Buffet-Style Bible Believers

[OkToBeTakei]

OKTBT, what would you say if you met a bunch of neo nazis wearing hitler T-shirts, and they weeped: but I haven't even read "Mein Kampf"! I just likez the idea of neo-naziism in genrull! I am totally not like that, I iz a different kind of neo-nazi and you iz being mean to me? I just want to make the wurld a better and a safer place and raid it ov ebul!

Would that sound comforting to you?

I honestly was not going to dignify this with an answer. But after some thought I will.

I find your brand of extremism just as frightening as that which you are trying to argue against.

[Mama Mia]

I honestly was not going to dignify this with an answer. But after some thought I will.

I find your brand of extremism just as frightening as that which you are trying to argue against.

It isn't even just the extremism that I am finding really off-putting, it's the silly stuff like talking like a "i haz cheeseburger cat", and the cartoons - obviously just trying really, really, really hard to be as abrasive as possible to provoke people - but really coming across like a child having a tantrum. AVEnues, surely you must see that you aren't actually going to engage anyone in any sort of actual debate of exchange of ideas when you are just stomping your foot and calling names.

[LilMissMetaphor]

I hate

Fixed that for you.

[Rachel333]

I don't really have a problem with cherry-picking Christians, honestly. I think everyone does it with their beliefs to some extent, religious or not. What does frustrate me is when Christians completely ignore the unsavory stuff in the Bible, and I feel like I've seen a bit of that from some Christians on this site (and a lot more in real life). I have a lot of respect for the people who can just own up to it even if they keep believing. I hope it's okay to quote someone from another thread, but treehugger [link=http://freejinger.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=17751&start=120#p566798]wrote[/link]:

There is still a lot of stuff in the Bible that I have a hard time coming to grips with, and I don't know near all the answers. It is probably hugely inconsistent of me, but I prefer to focus on the good things of Christianity (mostly the teachings of Christ) and hope and pray that in the end, no one goes to hell.

I totally get and respect that.

[2xx1xy1JD]

Stupid question here, but how many Christian groups actually ignore difficult Bible passages?

I'm only familiar with Jewish services, and the entire 5 Books of Moses are read every year. You'll see a bunch of different explanations - some straightforward, some convoluted, some traditional, some modern - but once you are dealing with adults, it's all on the table and up for discussion. Lots and lots of discussion.

[France Nolan]

Yeah, I can only speak for the ELCA churches I've attended but we do acknowledge the existence of "troublesome" Bible stories: murder, rape, pillaging, sexism, etc. We're a church where women can be pastors and *gasp* bishops so we regularly grapple with the blatant sexism in the Bible. We had to know our Bibles cover to cover in order to be recommended for confirmation.

As Lutherans we also read Luther's works (Small Catechism, Augsburg Confessions, Book of Concord). Those aren't read during services but we do study them in Sunday School, Confirmation Class, and adult classes. There are a lot of Luther's writings that are awful. For example, he was virulently anti-Semitic and his writing have been used as justification for persecuting Jews. Those writings are no longer used by the church and the ELCA has publicly denounced them. Luther isn't taught as a hero but as a man with some MAJOR human failings.

There's a lot of uncomfortable stuff, but we acknowledge it and discuss it. We hardly think that Bible is full of happy fun times for everyone involved. Quite the contrary.

[Arete]

The unsavory parts of the Bible can't be ignored. We were taught that a lot of the ugly things were the writers and compilers trying to come to grips with the dark side of human existence and why God allows bad things to happen. That these people did see wars, rapes, genocides, experiences sieges, experience persecution. That on some things, we were always going to grapple and not come up with good answers (the book of Job). They weren't there so we could say, "Cool! Here's a passage that justifies the stoning of homosexuals." or "Paul is so incredibly awesome we are going to pattern married life on a few of his verses". In general, there is a lot more, and I mean a lot more, emphasis on trying to find communion with God individually than there is one Bible reading in the Orthodox church. Yes, you should read it, but certainly not as some kind of "owner's manual" and definitely not as a book of science. In our part of the sandbox, it's OK to say that some things are awful and we don't understand everything. We acknowledge different interpretations on events and what they mean in modern life.

[Ting1789]

I think people would be a lot better off if they first read A History of God by Karen Armstrong and then read the bible. They'd be able to see this god for what he is - a mish mash of ancient gods, particularly a nasty war god, and the bible is merely the fictitious accounts of desert thugs.

I'm glad people are buffet style believers because it means that they're more moral than their god.