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Author Topic:   I need an answer
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3457 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004


(1)
Message 10 of 58 (565687)
06-19-2010 8:05 AM
Reply to: Message 1 by RyanVanGo
06-16-2010 11:34 AM


Why The Need for Proof?
quote:
Instead i need to see proof that the earth WAS formed 10000 years ago, and not only that, but that God is the one who formed it, with his hands, in 6 days. WITHOUT saying that our theories are wrong, but proposing new ones. please. my sanity and spirituality are on the line here.
Why do you need proof for either side concerning creation? Will it change your day to day activities? Will it change how you manifest your belief system? Will it change whether you have a belief system or not?
If the answer is no to all of those, then your sanity and spirituality are not on the line.
Religion is not science.
Biblical Creation and Storytelling
ABSTRACT: The literary conventions employed in Genesis chapter 1 mark it out, not as a scientific document describing material origins, but as a literary polemic against surrounding ancient Near Eastern pagan religions. This interpretation divests the text from any obligation to communicate accurate science to the modern reader. Genesis 1 is a theological-political document that has nothing to do with science as the modern reader understands it. Creation language here and elsewhere in Scripture is not about establishing scientific origins of material substance and structure but about covenantal establishment and worldview.
The creation stories are not science and were not intended to give the answer you're looking for. Try to understand the stories as their original audience would have understood them.
Interpreting the creation story of Genesis with an expectation of modern scientific discourse is hermeneutical violence. The notion of creation and existence in the biblical ancient Near East was not one of physics, life sciences, material substance and structure, it was a story explaining the creation of the functions of the world through naming, separation and purpose. Purpose (teleology) is theological not empirical and does not therefore require any scientific theory, be it young earth creationism or theistic evolution.
I enjoy science but the age of the planet has no bearing on my daily life or my spiritual life.

Scripture is like Newton’s third law of motionfor every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
In other words, for every biblical directive that exists, there is another scriptural mandate challenging it.
-- Carlene Cross in The Bible and Newton’s Third Law of Motion

This message is a reply to:
 Message 1 by RyanVanGo, posted 06-16-2010 11:34 AM RyanVanGo has replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 12 by RyanVanGo, posted 06-22-2010 1:36 PM purpledawn has replied

  
purpledawn
Member (Idle past 3457 days)
Posts: 4453
From: Indiana
Joined: 04-25-2004


(1)
Message 16 of 58 (566051)
06-22-2010 4:29 PM
Reply to: Message 12 by RyanVanGo
06-22-2010 1:36 PM


Re: Why The Need for Proof?
quote:
Well quite simply, no one ever specifically told me if i was supposed to take the bible literally.
No one told me either. Of course, I don't recall anyone telling me as an adult how to understand a book.
quote:
So if it's ever proven that the earth is 10,000 years old, that's the first step in a whole new series of questions to determine who/what i believe in.
The age of the planet isn't mentioned in the Bible, so the age of the planet is irrelevant to current religion or in determining who to believe. In reality, the people of the Bible didn't know they were on a planet or that there was more than the lands they knew.
quote:
Right now, the reason I've really started to chase this down, is that my belief that the story of Jesus may be not just inaccurate but a 100% complete fabrication. I like the idea that this was the son of God and died for my sins, despite that fact that there is no evidence, besides the bible and folklore (for lack of a more respectable term).
If you like the idea, then go with it. Why do you like the idea? Is it because of a possible afterlife?
quote:
It's a vicious cycle really. I have already questioned and eventually denied almost everything in that book because of rational thought, which soon I'm afraid will cause me to deny the entire book, then deny the existence of God or a god. to the atheist this doesn't matter, but when you go further it means there is no reason, short of self preservation, to obey any sort of morals. It's kind of depressing really.
You're going through a spiritual crisis. Been there, done that. Try studying what the Bible is and not what current religion or you want it to be. Each writing, whether fiction, poetry, or history; had a point to make to the civilization of the time. Remember, it was written for you.
Moral lessons, hope, and information can be passed through poetry, fiction, myth, legends, fables and parables. Lack of a god doesn't change one's moral fiber unless one wishes it to, just as having a god doesn't change one's moral fiber unless one wishes it to. So whatever path you choose is up to you. Don't blame it on a lack of a god. You decide whether you want to be a moral and ethical person or not.

Scripture is like Newton’s third law of motionfor every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
In other words, for every biblical directive that exists, there is another scriptural mandate challenging it.
-- Carlene Cross in The Bible and Newton’s Third Law of Motion

This message is a reply to:
 Message 12 by RyanVanGo, posted 06-22-2010 1:36 PM RyanVanGo has not replied

  
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