how they are all subtly different, and you'd be hard-pressed to argue that it is in fact the inerrant word of God. When you've got humans involved in the process, stuff is bound to happen. Did the church "add and delete" to it as they saw fit? Arguably. Some would say that Matthew, Mark, Luke and John aren't the only gospels depicting the life of Christ that were ever written. The fact that his adolescence isn't described, for example, points to that. |
| 2009-05-27 10:19 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
Elite 3371 | Subject: RE: The Bible I've always been thrilled with religion. If you want a read to get your head spinning try out, "The Case for Christ" by Lee Strobel. Its a series of interviews and the conclusions he drew from them. Silimar questions are addressed. According to Strobel he started the book as an atheist and was a believer by the completion. For me...agnostic before, during, and after. Edited by steveseer 2009-05-27 10:20 AM |
 2009-05-27 10:21 AM in reply to: #2175413 |
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| 2009-05-27 10:26 AM in reply to: #2175377 |
| Master 1675 Suwanee, Ga. | Subject: RE: The Bible jonmetz - 2009-05-27 10:53 AM No comment on the OP questions. However, I predict that this thread is going to get ugly! x2....if it lasts that long. Steve |
| 2009-05-27 10:28 AM in reply to: #2175488 |
| Subject: RE: The Bible steveseer - 2009-05-27 11:19 AM I've always been thrilled with religion. If you want a read to get your head spinning try out, "The Case for Christ" by Lee Strobel. Its a series of interviews and the conclusions he drew from them. Silimar questions are addressed. According to Strobel he started the book as an atheist and was a believer by the completion. For me...agnostic before, during, and after. He also wrote 2 others in the series called "The Case For Faith" and "The Case For Creation". Case for Faith tries to speak to a lot of the "objections" people have about Christianity. Case for Creation was a little weak, I thought. I did read the Case for Christ before becoming a Christian, and while it was helpful, it wasn't momentous to the process. Re: the Bible and the questions posed. Staying out of this one. I don't know a lot of the historical stuff so I can't speak to what and how the early Church may have changed things, and I know that the Catholics have a different take than the Protestants. |
| 2009-05-27 10:30 AM in reply to: #2175518 |
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| 2009-05-27 10:32 AM in reply to: #2175539 |
| Subject: RE: The Bible PennState - 2009-05-27 11:30 AM Reno8 - 2009-05-27 11:26 AM jonmetz - 2009-05-27 10:53 AM No comment on the OP questions. However, I predict that this thread is going to get ugly! x2....if it lasts that long. Steve Thanks for adding to the discussion. I think you two might be surprised who COJ'ers can debate things in a civil fashion. The religion threads actually stay pretty civil. They're the only ones I bother to read and post in to any extent. Cutting way back on my BT posting, but I am still interested in following this thread. We just need Don and Preach (Akustix) up in here to have a Catholic/Protestant showdown of theological knowledge Edited by wurkit_gurl 2009-05-27 10:33 AM |
| 2009-05-27 10:33 AM in reply to: #2175553 |
| Subject: ... This user's post has been ignored. |
| 2009-05-27 10:35 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
| Pro 4909 Hailey, ID | Subject: RE: The Bible I'm LDS (Mormon) so I'll throw out what we believe. This is straight from our Articles of Faith, a quick concise answer to our basic beliefs. 8. We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God. So in direct answer to your question: 1. It was written by men through inspiration from God as far as it is translated correctly. 2. It does have errors. 3. By "The Church", like I said, having it change hands over and over creates improper translations. |
| 2009-05-27 10:40 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
| Extreme Veteran 3177 | Subject: RE: The Bible I can't speak to others beliefs either to condone or condemn them. The only thing I can say is that for me, the bible represents the Spirit of the word of God. It is not a litteral translation but the overriding themes present (in all versions of the Bible I have read) such as love, forgiveness, honesty, charity, and faith are what I use to guide me and my daily life. The stories and books of the Bible simply serve to define those themes and present case scenarios to which we, as Humans, can refer to for Guidance as well as teaching us the values that we should uphold. So was it written by men, yes. Does it contain errors? what type of errors are you looking for? There are discrepancies between different translations and between the stories told in the gospels BUT the themes I believe have remained the same so for me, there are no errors. Did the church Edit as they saw fit? I cannot say here BUT I do have faith that when things were edited in the past it was guided by God and not simply changed through Human negligence. (Also you should note that the original versions of most of these unedited versions are still around in various libraries and Tombs so a comparison can be made.) |
| 2009-05-27 10:42 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
| Extreme Veteran 785 Indiana | Subject: RE: The Bible The Bible is the inspired word of God. The first 5 books in the old testement were written by Moses. Others like the Psalms Wriiten by King David. The new testement scriptures were written by apostles like John and Paul. The very sad truth is that through the ages the church has redefined the Bible to fit the times we live in." How sad". The Bible is not only a book of law for righteous living but a book of comfort in times of trial, a book of prophecy of things yet to come, and so much more. It has been said although I have yet to try it, that you can take the daily newspaper and cross reference it with the Bible and see prophecy being fulfilled. For me, Yes I am a christian and I do believe the Bible is the Holy word of God. The part that I find most troubling is that there are so many versions of the Bible, and some have gotten away from the origanal doctrins of the primary scriptures. If I may give any advice, try reading the Bible again. Start with a few scriptures, meditate on them, talk it through with other christians. The important thing is what you think and how what you read applys to you, "and no, your not a blasphemer". It's obvious that this is something you want an answer to. We all want the truth and throughout the years we have heard, live this way, yet seen it lived another way by the very people who instructed us. What has kept me going for over 35yrs is that I don't put my trust in man, but in God. "That is the key". |
| 2009-05-27 10:46 AM in reply to: #2175499 |
| Philadelphia, south of New York and north of DC | Subject: RE: The Bible PennState - was that under emperror Constantine? No, it was under the authority of Pope Damasus I. |
| 2009-05-27 10:47 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
| Veteran 395 Henderson,NV | Subject: RE: The Bible For me the Bible is God's word in writing. I wish I had more historical facts behind this, I just know that the more I read the bible the stronger my faith has become |
| 2009-05-27 11:01 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
| Philadelphia, south of New York and north of DC | Subject: RE: The Bible tri_d00d - Does it contain errors? No, the Bible does not contain errors. The early Christians did not read scripture only literally. Neither did the Bishops who established the canon of books in the Bible. Here's a chestnut that often comes up around this. People will point to Leviticus to try to show that the Christians who eat shellfish are somehow not following the Bible. That argument has no foundation. For a Christian, the Old Testament always points to the new convenant and the establishment of the Kingdom of God. So what does dietery law have to do with that. Jesus was pretty clear that the way to abide in Him was through the material stuff of food. In John 6 he commands us to eat His body and drink His blood through the form of bread and wine. Paul tells us that we may not approach the table of this food unworthily. Food, glorious food. God can be known through food, but that knowledge comes with responsibility. In that light the dietery laws of Leviticus begin to make more sense. From the beginning, God was preparing his people for the later reality of Jesus, the Bread of Life, being able to abide in us by eating His body and drinking His blood. Mind you, this is my own personal interpretation of the shelfish passage in Leviticus so take from it what you will. Edited by dontracy 2009-05-27 11:04 AM |
| 2009-05-27 11:13 AM in reply to: #2175518 |
| Champion 11641 Fairport, NY | Subject: RE: The Bible There haven't been many religious themed threads lately, so to those who may be relatively new: The fastest way to get banned from posting in these forums is to mock or otherwise denigrate someone else's religious beliefs. Feel free to discuss your own beliefs and how you came to them, but if you enjoy the privilege of posting here, it would be unwise in the extreme to post anything remotely disrespectful of another's faith. |
| 2009-05-27 11:26 AM in reply to: #2175737 |
| Subject: ... This user's post has been ignored. |
| 2009-05-27 11:27 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
| Champion 10668 Tacoma, Washington | Subject: RE: The Bible Good questions: For you, is it the Word of God or was it written by men? Human interpretation of divine inspiration. And so... Does it contain errors? It was written by humans, who are prone to err. Did the church "add and delete" to it as they saw fit? It would be difficult to say that it did not. I've seen far too much manipulation in the name of religion in my own life... Now for me, there's a far more important question, and one that I posed to my mom when I told her about a discussion group I was participating in, regarding the "deep questions" that were being posed by the book "The Davinci Code": Given all that, does it make one iota of difference in your faith? My answer, for myself, is that it really doesn't matter one hair. My mom, on the other hand, couldn't fathom the idea that Jesus had potentially married or had children -- it would essentially destroy her faith base, and was thus an impossibility. My particular view of religion is separate from faith and spirituality. Religion is a human overlay of faith to ritualize worship. And I don't think any one religion has it all right -- how could they? Faith and spirituality are personal, much like the "personal relationship with Jesus" that they (the religious) tell you you need to have. Then they turn around and tell you just what that "personal" relationship should mean! I grew up in the Lutheran church (my father is a retired Lutheran pastor), and my faith is rock solid. But I now have no church membership, and my worship is a daily practice. Edited by briderdt 2009-05-27 11:28 AM |
| 2009-05-27 11:34 AM in reply to: #2175320 |
| Elite 3683 Whispering Pines, North Carolina | Subject: RE: The Bible The reason I started this thread was b/c I attended a church and the pastor stated that the bible contained no errors, and that it was the unequivocal Word of God. I just don't believe that. I really think that it has been added to, over the (early) years, as the Church saw fit. We have all seen how corrupt the Church was during several parts of history (no comment about the current church), so doing something like this wouldn't surprise me. What if Jesus never said that the only way to heaven was through him, but the Church decided to put those words in the bible...Those words have had ALOT of repurcussions over the centuries, no? What if He never really said that? what if he is one way to get to heaven, and not the only way? Just a thought. I just want to caveat this post by saying that I am very uneducated in religion and that its hard for me to speak intelligently about the subject...it's just one that interests me and i wanted to hear other ppl's thoughts. Thanks! |
| 2009-05-27 11:46 AM in reply to: #2175792 |
| Pro 5761 Bartlett, TN | Subject: RE: The Bible tri_d00d - 2009-05-27 11:34 AM The reason I started this thread was b/c I attended a church and the pastor stated that the bible contained no errors, and that it was the unequivocal Word of God. I just don't believe that. I really think that it has been added to, over the (early) years, as the Church saw fit. I believe that the Bible is the unequivocal word of God, containing no errors and I believe that due to my faith. I am curious as to what you think has been added? I do not believe there are errors in the Bible, but I am more apt to believe people interpertations are wrong...
I believe this is where faith plays a huge role in ones beliefs. My faith tells me that He is the only way into Heaven. It is what I believe and what I was taught growing up and up my studies have led me to believe. I am not a BIBLE scholar either, just sharing what I believe to be true. Edited by jford2309 2009-05-27 11:46 AM |
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