Sacrilege!!!

Welcome to my new journey.

2013-12-12T04:14:00.001+08:00

Please visit my new place @ http://thepinoyatheist.blogspot.com/

Thanks.

2012-10-01T23:49:00.001+08:00

Talk about a loving, merciful God huh?

2012-09-03T20:07:00.005+08:00

2 Kings 2:23-24
King James Version (KJV)

23 And he went up from thence unto Bethel: and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head.

24 And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the Lord. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them.

Flat Earth?

2012-09-03T20:05:00.002+08:00

He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth,

and its people are like grasshoppers.

He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,

and spreads them out like a tent to live in. - Isaiah 40:22

Bible morality is?

2012-07-09T11:34:00.001+08:00

The Bible is not a good book. It is not the epitome of goodness and outstanding moral values. The reason why the Bible becomes a "good book" is when you only pick those things inside its pages that you considered to be right.

That's Bible morality for you.

Open Letter to Miriam Quiambao: Let's defend every word in the Bible! Sass Rogando Sasot

2012-04-30T17:32:00.001+08:00

1. You are right, according to Genesis, God only created men and women. Nothing else, no one in between. Just either men and women. Genesis 1:5 said that God created only evening and morning. There was no mention about afternoon, dusk, dawn, midnight, blue hour, etc...As a literal follower of the Bible, how should I regard these "other" parts of the day? To borrow your words, are they "lies of the devil"? Why do we have these abominations? Is God testing my faith?

2. I'm so confused about what to wear now Miriam. And I feel that I'm such an abomination in the eyes of God. You know why? Detueronomy 22:11. God clearly and literally forbids wearing clothing made of fabric that are combined together, such as wool and linen woven together. I have lots of clothes made of combined fabric. What should I do with them? Should I change my wardrobe and burn all these clothes, just like how God burned Sodom and Gomorrah? Miriam, please promise us in the name of the Truth contained in the Bible, that you will never ever wear such clothes! Moreover, Deuteronomy 22:12 says that we make tassels on the four corners of the cloak we wear. Why was your evening gown during Ms Universe 1999 didn't have any tassel? Was this a flaw in the design? Or was the gown designed by the devil? Oh my God Miriam, please burn that gown now, as that is not something God wants you to wear. Save your soul sister!

3. I'm so disturbed by how marriage laws in our country is working Miriam. Clearly, this country will rot in hell. Why? It is not following Deuteronomy 22:13-20. We should include virginity test for women before they get married. And if it's proven that these women are not virgins we should stone them to death just like how Deuteronomy 22:21 recommends! Miriam, please tell me you were a virgin when you married your husband!

4. I want to share the truth of the Bible to my neighbor, Miriam. Here's the case: The woman's husband died recently; and they have no children. Deuteronomy 25:5 clearly says that in situations like this, the woman is only allowed to marry her brother-in-law. They are not following this. Should I go to them and share to them this universal Truth so that they can follow what the Lord wants?

5. Miriam, I wonder how to implement Deuteronomy 25:13. It says that we shouldn't have two different weights in our bags. Can you share to me the weights of the contents of your bag?

6. Leviticus 1:14-17 says that the smell of burning dove and pigeon is an aroma pleasing to the Lord. I tried to burn doves and pigeons yesterday as part of my daily routine in pleasing God but my neighbor stopped me. He said this is cruelty to animals. Can you help me pray over my neighbor's soul so he can finally see the Truth?

7. I'm very very very troubled by the presence of Lydia's lechon in our neigborhood. Leviticus 3:17 clearly says that we must not eat any fat. Can you support my petition against Lydia's lechon?

8. Why do people go to dermatologists Miriam? Isn't this a clear violation of the word of God? Leviticus 13:2 is clear: we must go to a priest not a dermatologist.

9. One of my neigbors is poor. I advised the father of the household to sell one of his daughters as a slave so they can have money. He said I'm insane. I told them God clearly allows in Exodus 21:7. How much do you think he should sell his daughter?

10. Miriam, why do people work on the Sabbath day? Exodus 35:2 clearly forbids this. Should we start putting them to death as the Bible recommends?

11. A lot of Filipinas work as domestic helpers in other countries. A lot of them are beaten by their employers. Should I condemn their employers or should we just allow them to be beaten up as long as they can get up after a day or two as what Exo. 21:20-21 wants us to do: “If a man beats his male or female slave with a rod and the slave dies as a direct result, he must be punished, but he is not to be punished if the slave gets up after a day or two, since the slave is his property."

A friend of mine told me that these words should not be taken out of context. I told him No! these words are the words of God and they apply in every context, at all times, everywhere, everytime as God's words are eternal. And Deuteronomy 26:16 is clear about this: "The Lord your God commands you this day to follow these decrees and laws; carefully observe them with all your heart and with all your soul." When I told him that quote, he told me that God is shit. O dear, that comment ended our friendship. And I'm now actually planning the time and place where our entire barangay can stone him to death as recommended by Leviticus 24:16. Would you like to join us in fulfilling what the Lord our God wants us to do? Where can I send the invitation?

I'm looking forward to hear from you.

Let's defend every word in the Bible!

Your number 1 fan,

Melody

(Original post can be seen here.)

Jesus on Slavery...Is there such a thing?

2012-04-04T10:41:00.003+08:00

Is it a big deal if Jesus didn’t say something about slavery?

Some Christians says that since Jesus taught about goodness then automatically it carries a message about anti-slavery. But that’s not the case; in the first place Jesus is not ignorant on the effects of slavery. In the times of Roman occupation in ancient Palestine, slavery is prevalent and we all know that slavery is one of the greatest atrocities in basic human rights. As a God-Man, we except Jesus to say something against it. But he is very silent about the issue.

We won’t even read any quote in all four gospels that Jesus said against this practice. Instead what we can read is this: This was written in Ephesians 6:5-9 "5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. 6 Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free." " 9 And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him." (NIV)

I wonder why?

What if...

2011-11-05T09:51:00.002+08:00

To all Christians out there: You say that Satan is the greatest deceiver of all to the point that you will even insist that atheists like me were deceived by Satan that is why I "deny" God's existence ( based on 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12).

But as a greatest of deceivers, is it possible that Satan most likely used something to bring more souls into hell than be contented to a merely 1% of the world's population? There are about 3 billion Christians compare to us atheists, right?

Now what if the greatest deceiver's tool in deceiving the world is no other than the Bible itself?

Dazed and Confused

2010-09-11T16:45:00.000+08:00

Trivia lang guys.

Do you know that the Christian Bible has many contradictions. WHAT? You don't believe me? Why not read it yourself. Here are few samples:

Rom.3:23 "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."

1Kgs. 8:46 "...for there is no man that sinneth not,...."

(2Chr. 6:36)

Prov.20:9 "Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?"

Eccl. 7:23 "For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not."

Mark 10:18 "And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God."

Rom. 3:10 "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one."

(Also 1 John 1:8 & 10, Rom. 3:12, 5:12, Gal. 3:22)

Versus

Gen. 6:9 "Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God."

Job 1:1 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.

Job 1:8 "...my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?" (Job 2:3)

Gen. 7:1 "And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation."

Luke 1:5-6 "In the days of Herod, the king of Judaea,there was a priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abia: andhe had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.(RSV)

Num. 23:19 "God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent."

1Sam. 15:29 "And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent."

Versus

Jonah 3:10 "And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not."

1Sam.15:11 "It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king...."

Exod. 32:14 And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people.

Psalms.42:10 "... for I repent me of the evil that I have done unto you."

Gen. 6:6 "And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart."

1Sam. 15:35 "...and the LORD repented that he had made Saul king over Israel."

Now, itanong mo sa pari, sa pastor,sa ministro, sa Jakono o kahit itanong mo kay Soriano, and they'll give you different answers na para kang nag take a still in a defective Merry-Go-Round.

Maybe that's what Christian meant when they say that when you read the Bible, you're under the spirit.

CHAO!

Biblical Morality

2010-09-06T18:52:00.002+08:00

I was intrigued by the quote that I saw in the Internet, something that was said by a certain T.B. Wakeman “The word moral does not occur in the Bible, not even the idea.”

What? How can that be?

I grew up as a Christian and believed that the Bible was the foundation of morality…well…I thought it was, but hey, we can find the Ten Commandments in its pages, right? There is also this Jesus fellow who taught me to be good. That can be counted, right?

Since the Bible was inspired by God and every Christians know that God is good they blame the decay of society and the lost of moral values as the result of the decline in Bible reading and the lack of God belief. Tim LaHaye, co-author of the Left Behind series and one of the founders of Moral Majority agrees and said, “…since moral conditions have become worse and worse in direct proportion to humanism’s influence, which has move our country from a biblically based society to an amoral “democratic” society. “

Ok…so let us talk about morality base in the Bible.

Since Christians all agree that God inspired the Bible, let us look at God’s morality first.

According to Christian claims, God is suppose to be a god of love (1 John 4:16; Psalms 145:15-16 and Matthew 5:9), a righteous judge (Genesis 18:25), fair (Ezekiel 18:25) and impartial (Roman 2:11).

However, reading the Bible will also give us a different personality.

1.) That this God is a jealous god.

A perfect, omnipotent being getting jealous?

Exodus 20:5, 34:14, Deuteronomy 4: 24, 5:9, Psalms 79:5, 78:58, Joshua 24: 19, Ezekiel 16:38, 38:19, Zechariah 8:2 and Nahum 1:2

2.) He orders plunder.

Exodus 3:22, Deuteronomy 20:14 and Ezekiel 39:10

3.) He deceives.

"O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived...." (Jer. 20:7).

"if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the Lord have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel" (Ezek. 14:9).

"Ah, Lord God! Surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reaches unto the soul" (Jer. 4:10).

"...God sends upon them a strong delusion, to make them believe what is false, so that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness" (2 Thess. 2:9-12).

2Chron. 18:18-22, 1 Kings 22:20-23 and Jer. 15:18.

4.) He command killing (even innocent women and children).

"ye shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. And five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall put 10,000 to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword" (Lev. 26:7-8).

"the Lord said to Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the Lord against the sun, that the fierce anger of the Lord may be turned away from Israel. And Moses said to the judges of Israel. Slay every one his men that were joined to Baal" (Num. 25:4-5).

"Vex the Midianites and smite them" (Num. 25:17).

"But of the cities of these people, which the Lord thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breathes. But thou shalt utterly destroy them...as the Lord thy God has commanded thee" (Deut. 20:16-17).

"So Joshua smote all the country of the hills...he left none remaining, but utterly destroyed all that breathed, as the Lord God of Israel commanded" (Joshua 10:40).

"As I listened, god said to the others, 'Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. Slaughter old men, young men and maidens, women and children...." (Ezek. 9:5-6).

So I guess Thomas Jefferson was right about God when he said, “A being of terrific character – cruel, vindictive, capricious and unjust.” In addition, Thomas Paine was correct when he said, “All our ideas of the justice and goodness of God revolt at the impious cruelty of the Bible. It is not a God, just and good, but a devil, under the name of God, that the Bible describes."

Reflecting from Xenophanes’ quote…if an ancient culture creates a god, it will reflect their standard of morality, the same on how horses and lions will create their gods.

Now let us talk about God’s only begotten son Jesus.

Many people, and unfortunately even some freethinkers and agnostics, think that Jesus was a great teacher. People like Thomas Paine calls Jesus as such and Robert Ingersoll who was very impress with the so-called “Sermon on the Mount”.

When I was still a Christian, I also thought that this Man-God excel not only as a teacher but also in regards to ethics. I was 12-years old at that time.

Bible believers say that Jesus’ morality is at its best in the Sermon in the Mount (AKA the Beatitudes). You can see it in Matthew 5:3-11. Well they may be admirable, but it has little value as a moral code. The Beatitudes are unrealistic. If we take away most of its supernatural rewards, what is left are a bunch of Consuelo de bobo (hollow consolations).

The reason behind this is obvious. Jesus is teaching ethics base on the promise of divine rewards and treats of supernatural punishments. He does not teach by the content of his moral code but on his conception of himself and his divinely appointed mission.

How about Jesus’ other moral precepts?

Most of his teachings we re-hashed from other teachers and some were lift from the pages of the Old Testament. The Golden Rule for example was advocated by Confucius (Doctrine of Mean 13) 500 years before Jesus and you can also find it in the Seven Rules of Hillel.

What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor that is the whole Torah ... (b.Shabbat 31a)

Isocrates (436–338 BCE), the ancient Greek rhetorician have also said ,"Do not do to others what would anger you if gone to you by others.”

Matthew 5:39 can also be found in Leviticus 19:18 and in the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

I am good to people who are good.

I am also good to people who are not good.

Because Virtue is goodness.

I have faith in people who are faithful.

I also have faith in people who are not faithful.

Because Virtue is faithfulness (Tao Te Ching 49)

In addition, the same teaching is seen in Confucianism, the Buddhist’s Dhammapada and at the Indian Ramayana.

Someone said, "What do you say concerning the principle that injury should be recompensed with kindness?" The Master said, "With what will you then recompense kindness? Recompense injury with justice, and recompense kindness with kindness." (Confucianism. Analects 14.36)

Conquer the angry one by not getting angry (i.e., by loving-kindness); conquer the wicked by goodness; conquer the stingy by generosity, and the liar by speaking the truth. (Dhammapada 223)

A superior being does not render evil for evil; this is a maxim one should observe; the ornament of virtuous persons is their conduct. One should never harm the wicked or the good or even criminals meriting death. A noble soul will ever exercise compassion even towards those who enjoy injuring others or those of cruel deeds when they are actually committing them--for who is without fault? (Ramayana, Yuddha Kanda 115)

Christian apologist Norman Giesler insisted that Jesus ethics is an ethics of love, but American author Ruth Hurmence Green disagrees – “They told me the Bible was a book about love, but I studied every page of that Bible, and I couldn’t find enough love to fill a salt shaker.”

There are other Bible stories that saturated with obscenities, degeneracy and immorality. Some have questionable moral values and others even promote profanity and corruption.

Here are some samples:

Genesis 19:8

Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don't do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof."

2 Samuel 13:11-14

11 But when she took it to him to eat, he grabbed her and said, "Come to bed with me, my sister."

12 "Don't, my brother!" she said to him. "Don't force me. Such a thing should not be done in Israel! Don't do this wicked thing. 13 What about me? Where could I get rid of my disgrace? And what about you? You would be like one of the wicked fools in Israel. Please speak to the king; he will not keep me from being married to you." 14 But he refused to listen to her, and since he was stronger than she, he raped her.

Genesis 34 The defilement of Danah

Genesis 38 The narratives of Judah, Omar and Tamar

Genesis 30: 14-16

14 During wheat harvest, Reuben went out into the fields and found some mandrake plants, which he brought to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, "Please give me some of your son's mandrakes."

15 But she said to her, "Wasn't it enough that you took away my husband? Will you take my son's mandrakes too?"

"Very well," Rachel said, "he can sleep with you tonight in return for your son's mandrakes."

16 So when Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. "You must sleep with me," she said. "I have hired you with my son's mandrakes." So he slept with her that night.

Genesis 30: 3-6

3 Then she said, "Here is Bilhah, my maidservant. Sleep with her so that she can bear children for me and that through her I too can build a family."

4 So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife. Jacob slept with her, 5 and she became pregnant and bore him a son. 6 Then Rachel said, "God has vindicated me; he has listened to my plea and given me a son." Because of this she named him Dan.

Genesis 16 The story of Abraham and Sarah and the illicit intimacy with Hagar.

Genesis 30: 25-43 Jacob’s trick Laban.

[Visit The Bible Unmasked for more examples.]

When confronted by these issues, Christian apologists like William Arndt say, “When it speaks of sin, it describes it in its ugliness, so that disgust and horror enters the heart of the readers. Not once for a moment, does it leave the high moral level of stern opposition to unrighteousness in all its form.”

What moral value? Ah OK…Peter called Lot a “righteous man” (2 Peter 2:7) even when Lot was giving his daughter to be rape by a mob. What moral value does it show…that giving your daughter to be rape is a good thing to do…I don’t think so?

There are countries out there that did not even heard of this Christian Bible and there are those who do not care about it, yet they even have a higher moral value compare to Bible-believing western nations. Japan for example – where honesty and honor are of the highest value, deems the Bible as 重要ではない. Most countries in Asia values cleanliness, respect to the elders and reverence to their parents yet they knew nothing of Yahweh, nor Moses, Jesus and Paul yet compare to the most pious Christian nation, their place are not riddled with crime, vices and corruption.

Ironic isn’t it?

Hotdog!!!!

2010-09-04T09:38:00.000+08:00

Ezekiel 23:20
"There she lusted after her lovers, whose genitals were like those of donkeys and whose emissions has like that of horses." (NIV)

Comment : And you call the Bible a moralist's handbook? I never knew those Egyptians are that "hung".
Oh come on!
Jumbo hotdog! Kaya mo ba 'to! Talk about a moral book ala Xerex.
Hahaha!

John the Atheist

Flat-Chested Girls?

2010-09-03T09:12:00.000+08:00

So what's wrong with flat chested girls huh?

Song of Songs 8:8 We have a little sister, and she hath no breasts: what shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for?

The Most Advanced Ancient Book of All Time?

2010-07-24T17:43:00.005+08:00

According to Christians...the Bible is advance...advance in what????

Let's look at their claims:

“It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in…” (Isaiah 40:22)

And again…

(Amos 9:6) “The One who builds His upper chambers in the heavens And has founded His vaulted dome over the earth, He who calls for the waters of the sea And pours them out on the face of the earth, The LORD is His name.” (NASB)

Now is the Earth a dome?

In Isaiah 40:22 for example, the word “circle” doesn’t mean a spherical Earth. The word “chug” refers to a circle…a flat circle. Notice the word “tent” or “dome” in those verses. As specified in Amos 9:6, this vaulted dome or “raki’a” (See: Genesis 1:6-8) is what the ancient Hebrew believe to cover the entire world. It is said that this solid vault or dome held the Sun, the moon and the stars (Gen.1:14-19; Psalms 19:4, 6) and it also provided the boundaries to the divine (Job 22:14 and Proverbs 8:27)

It also separated the water “above” from the water “below”. In fact according to these ancient Hebrews the blue color of the sky was attributed to the chaotic waters above the dome. This solid dome has windows and trap doors in which it release the rain and snow when opened (Gen. 7:11, Isa. 24: 18 and Mal. 3:10)

According to rabbinic traditions, in Nachmanides Commentary on Torah (Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman 1194-1270) “Let the expanses become fixed; for although the heavens were created on the first day, they were still in fluid form, and they become solidified only on the second day when the Divine said "Yehee Raqiyaa." (Also see: Nachmanides (Raban), Commentary on the Torah, vol. 1, pp. 33, 36.)

This is clearly not scientific foreknowledge.

Now here's something real funny.

According from a certain site owned by a certain Eliseo Soriano...the Bible have the forknowledge regarding the use of crying. Now can that only be found in the pages of the Bible? My papaya naman! It is ancient folk wisdom that crying is good for our health. It isn't new. Practitioner's of folk wisdom have routinely encouraged people to allow themselves to cry comforting the suffering soul that ' a good cry will help you feel better'.

For example:

The ancient Hawaiians assert there are two chemical reactions within the human body that can accomplish Reconnection with Source Oneness. The first is the "sacred tear” beneath our sadness and hopelessness. Beneath that tear lies the second chemical reaction, said to be more powerful than all the healing agents known to humankind. It comes "out of the blue" with the power of a jackhammer, shattering the seriousness of the entire human estate. A power instantly freeing and balancing to all the body's chemistry. This is the power of laughter. When it comes in this manner, it comes through the "na'au" (gut level) and will pierce the hopelessness of any situation or attitude. It is not a power to be taken lightly, for the ancient Hawaiians say it holds the chemistry of immortality and will instantly heal any terminal disease. It’s said to be the "laughter of God" which shatters the ridiculousness of hopelessness.

Let's talk about history:

One of the best weapons used by Christians to confirm the Bible story is Hezekiah's Tunnel. According to them the discovery of the tunnel built by King Hezekiah authenticates the passages written in the book of Kings. 2 Kings 20:20 states that Hezekiah, "Made the Pool and the conduit and brought water into the city" and in 2 Chronicles 32:30 that he closed the upper outlet of the waters of Gihon and directed them down to the West side of the City of David. This refers to the tunnel which connects the ‘Spring of Gihon’, through the rock to the reservoir called the Pool of Siloam.

"And the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and all his might, and how he made a pool, and a conduit, and brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?" 2 Kings 20:20

"And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib was come, and that he was purposed to fight against Jerusalem, He took counsel with his princes and his mighty men to stop the waters of the fountains which were without the city: and they did help him. So there was gathered much people together, who stopped all the fountains, and the brook that ran through the midst of the land, saying, Why should the kings of Assyria come, and find much water?" 2 Chronicles 32:2-4

"This same Hezekiah also stopped the upper watercourse of Gihon, and brought it straight down to the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works." 2 Chronicles 32:30

It was discovered in 1838 when it was explored by the American traveller, Edward Robinson, and his missionary friend Eli Smith.

Let me get this straight, just because something was discovered by archeologists means the whole Bible is literally true. Let me share to you this quote:

In summary, the Bible is not a book of history, yet it contains history and culture, which is more or less borne out by archeology. It’s a book of teachings, and it’s the ideal way to learn the patterns of history. And if we understand that the reason why we’re learning history is to learn lessons, then we have to pay extra special attention to what is going on in the Bible.

Christians are well delighted when archeological proof confirms parts of their beliefs. However, since parts of the Bible are historically true still does not make that the rest of the Bible is true as well. The Bible is still not an accurate history book. It tells about some stories about people and events that might happen in the past and were confirmed by archeologists, but still, the fact of the matter, the Bible should not be in use as historical actuality and that the stories in the Bible are NOT metaphors from which facts can be dig out by the reader.

So let us talk about the tunnel, According to Bible scholars, the book of Kings and Chronicles was written possibly between 450 and 435 BCE. There are even some suggestions that these books were written hundred of years after the events took place (See: I Chronicles 9:1-3). The said tunnel was already been constructed before 701 BCE during the reign of Hezekiah. That means the tunnel already existed when both books were being wrote. Obviously the story was already known by the writers and they just incorporated it on their narratives.

I can think of a lot of historical facts that were incorporated in fiction. For example Cold Mountain by Fraszier is historically accurate as to the civil war events but the tale is fiction. There are others like Les Miserables, Uncle Tom's Cabin, Noli Me Tagere and Florante and Laura. The settings are facts but don't tell me Crisostomo Ibarra and Maria Clara are real persons.

Until next time,

Ciao!

The Bible in a Skeptic’s Eye (Part 2)

2010-07-24T17:11:00.003+08:00

In our continuing series, we will now look on the development of the New Testament Cannon.

According to most Bible scholars we have a better idea on how the New Testament took shape. Edgar Johnson Goodspeed (1871-1962) theorized that the surviving Pauline letters were first collected after the publication of the Books of Acts, about 95 CE and the Epistle of the Ephesians was compiled as an encyclical or “covering letter” to head this collection, being paraphrased from several of the authentic letter. This theory was widely accepted among New Testament scholars.

Basing on this theory, the original nucleus of the New Testament was the epistle of Paul, to which was added the “catholic” epistles written by James, Peter, John and Jude and the Pastoral Epistle, a supplement to the Pauline collection dating from 100 -105 CE. The Gospel was added later…they were gathered together into a “four fold evangel” about 150 CE. The whole New Testament was known as the Evangelion (Evangel) and the Apostolos (Apostle).

The first generation of the Church fathers such as Ignatius (35-107), Papias (60-130) and Justin (100-165) were more concern with the Old Testament compare to the New Testament. In fact, a definitive list of the canonical book for the New Testament came from a heretic named Marcion (d. 160).

Marcion, a shipping magnate in the Black Sea port of Sinope, traveled to Rome in about 139CE. He taught that many of the Christian literature were corrupted by Jewish ideas and that the Jewish God of the Old Testament was strict and had condemned all humanity. According to Marcion, Jesus Christ who was absolutely unrelated to the Jewish God will released Christians from this god’s clutches.

Marcion compiled only the letters of Paul (Galatians, I and ii Corithians, I and ii Thessalonians, Colossians, Philemon and Philippians) and a “purified” version of Luke’s gospel. If it’s not for Marcion, the Christian Church never would have possessed a “New Testament”.

By 95CE, there are still evidence of apocryptic books being included in the New Testament. The Codex Sinaiticus includes the book Shepherd of Hermas and the Gospel of Barnabas. The Codex Alexandrinus contains the Epistle of Clement, which was said to be written by Clement, Bishop of Rome to the Corinthian church.

The Muratorian Fragment, discovered in Milan by L.A.Muratori and was published in 1740 – was said to be written in 200CE and have rejected most of the apocryptic book, yet it also rejected I and ii Peter, Hebrews, James and iii John. It also included the Apocalypse of Peter, a book that tells the story of how Peter was granted a vision of heaven and hell.

According to Papias (c 60-130) Bishop of Hierapolis, Mark got his information from Peter himself. Papias also said that the authority of the gospel of Matthew and Mark was base on a certain John the Presbyter.

Clement of Alexandria (150-215 CE) said that the earliest gospels were those with Jesus' family tree.

Irenaeus (c.130-200) Bishop of Lyons, gave the first historically documented list of the four gospels and its authors in 180CE. In all the many available gospels in that time, he chooses only 4 which according to him, “As there are four winds, there should be four Gospel.”

Irenaeus believed that Matthew published his gospel among the Hebrews in their own tongue, when Peter and Paul were preaching the Gospel in Rome and founding the church there. After their departure, Mark, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, himself handed down to us in writing the substance of Peter’s preaching. Luke, the follower of Paul, set down in the book the gospel preached by his teacher. Then John, the disciple of the Lord, who learned on his breast himself, produced his gospel when he was living in Ephesus in Asia.

Irenaeus was also the first to give a chronological sequence of the writing of the Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. He also drew up a list of writing he considered as canonical. His list consist of 22 books which includes The Shepherd of Hermans but he left out Philemon, ii Peter, ii and iii of John, Hebrews, Jude and Revelations.

But even with Irenaeus’ list, Origen (185-254) who in 230 CE defined what he believed to be the cannon of the scripture for the New Testament included the four Gospels, Acts of the Apostles, Paul’s 13 Epistles, I Peter, I John and Revelation. He also stated that the first gospel was written in Hebrew by Matthew.

Augustine of Hippo (354-430 CE) stated that Mark copied and abbreviated Matthew.

The truth in this matter is that Mark is the first Gospel, with Matthew and Luke borrowing passages both from that Gospel and from at least one other common source, lost to history, termed by scholars 'Q' (from German: Quelle, meaning "source").

In the Festal Letter of Athanasius (c. 296-373) Bishop of Alexandria to the Egyptian Churches in 367 he said that there are only 27 books considered as canonical. Athanasius list was confirmed by a council under Pope Damasus.

Pope Damasus (304-384 CE) proclaimed the list of the canonical books in the New Testament which was identical to the modern Bible we have now in 374 CE. Over a period of time, at the Council of Laodicea (363) the bishop agreed to the list and his cannon was later been approved by the Council of Rome in 383 and was reconfirmed at the Council of Carthage in 393, 397, and 419 CE.

However, some churches disagreed. The Book of Revelation for example, was not considered divinely inspired until the 8th century. In the Codex Claromontanus, a 6th century manuscript, the Book of Hebrews was omitted while the Epistle of Barnabas was included and placed between the Epistle of Jude and the Book of Revelation.

Even today, some Christian church, with very old roots, has different set of New Testament books. The East-Syrian Nestoriam Church has cannon of only 22 books. The Ethiopian Church has 38 books which includes the Shepherd or Hermas, i and ii Clement and the Apostolic Constitution.

The Bible in a Skeptic’s Eye (Part 1)

2010-07-24T09:11:00.002+08:00

How can a document, tampered with by kings, tyrants, fools and scholars be the “true” and “inspired” word of God?

According to Christians, the Bible is the inspired word of God and for some it is even inerrant. However, looking at its history, we find that the book has been repeatedly revised and re-written.

Today, in this series, we are going to explore the history of this book.

We begin with the Old Testament.

There are no “autograph’s of the Old Testament that survived. The text we now possessed was transmitted to us by generation of scribes and there are ample evidence of how these scribes both wittingly and unwittingly altered the documents they were copying. There is no reason to suppose that the documents in our Old Testament, at least in the period before they regarded as sacrosanct, did not suffer from the usual type of scribal corruption.

The Old Testament was written during the course of more than one millennium, approximately in the period of 1200-100 BCE. Nine volumes from Genesis to Kings were written in 561 BCE in the time of the Jewish captivity and were edited about 400 BCE. The first five books were separated and canonized to become the written Torah, the four remaining were canonized (with an additional two) two centuries later.

In the development of Israel’s history, the Tanack gradually took form and reached completion in the late Persian period. The first move toward canonization can be seen in Deuteronomy. The Deuteronomist stated that their law was completed and that nothing can be added or removed (Deut. 4:2; 12:32) and that God made the law binding on all generation (Duet. 27:4-8). Scholars suggested that the Book of Deuteronomy was formed in the late 7th century BCE, a product of the religious reforms carried out under king Josiah, with later additions from the period after the fall of Judah to the Babylonian empire in 586 BCE.

The Book of the Law was found in the temple of Jerusalem and was ratified as a divine law of the land (2Kings 23:3)…well that was according to legend. M. L. de Wette suggested that King Josiah had Deuteronomy created as a type of "pious fraud" to further his agenda of religious reform. In that time, the study of the Law eventually becomes more vital than offering and sacrifices. Yahweh, the god introduced by the Jahwist writers (The Jahwist, also referred to as the Jehovist, Yahwist, or simply as J, is one of the four major sources of the Torah postulated by the Documentary Hypothesis (DH). It is the oldest source, whose narratives make up half of Genesis and the first half of Exodus, plus fragments of Numbers) becomes the creator of heaven and earth and the only god in existence.

The second step toward canonization was recorded in the Ezra tradition. During the festival, Ezra read publicly from “the Book of the Law” and instructed the people in the law (Neh. 7:73; 8:18).

The contents of the prophetic cannon appeared to be established between the forth and second centuries in two general groupings: The former Prophets and the Latter Prophets. The Former Prophets were recognized as a Deuteronomic history (Joshua, Judges, i-ii Samuel). The Book of Kings (1 and 2Kings) was written in 600 BCE.

The Hagiographa or Writings are an amorphous literary collection with an obscure history. The Psalms were attributed with King David. The wisdom writings were attributed primarily to Solomon.

The earliest mention of the collection of the Hagiographa were found in the prologue to Ben Sira’s word that he called “other books of our fathers”.

Until the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947, most of our OT documents and actual manuscript evidence for the text of the OT was relatively late.

The Cairo Genizah for example was dated within the 7th and 6th century CE but some so-called “earliest” fragments were dated to the 9th and 10th century.

The Cambridge Codex XIII, a complete Old Testament was made in early as the middle of the 9th century. The Cairo Karaite manuscript of the Prophets may be of the late 9th century.

The Aleppo Sephardic Codex was dated in the early 10th century. The Pentateuch Codex (4445) that is now housed in the British Museum is also of the 10th century. The St. Petersberg Prophet Codex is dated 916 CE and the six manuscripts in the Firkowitsch collection at Leningrad belong to the 10th century. The Codex Urbinus 2, now in Vatican, which contains the whole Old Testament, is also dated to the 10th century. The famous Codex L from Old Cairo was dated 1008.

The earliest printed Hebrew scripture were just portions and was also printed in the late 15th century. Example, the Psalms at Bologna in 1477, the Pentateuch at Bologna in 1482, the Megilloth also in Bologna in 1482 and the Pentateuch in Faro in 1487.

The first complete Hebrew Bible to be printed was issued at Soncino in 1488, the second was on naples in 1492 to 1493 and the third at Brescia in 1492. The first great Rabbinic Bible was printed by Daniel Bomberg at Venice in 1516 to 1517. The text was prepared by Felix Pratensis. The second Rabbinic Bible was compiled by Jacob Ben Hayyim, a Masorah, in 1524-1525 at Venice. Paul Kahle edited the text of the 3rd edition of Kittel’s Biblia Hebraica (Stuttgarst 1937) and used a purer Ben Asher text base on the Leninggrad manuscript.

Round and Round It Goes

2010-07-20T00:08:00.003+08:00

Dr. Bart Ehrman Sums it all up BIBLE NOT RELIABLE

2010-06-28T11:22:00.004+08:00

About the Sabbath

2010-05-16T11:19:00.001+08:00

Contrary to popular belief, the concept of Sabbath was not a Hebrew idea. The Babylonians have been the first to divide the lunar months into seven-day periods (each day being dedicated to one of the seven divine planets, or ‘wonderers’, heavenly bodies which are not fixed in the sky as the stars were). Each period ended with an “evil day”, when taboos were enforced so that. Once again, the gods would be propitiated. Cuneiform records show that the Babylonian shabbatum (‘full-moon day’) fell on the fourteenth or fifteenth of the month, and this seems to be the basis of the Hebrew term shabbath.

The Christians took over this practice.

Michael Shermer Decodes the Bible Code

2010-05-11T17:35:00.000+08:00

From the Skeptic's Dictionary

The Bible Code is the title of a book by Michael Drosnin in which he claims that there is a code embedded in the Bible by God. The code is revealed by searching for equidistant letter sequences (ELS). The code is called the Bible Code or the Torah Code. For example, start with any letter ("L") and read every nth letter ("N") thereafter in the book, not counting spaces. If an entire book such as Genesis is searched, the result is a long string of letters. Using different values for L and N, one can generate many strings of letters. Imagine wrapping the string of letters around a cylinder in such a way that all the letters can be displayed. Flatten the cylinder to reveal several rows with columns of equal length, except perhaps the last column, which might be shorter than all the rest. Now search for meaningful names in proximity to dates. Search horizontally, vertically, diagonally, any which way. A group of Israeli mathematicians did just this and claimed that when they searched for names in close proximity to birth or death dates (as published in the Encyclopedia of Great Men in Israel) they found many matches, for example, the date of the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin was in close proximity to letters spelling out his name. Doron Witztum, Eliyahu Rips, and Yoav Rosenberg (1994) published their findings under the title of "On Equidistant Letter Sequences in the Book of Genesis." The editor of the journal commented:

When the authors used a randomization test to see how rarely the patterns they found might arise by chance alone they obtained a highly significant result, with the probability p=0.000016. Our referees were baffled: their prior beliefs made them think the Book of Genesis could not possibly contain meaningful references to modern-day individuals, yet when the authors carried out additional analyses and checks the effect persisted.

That is, the probability of getting the results they did was 16 out of one million or 1 out of 62,500. The authors state: "Randomization analysis shows that the effect is significant at the level of 0.00002 [and] the proximity of ELS's with related meanings in the Book of Genesis is not due to chance." Harold Gans, a former cryptologist at the US Defense Department, replicated the work of the Israeli team and agreed with their conclusion. Witztum later claimed that, according to one measure, the probability of getting these results by chance is 1 in 4 million. He has apparently changed his mind and now claims that the probability p = 0.00000019 (1 out of 5.3 million).

As further evidence of the statistical significance of their results, the Israeli team analyzed the Hebrew version of the Book of Isaiah and the first 78,064 characters of a Hebrew translation of Tolstoy's War and Peace. They found many names in close proximity to birth or death dates, but the results were statistically insignificant. (The book of Genesis used in their study, the Koren version, has 78,064 characters.)

What does this all mean? To some it means that the patterns in Genesis are intentional and that God is the ultimate author of the code. If so, should the Book of Isaiah, and any other book in the Bible that fails the ELS test, be dumped? Should we conclude that these statistics verify the claim that the Jews are the chosen people of God, or that no more names should be added to list of Great Men in Israel unless they pass the ELS test? Unless other religions can duplicate such statistically improbable results, the mathematically minded supernaturalist might well consider them to be imposters. Should we translate all the sacred books of all the religions of the world into Hebrew and see how many great men of Israel are encoded there?

Can a computer really read the mind of God? Apparently. For on this theory God dictated in His favorite language, Hebrew, a set of words that are more or less intelligible if taken at face value, containing stories of creation, floods, fratricide, wars, miracles, and so on, with many moral messages. But this Hebrew God chose his words carefully, encoding the Bible with prophecies and messages of absolutely no religious value.

Many, however, are not at a loss at all. Some Christian "creation scientists" claim the Bible Code provides scientific proof of God's existence. If they are right, they should convert to Judaism. Doron Witztum can't do that, since he is already a Jew. But he has taken the work done on Genesis a bit further than his colleagues. Witztum went on Israeli television and claimed that the names of the sub-camps on a map of Auschwitz appeared remarkably close to the phrase "in Auschwitz." The odds of such occurring, he said, are "one in a million." Some of his students did the math and claim their mentor was off by "a factor of 289,149." Witztum's math may not be as good as his intentions, but it is difficult to see what those intentions might be. Was God revealing in an odd way that the sub-camps of Auschwitz are in Auschwitz?

Michael Drosnin has written a book based on the ELS study. He claims in The Bible Code (1997) that decoding the Bible leads to the discovery of prophecies and profound truths of a secular nature, not all of which are related to the Jews. Drosnin claims that the Bible is the only text in which these encoded phrases are found in a statistically significant pattern, and that the chance of this being a random phenomenon is unlikely. Using the ELS method, Drosnin claims that the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin was foretold in the Bible. He also claims that the assassinations of Anwar Sadat and the Kennedy brothers are encoded in biblical ELS.

Not everybody agrees with the Drosnin hypothesis, including Harold Gans, a retired Defense Department cryptologist who corroborated the work of Witztum, Rips, and Rosenberg. Gans says that the

...book states that the codes in the Torah can be used to predict future events. This is absolutely unfounded. There is no scientific or mathematical basis for such a statement, and the reasoning used to come to such a conclusion in the book is logically flawed. While it is true that some historical events have been shown to be encoded in the Book of Genesis in certain configurations, it is absolutely not true that every similar configuration of "encoded" words necessarily represents a potential historical event. In fact, quite the opposite is true: most such configurations will be quite random and are expected to occur in any text of sufficient length. Mr. Drosnin states that his "prediction" of the assassination of Prime Minister Rabin is "proof" that the "Bible Code" can be used to predict the future. A single success, regardless of how spectacular, or even several such "successful" predictions proves absolutely nothing unless the predictions are made and evaluated under carefully controlled conditions. Any respectable scientist knows that "anecdotal" evidence never proves anything.*

Dr. Eliyahu Rips, one of the authors of the study that started the Bible Code craze, has also made a public statement regarding Drosnin's Bible Code.

I do not support Mr. Drosnin's work on the Codes, nor the conclusions he derives....All attempts to extract messages from Torah codes, or to make predictions based on them, are futile and are of no value. This is not only my own opinion, but the opinion of every scientist who has been involved in serious Codes research.

Professor Menachem Cohen, a celebrated Bible scholar at Bar-Ilan University, has criticized Witztum et al. on two counts: (1) there are several other Hebrew versions of Genesis for which ELS does not produce statistically significant results; and (2) the appellations given to the Great Men in Israel was inconsistent and arbitrary. Other critics, such as Brendan McKay, have done their own analysis of War and Peace with remarkably different results than those reported by Witztum et al. Many critics, however, have done little more than use ELS to find names, dates, and so on in various books, a feat already known by even the weakest of statisticians to be unremarkable. Drosnin once said, "When my critics find a message about the assassination of a prime minister encrypted in Moby-Dick, I'll believe them." McKay promptly produced an ELS analysis of Moby-Dick predicting not only Indira Ghandi's assassination, but the assassinations of Martin Luther King, John F. Kennedy, Abraham Lincoln, and Yitzhak Rabin, as well as the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. Mathematician David Thomas did an ELS on Genesis and found the words "code" and "bogus" close together not once but 60 times. What are the odds of that happening? Thomas also did an ELS analysis on Drosnin's Bible Code II: The Countdown (2002) and found the message "The Bible Code is a silly, dumb, fake, false, evil, nasty, dismal fraud and snake-oil hoax."* Does this mean that God put in a code to reveal that there is no code?

The Christian Delusion

2010-05-02T17:23:00.000+08:00

Review

"The contributors to this book have interesting, important, and controversial things to say to conservative Christians: It isn't true that modern society has Christian foundations; it isn't true that there is significant historical evidence for the Resurrection; it isn't true that scripture portrays a perfectly good God; it is untenable to suppose that the Bible is the Word of God; and there are many new challenges to the believability of Christianity in contemporary sciences: pyschology, sociology, cognitive science, archaeology, and the like. This book is a fitting successor to Loftus' book Why I Became an Atheist and merits a similarly broad readership." -- Dr. Graham Oppy, associate dean of research and associate dean of graduate studies in the faculty of arts at Monash University, author of Arguing About Gods (2006), and co-editor (with Nick Trakakis) of The History of Western Philosophy of Religion 5 vols. (2009)

"John Loftus and his distinguished colleagues have certainly produced one of the best and arguably the best critique of the Christian faith the world has ever known. Using sociological, biblical, scientific, historical, philosophical, theological and ethical criticisms, this book completely destroys Christianity. All but the most fanatical believers who read it should be moved to have profound doubts." --Dr. Michael Martin, professor of philosophy emeritus and author of The Case Against Christianity and Atheism: A Philosophical Justification

"If John Loftus never wrote anything else he will be remembered a century from now for his Outsider Test for Faith, which figures prominently in this book." --Frank Zindler, PhD, former president of American Atheists and editor of American Atheist Magazine.

"I'm quoted in this book as saying that treating the arguments of others fairly is simply an application of the Golden Rule. Christians regularly ask atheists to listen to their arguments and read their books. If a Christian wishes to return the favor, this volume offers atheist views on a range of subjects, presented respectfully (for the most part) yet with conviction. Christians who wish to critically examine and reflect on their beliefs will benefit from the outsider perspectives offered here. I join with its authors in encouraging you to dare to doubt. If you follow that courageous path, you may at times draw the wrong conclusions. If you do not, you will certainly be wrong at least as often." --James F. McGrath, PhD, Associate Professor of Religion and Clarence L. Goodwin Chair of New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University, and author of The Only True God: Early Christian Monotheism in Its Jewish Context

"For nearly two thousand years apologists have striven mightily to show that the dogmas of Christianity are rationally defensible. For much of the Christian era critics have sought to debunk those apologetic claims. In that long tradition of criticism, there have been few works as effective as The Christian Delusion. The essays are incisive, rigorous, and original, shedding new light on old issues and boldly exploring new paths of argument. The selection of topics is outstanding--at once both comprehensive and innovative. For fresh insights into an old debate, The Christian Delusion is strongly recommended." --Keith Parsons, PhD, professor of philosophy, University of Houston, Clear Lake, and author of the book, God and the Burden of Proof.

"John Loftus is to be congratulated for assembling such a fine collection of papers from such a diversity of fields. This book is not simply an anthology of atheist thought, but a wide sweeping attack on the basis of Christianity. Using these various approaches, the authors subject Christianity to a rigorous critique: challenging it from the psychology of belief to the origins of morality, the historical Jesus, Christian exceptionalism, and claims of eternal truth despite the constant evolution of that religion. The end result is that Christianity is demonstrated to be just one of the many religions humans have invented for themselves." --James Linville, PhD, associate professor of religious studies, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge AB, Canada.

"The culture of Christianity has dominated the U.S., and to some extent the world, for so long that even the act of asking questions or raising doubts is scorned. But with Christian doctrine so far out of whack with scientific, moral, philosophical, and political realities, we cannot afford to leave it unanalyzed. When we do cast an objective and critical eye towards it, its ideas, arguments, and justifications unravel. The thinkers in this volume, who have the courage, the will, and the expertise to conduct that critical evaluation have made a valuable contribution to the sea change." --Matt McCormick, PhD, philosophy professor, California State University, Sacramento, CA

"John Loftus cut his Christian apologetic teeth at our seminary, and I believe that he has since exchanged them for a false set. Nevertheless, in this book he has prepared a buffet with other notable atheistic chefs that 'honest Christians' dare not ignore. Many will simply refuse the menu because of its perceived poisonous entrÃ©es. But Christians need to chew on what these cooks are serving, even though much may be hard to swallow or difficult to digest. I say, 'Let the banquet begin!'" --Rich Knopp, PhD, professor of philosophy & apologetics at Lincoln Christian University, Lincoln, Illinois

"The Christian Delusion is an incredibly powerful book that's a must-read for anyone who's ever had a doubt about God--believers and non-believers alike. I wish a book like this was around when I first had my doubts about Christianity. It would have saved me many years in getting to the truth." --William Lobdell, author of Losing My Religion: How I Lost My Faith Reporting on Religion in America--and Found Unexpected Peace

"This book systematically undermines the pillars of evangelical Christianity. It shows the arguments for the divine inspiration of the Bible, the resurrection of Jesus, a supernatural conversion experience, the necessity of the Bible for a proper system of ethics, etc. to be full of holes. It demonstrates that those who believe in the tenets of evangelical Christianity truly are deluded." --Ken Pulliam, PhD, who taught NT Greek, theology, and apologetics for nine years before becoming an agnostic

"The Christian Delusion is a comprehensive and representative presentation of contemporary skeptical thought. Anyone who wants to understand the position of contemporary free thinkers could not do much better than to read this book." --Matthew Flannagan, Christian philosopher and adjunct lecturer in philosophy for Laidlaw College and Bethlehem Tertiary Institute

In Praise of Biblical Illiteracy

2010-05-02T17:16:00.000+08:00

By Hector Avalos

Iowa State University

April 2010

Surveys repeatedly show that Christian populations, when left to their own devices, do not seem too interested in Bible reading unless convinced otherwise by their authorities. As it is, note the paradox of publishers citing inflated sales figures for Bibles as proof that the Bible matters, and religion professors complaining that few people are actually reading the Bibles being sold.

Click here for the rest of the article.

Genesis Folly ( Part 3: Unrevealed Revelation)

2010-01-28T16:37:00.004+08:00

Ok…as I have said in my other blog, this is a biblical topic and it is more appropriate to discuss it here.

Genesis (Written: 2009 December 30)

“Can you prove for certain that Christianity, the Bible is true?”

The answer to this question is, “Yes, Christianity can be absolutely be proven true.” This, does not mean that everyone will accept the evidence, no matter how much there is or convincing it is.

My first question is what evidence was Genesis talking about? Hey! Before I’ll accept your statement, maybe you should show me evidence first?

In our courts of law when a judge employs a jury, he or she tells them to decide based on probability, based on the evidence presented. It cannot be certainty since none have viewed the crime. If jury decisions were delayed until 100% certainty existed, no verdict could be rendered. Decisions are based on a combination of faith related to fact.

Speaking of jury…oh wait a minute, Philippine court don’t use “jury” so I guess Genesis copy-paste this article from another unknown American Christian apologetic site. Anyway, juries still base their decision on facts presented by lawyers. No jury in their right mind will decide a case base on faith. Probability on evidence still relies on evidence.

Anything we buy we trust the manufacturer in what he says for the guarantee. But God who is the creator of all some seem to trust less than man. But he has proven his record through prophecy unlike any other person or book written.

Is Genesis using prophecy as evidence that the Bible is true? What prophecy is she talking about?

Since Genesis didn’t gave us anything, I’ll just leave you these links from one of Farrell Till's article "PROPHECIES: IMAGINARY AND UNFULFILLED" and Jeffery Jay Lowder, ed., “The Jury is In: The Ruling on McDowell’s Evidence”.

Atheists have no right to disprove God by using the Bible. In the first place, the Bible has its own language and thought that Atheists would never understand as it was not meant for them, NEVER! No doubt that ATheists are strong believers of Science that they already forgot to learn ART. Bible has an art..the art to use powerful words and phrases in different figures of speech with definitions that need to be searched in other parts of it. Atheists task is to read a passage, and then readily assume based on their own thinking when in fact the Bible has its own. When Atheists read that Jesus was teaching the early followers to eat his flesh and drink his blood, they at an instance assumed that Jesus was promoting cannibalism, to think that in other verses Jesus and the apostles meant spiritual symbolism for the “flesh” and “blood”, and not the literal meaning of it. Atheists are not aware that the Bible, while it is a compilation of God’s laws, is also literature, history, etc.. that uses “figures of speech” just as an artistic poet would express his thoughts through words.

Obviously Genesis wants atheists like me to stay away from the Bible. Why? Is she trying to hide something in its pages?

Just like other ancient documents, the Bible is not immune from errors (or as what Christian apologist like to call them…difficulties) and sadly for Genesis, Bible criticism is a part of formal biblical studies.

Now, unlike what Genesis wanted to believe, the Bible speaks the same language as we do. Come on, if the Bible speak a different language, then why are Christian using it to established a universal morality? When God speak of love, the same meaning is applied when a father talks about “love”. So why will it be meaningless for an atheist like me? The Bible used the same way I understand the syntax of a sentence. It is not factually meaningless…grammatically speaking. The problem here is not the language as Genesis assumed but the clarification of its logic and the confusion caused by misusing the language.

Genesis claims that the Bible uses “figures of speech” or symbolism.

Said who?

When reading and understanding the Bible, we are face with two opposing Christian views: The evangelical and the Neo-evangelical. Since Genesis is obviously prefer the latter, let’s talk about it.

Neo-evangelicals believe that the Bible speak in a symbolic language…so therefore the truth in the Bible resides in the intention or purpose of the author and not in what he actually said.

Judging Genesis view, that means Jesus was in a way misleading us in Matthew 26:26-28 (see also Mark 14: 22-24 and 1 Cor. 11:23-25).

So if Genesis was right that the Bible is full of symbolism and artistic poetry, there where the symbolism ends and the factual part begins? When Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, is it just symbolism? How about when Jesus walks on water or Moses parted the Red Sea, are they just symbolism? Maybe Genesis forgot what Jesus said in John 3:12.

In the issue concerning the Lord’s Supper, Genesis seems to accused atheists of saying Jesus was promoting cannibalism. Another symbolic eh?

For the Roman Catholics, every time the priest perform the Eucharist in their mass, they believe that the communion wafer and the wine miraculously transform into the flesh and blood of the Christ . According to the New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia:

…that in the Eucharist the Body and Blood of the God-man are truly, really, and substantially present for the nourishment of our souls, by reason of the transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ, and that in this change of substances the unbloody Sacrifice of the New Testament is also contained.

According to Catholic apologetics, the appearances of bread and wine stay the same, but the very essence of these realities, which can’t be viewed by a microscope, is totally transformed. What starts as bread and wine becomes Christ’s body and blood. This is came to be called “transubstantiation.”

That’s not symbolic, is it?

And the atheists call it cannibalistic...hehehe...oh come on...

If you went to the Catholic apologetic site called “Catholic Bridge.com”, an article said that, “Some Evangelicals feel that the idea of eating Jesus is Cannibalistic.”

According to a certain Christian blog, "As far as Roman Catholicism is concerned, I maintain that it's outright cannibalism because of the literal way they interpret the Eucharist passages in the NT."

So that's it...it not always the atheists who accused the Lord's Supper as cannibalistic but other Christians as well.

Personally, I don't care if the Roman Catholics practice symbolic cannibalism.

Your reading and view of the Scriptures is like a pianist who reads a nineteenth century composition, plays it, and then telling the composer is wrong...and your little and superficial reading of the Bible has lead your minds to assume that you’ve really understood what you have read where if fact you do not. The Bible is not for you to use against those who believe in it as it has its own character and definition of thoughts. You take “the creation” to be literally in 6 days when the Bible is telling in other verses that the “day of the Lord IS LIKE a thousand years”.. to mean that a day to God means not a 24-hour period like we have here on earth but a “vast span of time”.. Besides, planets have different days.. one day on earth may mean hundred or thousand days on other planets-known and unknown to men.

Again another accusation (*sigh*). When Isaac Asimov says that, “Properly read, the Bible is the most potent force for atheism ever conceived.” He didn’t mean that atheist should read it like a piano composition – that’s why there are only few atheists out there that even bother to read it.

Poch Suzara once told me to throw my Bible out of the window. The late Madalyn Murray O’Hair also said that, “We need not direct our main assault against the Bible or the Koran.” (Indestructible Foundation of Atheism., September/October 1962.)

But there are those who find it necessary and believe me, it’s hard work. So why do some atheists like me do it? As Mr. Dennis McKinsey said it bluntly, “To just ignore the Bible or act as if it did not exist, borders on the absurd. The Book and its followers exercise an enormously negative influence on society.”

Also, as I reflect on the works of John Shelby Spong and Karen Armstrong, atheists like me are just giving religious people like Genesis a high standard of religion. Ignorance distorts our sense of value and intelligent development of religion is blocked when we maintain a certain air of religious exclusivism. Remember, doubt sometimes promotes certainly.

Now let us proceed.

Again, Genesis is blaming us atheists on the issue of the six days Creation. Gosh…it’s not an atheist concern @ Genesis. This is really about another conflicting Christian views between the Young Earth Creationists and the Day-Age Creationist (Old Earth Creationist). Young-Earth Creationists believe that the day in Genesis means 24-hour period. Dr. Henry Morris of the Institute of Creation Research believe in a 24-day period…He’s not an atheist, my gosh he’s the Founder and President Emeritus of ICR ! (read his articles here and here.)

Ok since Genesis seems to believe in the "Day-Age theory", I will discuss this further.

“Day-Age Theory” of Progressive Creation is the view that the “day” in Genesis is equal to a thousand years (See: Psalms 90:4 and 2 Peter 3:8). It is just saying that God measures time differently that humans do…and of course…so the Genesis account will be analogous with scientific cosmology.

According to the Christian Reformed Church - The Back to God Hour (Is Genesis Believable Vol. 45 No. 9), interpreting the creation days as long periods of time is a force meaning that doesn’t fir the words of the Book of Genesis. The context of Genesis is different from Psalms 90:4 and 2 Peter 3:8. When “yom” (the Hebrew word for “day”) is connected with “evening and morning” it means an ordinary 24-hour period.

Ok so here's their issue:

(1) The word translated as "day" is "yom" in the Hebrew, which means a definite 24-hour period from sunset to sunset;

(2) Starting evening and then morning shows a 24-hour period was intended. This was how Jews computed a day;

(3) If a day is an era, why are an evening and a morning even mentioned?;

(4) Actual days must be intended; otherwise, men who lived hundreds of years, e.g., Seth and Noah, would really have lived millions of years. If a day is an era, then a year must be tremendously long, perhaps encompassing hundreds of millions of years;

(5) If a day is an era, then much of the Old Testament becomes chaotic. For example, in each of the following verses the same Hebrew word "yom" is employed: "And the flood was forty days upon the earth" (Gen. 7:17), "And he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights" (Ex. 34:28), and "Thus I fell down before the Lord forty days and forty nights..." (Deut. 9:25). If "yom" means era instead of a 24-hour period, Moses was "there with the Lord" for a long time.

(6) If a day means more than 24-hour period, then how are we to interpret the following verses, as well as scores of others. "Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath.... in it thou shalt not work.... For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth...and rested the seventh day" (Ex. 20:9-11).

(7) Gen. 1:16 ("And God made two great lights: The greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night") states the sun rules the day and the moon rules the night. This obviously is referring to time as we know it--time with days that are 24 hours long, with daylight ruling half of each.

(8) And lastly, Adam was made on the sixth day (Gen. 1:26, 31), which was supposedly thousand of years long. This was followed by the 7th day which was also thousands of years long. Following the 7th day, Adam fell into sin and was expelled from the Garden. This would mean Adam lived thousands of years, which is false, since he died at age 930 (Gen. 5:5).

So much for Christian vs. Christians issues. Let's talk about the implication of Genesis' interpretations.

1. On the 3rd day God created all types of plants, yet it will take God another thousand of years to create the Sun and the moon and another thousand of years to create the animals.

So how did the plants survived without light from the Sun and those animals that will pollinate them for a thousand of years?

2. Did the Sun, the moon and the stars appear on the same period?

3. If God loves humanity so much, why will it take God to create them a thousand years later after creating the animals?

You assumed that when the Bible speaks of “four corners of the earth”, which definitely has a figurative meaning (North, South, East and West).. it is already against science as it teaches a “flat earth”. It is clear that you have not searched deeply into the Scriptures where you could find passages stating like “the circle of the earth”!

About Isaiah 11:12 and Revelation 7:1, are the authors of the said books were referring to a figurative meaning of the four directions (North, East West and South)? Let see:

Most Bible apologists say that the four corners of the Earth mean the cardinal directions: north, south, east, and west. SO? What’s the problem with that? The problem is not the symbolic directions but rather the belief that planet Earth was flat. It’s OK for a flat Earth to have 4 directions. Attempts are made to turn this, and other similar passages, into something symbolic, rather than literal. Ok… Just because this myth is now known to be wrong, doesn't mean we can retroactively apply symbolism to the original author's intention.

Speaking of a flat vs. circle Earth...well, a circle Earth can still be a flat world. Have you ever seen a coin?

According to the Egyptian monk Cosmas Indicopleustes in his book Topographia Christiana, the physical world is flat surrounded by four seas. That’s why prior to Columbus and Magellan, it is believed that you cannot sail beyond Europe sailing west to the East Indies because if you do that…well…you will fall in the “ends of the Earth” (see: Jer. 16:19 and Acts 13:47) beyond the Rock of Gibraltar.

Trying to justify the 10 Commandments.

2010-01-13T11:13:00.004+08:00

Old Testament Theology argues that the Decalogue is perfect not in the quantitative but in the qualitative sense. It is also superior than others because it came from the Creator, while others were merely inventions of men and falsely attributing them to non-existent divine beings.

There is nothing godly with the Decalogue nor does it show anything divinely unique to assume it as heavenly mandated.

In fact, there are no original moral concept in the last five commandments. The Laws of Solon seems to be more better and it even eliminated birth as basis for government office and created the basis of Western democracy - laws that a so-called benevolent god seems to forgotten.

Exodus 20:5 – 7 The Bible verses are indeed strange to atheism.
What’s objectionable about God’s jealousy? Jealousy in an “exclusive” relationship (like God and Israel; like marriage too) is a healthy indication of genuine love.

I'm not really convince with this explanation. You see, jealousy exemplifies the stupidity, insecurity and loser-ness of someone. It shows a lack of confidence and put it bluntly, jealousy is the irrational fear of losing someone, at the hands of a contender. The footnote of the New American Bible even says that jealousy here means demanding exclusive allegiance...Demands? Wow!

Now how on Earth does a "perfect being" still have such irrational fear and demands His people to worship Him?

(See: Deut. 4:24; 5:9, Joshua 24:19, Ezekiel 38;19, Nahum 1:2 and Zec. 8:2)

Exodus 20:12 - Long life is a blessing that God will give to His covenant-people when they honor their parents. It was not a meant to explain a natural occurrence.

There is no problem in the issue of honoring ones parents - but why the rewards? Can't you not honor them without expecting anything?

That's the problem with religious morality. it is only effective through rewards and punishment and according to how well one snaps into line with a prescribe sets of rules. Motivation to the act is base not on the agent's primary motive for acting but on the sactions and recompenses accompanying the rule.

Exodus 20:13 - The verse should be translated as “murder” (the illegitimate way of taking a person’s life), not the broader term “kill.”

God is the author of life. He has every right to take away man’s life. He commanded His covenant-people Israel to execute justice on His behalf by taking away the life of those whom He judged as guilty and ran out of time from the grace period He gave. However, God did not extend this command to His new covenant-people.

Murder...not kill huh? So I suppose those 47 revisers that James I called in January 1604 erred huh?

Ah OK...the NIV (New International Version) say it is "murder" not "kill". Yet some Christians say that the NIV is not textually trustworthy and they would not trust the NIV rendering of a (take note) word and phrase without first consulting the original languages (Translation On Trial - Is the Bible the Word of God? Robert G. Gromacki p.50)

It is also noted that some Bible translation used "kill" not "murder".

Hebrew Transliterated20:13 L'a ThUrTShCh.
Latin Vulgate20:13 non occides
King James Version20:13 Thou shalt not kill.
American Standard Version20:13 Thou shalt not kill.
Darby's English Translation20:13 Thou shalt not kill.
Douay Rheims Bible20:13 Thou shalt not kill.
Noah Webster Bible20:13 Thou shalt not kill.

But even if I accept the excuse, it still doesn't get God off the hook. You see, murder is defined by the Philippine Revised Penal Code as:

Title 8, Chapter 1, Sec. 1, Art. 248. Murder. — Any person who, not falling within the provisions of Article 246 shall kill another, shall be guilty of murder and shall be punished by reclusion temporal in its maximum period to death, if committed with any of the following attendant circumstances:

1. With treachery, taking advantage of superior strength, with the aid of armed men, or employing means to weaken the defense or of means or persons to insure or afford impunity.

2. In consideration of a price, reward, or promise.

3. By means of inundation, fire, poison, explosion, shipwreck, stranding of a vessel, derailment or assault upon a street car or locomotive, fall of an airship, by means of motor vehicles, or with the use of any other means involving great waste and ruin.

4. On occasion of any of the calamities enumerated in the preceding paragraph, or of an earthquake, eruption of a volcano, destructive cyclone, epidemic or other public calamity.

5. With evident premeditation.

6. With cruelty, by deliberately and inhumanly augmenting the suffering of the victim, or outraging or scoffing at his person or corpse

Now, let us read the following:

"Then I heard the LORD say to the other men, "Follow him through the city and kill everyone whose forehead is not marked. Show no mercy; have no pity! Kill them all – old and young, girls and women and little children. But do not touch anyone with the mark. Begin your task right here at the Temple." So they began by killing the seventy leaders. "Defile the Temple!" the LORD commanded. "Fill its courtyards with the bodies of those you kill! Go!" So they went throughout the city and did as they were told." (Ezekiel 9:5-7 NLT)

Numbers 31:17-18 (King James Version)
17Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him.
18But all the women children, that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.

"Next we headed for the land of Bashan, where King Og and his army attacked us at Edrei. But the LORD told me, 'Do not be afraid of him, for I have given you victory over Og and his army, giving you his entire land. Treat him just as you treated King Sihon of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon.' So the LORD our God handed King Og and all his people over to us, and we killed them all. We conquered all sixty of his towns, the entire Argob region in his kingdom of Bashan. These were all fortified cities with high walls and barred gates. We also took many unwalled villages at the same time. We completely destroyed the kingdom of Bashan, just as we had destroyed King Sihon of Heshbon. We destroyed all the people in every town we conquered – men, women, and children alike. But we kept all the livestock for ourselves and took plunder from all the towns." (Deuteronomy 3:1-7 NLT)

In where I stand, when someone orders a person to kill defenseless babies and elders, that tantamount to murder. (See; U.S. vs. Charles Manson)

(BTW: Murder has nothing to do with justice)

Exodus 20:17 - It disregards other commandments about wives, esp in Lev. 18 & 20, which shows how God wanted women to be treated with respect and dignity.

Will you please re-read Leviticus Chapter 18 to 20. Notice that the laws were made not to respect women but how not to disgrace your father, your uncle, your son, your brother and your neighbor. Also, the same book says that when a woman gave birth to a female child, she is unclean for 2 weeks compare to a male child. (Lev. 12: 2-5).

The Bible will always treat women as a mere property of man. She was created on Adam's rib and Adam named her as he has named all the animals. She doesn't share Adam's status, his glory and his divine image. Her role was Adam's helpmeet, his companionship and to bring him pleasure...that's until the time when gender vanishes (Gal. 3:26-28)...according to the woman loathing Paul!

The Black Jesus

2010-01-11T09:01:00.002+08:00

I'm not talking about a soulman who think he's Jesus...nope...I'm talking about a certain image of Jesus hailed as a celebrity in a district in downtown Manila. Every January 9, thousands of devotees from all walks of life come to Quiapo to take part in the procession as a way of strengthening their faith or fulfilling their “panata” (vow) to the Feast of the Black Nazarene.

The Black Nazarene is a life-sized, dark-colored, wooden sculpture of a "black" Jesus Christ carrying a cross held to be miraculous by many Filipino devotees. Its original carver is an anonymous Aztec carpenter and the image was transported by a galleon from Acapulco, Mexico by the first group of Augustinian Recollect friars sent by Spain. Legend has it that the Black Nazarene was charred black because of a fire that broke out on the galleon during its trip to Manila from Mexico. It arrived on May 31, 1606, in this form and has always been depicted as such.

It was transferred from its old home from San Nicolas de Tolentino in Intramuros to its present site in Quiapo, Manila at the Saint John de Baptist Church (Now called Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene) in 1787 by then Archbishop of Manila, Basilio Sancho de Santa Junta y Rufina.

On the day of The Feast, the church doors open wide and the pilgrims of the area and abroad search for healing and hope. They wave white towels and throw them towards the statue hoping for the chance to touch the image too. The procession begins and the statue in its gilded carriage moves slowly as honored participants dressed in maroon pull the carriage along ropes as thousands of barefoot devotees follow along. The procession followers walk barefoot to mirror Jesus as walked on to Mount Caramel.

It is said that only the body of the Black Nazarene is displayed in the procession, the original head portion of the statue is safely protected in the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene tucked away in the high altars.

Just last January 9, 2010, it was estimated that at least two million devotees of the Black Nazarene flooded the area from Luneta to Quiapo to join the holy procession. Walking barefoot, these devotees will endure the intense heat of the midday Sun, the crushing crowd and the hot asphalt pavement just to touch or wipe a towel on the body of the paraded idol.

So why do you think these devotees will do all that trouble?

Let see...I think it's all about petitions - the request for some benefit or a reparation of a grievance. Come on guys...you won't do all those sacrifices without expecting any compensation. It's really a form of ancient worship. Our ancestors created elaborate ceremonies and rituals to please the gods so rain will fall on dry rice fields. Sacrifices and fasting are required for a bountiful harvests.

Biblical speaking, such practices are forbidden (unless you're a Roman Catholic) Exodus 20:4-6 is quite clear in the issue.

"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I The Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me; And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love Me, and keep My Commandments"

Is Jesus a Nazarene or from Nazareth?

There is a lot of issue concerning the word Nazareth in Jesus' title. Are we saying that Jesus was from Nazareth or if he's a member of the Nazarene sect?

Christian will gladly point our Matthew 2:23 for the answer.

And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene.

But a thorough search of the Old Testament will turn up nothing. There isn't any prophet in the Old Testament that prophesied it. In fact, the town of Nazareth is never mentioned in the Old Testament.

Excuses varies. Some suggest that Matthew refers to Isaiah 11:1 yet Isaiah nor the whole Old Testament never indicated or even implied that the Messiah will be called a "nester".

There are also who would say that the Nazarene in Matthew refers to the Nazirite. If you are not familiar with it, it can be found in described in Numbers 6:1-21.

It is said the person that took the Nazirite vow should follow the following:

1. Abstain from wine, wine vinegar, grapes, raisins, and according to some — alcohol and vinegar from alcohol.
2. Refrain from cutting the hair on one's head.
3. Avoid corpses and graves, even those of family members, and any structure which contains such.

So, is Jesus a Nazirite?

Jesus couldn't have been a Nazarite by vow because He didn't live alone or apart, He drank wine, and He touched and raised the dead.

Also, Matthew was clear that Jesus was called a Nazarene (Nazaraios) because he lived in a town called Nazareth. So there! The issue about "natser" or "natsar" or nazir" has no bearing. Matthew 2:23 is a "fulfillment" of a non-existing prophecy.

Is it possible that Jesus and his black counterpart are just stuff of legends? I'll just leave this thought to the devotees...as Ol' Bernie Russell once said, "Historically it is quite doubtful whether Christ ever existed at all, or if he did we know nothing about him".

And the Bible said...

2010-01-07T21:20:00.000+08:00

Recently, I have a very bad conversation with a certain Christian who calls itself “tutti”. I think this fellow really does not have any idea what an atheist is. He keeps giving me Bible verses to prove his point. It is not really a surprise.

Majority of Christians that I have met used the Bible in their argument as if the Bible is the epitome of truth and answers. Well if you think that the Bible is the word of a certain omnipotent, omniscient deity, you will take its word as certainty. Remember, Christian fundamentalism accepts the Bible as a credible source in science and history. If you really like to hear idiotic responses, try talking to a Christian fundy about the Bible.

Opinions about the Bible vary from different atheists, but majority think that biblical criticism is futile. The American Atheist Center even feels that it is demeaning to an atheist to argue with a Fundy over his “holy” book. The problem about Bible topics is that the book is by faith, not reason. Oh sure, a person cannot be swallowed by a fish, yet the Bible said so. Man cannot walk on water, but the Bible said so. Water cannot supernaturally change to wine but the Bible said so. An egg cannot “sit” in a castle wall, but Humpy Dumpy said so. Wolves cannot dress up like Grandma, but Little Red Riding Hood said so. You see when we talk about the Bible, we are entering the Christian fundy’s fantastic realm of gods, angels, demons, messiahs, dungeons and dragons. You cannot win a logical discussion when Peter Pan and the Fairy God Mother confront you.

Then why will a Christian Fundy like “tutti” use its chapters and verses when discussing to an atheist? What is the point? I really do not have the slightest idea why Christian fundies use the Bible to an atheist. Maybe because they think that atheism is also a religion or that an atheist will accept his/her verses because the “holy spirit” is on their side.

A Christian can also use the biblical descriptions of sin and hell. Surely, it will scare an atheist out of his wits. In the first part of tutti’s response, he did not forget of putting sin, salvation and the damnation in hell first. I remember when I am still a Born-Again Christian; I also use a lot of this scary concept to discourage free inquiry in relation to biblical subjects. However, is it effective?

Let me put this straight. Atheists do not sin. Surprised? It is easy to explain. You see, according to Christian belief, sin is the transgression of god’s law. Since an atheist does not believe in the existence of a god, VIOLA! Sin does not exist too. Therefore, what is the point of talking about sins? What is the point of talking about salvation from sin? Moreover, what is the use of the concept of hell? So what is the point of using the Bible to justify your belief to an atheist?

Here is another problem about the Bible. It seems Christians have a divided issue when it comes to Bible interpretation. I am not really in the position to say who the real Christian is or who is not. So let us say, all these Bible fanatics are Christians. According to their belief system, Christians trust the infallibility of the Bible yet it seems there is a big problem in interpreting the book. There is really a wide range of different Bible hermeneutics. For example, suppose I am talking to three Christians belonging to three different Christian sects. Now one person is explaining to me about the trinity. The other two might disagree with him. It might even end as a debate between the three Christians.

Roman Catholic can justify their stones and wooden saints using the Bible, yet fundamentalist Christians can castigate the Roman Catholics for worshipping graven image using the Bible. The Iglesia ni Cristo can wage war of words to Eliseo Soriano’s Church of God, International using the Bible.

Do you know that different Christian sects interpret a single verse like John 1:1 in different ways?

Now what truth and answer shall I derive from that?

If these Christians cannot even reconcile their differences, then why will they expect a heretic like me to take their claim seriously?